going from e6 to e7 heads

[tribaltalon]

would this be any kind of a performance gain? a buddy of mine is giving me a set of low mile e7s, and i'm tempted to slap em on the 86 and see if they work any better then my e6's. i'm tempted to port them but i dont want to pay anybody any money, if i'm gonna spend money i might as well get aluminum heads. are there any good how to writeups on e7 heads out there? currently the 86 runs low 14s on street tire with the e6's, if i could get it to run 13s with the e7s that'd be pretty cool.

[86capriASC]

I home ported my old e-7's and noticed a huge seat of the pants difference.

I say go for it.

[86capriASC]

this may help you.

http://www.mustangandfords.com/techa.../photo_12.html

[86capriASC]

This one is very good.

http://www.diyporting.com/

[PaceFever79]

I have a set of low mile E7 heads with 3 angle valve job and dual valve springs.

Basically bolt them on and go. PM me if you're interested.

[tribaltalon]

well i guess you missed the part where i said i was getting a set for free. so im good to go.

[PaceFever79]

lol.... yep

[v8only]

don't bother...they probably won't fit.

it's a 50/50....I've personally had two friends run into piston to valve clearance while trying to put e7's on an 86 engine

[Ford'sCapri]

don't bother...they probably won't fit.

it's a 50/50....I've personally had two friends run into piston to valve clearance while trying to put e7's on an 86 engine

This is true because the 86 pistons usually don't have valve reliefs. However, I have seen some 5.0's that have the E6 heads and pistons with valve reliefs. Always clay up the pistons and check the valve clearances before you slap the thing together.

[slow84lx]

don't bother...they probably won't fit.

it's a 50/50....I've personally had two friends run into piston to valve clearance while trying to put e7's on an 86 engine

Don't be negative by telling him not to bother. He got them for free. We all like a free upgrade and this could be that for him. I do agree with you in that it is a crap shoot on whether the E7's will have enough p to v clearance on the '86 flat top pistons. There are many stories either way.

OP, Just be sure and clay the pistons to check for adequate clearance. If there is not, someone posted up a cheap, effective, redneck way to get the needed clearance. It is worth a shot.....maybe not if you don't do some port work on those heads first though. Here is the link.:http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthread.php?t=72615

good luck with your project.

[v8only]

I'm not trying to be negative, just realistic.

it's my firm "opinion" that all that work isn't worth it anyhow, even if he knew it would fit. e7 heads really won't offer a substantial improvement that will leave you satisfied over the long run.

It's going to be an absolute ton of work to pull everything off, clay it, bolt it together, check the clay, then either put it back together stock, or if he's "lucky" with e7 heads.

an engine swap is honestly as easy or easier than a head swap...it may be better for the original poster to find a used 87-95 5.0L out of a mustang and swap in that entire motor. At least it would offer him upgradeability to swap on gt40 heads, or any alum heads and a healthy cam in the future.

it's just a ton of work with no gaurantee that all you'll be when your done is just as fast as all the other factory stock 87-93 mustangs.

[capri debris]

P to V clearance is not the only thing you need to be concerned about. Running flat top pistons with E7s is going to change the compression ratio too. E6s are bad, but E7s aren't much better... free is hard to turn down, but if you're going to go through the trouble of swapping heads, just get something good and do it once.

[4eyex2]

I got lucky when I did the swap. Went from a best of 14.99 to a 13.93, so it was def worth the swap.

After some other work, that same motor saw a 13.05....

[Truxton]

It's worth a shot - he's getting the e-7s for free and the e-6s are pretty restrictive. I say give it a try!