New member with questions

[highpockets58]

I hope this doesn't offend anyone, but I am considering purchasing a 95 SHO with intentions of putting the engine in a 58 Ford. I'm doing it mostly for the looks because the SHO is such an awesome looking engine. I have read some articles about using Aerostar transmission/bells, but most of those are about manuals. I would like to use an AOD. Did the Aerostar have AODs, and weren't some of the Aerostars all wheel drive? Does it have to be a rear wheel drive only? Also, are parts available for the SHO engine, not that I need any now, but if I go to all the work to get this engine to fit, I would like to know I can buy service parts if needed. Another ??? The owner wants quite a bit of $$ for the car and it has some body damage and transmission issues. It does have the lower suspension kit and a perfomance exhaust system. Are these parts resellable along with body/interior/trim/wheels? I wouldn't hesitate to buy the car if I thought I could get some of my money back by parting out the remains. I would sure appreciate any help/suggestions. Thanks,,,,,,Highpockets

 

[Phoenix]

Welcome in , the sho engine is great and its been transplanted in numerous vehicules and hotrods. I hope you will find everything you need.

 

[LOUDSHO92]

Any car that has a 3.0 Vulcan will work like the Ranger or Aerostar, transmission wise.

Most of teh parts can be resold depending on condition.

 

[expy916]

Are you in South Dakota or San Diego?

 

[sperold]

There are many motors out there that are a direct bolt in, if yours is an American model it had the Y-block (272 - 292 - 312), and if it was Canadian it had the FE series 332 (of the 332 -352-390-406-427-428 series). All of these motors are a direct, no fuss bolt in (as well as the inline 6's of the era. A lot of people have put 302s and 351s; and 429s and 460s in these cars, and all of these motors are relatively inexpensive.
It will be a challenge to install the SHO motor, the computer and the wiring modules, but it can be done.
Your 58 will weight about 3800 pounds, so it is no lightweight.
Your 58 already has the famous 9 inch rear gear carrier, so any ratio is availabe to you.

Don't buy an expensive 95 with body issues to start the transplant. Check the for sale section of this thread to see what things sell for. You are not going to make much money back from salvaged parts.

You are right, the SHO engine looks impressive.
A 406 / 427 with tri-power looks very impressive.
A stock 429 / 460 will feel very impressive.

 

[highpockets58]

SHO in a 58

Thanks for the answers so far. I am in South Dakota. The car is a Sedan Delivery and was originally a 6 cylinder. It is currently a 302 with a 5 speed. Car is very nice and doesn't have any problems, but I am just bored with it and am thinking about redoing it again with different engine/trans, paint, etc. I have had big block FEs with tri powers in another 58 and I have owned a few 460s. I am not looking for power, I'm looking for appearance and economy,,,I drive this 58 a lot, over 30,000 miles since I last rebuilt it. I will attach a picture of the car. I have heard the story about Rangers and others interchanging, but also read that that isn't so,,,only the Aerostar. Again,,thanks for the imput.

 

[sperold]

If you want appearance and economy, the SHO is for you.
You may already have a near 4.0 rear axle ratio, so when you up the power, you can dial back on the ratio and get some more ecomomy.
Look into a Mustang automatic (3.8 liter) for your transmission needs, I don't know what the pitfalls are, but someone will. There are wide ratio and narrow ratio Mustang automatics, depending on what you want, with what rear axle you run.
Nice Sedan Delivery.

 

[rubydist]

Welcome!

The SHO engine can be obtained for around $400, so I would not pay more than $700-800 for a car that I only wanted for the engine and wiring. I don't know how that compares to the "quite a bit of $$" that the present owner wants for the car.

The SHO engine shares the bell housing pattern of the 3.0 Vulcan engine, so you can use Aerostar manual or automatic as well as Ranger, etc. transmissions. If you want an automatic, you will need an early one that does not use computer-controlled shifting, or else you will need to get a tuner for the SHO pcm to allow you to change shift logic to make the 'new' transmission work.

Many parts of the remaining SHO vehicle would be able to be sold, but it may take a while.

since your sedan delivery has the aerodynamics of a brick, you will need to have the engine running at an rpm of at least 2500 to push it down the road happily, so you can use that to determine what kind of gear ratio you want to select. Nice looking unit, btw.

Good luck!

 

[highpockets58]

Thanks for that info. The asking price on the SHO is $1,000,,so that is maybe a little high. Are you sure on the Vulcan 3.0 transmissions,,,,Ranger as well as Aerostar? I need to know for sure because I am going to check out some transmission donors before I buy the engine/car. When you say "earlier" transmission donors,,,like what years? Thanks a lot for all the help. I know this will be a major swap, so I really want to make sure I have the correct info before starting.

 

[rubydist]

I would offer $600-700 and hopefully settle on $800, based on your description.

yes, vulcan transmissions will work. if you search, you will find threads where guys have put Ranger auto and manual trans behind the SHO motor. if you search on the Ranger or Explorer forums, you will find lots of information on the auto trans and their issues and potential. I would do that searching before spending $$.

 

[Phoenix]

I think offroadsho is also the guy to speak with for rwd applications , he used to make some adaptor plates to fit a T-5 if I remember correctly.

 

[LOUDSHO92]

Thanks for that info. The asking price on the SHO is $1,000,,so that is maybe a little high. Are you sure on the Vulcan 3.0 transmissions,,,,Ranger as well as Aerostar? I need to know for sure because I am going to check out some transmission donors before I buy the engine/car. When you say "earlier" transmission donors,,,like what years? Thanks a lot for all the help. I know this will be a major swap, so I really want to make sure I have the correct info before starting.

Yes they will work. I know of a guy with a Ranger running a Ranger transmission with his SHo motor. The Vulcan and SHO share the same bolt pattern.

 

[highpockets58]

I still haven't bought the SHO for the engine. I am still pondering transmission issues. I kinda wanted to go with an AOD, but found the earlier ones were linkage (pressure) contolled, so that would be a hurdle. Laters were electronic, so that would be a computer issue. Both would be quite involved. My car currently is a T-5 from a 88 GT Mustang, so that is all set up. I have 3.25 rear gears. I read that if you use a Aerostar manual bell, you need to use an adapter, which in turn requires a later 5 speed (95-up) that has a longer input shaft to make up for the adapter, so then my current 5 speed won't work. If the Ranger bell fits, can I use the bell & transmission from the Ranger? What about flywheels? Will the Ranger flywheel and clutch parts fit the SHO? Are the SHO oil pans front/rear/center sump? Sorry for all the questions, but I don't want to start spending money buying parts that won't interchange. Thanks to everyone so far.

 

[sperold]

I am assuming your 302 has a carburetor now. Have you considered freshening up your 302 and going fuel injection. I believe you can buy engine management systems complete with harnesses for this conversion.
I am sure you will get additional economy going that route, but you don't get the wow factor of the SHO engine, although some FI systems look pretty good. You will be able to leave in the rear gearing you have now. The SHO has a 3.7 final drive ratio and most people complain that is not enough with the engines high rev capabilities.
Not trying to rain on the parade, just another option.

 

[rubydist]

the Ranger trans has a hydraulic clutch system and the SHO is mechanical linkage, so you will need to figure out the clutch mechanism. iirc, the SHO clutch pressure plate will work, and you will need a clutch disk from a Lumina, which has the right spline for the Ranger trans.

SHO pan is sump nearly the whole length, just a little shallow section at the 'front'.

3.25 will be too tall of axle ratio, unless you have tiny tires. most would suggest closer to 4.00.

 

[LOUDSHO92]

You can use the whole Ranger tranny. I belive the bellhousing is integrated though.

Lupo would be the guy to talk to as he has a SHO Ranger.