Newb Here With Newb Questions

Hey guys, im new here, i DO NOT own a S/C but these cars seem very appealing to me so i have a few basic questions regarding them.

1.The 3.8L motor has the head gasket issue....whats the main reason and how can it be permenantelly resolved.

2. Is the 3.8L beefed up in any way to handle the supercharged? Forged internals, low compression ratios, etc?

3. How reliable is the stock transmission?

4.What is the "safe" level of whp the motor and tranny can handle (whats the drivetrain good for without heavily modifying it)

Thank you all very much for answering,

Cheers!

Well if you are thinking about getting an SC, be prepared to have headgasket, transmission and brake issues. Well the brake problems only tend to plague the 89 to 92 models. the reason for the head gasket failures is that the aluminum heads and the steel head gaskets don't work too well together. Different metals, water , heat and pressure all combine to eventually blow the head gaskets. Alot of people have used head gaskets from the ford v-6 trucks pretty successfully. The early model (again 89-93) AOD tranny seems to have it's share of problems, particularly the overdrive going out. You would be much safer with a 5-speed, however the second gear synchros will sometimes give you problems on these. I am by no means an expert mechanic, just speaking from experience as I have owned five SCs, auto and standard shift. As you read the forums you will see alot of issues that are common among the SC. Even with the issues I will always own one. When it's running right, there's nothing like it. I hope this helps.

Is there an aftermarket headgasket for the 3.8 that will for good cure the problem or is it an ongoing battle?

There are a few gaskets, the 4.2L MLS or the Felpro ones. Both are huge improvements over stock.
Also anything you do to increase cooling and exhaust flow will defenatly help your head gaskets.
The internals are different from the n/a 3.8 so you'll be fine unless you want to make some massive power. We're talking 350whp or more.

I'd say get ur exhaust done, put some ARP head studs with fresh gaskets and you are good to go.

Thanks for the info guys.

I come from the SHO Taurus world so i am not too familiar with these motors. The sho motor is all forged minus the pistons so 400whp is achieavble.

Do these motors suffer from rod bearing failure? Reason i ask is because this is the case with a few sho's out there and it can happen at any time. How quick can you get is with a smaller pulley and other typical bolt ons?

As stated, the most common problem with these cars is the HG and transmission, really. I've owned 2 SCs and have never had to replace a blown HG. Nor have I had to replace/rebuild a transmission.

Rod bearing failure is not really an issue with these cars, unless the HG goes and you get coolant in the oil. Then you can have bearing issues on the bottom end. Felpro HG with ARP head studs provide adequate protection against future HG failure, but will not eliminate it altogether. A tune to ensure that you're not running lean is a must on a forced induction car. That will also play into whether or not you're digging into the motor to replace the HG.

Bolt on parts can get you into the 13's and some rare cases, the 12s. But generally speaking you've got to have some head work to get that fast. I've personally run a 14.3 while shifting into OD at about 1000' killing both my et and my mph. That problem has been remedied by a new (Lentech) valve body. The AOD is really not a big problem as long as you get yourself a tranny cooler and some type of shift kit, preferably a Lentech valve body.

As far as the SC 3.8 being different than an N/A 3.8, there's a write-up here on this site that addresses that exact question. It's either in the FAQ section or the multimedia section...I don't recall which one.

Thanks for the info Sam,

Yeah i read about the differences between the N/A 3.8 and the S/C. With all those bolt ons and running 13's.....how good is the fuel system for? And is the motor safe and realiable for 13's?

I hammered a rod bearing flat .. the fluid filled Motor mounts fail on these cars, which can cause the oil pan to rest on the subframe and possibly rub through or crack - happened in my situation and lost all of the motor oil which took out the rod bearing. Nothing a little preventative maintenance wouldnt have taken care of.

- Dan

Striker001 said:

Thanks for the info Sam,

Yeah i read about the differences between the N/A 3.8 and the S/C. With all those bolt ons and running 13's.....how good is the fuel system for? And is the motor safe and realiable for 13's?

Click to expand...

The motor will be fine making power to run 13s. You don't need to worry about that at all, so long as you're not trying to run 13s all day, every day!

As far as the fuel system is concerned, you will definately need a new fuel pump, 255lph FI fuel pump is recommended because it will allow you to grow further. You will also need injectors. 42 lb injectors will suffice, but will run out somewhere...I'm not sure exactly, but I think it's around 340-350 rwhp.

I consider my SC a 13 second SC although I haven't been able to get it to a 1/4 mile track this year. The local one closed down! I drive my SC every day. I take care of it and don't let one problem drag on without getting it fixed. I've owned this particular SC for nearly 4 years now and have had no issues with it at all. I will mention that I was lucky though in that when I swapped my heads this spring, my HG had not failed yet, but it was not far off. I'm hoping that I'll be better off now that I have them changed.