Ford Mustang GT 302
Suddenly, the excitement, the energy, the pride are palpable. Even in the midst of severe economic problems, and after an absence of more than a decade, Ford Motor Company has decided to put itself back into racing and back into the high-performance production car business. It's part of Ford's new marketing strategy. Public reaction to this return to big-league racing has been overwhelmingly positive; a whirlwind of mail has told the company to start building something that's quick, fast, and fun to drive, like the Miller Zakspeed Mustang. Ford has responded with a high-performance 5-liter (302 cid) HO engine package, applicable to all 1982 Mustang and Capri models, but best blended with the new Mustang GT or Capri RS.
302 V-8 was taken out of the Mustang lineup after 1979 and replaced by a smaller, weak-kneed 255 cid V-8 sold only with automatic transmissions and cruising gear ratios. A woefully inadequate turbocharged 4-cylinder combination was marketed but ultimately scrapped. The Mustang was losing image after 15 years on the market, in spite of a new body and a superior TRX handling package. Enter a new regime, a new commitment to competition, and, in the early spring of this year, a program to wake up the 302 and the chassis it goes into, to build a new image leader.
Radically changed, but it's almost 30 horsepower stronger, with nearly 6% more peak torque and a much higher, wider torque curve overall. The camshaft profile for the 302 HO engine was taken directly from the company's marine parts bin for more lift, duration and overlap time. Intake and exhaust valve diameters have not been changed, but exhaust valves for the HO engine are now nickel/chrome with flash-chromed' stems. The nylon valve stem oil seals are larger and deeper for better high-rpm oil control. High-rpm valvetrain stability was assured with the substitution of a double-row roller timing chain for the standard link silent chain used in the regular 302 engine. Valve spring pressures were increased only slightly to cope with the higher rpm operation (the old 302 fell on its face over 4,000 rpm: the 302HO will be redlined at 6,000 rpm). The rest of the engine internals are standard 302, but a much-improved intake/carburetion/exhaust tract was incorporated.
According to the engineer in charge of 302 HO development, pointed out that the engine's ratings of 160 horsepower and almost 250 pounds-feet of torque are deceptive and that the engine installed and running in a moving car is getting significantly more power to the ground under wide-open throttle than would normally be expected. This is because it has been fitted with a number of parasitic-loss fixes. At full throttle, the air conditioning compressor is cut out completely by a clutch on the drive hub; the Thermactor air pump is cut out completely, and the engine cooling fan is disengaged through a clutch mechanism on its hub, leaving the engine free to propel the car with minimum intake restriction and exhaust system backpressure to interfere with power production.
Suddenly, the excitement, the energy, the pride are palpable. Even in the midst of severe economic problems, and after an absence of more than a decade, Ford Motor Company has decided to put itself back into racing and back into the high-performance production car business. It's part of Ford's new marketing strategy. Public reaction to this return to big-league racing has been overwhelmingly positive; a whirlwind of mail has told the company to start building something that's quick, fast, and fun to drive, like the Miller Zakspeed Mustang. Ford has responded with a high-performance 5-liter (302 cid) HO engine package, applicable to all 1982 Mustang and Capri models, but best blended with the new Mustang GT or Capri RS.
302 V-8 was taken out of the Mustang lineup after 1979 and replaced by a smaller, weak-kneed 255 cid V-8 sold only with automatic transmissions and cruising gear ratios. A woefully inadequate turbocharged 4-cylinder combination was marketed but ultimately scrapped. The Mustang was losing image after 15 years on the market, in spite of a new body and a superior TRX handling package. Enter a new regime, a new commitment to competition, and, in the early spring of this year, a program to wake up the 302 and the chassis it goes into, to build a new image leader.
Radically changed, but it's almost 30 horsepower stronger, with nearly 6% more peak torque and a much higher, wider torque curve overall. The camshaft profile for the 302 HO engine was taken directly from the company's marine parts bin for more lift, duration and overlap time. Intake and exhaust valve diameters have not been changed, but exhaust valves for the HO engine are now nickel/chrome with flash-chromed' stems. The nylon valve stem oil seals are larger and deeper for better high-rpm oil control. High-rpm valvetrain stability was assured with the substitution of a double-row roller timing chain for the standard link silent chain used in the regular 302 engine. Valve spring pressures were increased only slightly to cope with the higher rpm operation (the old 302 fell on its face over 4,000 rpm: the 302HO will be redlined at 6,000 rpm). The rest of the engine internals are standard 302, but a much-improved intake/carburetion/exhaust tract was incorporated.
According to the engineer in charge of 302 HO development, pointed out that the engine's ratings of 160 horsepower and almost 250 pounds-feet of torque are deceptive and that the engine installed and running in a moving car is getting significantly more power to the ground under wide-open throttle than would normally be expected. This is because it has been fitted with a number of parasitic-loss fixes. At full throttle, the air conditioning compressor is cut out completely by a clutch on the drive hub; the Thermactor air pump is cut out completely, and the engine cooling fan is disengaged through a clutch mechanism on its hub, leaving the engine free to propel the car with minimum intake restriction and exhaust system backpressure to interfere with power production.
