I have a 96 F150 4x4 Eddie Bauer with a 4.9L straight 6, and I want more HP. But what can I put on a straight 6?

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1996 F150 4x4 4.9L

 

Factory had 160hp and 260ft/lbs.

I would advise a chip, exhuast, and a filtercharger. That would be a start and probably give you the most help.

 

I'm trying to answer the same question on my new (to me) '96 300. The OBDII stuff makes me a little bit nervous, but I think I can work around it.

Here's a list of the things I've looked at as possibilities:
1) Change gears from 3.08 open to 3.73 LS.
2) Gibson Swept-Side SS exhaust
3) Some kind of a less restrictive cold air intake/filter
4) Clifford header w/ smog fittings, etc.
5) Extrude hone the stock intake
6) Jet-Hot coat the header AND the lower intake manifold. (Cooler mixture = HP)
7) Add a phenolic spacer (homemade) between upper and lower intake manifolds.
8) Add a moderate cam (Clifford 264 or the Isky or Crower equivalents) and Rhoads lifters with roller rockers.
9) Minor head porting
10) Reprogrammed PCM, probably necessary with the valve train and head mods. (I'm not a believer in aftermarket chips and have the timeslips to support my disbelief)

I'm NOT going to do everything on this list, it merely represents ideas I've looked at and is arranged in approximate order of cost and/or complexity. Anything beyond this is likely to fail Ohio smog check and/or trip up the OBD II. I'm also looking into E40D mods but haven't reached any conclusions yet; I'll probably do something from Baumann. Get a Clifford catalogue, you'll find more ways to spend your money than you wanted to know about.

 

buy a quality fuel pressure regulator and go to a local dynometer facility to find the optimum fuel pressure. the dyno time will cost a little money but far less than honing, intakes or headers. a nice smooth cat back (maybe even a better cat) exhaust and air filter with precise tuneing and fuel pressure are the cheapest ways to get the most guaranteed horsepower and improve mpg.

 

Ive also seen people udgrade to msd ignition module

 

Those posts are 12 yrs. old. I would say they either figured it out, or forgot about it.

 

O didnt notice that. New to the forum lol