Two and a half days, twelve speakers presenting eleven topics to over a 150 attendees, all to the glory & honor of the Ford Modular engine. This was the 20th annual AETC-Advanced Engine Technology Conference. This year’s presentation was dedicated to the Ford Modular engine family, introduced to market in 1991.
Speakers from Ford, Ford Racing, Roush Industries, Diamond Pistons, Trick Flow, Roush Yates Engines, JDM Engineering, Power-Tec Engineering, Darton International, MSD Ignitions and SCT Tuning all gathered prior to the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) show in Orlando. They gathered to spread the good word on the history, advancements and successes of the Modular engine that has taken up residence in the Mustang’s engine bay since 1996.
Jeff Lyjak and Rob Deneweth combined to give an insider’s look at Ford’s Modular program, from Inception through racing 2010 Cobra Jets. Jeff is a Combustion Specialist with the Engine Performance Development group of Ford Motor Company. He described the original development of the Modular Family in the late 1980’s. At that time, Ford had three V8s: 5.0L, 5.8L and the 7.5L. These were older, but much beloved designs, produced on old manufacturing equipment. Ford needed to improve and upgrade them or replace them to stay competitive. They wanted to design in Quality, Durability, NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness), Fuel Economy, and Performance Potential. They needed a shorter overall length for front-drive applications. Ford had two choices: Completely re-engineer the existing engines and manufacturing facilities or create a new engine family. In either case, the Engineering budget was similar ($1.0 Billion and people required). Ford’s decision was that the future would require smaller, high efficiency, light weight engines for almost all applications. The Modular program was given the green-light. Some of the development successes were: Long life under harsh durability conditions and low NVH due to the stiff cylinder block. Some challenges were oil aeration at high speeds due to minimal crankcase pumping area (airflow at the bottom of the piston in the crankcase) and oil dilution with fuel due to the reverse wedge chamber that had been optimized for emissions. Both were solved with creative solutions. The oil aeration problem was solved with multiple iterations of oil pans and windage trays, while the oil dilution was solved with fuel injection timing.
Jeff spoke with joy (well, as much as an engineer can muster!) in discussing when Ford Engine Engineering goes racing. Ford would get into the Best of the Desert Off-Road truck racing with the Rough Rider program. This would be an afterhours ‘skunk works’ program manned by volunteers doing as much work inside Ford Engineering to build team pride. The goal was to develop a 100% reliable, 100+ HP/Liter based engine to replace the 430 cubic inch carbureted racing engine. They wanted to use as much production based engine hardware as possible and modify only as needed for high speed reliability and improved performance. The cylinder block was modified using leftover prototype tooling to increase the bores to 93.4 mm, add 6 bolt steel main bearing caps, add piston cooling oil jets and strengthened the bulkheads and pan rails. In 1999 they won the Best in Desert Series Championship, 2000 Baja 2000, 2001 Baja 500, 2001 Baja 1000 and the 2001 SCORE Championship. The Modular Engine Production area was a beneficiary of this program in Cylinder head modifications (became basis for the Cobra R, Ford GT, and GT500 cylinder heads); Bearings (Cobra R & Ford GT); Cylinder Block (improved structure into production 5.4 L block in 2001, and main cap design & oil squirter for Ford GT); and low-loss water pump (for all 4.6L passenger cars- resulted in 5hp less loss by water pump). Jeff played some videos of these hard working race trucks blasting through Baja (with spectators trying to touch them!), which brought a smile to all the attendees and a sparkle to Jeff’s eyes, “that was quite exciting”, he exclaimed!
Next he discussed the Modular Upgrade for 2004-2005. This was required for fuel economy, performance & NVH. The goals were to create performance comparable to the 4.6L 4V with lighter weight and lower cost than the 4V. This program created the 2005 Mustang GT’s 3V 4.6L V8. Its main features were an upgraded head to three valves per cylinder, central spark plug and variable cam timing (VCT). The innovative VCT allowed increase torque at low speeds, elimination of the entire emissions EGR system and increased fuel economy. Jeff concluded by fondly speaking of his prototype 6.2 BOSS heads on display. These pieces are fantastic and look like they make 500hp just sitting on the display table!
Rob Deneweth of Ford Racing came armed to AETC with one of the most prized possessions: cases of the Ford Racing 2010 Performance Parts catalogs! He’s a 17 year Ford employee formerly with the Powertrain Operations but moved to Ford Racing as the Performance Parts Powertrain Supervisor in August of 2007. Rob detailed some of the parts he’s worked on that are included in the new Ford Racing catalog (which he had not even seen until he arrived at the show!). There is a new 3V intake manifold which is similar to the Daytona Prototypes & 2000 Cobra R. It features a composite composition that allows for smooth runners, heat suppression and lighter weight than cast aluminum.
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Ford Racing will be offering 3V ported heads that are CNC’d on a 5 axis machine and new Hot Rod cams to supplement the heads. There will be new 3V Superchargers ranging from 400HP all the way up to a 550HP version that is intercooled. These will include Ford Racing re-calibrations for the engine control unit (ECU). Ford prides itself that its performance upgrades to the ECU retain original drivability – even after you add 250HP! There are a slew of new Modular cylinder blocks in the pipeline. The Ford GT aluminum block will feature a 90mm bore, thicker casting and available in both wet & dry sump oiling systems, good for 1000hp. The BOSS 5.0L Modular is an iron block and will have a 94mm bore, thicker casting and a stronger cap design.
Rob worked on the ’08 Cobra Jet program which became the basis for the 2010 Cobra Jet. The new car will have the Ford Racing Ford GT wet sump block, GT cams and heads; 4.0l supercharger with 80lbs/hr fuel injectors; and improved intercooler system that uses a larger Meziere coolant pump to lower Intercooler temperatures by -300F.
Jim D’Amore of JDM Engineering is a real FORD guy. He was one of the first outsiders to get a look at the new Modular 2V engines and was the first to get the new 4V 4.6L back in 1994. The new engine came installed from Ford in a ’93 Mustang Coupe that had been outfitted by Roush to fit the new Mod motor. This is when Jim started his sub-contracting business for Ford Motor Company. He was the first to supercharge both the 2 and 4Valve Mod motors. JDM Engineering builds over 100 Mod motors a year and over 160 Mod cylinder heads a year, in 2V, 4V and 3V varieties. JDM is the ‘middleman’ between the aftermarket and Ford. JDM has never built a full out racecar, they have always built street- oriented cars that need to last the customer up to 100,000 miles. He has found the aftermarket parts are not necessarily better than stock. For example, he has found Ford’s production torque-to-yield head bolts have had no failures up to 30 psi of boost.
During one of the breaks, the AETC MC played an old Ford commercial for the new ’05 Mustang GT featuring a soldier coming home to his family and his Dad driving up in a blue ’69 Mach 1. You can see it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7h2YR9qPqo . After this played, there was silence in the auditorium except maybe some sniffling. Play it forward to the younger generation.
Kyle Carothers, a 20-year veteran of Roush Industries, spoke on creating the new Roush Mustang Super Stock engine for NHRA completion. His team was made up of mostly volunteers and didn’t have a real budget. The original engine was to be a 3valve, 4.6 liter, supercharged Roush Mustang propelled race car. Kyle had research the NHRA records and had found that to be competitive, they needed to make 1.8 times the NHRA horsepower rating. After 18 months and solving a myriad of problems, like weak spark plug threads, oil pressure and oil quality, the NHRA saddled the Roush 3Valve engine with a 510 hp rating. This meant the program would need over 900 real hp to be competitive! Kyle was up to the challenge. At the 2008 PRI show, it was learned that the Ford Racing Cobra Jet program for Super Stock had been rewarded a 420 hp rating. This was for the supercharged 5.4 liter 4 valve engine, similar to the GT500. Kyle went to Jack Roush with his dilemma, and Jack told him to scrap the 4.6 3V engine and use Ford Racing’s 5.4 liter 4 valve motor! Kyle went back to work to solve the new engine’s issues. They now make 817hp @7500rpm and have run a best of 9.16 ET @ 147 mph at race weight of 3400 lbs –whew, what a rocket! During the process, Kyle learned not to disable the supercharger’s bypass; even at idle, the rotors heat up and seize!
John Maddox has been in charge of the four-valve engine program at Roush Yates Racing since the fall of 2002. His topic was developing the 4V Mod Fords for Daytona Prototype Racing (sports car road racing). His first day of work, Robert Yates found out that John drag raced for 10 years, Robert told him “Well, it’s a drag race to the next corner!”
In 2003 the Grand Am Road Racing Association created a new class of racing for the Rolex Sport Car Series that would use engines based on road-legal production units from a major manufacture. Engines approved for competition came from BMW 5.0L V8, Ford 5.0L V8, Infinity 4.35L V8, Lexus 5.0L V8, Porsche 3.99 flat 6 and 5.0L V8, GM 5.0L V8 and Honda 3.8L V6. For John’s team, it was easy to hit the mandated 500hp with Ford’s 4valve Modular engine. They started development in September 2002 with the first race to be the 24 Hours of Daytona in February 2003. That race ended with the inaugural Daytona Prototype victory by Ford’s Modular engine by Multimatic race team and drivers David Brabham, Scott Maxwell, and David Epringham. By the end of the 2003 season, Ford and Yates Racing had picked up three cars and two teams to race the Modular engine. With continued success, by 2006 there were five Daytona Prototypes running the Modular with Krohn Racing winning the Driver’s Championship with Jorg Bergmiester. In the last two years, the program at Roush Yates has expanded to support Rolex GT Mustang, Koni Mustang, ALMS GT2, and FIA GT1. In those two years alone, they have picked up 36 wins and 7 championships! These victories have been the result of the Ford Modular’s inherent strengths: Fuel efficiency (it’s using a Bosch injector for the ’03 Cobra) and engine weight (down from 420lbs to 370lbs).
Brian Wolfe, Director- North America Motorsports – Ford Racing, was on hand to discuss the Vision of Ford Racing. He explains that Ford is changing from a “Company that sells lots of trucks and the Mustang” to a Company that sells great cars and trucks. Ford will lead in fuel economy with vehicles that have Ford DNA: in how they sound, brake, steer, and switch feel. In racing, they will be racer-friendly and help with the sanctioning bodies, be it circle track, road or drag racing. Brian has really made a great difference in the program as Director. He has opened many opportunities to reach out, not just the professional racers, but to the grassroots and sportsman racers as well.
The Roundtable discussion had all of the speaker’s answering attendee’s questions. Jim D’Amore said he has almost 400 HP from a new Ecoboost V6. Brian said that the BOSS 6.2L Mod Motor will be phased in during 2010. Also Ford Racing prices are being lowered, “the new Pro Stock parts are cheaper as is the new Mod BOSS block”. One of the most interesting exchanges was the answer to the question, “what would you like to see happen in 20 years?” Jeff Lyjak answered, “I’d like to see Toyota become a very small Company and I’d like to see manufacturing become an acceptable way to make money in the USA.” Much applause followed!
(UPDATE 2/2010: Jeff didn’t realize his dream for Toyota would come true, so fast, “I 'almost' am starting to feel sorry for them”!)
Cale Aronson's 2010 ProStock Mustang:
MMR's cool bits:
Tim Matherly's new 2010 Mustang NMRA Real Street racer:
2009 PRI Show-Ford Racing: Drag Racing program
December 11,2009
Text & Photos by Bruce Sawicki
Jesse Kershaw of Ford Racing gave us the lowdown on Ford’s drag racing programs. 2010 is going to be a big year for Ford at the drags. First up is the new 2010 Mustang Cobra Jet. It follows on the heels of the successful ’08 Cobra Jet that won the ’09 WinterNationals its first time out. It will be NHRA Super Stock legal for several classes and come with five engine options and three transmission options:
Engines Options:
· 500HP NHRA rated 5.4L 4V with supercharger
· 435 HP 5.4L 4V with supercharger
· 375HP 428 c.i. pushrod motor based on the 351 W
· 285 HP 352 c.i. pushrod motor based on the 302
· 235HP 4.6L 3V
Transmission Options:
· 6 speed manual T-56
· 5 speed Liberty
· 3 speed C4 Automatic
· 2 speed Cruise-O-Matic automatic built with all aftermarket parts to avoid Brand-X nomenclature. This is going to be used in the high-powered cars like the pictured silver show car powered by the 5.4L 4V supercharged engine.
The cars will be built this January for a 50 unit run. They’ll be built with an 8.50et NHRA certified roll cage, lightweight racing brakes and rear spoiler optional. Look for a February debut at the WinterNationals.
500HP NHRA rated 5.4L 4V with supercharger
The other big news at Ford is its re-entry into NHRA Pro Stock with 500 cubic inch engines and 2010 Mustang body. They are producing two different engine combinations, a mirror image port layout (think small block Chevy exhaust) and a sequential port (Ford exhaust layout). They studied all of the top GM & MOPAR teams to come up with the best of the best. Ford wants any engine builder to be comfortable with Ford’s new stuff, no matter what they’re used to. The two cylinder heads require two different blocks, due to the pushrod layout. Ford ingeniously designed the block’s castings so that they only have to change one core (for the valve galley) to switch between casting sequential or mirror image blocks. These blocks will save the race teams prep time compared to Ford’s competitors. With Brand-X, teams have to machine their own push rod galleys. The engine Jim Cunningham used at the NHRA Finals in November was of the mirror image variety, although the sequentials were the fastest last year. The new carbon-fiber 2010 Mustang body is “a tick better than anything out there”, Jesse told us. Ford will have Jim Cunningham & Erica Enders, Larry Morgan & John Nobile, Robert Patrick, Frank Gugliotta, Richard Freeman and 3 to 4 drivers to be announced by the GatorNationals in Pro Stock Mustangs.
New Pro Stock block: silver side is mirror image, while the blue is the sequential side of this mocked up block to show the differences in the galley area:
Sequential Pro Stock head & mirror image engine:
Before we left, Jesse said, “You need to interview Mr. Cunningham. Without him, Ford wouldn’t be back in Pro Stock.” Jim Cunningham is a young, 73 year-old, who’s been in racing for 48 years. His involvement happened at the urging of his brother-in-law (he’s been married 50 years!), John Lockman. Lockman told him, “You don’t have to do anything, you just pay the bills!” Cunningham has raced all manner of Ford since, including Thunderbirds, Probes, and Escorts, and had the first carbon-fiber bodied Cougar in the late ‘90s. The latter took 6 months for NHRA approval!
Jim had been working on a new Ford engine in a sequential port version. New Ford Racing Director Brian Wolfe heard about it and called him. “Once Brian and Ford got involved, famed Ford engineer Mose Nowland was, “calling everyday and improving everything!”, Jim exclaimed, “This year we can run with the big dogs! And the big dogs aren’t helping us as much this year!” Jim is still looking for a primary sponsor.
Way cool '34 Ford Coupe with Taurus SHO Ecoboost (twin-turbo) V6:
More PRI Coverage at Dragzine, here