for the American market in the 2001 Ford Explorer, and the following year the final pushrod V-8 engine was sold in Australia. The versatility of the Ford modular engine allowed it to replace three different pushrod engines: the small-block 5.0- and 5.8-liter Windsor small-blocks and the 385 (429/460) series big-block. It will soon become the second-longest-production Ford V-8 engine behind the small-block.
The modular engine was marketed under the name “Intech” V-8 for Lincoln applications and “Triton” for the Ford truck line.
It is important to note that the modular engine does not derive its name from the ability to swap and bolt different parts from different engines onto a common platform. It gets its name from the manufacturing process in which different manufacturing cells can be pulled and installed, and the plant can be quickly re-arranged to build a different engine configuration. In fact, the modular engine is far from “modular.” As you learn in Chapter 2, the modular engine is anything but adaptable, with changes happening between the two different primary plants that build them in the same model year. Gone are the days of Ford making a dozen different and exotic cylinder heads to bolt on a 427 medium-riser block; it is difficult to swap components with the modular engines. If you want to purchase a supercharger for a modular engine, the supplier will have a myriad of questions for you before they sell you one, to make sure you get the right equipment.
On the left is the granddaddy of the first generation of Muscle, the 1970 Boss 429, and on the right is the highest horsepower factory modular engine to date, the 2014 Shelby GT500 Track Pack. The tale of the tape shows how far we have come in 45 years. The Boss 429 puts out a realistic 420–450 hp, and the Shelby an amazing 662 hp. The Boss bolts to 0–60 mph in 7.1 seconds; the Shelby 3.7 seconds. Top speed for the Boss 429 was more than 130 mph, and the Shelby was the first factory Mustang to eclipse 200 mph. MPG for the Boss is 8 to 12 mpg (if you’re lucky); the Shelby produces 15 to 24 mpg. Vehicles provided by the Dickerson Collection.
The very first Ford modular engine was installed in the 1991 Lincoln Continental. The first engines depended on a lot of borrowed pieces from pushrod V-8s such as the EEC-IV computer and the non-electronic AOD transmissions. The modular engine really started to work well with the introduction of the EEC-V computer system in 1994.
The first tall-deck block installed in the Mustang came in the limited-edition 2000 Ford Cobra R. These 5.4 4V engines used exclusive custom cast and machined heads and special intakes to generate 385-hp naturally aspirated. Only 300 Cobra Rs were produced in 2000. Vehicle courtesy the Dickerson Collection.
As of this writing, the modular engine has been around for 25 years and will soon become the second-longest-running V-8 engine series in Ford production history, surpassing the big-block 385 series engine. Only the small-block Windsor has had a longer life span. In addition, 8 of the top-10 fastest production Fords of all time are modular-engine powered (the original FE-powered GT40 and the new Eco-Boost GT40 are the only exceptions).
Due to its robust bottom end, the modular engine could support more cylinder pressure when boosted with turbos or superchargers, and higher compression ratios in naturally aspirated form. It was also the first factory supercharged V-8 because the E-Bird Thunderbird of the 1950s (Shelby offered a supercharger option for the 1966 GT350). The first supercharged modular engines were 5.4-liter 2V lightning engines 1999–2004, followed by the 4.6-liter 4V 2003–2004 Mustang Cobras. The modular engine responds well to supercharging, and the highest horsepower factory Ford ever produced was the 2013–2014 Shelby GT500, which put out a mind-blowing 662 hp out of a CAFE-regulated engine.
Ford re-entered the supercar market with the modular-powered 2005–2006 GT. These cars were capable of 0–60 in 3.4 seconds and a top speed of 205 mph. Vehicle provided by Blake Hartman.
With current CAFE regulations, manufacturers are free to build higher horsepower in trucks than they are with cars. The first modular engines to be supercharged from the factory were the Lightning trucks in the 1990s. This 2014 Raptor features the largest displacement V-8 modular platform available, the 6.2 SOHC.
The supercharged 5.4 installed in the Ford GT is custom built and puts out 550 hp stock. If you look closely you can see the dual fuel injectors fitted to these special engines. By overdriving the supercharger (pulley change) and a program upgrade these engines are capable of well more than 800 hp. Vehicle provided by Blake Hartman.
The 2013–2014 Shelby GT500 is equipped with the most powerful engine ever installed in a factory-built Ford, 662 hp and 631 ft-lbs of torque. Along with its 200-mph top end, it is fully capable of driving around in city traffic without overheating or being finicky.
Swap Spotlight: The Mustang in Black
For the first 10 years of the modular engine, the conversions to other vehicles were primarily novelties used in high-end cars and not considered practical for common use vehicles. The technology was different, more expensive, and at the time, the performance and mileage differences between the modular engine and the latest pushrod engines were not significantly different. Most of the conversion parts had to be fabricated because parts to install the new engines just didn’t exist. And even though we had EFI computers since the 1980s, most owners found the conversion intimidating.
Mustang in Black (MIB) was built in conjunction with Mustang Monthly and Mustang and Fords magazine, and it was more than just an engine swap. It was built to prove that the newer technology could be adapted to the earlier cars, and could be used in a practical way, rather than just as a novelty. MIB was built to show that the same performance, convenience, and controls built into new cars could be applied to older-model cars and be a practical alternative to a pushrod conversion. Most engine swaps at that time concerned themselves only with the engine and somehow making it run. MIB incorporates all the drivetrain improvements from a 1999 Ford Mustang Cobra into a 1968 Mustang chassis. The Mustang in Black represents the full range of why you would want to choose a modular engine swap. It has plenty of power, starts with the hit of the key, gets great gas mileage if you keep your foot out of it, and you can take it to any Ford dealer in the country and the dealership can talk to it.
The project goal was summed up in a single statement: “This is what SVT would have built had they been around in 1968.” To that end, the goal was not to make a Shelby clone, an unreasonable super car, or a car that was chromed out for show. Instead, the builders took a practical approach to the build, to which one paint rep stated, “Its understated appearance is what puts it over the top.”
