I felt the need for more power so I called an old friend from SVTperformance.com and talked him out of the Terminator engine he's been holding for the past 7 years. The block is 100% stock and had about 27,000mi on it when he pulled it for an Aluminator.
I had just completed the construction of my new home shop so time is on my side. I now have plenty of space for my projects and weather wont affect my getting it done.
I found a buyer for my stock Marauder block so I got the green light to move ahead with the new build. The owner of my original block is a fellow Marauder owner that I bartered with for a set of widened wheels. This was a WIN for both parties.
I came up with a list and a plan for new power and the first must was a driver side inlet. This need left me with only 1 option. Call James Hell....
He's the owner of Cobra Engineering. After placing my parts order with him I made a cut sheet on parts I wanted.
This is the component list for my new build.
Engine Components:
Terminator Forged Short Block (stock)
2003 MM Heads with 9 thread inserts
Melling HV Oil Pump
Terminator Lower Intake
Griffin high flow intercooler
FRPP GT500 TVS Supercharger Gen1
VMP Gen1 TVS elbow
VMP Mechanical Super Cobra Jet SBTB
Cobra Engineering GT500 adapter plate kit
Cobra Engineering Rear Cooling Mod
GT500 Slot MAF
JLT Carbon Fiber CAI
Innovators West Harmonic Balancer with Metco Adapter
Metco Stock lower ring
Billet Flow 2:93 upper pulley (93oct)
Billet Flow 2:76 upper pulley (race gas)
LFP 10 rib Idler Pulley
Jerry's SS COT tube
Jerry's HD SC brackets
Thump RRR SC Tensioner
Thump RRR 76mm idler
Custom 10pint Intercooler Reservoir
Frozen Boost Type 100 Heat Exchanger
Fuel System:
FRPP 60lb injectors
Stock Fuel Rails
Dual GT supercar pumps
Dual FPDM's
Dual (in tank) Wiring
full wiring upgrade
KB BAP w/4lb hobbs switch
Drivetrain:
PRW 8 Bolt Flex Plate
PI 3000 stall
4R70E Built Transmission
31 Spline Axles
Cobra C/F Differential
FRPP 4:10's
Exhaust:
Stainless Works LT Headers
Full 3" SS mandrel bent exhaust
Stock resonated tips
I picked up a slightly used Ford Racing TVS 2300. I chose a Gen1 unit mostly because it has the removable elbow. This makes injector, COP, and plug swaps on the DS a breeze. With the 1 piece unit you must remove the SC to access the back of the cylinder.
The OEM Gen2 TVS was a no go for me because I would have to send it out to BPS to have the 5.8L logo machined off. Although the inlet is larger than the Gen1. I felt it was a small trade off. Here's the SC after I received it.
VMP performance quickly became my go to place for questions and TVS specific parts. I ordered the "elbow" for my SC and also sprung for a mechanical Cobra Jet single blade throttle body. I also picked up a TVS pulley puller kit. All I can say is they're second to none with their support and products.
The throttle body opening is BIG...
My next purchase was an impulse buy. Everyone knows I'm a short tube guy but, to make serious power I had to come to the reality long tube headers are the only way to go. I didn't want any BS so I ordered a set of Stainless Works headers. Took them a month to get here but it was well worth the wait. Their quality is second to none.
My next round of parts were some of the hardest to find. With all the Terminator swaps and the age of the Cobra's the lower intakes, IC pass through plates, and valley heater hoses are getting harder and harder to find. After months of looking I got the needed parts, cleaned them up, and got them on the shelf.
My next task was to shake down Jerry. There was no way I was going to go through this build and not use his custom bits. At first he was hard to find but after I made some noise I got him on the phone and he started making my parts. I ordered his HD supercharger bracket and SS COT, in the end I ended up with a whole lot more. Thanks Jerry for helping me pull this off!!!
At this point parts are ordered, commitments were made, the new engine is on the stand, and parts are being shipped in. I took a long stare at my hollowed out engine bay and went through a thorough degreasing of the K member.
The birds nest that had become of the AC system bothered me the most. I ordered a stronger material from DEI and made this from 1 solid piece of aluminum coated insulation. It was a PITA but the finished product was just as I imagined it