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I acquired a Fiberfab MGTD kit with what I w
as told to have mustang, 2.3L, engine and running gears. After spending many hours I haven’t been able to get it running. Wanting to swap out the engine and drive train to a later model, but since Fiberfab is no more I can get no info S to what other drive train would work. Can anyone help me out?
thanks in advance,BillG
Hi Bill. I ran a 2.3 in my Fiberfab for over 20 years before I killed it. I now run a 302 V8. Theres a lot of fabrication involved to make that swap. The 2.8 V6 has been used also.
What is the issue with the 2.3? No crank? Crank, no start? Make sure the timing marks are correctly aligned and the distributor is positioned correctly. I was once stranded when the gear on the balance shaft that runs the distributor had become loose. That shaft also runs the fuel pump.
Worst case, if you fail to get it running, there are remanufactured 2.3 engines available. Most of these come with a warranty to boot. Installation kept simple.
The 2.3 is a pretty reliable engine. Ford used it in the Pinto, Mustang, MustangII, Fairmont, LTDII, Ranger pickups, and several Mazdas and Mercurs. Good luck and keep us posted.
Bill Ascheman
Fiberfab Ford
Modified 5.0, 5sp., 4:11
Autocross & Hillclimb
"Drive Happy"If I were in your shoes I’d check out the 2.3 forums like this one: https://www.ranger-forums.com/2-3l-2-5l-i4-tech-31/
They can help you troubleshoot at least as well as we can.
An engine swap seems like a radical step for someone to be contemplating not knowing basics like “what could fit?”
It’s a kit car: Anything can be made to fit. You could drop a Mazda rotary in there, or an Allison V12!
What makes sense is to keep it Ford 2.3 OHC. That’s a good engine for that car, and fixing the one you have (or getting another just like it) will always be a more practical option than swapping in a different kind of motor. There’s a lot of aftermarket support for those engines and there are a lot of them around. As Bill says, in a pinch (if you had one laying in the corner of the shop floor—with its flywheel, clutch and bell housing attached), a Cologne V6 could work well.
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