ncstreet

Hey all , new to the forum as well as LS swaps. Haven't built a car in 20 years , so go easy on me. I've always been a chevy guy , but foxbody mustangs are so cheap and plentiful here , thats what I bought. I have a 1992 mustang the motor is getting tired in and want to swap in a 5.3 turbo motor. My question is this , I understand everyone is using standalone LS harnesses for this to keep fuel injection. Money adds up quick between standalone harness , pcm flashing , etc.... If I were to build my motor with the conversion timing cover to run a small block ford distributor (I already haven the distributor) , to take care of the spark , can the factory ford harness and computer be used to run the injectors on the new 5.3? Not sure of what sensors the two harnesses have in common , but figured if the harnesses are both already MAF and fuel injected , maybe it can be done??

76larkman

if your buying a 5.3 get everything u can. you can take engine harness and use LT1Swap.com site to make harness stand alone then connect into ford body side of things. bout all you need on ford side is to use is guage senders and starter, altenator wiring. just adapt ford temp oil guage senders to Ls 5.3

ncstreet

I already bought a 5.3 , got an 04 with 80,000 miles on it for $300. bought it intake to oil pan complete , but no harness or pcm. The motor is at the machine shop as we speak being bored to 3.80 for wiseco pistons , forged h-beam rods , new bearings , etc... Spending the bulk of my budget on the internals to strengthen the lower end so I can do bolt on upgrades as the budget allows. I already have all the stuff off my mustang thats still good , like MAF , MSD distributor and ignition system , oxygen sensors , etc... My thought was if I could use my stock ford harness and pcm to run the injectors , for $250 I can buy the timing cover adapter to run the distributor and ignition system I already have. Even if I had to re-route or lengthen the injector wires for correct firing order and change the injector plug-ins for LS style vs ford it would be much cheaper than going through all the headaches and expense of standalone LS harness and waiting weeks for a flashed pcm. I'm just not savvy on the electrical end of things and not sure what the difference is between what sensors on the ford harness control injector timing vs what sensors on the LS harness control that.

76larkman

well i thought if you did have harness it would probably easier to use LS stuff. The LS wiring is fairly easy when you done gone thru it. LT1Swap had my pcm back less than week. But it was delete put street tune as mine stock. Im not sure what to tell you on running Ford stuff. If could be money spent good or bad.

Project GatTagO

iTrader: (7)

If you don't have a harness or PCM consider one of the Holley HP systems:

https://www.holley.com/products/ls_p...s_efi_systems/

Just pick the system with the right crank tooth count and which O2 sensor you want (Bosch or NTK).

I realize that it seems like big money, but once you compare apples to apples, it might be a less expensive route. You get a harness, ECU, software, and a wideband O2. Compare that to a OEM harness, PCM, HP Tuners, and a wideband kit, and you see the price is about the same.

Plus, if you are going forced induction, this is a better way to go IMHO.

Andrew