Fox vs SN95 donor

[Avalanche325]

I have my kit, but am finishing up some house renovations before I get serious. I am poking around at donors on line. I am going with a 5.0.

I have been planning on a 94 / 95. The thoughts were:
1. Newer donor, possibly lower milage
2. Better spindles
3. 5 lugs

However, I am using 17" x 10.5" rears, so I am going to have to change the rear axles to fox length anyway.

Depending on donor quality / price / milage, I may just do a drop-in and then upgrade to a 347 in the future.
I know that the sn95 has the longer input shaft on the transmission and longer bellhousing. Is this one going to be an issue either during the build, or down the line?

[Brian Z]

94 and 95 donor cars can be a nightmare. the older fox donors are MUCH easier to work with! There are a ton of small differences that make the 94/95 models a pain in the you know what.
The older Fox donors are alot more user frieldly as a donor.

Best regards,

[mxcobra]

Not true,
I built my MK3 and used a low millage 1994 donor. I did go with a carb setup, so that made the wiring easier. the SN 5 lug setup is nice. Just do your home work, and it should go easy...

I was in the same boat back in 2004... I was set to go with a fox body, then found a 1994 with only 60,000K on the clock for 2,000 crashed !

[skullandbones]

Just to clarify, I think: (I don't speak for him but....) Brian may have meant that the 94,95 can create some issues that the 93 and earlier models don't. I choose a 95 Cobra rearend for the rotors, 5 bolt lug, and 3.55 gears. I knew that I may have some fitment issues if I am not careful with the wheels and tires. However, if a novice gets the later model, some of the support and references from the manual are not applicable any more. After all, the manual is based on the earlier models. But I think there is enough support to help with issues like that but it's a lot more work. IMO. WEK.

[MPTech]

Aside from the rear axle width on the '94 / '95, what are the other issues?
I thought they were a better donor because they provide the improved SN95 front spindles, and 5 lug hubs.

What's the downside?



I think the FFR donor model is less attractive than it used to be. Good / low mileage donors are getting harder to come by, and if you do find them, they are at-least 17 years old now, so i wouldn't trust the original wiring, M/C, calipers, steering rack, fuel tank, fuel pump, radiator, and fan. (and I didn't. I bought new or re-man'd for all of the items I listed)

Not trying to discourage you too much, but I'd hate like hell to build my roadster, then have to replace the fuel tank or pump!

[CraigS]

The 94-95 302 has a different front cover,water pump,alt mount etc.It has a different bellhousing and a different length input shaft on the trans to match the bellhousing. I forget all the details about the front of the engine, but know that the trans is moved rearward which means you need a shorter driveshaft.If you do a search on things like water pumps and march pulleys, you can get a clue about the differences from that. The short answer is that when you look at replaceing anything on the front of the engine, all the application charts say something like 79-93. Very few include 94-95. I ran into this when I tried to mount my AC on my MkI w/ a 94 engine. The compressor was about 1 1/4 inches forward of the pulleys already there. Thought I would just get the long water pump and adapt the alt bracketry.Oops, the long water pump will only mate w/ the appropriate front cover. You might want to consider the FFR front spindles which are even better than Sn95 as they include the SAI mod geometry so you wouldn't need to buy an SAI mod kit. The other thought from reading a ton of posts is could you do a pallet deal? Get 93 engine and rear axle and 94-95 front spindles? HTH

[MPTech]

Thanks Craig, I didn't know that.
I bought a '93 engine and a '95 trans (I'm battling the bellhousing issue now (I got a '93 with the engine and it doesn't match up to the '95 trans).
I bought my '95 front spindles from a forum member.

[tjmotter]

I agree with CraigS and Brian. It's not that the 94/95 won't work it is just that there is so much you have to change to make it work. I consider the transmission/bellhousing to be the biggest issue because the "best" work around is to toss them which means you get less benefit from the donor. If you are planning to change to a TKO or a T5Z anyway then this might not be a bid deal as you should be able to pick up the correct bellhousing for $100 on eBay but if you are planning to use the old drivetrain, you may have fitment issues with the transmission mount and issues with needing a "special" driveshaft (it is already short so making it shorter is not a great plan). The newer Ford body style looked good but forced them to squeeze things in differently. The longer input shaft on the T5 is one example but as others have noted, it can also affect the front of the engine as well.

Look at it this way, what you will end up buying is a rear end, an engine block and a set of front spindles (+ a gas tank and some other low cost stuff). If the price of the donor is still worth it in this context, go for it. If not, you may want to choose a different route.

[tjmotter]

However, I am using 17" x 10.5" rears, so I am going to have to change the rear axles to fox length anyway.


I'm not 100% sure that you would need to change to fox length. I actually changed out my axles from Fox length to SN95 so that I could install ABS. Granted I am using the 9" wheels on the back with 275's but I did some measurements and believe I could slide 295's in there pretty easy. If my math is correct, 275's=10.8" wide, 295's=11.6" wide while 315's=12.4" wide. I am pretty sure the 315's would rub and if not, they would definitely be tight but as you can see from the attached pic, with 275's there is still room to work with.

HTH
Todd

[Avalanche325]

Thanks guys. That is exactly the kind of info I am looking for. What triggered this was my new Summit catalog arriving. There are a lot of items that are up to 93. Then a few for 94-95. I want a car to tinker with and upgrade in the future. I am not worried about changing a gas tank in a few years. But, I am worried about not being able to find the right transmission or water pump.

I do plan on 315s on the rear, so I think fox axles are in and ABS is out.

[riptide motorsport]

Delete... Oops

[Jeff Kleiner]

None of the nuances (I hate to call them "issues") of the '94-'95 are insurmountable but as the previous posters have said you do need to be aware and prepared to address them accordingly. You won't find most of them referenced in the build manual so do your research on the forums. Another item not yet mentioned is that if you plan to retain EFI and diet the donor harness the wiring is significantly more complex than the Fox body cars. Again, nothing that can't be dealt with just something the builder needs to be aware of going in.

Good luck,
Jeff

[stoker]

I think one should go with the best donor that comes along. I bought a lightly smashed 94. I did end up going with 93 injection and harness. I also put a 93 input shaft in the T5 and bought a 93 bellhousing. I have left the front of the engine the way it came. It has been a first class combo for me.

[mxcobra]

I do remember the funny issues with the pully setup.. I modified the stock brackets, and eliminated the AC. It didnt look bad when i was done. I also recall having to get the drive shaft shorter. I was happy with my setup. The rear end it wider, but all depending on what wheels your running this may or may not become an issue... It all come down to price.. Like others have said, finding a clean 87-93 is getting very hard... Trust me, im looking now to build my second FFR.. And im working on a very small budget (per the wife).. I was lucky enough to have her give me the ok for the second time around..

[CraigS]

The 94-95 setup will work as is. My MkI was put together by the original owner w/ a stock efi 302 and trans and it was fine. Using the whole package together works fine except for the shorter driveshaft but I had no actual problems w/ that. But, if you want change things later the lack of parts for those two years makes it all more dificult.