Finally got On3's 2011+ Twin Turbo kit installed. And I will start by stating that this kit is not 2013 friendly. I am sure the install would have went much smoother on a 2011-2012 5.0.
The car-2013 5.0 Auto with a built stock compression short block with a Boss crank, Eagle h-beams, JE pistons on a brand new Ford Racing OE block. The car before the install already has the Lethal Performance's O/R X-pipe, Magnaflow Competition catback, budget fuel system for now, and JLT Cold Air. So the only part that would not be reused is obviously the CAI. We also used a 2 post lift to make life easier.
Here are pictures of the hot side of the kit after a friend (Boone Bassett) polished it up for me.
Under hood shot before the install got underway.
So you start by doing the obvious things like removing the engine cover, disconnect/remove battery and tray, air intake, disconnect exhaust (we only removed mid pipe),remove the starter, remove radiator cover, and front bumper to go ahead and get it out of the way.
Next up is the exhaust manifolds. This was made easier by lowering the car to a point where you could use a jack under the engine to lift it enough to access all of the nuts from the top and bottom and to also maneuver them out without fuss. You will also need to disconnect the steering shaft and take the motor mounts completely out.
We also turned the this connector 180 degrees, reinstalled the nut, and then grind off the existing stud.
This is where the fun begins. The 2013 blocks require larger exhaust studs than the 2011-2012's do. So the supplied bolts did not work. So we got all southern engineering with this but utilizing the factory studs and nuts. The new turbo manifolds are a log style design and creates clearance issues for 3-4 of the studs, which is where the bolts would have been a luxury to have. But we made do. After pulling a few of the studs out, we scarred the threads on some so that the nut would not move and we could create our own bolts. Cut the top of the stud off, tac weld the top and grind it down if you want it to be prettier. All of the other studs and nuts can be used.
Next, after many hours of trial and error with the manifolds, we needed a break from them. So we moved on to trying to hang the intercooler. And this also was not 2013 friendly. The supplied brackets were not long enough to center it properly or evenly.
One was not long enough, so we extended one of them and painted them black.
While down here, I went ahead and made some brackets for the bumper support mounts while Jose got back to the manifolds and back to hating his life because of the manifolds and lack of sleep.
Next was mounting the ECU. We just did some rerouting and mounted the computer behind the bumper under the passenger headlight.
That is most of the unique things about installing this kit on a 2013. The rest of the kit is pretty straight forward. Here are a few more pics. Hopefully all of this helps in some way. This kit took two of us 35-40 hours to put in. But once the kit was on, it fit very nicely and works very efficiently.
For the driver side filter, you will need to take the bracket off of the abs module and push it down. You will also need to trim the radiator cover.
On3 Performance Twin Turbo Install
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