What you want is a 500 Cad with Maximum Torque Specialities cam and pistons, and heads off a '71 472 so you'll bump compression to 12:1, and then drop it in a Mustang II. Yup.
What you want is a 500 Cad with Maximum Torque Specialities cam and pistons, and heads off a '71 472 so you'll bump compression to 12:1, and then drop it in a Mustang II. Yup.
What kind of ECU changes would produce those kinds of gains? The only thing that springs to mind is adding, say, 5 psi of boost assuming electronic boost control.
Boost tweaks, timing tweaks. Polestar is good for 25 hp and about 30 ft-lbs. Mild, but it's a manufacturer-offered warranty-friendly reflash.
It's even better with engines that have been hobbled from the factory for marketing reasons or whatever. It's not unusual for BMW diesels to get 30-50 hp from a remap. The early Genesis 2.0 Turbos also gain a lot from proper tuning.
I've personally seen about 15-20 hp out of the Focus TDCi from a remap... and that's a motor that only makes about 120 at the wheels.
Gains with naturally aspirated cars are much more modest, but mid-range torque boost is terrific, as tuning allows you to remove the EPA-friendly mapping most naturally aspirated cars nowadays have to use to pass the drive cycle.
Tuning chips and reflashes ain't free, but for the money, they're the best modification you can buy. And they should be the last, to avoid having to retune after each and every mod.
