I figured I needed to start posting some pictures here, if only to expose this project to a larger audience in case I have questions to ask. For starters, I've driven Focuses for over 9 years and currently own three of them. I've always handled basic maintenance and have learned a few more things from others, like brake work and suspension installs, and only recently have I started to go beyond that... to the realm of swapping engines and wiring.

As it stands, I have my daily driver, aka 'Olde Faithful'
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0008.jpg

I bought the formerly Focussalvage V6 ZX3:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0007.jpg

And I acquired another wagon back in July:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0011.jpg

The green wagon, unfortunately, had the SPI in it... and, since valve seat dropping is a common theme nowadays, sure as hell, a couple weeks ago it happened to me. Had 131K on the clock.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0012.jpg

While it ultimately doesn't matter that the SPI died, it pissed me off because I hoped to get a little more life out of it before removing it in favor of a V6...

So, why did I begin this journey? Well, the blue ZX3 was never quite right from the beginning. That's on me, however, due to general ignorance and just being happy that I got to have a V6 equipped Focus. Miraculously, I was able to get this car to pass MD inspection back in '07. Fast forward to the present, it was the never ending water leaks and later a serious mold problem that made me say, 'the hell with this'. I've always liked wagons most, and now that I'm able, why not build one the way it should have been built the first time? I figured I'd take the good guts from the ZX3 and transfer them to a wagon body.

Oh, but I'd have to do one step better. Instead of preserving the original 2.5L V6, I'd take a page from the Contour/Cougar people and swap in a 3.0L V6 to go with it. This thread will be my documentary on how I got there (one of many on different forums)

Let's start with some pictures from the beginning:

Had to clear out my workspace:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0069.jpg

Then I started to take apart the interior of the ZX3:

I felt really proud of myself because I've never done this before. Even getting at the door panels (on both cars for the speaker install) wasn't that bad. Got to make use of my ebay plastic trim tools.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0078.jpg
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0117.jpg

Getting started with the mess:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0091.jpg

I hadn't yet attempted to half-ass clean the back panels so they were looking a little nasty.

Got the console out and started on the carpet:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0093.jpg

Almost there...
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0098.jpg

That part was disgusting so I basically double-wrapped my hands in surgical gloves and went as fast as I could to get that beast out of there.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0115.jpg

The sweet (non-moldy) smell of success! :D
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0102.jpg

Figured I'd snag the stereo (which is useless when the vehicle sits in the garage all day) so I could stick it in the green wagon.

Removed the blue stress bar as that won't be needed. That'll be up for sale sometime.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0114.jpg

Took a moment to use up almost an entire canister of anti-bacterial wipes on the inside of the car and these panels. The non-PC version of this product would probably be aptly referred to as "Uber-Stank-Ass Biohazard Baby Butt-Wipes". :lol:

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0138.jpg

These are waiting to dry while the ants, crickets and spiders explore them:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0132.jpg

Here are some other miscellaneous shots that might be informative for those watching:

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0083.jpg
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0086.jpg
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0108.jpg

This was the day I picked up my D30 from the trucking terminal:

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0191.jpg

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0192.jpg

And later on, some basic prep work on it. This is what the Contour/Cougar people go through.

An extra pulley that needs to go bye-bye
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0213.jpg

How convenient that I can wedge the strap tool in the pallet to get this pulley off:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0215.jpg

Now, onto the crank pulley, itself:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0222.jpg

Once I found a proper set of bolts, it was easy to get started:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0229.jpg

Removed!
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0237.jpg

Gotta remove the auto-tragic flywheel:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0224.jpg

The last PITA (for now) is the pilot bushing. It's not needed for the MTX-75:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0240.jpg

I attempted to slice into the side of the bushing, to try and use a puller. I ended up aborting that because I didn't feel comfortable with the grinding wheel that close, and my puller was too large for the bushing so it couldn't grip it to begin with.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0247.jpg

I went to Harbor Freight and bought a set of pipe taps, because I found that 1/2" NPT pipe damn near fit the bushing perfectly. So I got my tap in there and threaded the pilot. Later, I went to Home Depot to get a couple 1/2" sections of pipe and a T connector. My first version of the 'el cheapo' pilot removal tool:

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0249.jpg

Got the slide hammer ready and started to go to town...

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0258.jpg

Initial design = FAIL. The 6 inch section of 1/2" pipe was old and the threads slipped out. Well, more like flew out and nailed my ankle:

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0270.jpg

So I compared the old pipe with the newer ones that I just got at HD and discovered that the newer ones were ever-so-slightly-larger. So I switched it up, re-threaded them and started hammering some more. The bastard finally came out! :rock:

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0268.jpg

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0267.jpg

Looks like it was pressed in there a good 3/8" or so. And, you can see my initial attempt to notch the thing so I could use a puller. If I had continued that route, I'd probably be really frustrated right now.

This set of pictures was taken over Labor day weekend:

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0272.jpg

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0274.jpg

Unfortunately, when this comes out there will be other BS to figure out.

There's oily fluid weeping from the top of the transmission, in the vicinity of the shift tower. The first picture shows what they did to customize the transmission mount. Someone else has a picture of one bolted but I cannot see from his picture what he's got bolted to that side of the engine bay.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0317.jpg
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0294.jpg

And then what looks like oil is weeping underneath. If that's the case I guess that's ok, since I won't be using this motor anymore, yet not OK because the lump only has 33k miles. I have not been underneath this car in a long while, but there wasn't residue like this all strewn about. Surprisingly, none of it has ever appeared on the floor of the garage or on the street.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0312.jpg

And another thing to figure out... Engine Coolant Temp sensor. When I put in the optima over a year ago, I had to try to get as much slack as I could out of the battery cables. After doing so, I noticed that the temp needle no longer functioned in the cluster. Looks like I tore it out somehow. Gotta figure out where that black/blue wire goes.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0324.jpg
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0320.jpg

This weekend's progress pics:

I call my 2004 Duratec 30 powerplant to the stand...
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0349.JPG

Now, TESTIFY!
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0357.JPG

Meanwhile, getting ready to remove the D25
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0362.JPG

Success! And, another point I want to make: If I can take a V6 and MTX-75 out the top, no excuses for people not wanting to take your I4 and MTX-75 out the top. In hindsight, compared to this, an I4 would almost be too easy (when I assisted an FJer with his D23 I4). Getting this thing out was not as bad as I had imagined. Of course, it helps to use a load balancer like I did.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0389.JPG
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0404.JPG

Putting that aside, I still have some other issues to address. First of all, what the hell is this thing? The receptacle was anchored to the frame rail and it broke when I tried to pull it out with the wiring harness:

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0360.JPG

(I think it's a crash sensor)

Additionally, what's with this coating of fluid all around the shift selector? Is there a gasket or seal here that has to be replaced? Is there one? The line above this (going to the slave cylinder) was dry.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0412.JPG

I also suspect this connection was leaking fluid (ATF) quite a bit:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0449.JPG

And one thing that made me go [scratch] is that prior to removing the engine, there was a small fluid stain on the floor of the garage, which I thought was brake fluid (because I have a caliper suspended in the air right above where it happened) but I saw that the tie rod end was covered with ATF from the boot and it had leaked to the floor. Is this indicative of anything? Thinking about it now, I wonder if this is a side effect of spinning the PS pump backwards initially, before spinning it the right way and draining the line between the cooler and the rack.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0450.JPG

Other pictures:

D25, meet D30:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0425.JPG

Redneck carnival ride:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0436.JPG

Such a mess, even though it's mostly empty:
http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0442.JPG

There's still a long way to go. I still have to gut the dash from the ZX3, and I have to swap the core suspension bits from the SPI. The sucky thing about the SPI dying is that it remains on the street and cannot move on its own. I think I'll have to pull all the SPI crap out in the street and bring it to the ZX3 so that it can at least be moved out of my garage. Maybe I can push the ZX3 shell onto the street, with plates, but with a cover on top... and I can throw the useless SPI lump in the back. :mad:

I'd like to throw this out there: I'm in Columbia, MD, and if anyone would like to drop by and lend a hand, I'd appreciate it. Familiarity with the cars is a bonus, because I still have interiors to take out and suspension to swap. Of course, I'd pony up food and drink [thumb]

It's starting to get cooler, which is a bonus when I can't work on a car in the garage... however, I don't want to be stuck on this when it's freezing outside.

Anyway, this is what I have for now. Insights welcome regarding the pictured problems/issues.

Siiiiiiiick

Great job, those pics make it look soooooo easy LOL.
Keep us posted with more info 'cause this is really great.
Cheers

yes that sensor was a crash sensor. this should be fun althought im not a huge fan of the wagon.

Damn dude how badass was it running a 200hp (crank) 2.5L Focus? LOL

That thing must have been pretty damn fast!

Hmm, I understand the idea of stripping the good parts from the interior, exterior and suspension to swap them over to the wagon, but what was the point of pulling the cougar motor from the ZX3 if you're going to use a Taurus motor in the wagon? Track car? Props on the swap; I too am a fan of the wagon, and would love to have the time to shoe-horn a 3.0 into one to ferry around the kiddies, while hauling lots of stuff. Good luck, I'll definitely keep an eye on this one.

I always wanted to cram a 6 into a focus. What kind of suspension are you going to get to handle the extra weight?

The 2.5L V6 was the plain 170 crank HP version, not the SVT version. It supposedly came from a 2002 Cougar. With the SVT Upper Intake Manifold installed, it's easy to think it's the stronger motor. Despite the "lack of power", with the 4.06 final drive it could get a move on. And, it still sounded cool.

As for why I'm using the 3.0? Well, I have to use a V6 MTX-75, hence the need to remove the 2.5L so that I can take the tranny and bolt it to the 3.0L. I also have to swap the accessories and timing cover from the 2.5L to the 3.0L. One way or another, the 2.5L had to be pulled.

The bottom line is, the 3.0L is a $500 upgrade that will likely yield me close to 200 fwhp (based on Cougar/Contour dynos). The 2.5L yielded maybe 142-ish fwhp.

Edit - Also, I don't consider the motor weight to be much of a factor. The V6 is aluminum whereas the original equipment (Zetec) is cast iron. I can't find rough numbers, though.

I get the upgrade to the 3.0, I was just confused whether or not you had a plan for the 2.5 or if it was just to scavenge parts for the the 3.0. I definitely think the 3.0 is the way to go; .5L more displacement and 200 whp to the ground, its a no-brainer. Good luck!

Oh, gotcha... I hope that someone will be willing to buy the 2.5L for cheap just so I can free up the space in my garage. I'd hate to have to scrap it when I know that it runs fine.

I love the running commentary!

Anyway, if you are interested in engine weights...
Ford Duratec 2.5/3.0 V6 360lbs ("fully dressed")
Ford Zetec 238lbs
From this site...
http://fixrambler.com/engineweightchart.txt

this is a sweet project!

Thanks for locating the weight figures! A few moments ago I found the shipping receipt and it said that the weight was 363lb. I have to suspect that the terminal weighed the pallet with the engine, since mine is clearly not fully dressed.

I am probably going to run H&R Sport springs and Koni dampers when it's all said and done, but since my main goal is to get the engine functional, I will be on stock components temporarily.

The body of the wagon, by virtue of being heavier, probably works better to balance the additional weight in the front.

I also looked at that text file... another line says:

Ford/Mazda Mondeo V6 225 (64) 60 deg, all aluminum, 4v

Wouldn't that be the same 2.5L as mine, physically? I could see headers, intake, A/C, alternator adding up to 360lb. If that's true, then it really is a wash.

I 'd love to come by and take a look at your setup. Since our new baby my wife put all my projects on hold [mecry]. My Focus is still on jack stands with a brand new Supercharger in it.

By all means, if you've got time on the weekend, drop me a PM for directions and stop by. What's left to be done on your car?

ahhhh! thank you so very very much covert! u just proved to me that my ideas on how the motor mounts work will work! i love you! that was the only thing i had any worries about on my swap and ur pictures let me see that it will work and it lines every thing up just fine. ur swap was done the same way as mine. mixing and matching the motor mounts. any pics of what your lower dog bone mount looked like? just wondering.

Hey! I think I dropped you a PM over on NECO asking about how you mounted yours on the driver's side (the tranny mount). Mine has a custom 3" tall dampener on top of the tranny mount, but when I saw some pics of yours, it looked like everything fit with a hybrid OEM mount. Could you elaborate on that?

As for the dogbone, it appeared to be stock, but it was a little bit crooked.

http://www.covert1.com/fj/rebirth/DSCN0310.JPG

sorry, i havn't been on fj or neco in a while. been having some problems. need to dig up my passwords for both and get back on the. and yes i can explain. ur drivers side mount is still the same kinda mount as mine. the bottom part that is bolted to your tranny is off of a cougar/contour, thats the part that had the huge freakin bolt thing coming out of it. the big ass spacer is actually off of the cougar/contour as well. when i was putting mine together it didn't look like it was going to clear. so i made my own kinda spacer out of hockey pucks. and then u should have just a regular focus mount on the top part that sticks out off the frame rail. and as for your lower mount they probibly did the same thing that ihearmyzx3 did make a custom adapter bracket to use the stock one. as were i just said [:)][:)][:)][:)] it and went with a solid piece of bent 1/4 inch steel with a hockey puck used as a spacer on the bottom were it bolts to the sub frame. if ur able to get some pics of the back side of the motor/ lower mount. out side of the car i could tell ya more for sure if thats how it was done.

Judging by what I saw, the pieces for the lower mount all looked like OEM metal (it was all corroded in the same fashion). I don't know why the cooling fin was busted on the tranny, though.

But looking at the last picture with the dogbone circled, I might be able to get a longer set of bolts with maybe 1/4" spacers to shift the bracket on the transmission toward the passenger side of the car. Then the dogbone should sit with the short end pointing straight ahead instead of being skewed toward the driver's side like mine was.

ehhh, its won't cause any issues the way they have yours man. ur plenty fine with it twisted to the side a little. i would look into a poly motor mount tho. or at least poly bushings for it. just to help with the wheel hop i'm assuming u have? thast why i decided to go with a solid one.

on a side note, how quikc is it? and whats issues have u noticed?

I don't have much to say about any wheel hop, if only because I'm not one to really thrash my cars on launch. Once moving, however, I can tell you that with the 4.06 final drive, first gear is a bit short and second gear is the money gear. I know I startled many people who tried to pull off frivolous passing maneuvers. I think the previous owners were able to run it down the 1/4 mile track to a high 14 seconds. I did not personally verify this when I had it, though I really want to do this with the 3.0L.

At highway speed, it was great to just leave it in 5th to do passing from 65-85, and in the hills in western MD I didn't have to downshift like I occasionally do with my Zetec equipped ZTW.

I also felt like it fell flat once at highway speed... like, if you had to downshift to 4th and needed to accelerate, I felt like it should have been quicker.

Some of the quirks I found:

Backfiring. The entire time I've had my ZTW, with its race header and FS Stealth exhaust, I'm not even sure I've ever heard it backfire once. The 2.5L V6 would do this on deceleration while in gear. I suspect an aggressive fuel cut-off strategy or something when letting off the gas pedal.

Speaking of that cutoff strategy, there were occasions where it seemed like the fuel was being cut off during shifts. I.e. when pushing the clutch and getting into gear, the car would briefly bog (much like Advancetrac does on my ZTW) but then pick up. My solution was just to be more mindful of matching revs to shifts. The RPMs do not hang like they do on my Zetec, so it takes some getting used to. It is not as bad as my folks' Mazda 6 with the 3.0L MTX, where the RPMs just drop instantly such that smooth shifts require a blip of gas before letting off the clutch pedal.

Be mindful that the oil capacity is 6 Quarts. You'll have to fab up a Y pipe to route the exhaust around our subframe.

I'm sure I can think of more, but my brain has been a bit foggy much of today.

yea, i know about the oil and the y pipe. not to worried about eaither. the y pipe will be done away with since i plan to turbo mine. i'm hoping to get a low 14 out of mine. since its gonna be stripped down sedan. thanx for the info tho man! i really do apriciate it alot! how about tq stear?

Torque steer seemed minor to me in most situations... except accelerating hard on a road where the road crown is more pronounced. Mine was only doing something like 142hp / 120tq at the wheels, though.

Nothing at all like the craziness of my old 89 Probe GT, where that mofo would twist and break traction while moving in 3rd gear. That said, if you follow through with turbo, then I expect yours to behave as badly if not worse than my PGT did. And, I suggest never driving in rain or snow. [hihi]

haha, mine will hopefully never have to be driven in rain, snow, or fog. since it won't have heat, defrost, or windsheild wipers.

any updates ?

Any reason for not going with a 3.5 or 3.7 L V6? Harder to swap? Can't justify the price? Too much torque steer?

The only major update involves the wagon body that I'm preparing for the swap. Surprisingly, with the fubar'd valve in its SPI engine, it started, so my friend/colleague and I didn't have to push the thing down my driveway. However, we ended up wasting a lot of time removing the front suspension because of the rusted nuts/bolts.

I drained the coolant, as much of the ATF as I could from the tranny, and the power steering. Will drain the oil this weekend and pop the other drive shaft out. Once I pop out that drive shaft, the SPI comes out.

This weekend, I hope to be able to get the SPI out and to have the interior of the vehicle mostly disassembled.

There are a couple of reasons why the 3.5L / 3.7L aren't viable. They are:

Incompatibility (http://www.fordcontour.org/index.php?showtopic=11951). Those engines represent a different family, altogether, even though they're labeled 'Duratec'. It's not simply the 2.5L block just bored out larger. Bell housing won't accommodate the MTX-75 from the 2.5/3L. I'd have to use a new ECU just to be sure that the VCT is handled properly. Plus, who knows how that'd bolt up in the engine bay. By contrast, the 2.5/3.0L almost look like they were meant to fit.

Cost. They're too new, too ridiculously expensive, and too unavailable. And, I think the only application that uses those engines with MTX is the Mazda 6. Right now, I do not have more money than brains. [mecry]