Alright you hotrods...

[65er]

For all of you guys with street driven 500+ hp cars, I want to know how much of that horsepower you actually get to enjoy on a more or less daily basis.  I'm still kind of trying to sort this out in my head but it's difficult since I don't have any experience to draw from in this area.  On one hand I feel like my car SHOULD have 500 hp because it has 500 written in chrome letter right on the fenders!  But on the other hand I already run into traction issues.  It's an open 3.0:1 gear 255/60-15 TA Radials, which I know aren't the stickiest things but they get me to work and back every day in style (IMO at least, lol).  Werbyford's gonkulator estimate is 375 hp and 425 tq.

Now the plan is to install a TKO 600 in place of the dying cruiseomatic, and 4.30 gears with a true-track or some form of limited slip diff.  I also have 28 spline axles so I'm thinking I'd probably need to upgrade those if I thought I might put slicks on some day.

Here are my major concerns about spending the cash to make the 500 hp daydream come true:
 1) the car still won't run 12's unless I buy a second set of wheels and tires and change them out at the track
 2) I'll put slicks on and still won't run 12's because the suspension doesn't want to go there
 3) the car WILL run 12's but wants to do a donut every time I try to make turn from a stop sign.
 4) maybe after carrying extra tires around, changing them in the dirt and fooling with tech inspections and safety equipment I won't enjoy driving on the dragstrip! (not expecting this, but possible)

I'm kind of afraid of taking more fun OUT of the car by overdoing a good thing.  If I go with 400 hp then I won't worry about the 31 spline axles, or slicks, or going to the track, and it's only a small step up from what I have now.  But with the gear and transmission changes it's going to be an entirely different car than it is now.  So how many horsepower can a big ole Galaxie actually put to good use on a daily basis?

[66FAIRLANE]

My advice would be if its a daily, stick to around 400ish. If its a toy tip as much as you want in. Big grins both ways.

[jayb]

I think you might be able to use up to 600 HP with the right suspension and street tires, but it won't be as friendly in traffic as it is now.  You will also lose some low RPM grunt once you go by 500 HP.  But as long as you go with big cubes to make your 500 HP engine, I think you would be perfectly satisfied with the street performance across the RPM band.

For my part I've gone way beyond that horsepower level because I'm not all that interested in racing around on the street.  Some of my friends say I drive like a grandma    However, I do enjoy going to the track, and with a 6000 stall converter and slicks, I can use all the power available in the upper RPM ranges.

It all depends on the end purpose of the car...

[65er]

If I decide to shoot for the 400 range it'll be a 390 and I'll need to buy a cam but otherwise I can pretty much build that from parts I have laying around at home already.   Beyond that it would be the 445 kit, professional head and intake porting job and hydraulic roller cam.  The funny thing is, if I go for more HP and lose some low end grunt maybe the tires stand a bit better chance of hanging on.  Wonder if I can even purposely "over do it" to kill some bottom as a favor to my tires.  Probably a piss poor plan but I know I'm not going to get excited about changing tires every time I want to enjoy my car.  I might decide it's time to blow out the carbon on the way to work sometimes...

Also Jay, you got me curious about the suspension.  I've got the stock 3 link setup with a 7/8 sway bar and air shocks in there.  The system has both shocks plumbed to a single valve but  I figured I can split them and run a few more PSI on the right side.  Beyond that I don't know what to do to improve traction for the strip. Is there stuff that can be done to my setup without a bunch of heavy duty mods? 

And when my grandma got behind the wheel she meant business!  So when you say you drive like a grandma I'll assume you mean absolutely nobody is going to pass you and your passengers won't open their eyes 

[My427stang]

I run a pretty hot 489 and can obliterate the tires at will.  However, I can also enjoy the car in every gear without doing so too.  It's not uncontrollable or driving on ice, your foot determines the madness.

If I were you, I'd reduce variables with changes as well as phase changes in with the budget.

- Get the TKO-600 in and drive it.  Be sure to measure the current crank centerline angle (use any measurement, carb pad, fan blades, whatever) and when you get the new tranny in, make sure its the same.  Then make sure it drives nice

- Do the gears, and play some more, see the beauty of your changes and pay close attention to the RPM range you enjoy the car in the most

- Determine how much power you want after that.  I see a nice 397 matched to the RPM range you want as being a ton of fun, add more head, add more stroke, and cam accordingly to meet that RPM range if you want more.  Building a daily driver is different than building a strip terror.  You need to figure out a wider RPM range and varying conditions.

Honestly, a good breathing 397 would be a ton of fun for an interim motor after the tranny and gears are done

However, I'd focus on a little less cam but more head/intake/exhaust flow to get RPM, regardless of displacement, in the end as a daily driver you'll be a little more happy at a stoplight with the a/c on. 

I do expect you'll get the bug and eventually build a stroker, but it doesn't have to be right away.

[65er]

So you're saying sneak up on it. Seems like probably a solid plan since that's pretty much what I need to do anyway.  For setting the drive angles I planned on measuring from the floor to the center of the output shaft before I remove the original tranny and then working with the TKO until I get the same height. That should get me in the right spot, right?

Then I'll be driving it a while and will come back to take care of the rear end and I'll be driving it a while again before doing anything to the motor. So I'm probably just getting way ahead of myself.  I do know the transmission at least and I got the clutch pedal, z-bar and some of the linkage already so maybe it won't be long before I can do something and see how it looks from there instead of torturing myself thinking about it.

Transmission first then worry about the next step...
Ehhh, I don't know if I like that... too reasonable ;-)

[My427stang]

Output shaft centerline to floor is perfect if you have the same length transmission/output shaft

If its not the same, the angle wont be the same.  10 dollar angle finders at Sears are pretty handy and all you need is a flat surface before and after.

As far as sneaking up on it, honestly I didnt do it that way, but I knew I wanted a 489FE and exactly what RPM range I wanted it to run in.  So I built the stroker/tranny combo, but then still adjusted later with more gear.

You have been on the fence with engine size and level of performance, so by doing the gear and tranny, you'll get increased performance with each change, then have a solid rpm range to match the biggest engine you are willing to spend on

BTW that tranny is an easy swap, get all the parts and take a long weekend and get it in there!

[65er]

On the fence!
Now there's a polite way to say it, lol. Spazzin' out is probably more accurate. Hopefully won't be much longer and I'll have the transmission done and maybe I'll be able to chill out a bit. I appreciate you guys input and am hoping to hear about any traction tips for the three link rear.

[jayb]

Most of my cars run obsolete leaf springs in the rear  , so I've never worked with a factory suspension setup like your Galaxie has.  But a good starting point would be to replace the rubber bushings with new ones, or maybe polymer ones, and adjust the shocks differently side to side.  Another alternative might be to put an airbag in the right side spring, and use regular adjustable shocks rather than the air shocks.  For a 12 second car, that ought to be plenty of suspension to get it to hook.

[e philpott]

get the 445 Wade , just because you got 500HP doesn't mean you have to use it everytime you drive it , but it will be nice having it when you need it .... if you settle for 400hp then you'll be "just hanging" with some lady in a new 6.0 Escalade instead of smoking her off the road ... DON'T SISSY OUT , your not going to be smoking the tire everytime you nail it with 500HP , might as well make the "XL500"  stand for something (like horse power for your chevy buddies)

[66FAIRLANE]

Will append my first advice. I was thinking 390.

If its a daily (a true daily) don't go too far over the 1hp per cube mark. If its a toy then go for it!

[Hemi Joel]

There is no replacement for displacement!

[e philpott]

Wade , here's a link to some 1965 and up galaxy suspension compononents

http://www.spohn.net/shop/1965-1974-Ford-Galaxie/Suspension/

[plovett]

Hmmm.  Well it's a very personal choice as to how far you want to push it.  My opinion is to go for as much hp as you can.  Figuring out how to hook it up later is a fun problem to have.

 1) the car still won't run 12's unless I buy a second set of wheels and tires and change them out at the track
       I've run as fast as 11.70 at 123 in the 1/4 on real street radials (255/60R15 Firesone Firehawks) on street surfaces.  That's according to a g-meter which should be conservative due to no roll out, but who knows.  That's with a horrible 1.99 60 ft time.  The motor is only around 540 hp.  Ross has 600 hp  and Jay's stuff is in another world.     Still even with my little 428 , it takes a perfect launch on real street tires, starting at maybe 2500 rpm, rolling into the throttle, hitting full throttle near the top of 1st gear.  I've tried drag radials without too much success.  Now I have some Mickey Thompson ET Street bias ply's and they hook very well.  I'm just waiting for the temperature to cool down and I'll try some more passes.  I think I'll run 11.30's to 11.40's with the ET Streets, but we'll have to see for sure. 
   
 2) I'll put slicks on and still won't run 12's because the suspension doesn't want to go there
      With slicks you'll run 12's just fine, despite a non-scienced out suspension, if you have the power to weight.

 3) the car WILL run 12's but wants to do a donut every time I try to make turn from a stop sign.
      You'll be able to control what it does.  It may take a little practice, but you'll be able to make it do what you want.

 4) maybe after carrying extra tires around, changing them in the dirt and fooling with tech inspections and safety equipment I won't enjoy driving on the dragstrip! (not expecting this, but possible)
     I think you'll still enjoy it.  Messing with your car is half the fun, IMO

Jay mentioned 600 hp as a usable level and I think that's a good general statement.  Of course it varies with the car, suspension, tires, etc., but 600 hp is a good answer IMO.  Like I said it's a personal decision, but my advice is to go for as much as you can.  Most hotrodders want more hp as soon as they get used to what they have.     Displacement can be your enemy depending on your combination.  In general, the better your traction and the heavier your car  the more displacement you can use.  With a big Galaxie, more is usually better.  If you're not looking for ultimate ET, then traction problems are not really problems.  They're a lot of fun.

A big fat JMO,

paulie

[65er]

Lots of good discussion on the practical side of street horsepower here.  Thanks a bunch, I really appreciate the guidance from you guys with experience.
Points that really hit home for me are:

1) Sneak up on it, which I'll have to do anyway since I don't have the budget to tackle everything at once.

2) No replacement for displacement, which is about as cliche as it gets but would never have become a cliche if it didn't make so much sense.  The bigger motor will be milder for any given horsepower number so presumably better suited for daily street use.

3) Probably hits closest to home for me is

Most hotrodders want more hp as soon as they get used to what they have.

  I've had I think 4 different motor combinations in my car in about an 18 month period for various reasons but if I had ever truly been satisfied I probably would have left it alone at some point.  And if I'm asking about this stuff now I must not be ready to leave it alone yet.  Much as I like messing with the motor I don't really want to keep swapping it out just for the sake of having something to do.

Looks like I'd better plan on that 31 spline rear...