3L LIM's on 2.5 block? - CEG Archives

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do the 3L LiM's match up to 2.5 heads? i have been informed that they are slightly larger than the 2.5 LIM's and if they fit i am also looking for a set

no...oval port vs split port. The split ports are larger top to bottom so if you mated a 3l lim to it youd have gaps. not to mention for fuel injection, you'd be in a world of issues.

Originally posted by TRicker:
do the 3L LiM's match up to 2.5 heads? i have been informed that they are slightly larger than the 2.5 LIM's and if they fit i am also looking for a set

Depends on the year. 99 and earlier Taurus/Sable lower intake manifolds are almost the same as the 99+ SVT LIMs(which was updated and derived from the 3L LIM). Meaning they are both split port aluminum with secondaries and they WILL fit. It is the 1998 LIMs that are the same as the standard 2.5L LIM (slightly smaller)
2000+ 3L manifolds are ovalport and plastic from what I've seen except ST220 Manifolds. The oval plastic manifolds pretty much suck for future development, RE: honing/porting, but if they provide the airflow you want then not a problem. The aluminum LIM of the SVT can be cut out to be an oval shape and you can buy a <=1999 Taurus/Sable upper intake manifold that is essentially an ovalport with a split port bolt-up and it will bolt on directly to your newly cut (now oval) 2.5L lower intake manifold.
Believe me, the cut 2.5L LIM is going to be a hell of a sight bigger than a standard ovalport and the 3L upper oval from a 99 is equal to the later 3L ovals if not bigger.

For NA with nitrous you are wasting your time and money though. Do a good porting job on your factory stuff and then let the nitrous have its way. You won't be disapointed.

I just did a little searching on car-part, LIM for '01 cougar ~$70, LIM for '99 taurus (duratec) ~$20. Would one of these be a better buy? I understand the taurus lim will bolt up, but is a slightly different casting, could this cause fitment issues?

One more thing since one of the big dogs is already in here,(sorry to hijack) after a ton of searching my question is left unclearly answered... if i have a '00 SE do i have the same LIM as the "returnless" ('00+) cougar or should i buy one of the afore mentioned parts?

I have a 99 Sable lower intake manifold on my car. You have to spend time converting the linkage etc to make it fit. It's not a straight bolt in, you have to swap linkages and cable brackets, file down the old 2.5 linkage to fit the 3L secondary valves. Not worth the work to get essentially a 99 + SVT LIM or newer Cougar LIM. I did not find any local to me on car-part when I was doing my swap and I had this available to me for free so I said what the heck and made it work.

Originally posted by warmonger:

Depends on the year. 99 and earlier Taurus/Sable lower intake manifolds are almost the same as the 99+ SVT LIMs(which was updated and derived from the 3L LIM). Meaning they are both split port aluminum with secondaries and they WILL fit.

The aluminum split port 3L LIM's will bolt up as long as the secondaries are removed. The secondary linkage makes contact with the bottom of the 2.5L UIM if not removed. I suppose you could cut/weld new linkage in place if you really wanted to, but it's far easier to get the late 2000 Cougar LIM and bolt it in place without a fuss.

Originally posted by hylix:
I just did a little searching on car-part, LIM for '01 cougar ~$70, LIM for '99 taurus (duratec) ~$20. Would one of these be a better buy? I understand the taurus lim will bolt up, but is a slightly different casting, could this cause fitment issues?

One more thing since one of the big dogs is already in here,(sorry to hijack) after a ton of searching my question is left unclearly answered... if i have a '00 SE do i have the same LIM as the "returnless" ('00+) cougar or should i buy one of the afore mentioned parts?

Linkage is different, but could be modified to work if you can fabricate.