Words And Photos: Richard Holdener

Okay, let’s say you are the proud owner of a Ford Modular motor and you (like all of us) are looking to improve the performance. The three most common recipes for improved performance include the bevy of basic bolt ons, boost and (most important for our test), the bottle! All three routes promise tremendous potential, but neither of the other two offer the unique bang-for-the-buck combination of nitrous oxide. If the criteria are power and price, nitrous oxide has the other two covered hands down. In addition to its bang-for-the-buck stature, nitrous oxide has a few other things going for it, including the ability to significantly improve the power output of almost any engine. Nitrous oxide does not care what kind of engine you run, it’s just there to add power. Supply that motor an extra 100 horsepower worth of nitrous oxide (and fuel) and (if you’ve done everything right) your motor will make an extra 100 horsepower. What could be easier?

The great thing about modern nitrous systems like the Universal Wet EFI kit we tested from ZEX is that such systems have greatly simplified the process. A performance triple threat, the ZEX nitrous kit was easy to install, offered important safety features and an adjustable power output. What more could you want? While we tested this system on a 5.4L Modular Ford motor, the truth is that this Universal Wet EFI kit could be applied to just about any fuel injected motor on the planet. We know from experience, as we have tested the ZEX kit on Ford, Chevy and Dodges, not to mention a variety of different import applications with equal success.

The single-fogger system combined the fuel and nitrous into one injection point, making it easy to plumb. As a safety measure, the controller was programmed to learn the wide-open-throttle (TPS) voltage to ensure the system would only be activated at full throttle. Housing the solenoids in the controller also helped streamline installation, while jetting provided simple and effective adjustability to the ZEX system.

To illustrate the potential of the ZEX Wet EFI kit, we installed one on a modified 5.4L Ford Navigator motor. Supplied by Sean Hyland Motorsports, the 5.4L four-valve motor featured a forged rotating assembly, ported Navigator 4V heads and a Sullivan, single-plane intake manifold. The SHM motor also featured Stage 2 intake and Stage 3 exhaust cams, a 90mm Accufab throttle body and Holley 65-pound injectors. Given the Sullivan intake accepted both carburetion and fuel injection, we could very well have run a carbureted ZEX nitrous system on the 4V motor, but we stuck with the single fogger system designed for the EFI application. Tested on the engine dyno with a FAST EFI management system, the modified Navigator motor produced 442 hp at 6,600 rpm and 388 lb-ft of torque at 4,900 rpm. After installation of the ZEX Wet EFI kit (with 100 horsepower jetting), these numbers quickly jumped to 551 hp and 574 lb-ft of torque, making this humble 5.4L Navigator one Zexy Mod motor!

Just push the button and watch all the magic happen—it really is almost that easy. Adding the ZEX Wet EFI kit to the modified 5.4L 4V Ford resulted in a serious chunk of power. Equipped with 100 horsepower jetting, the ZEX kit increased the power output from 442 hp and 388 lb-ft of torque to 551 hp and 574 lb-ft of torque, though the torque number was the usual spike that occurs after initial engagement. What we liked most was having the additional 100 hp available from 4,500 rpm to 6,500 rpm, right where it will be most useful during acceleration.

Reducing the ignition timing when using nitrous is highly recommended. The usual amount is 4 degrees per 100 hp. This graph shows the result of what happened when we retarded the timing and additional 4 degrees (total of 8). Disregard the initial spike in power and pay attention to the consistent power difference from 5,000 rpm to 6,500 rpm. The extra drop in timing reduced power by 15-17 horsepower through the entire curve.

Sources

FAST
fuelairspark.com

Holley/Hooker
holley.com

JE Pistons
jepistons.com

Lucas Oil
lucasoil.com

Sean Hyland Motorsports
seanhylandmotorsport.com

ZEX Nitrous
zex.com