5.0L Ford Coyote Power Adder Test - Coyote-Boost vs. Bottle

Installed in the 2011 Mustangs, the 5.0L Coyote motor offers increased displacement, variable cam timing, and better cylinder heads compared to the previous generation 4.6L 4-valve Cobra motors.

The 5.0L Coyote came courtesy of Ford Racing. To facilitate testing, Ford Racing also supplied its Controls Pack that included an ECU, harness, air intake system, and even a drive-by-wire throttle pedal.

For testing, we replaced the factory 5.0L exhaust manifolds with a set of 13/4-inch stainless steel headers from American Racing Headers. The headers were designed specifically for a 2011 Mustang application.

The Controls Pack supplied by Ford Racing included a factory ECU programmed specifically for the crate motor.

Throttle activation for the 5.0L was controlled by the supplied drive-by-wire pedal. We attached it to the dyno console for testing.

The Coyote crate motor offered a stock specific output unmatched over in Chevy land. Run on the dyno with the long-tube headers, the otherwise stock 5.0L produced 462 hp and 411 lb-ft of torque. Credit high-flow, 4-valve cylinder heads (that flow nearly 300 cfm) and variable cam timing for the impressive specific output.

Zex supplied a wet EFI nitrous kit designed specifically for the 2011 Mustang. Using supplied jetting, the Zex kit was adjustable from 75 hp to 125 hp.

SCT provided the necessary software and X3 flash tool that allowed us to make the necessary tuning modifications to the factory ECU.

The Zex kit features a single fogger nozzle that combines fuel and nitrous flow. We installed the nozzle in the intake tract after the mass air meter.

Run with jetting to supply an additional 75 hp, the Zex nitrous kit improved the power output from 462 hp and 411 lb-ft to 554 hp and 540 lb-ft of torque. Additional power was available through extra jetting, but we were anxious to install the supercharger.

To make room for the Kenne Bell supercharger, off came the factory intake manifold and 80mm throttle body.

The 5.0L kit from Kenne Bell is offered with two different superchargers (in different configurations). The 2.8L is capable of supporting over 1,000 hp, while the larger 3.6L ups the power ante by over 200 hp.

After removal of the factory intake and swapping over the factory O-rings, Mike Decourcey from Kenne Bell installed the lower intake that included the efficient air-to-water intercooler.

The factory injectors were replaced by a set of 47 pounders from Kenne Bell. If you plan on running elevated boost and power levels, it might be a good idea to step up to even larger injectors.

The 2.8L supercharger, Mammoth intake and stock throttle body were installed as one unit. The 4.125-inch blower pulley produced a peak boost pressure of 6.5 psi.

Using a clever adapter plate, the Kenne Bell Mammoth intake was designed to accept both the stock and upgraded throttle bodies. We started our testing with the factory 80mm unit.

By now the killer Coyote was begging for a larger throttle body. We obliged with the installation of the 168mm oval throttle body from Kenne Bell. The oval throttle body more than doubled the flow of the stock throttle body.

The supercharged Coyote was run first with the stock (and very restrictive) throttle body and air intake assembly. The factory airbox (MAF, filter, and inlet tube) were restrictive even to the stock motor, but downright power-robbing on a supercharged application. With a peak boost pressure of 6.5 psi (6.0 psi at the power peak), the supercharged mod motor produced 588 hp and 493 lb-ft of torque. The supercharger out-horsepowered the nitrous, but lost out in torque production.

The hot (actually cold) setup was this dedicated cold air intake system from Kenne Bell. The massive 4.5-inch air intake/MAF assembly offered not only unrestricted airflow but also a dedicated cold air source. Forget the open element filters under the hood - cold air is critical on supercharged applications.

The air induction upgrades were combined with a drop-in blower pulley size to 3.875 inches (from 4.125 inches). This pushed the peak boost pressure to 9.9 psi.

This final combination represented the way the Kenne Bell supercharger kit was delivered to 2011 Mustang owners. Run in this configuration (with the Kenne Bell tune supplied with the kit), the Ford Racing crate motor produced 704 hp and 549 lb-ft of torque.