Comp Cams Stage 3 Xtreme Energy 234/238 Hydraulic Roller Camshafts (96-04 Mustang GT)

Video Review & Installation

Hey, guys Adam here with americanmuscle.com. Today, I'm bringing you a detailed overview and installation of the Comp Cams Stage 3 Xtreme Energy XE270AH Camshafts which are available for all '96 to '04 Mustang GTs. So in this video, I'll be going over the sound you can expect at idle from these cams as well as the power gains when adding them to your GT. On top of that, I'll talk about the application and the street drivability, if any, with the cams. And I'll top the video off with the installation. I'll let you know up front that's going to get a full three out of three wrenches on a difficulty meter. This one is probably going to be best left up to the professionals or the guys who really have the mechanical expertise to get it done. The Comp Cams Stage 3 Xtreme Energy XE270AH Camshafts should be on the build list of any modified and '96 to '04 GT owner who's looking to really improve their mid-range gains in the horse power and torque area as well as pick up a pretty hefty noticeable lope at idle. So it's a pretty well-known fact when we're talking about valve train technology that Comp Cams is one of the industry leaders in that field. So no-brainer to look in their direction if you're looking to pick up a bigger cam. Now for your single overhead cam, two valve motor, if you are looking to pick up that bigger cam you can expect bigger gains when it comes to the mid-range power band as well as picking up a bigger heftier lope at idle to really give it that muscle car sound. Everything I just mentioned from mid-range gains to a heavy lope at idle is everything you can expect from the Stage 3 Cams from Comp Now, Comp lets us know that you can expect power to be ranging all across the power band from 1800 RPM to red line at about 5800 RPMs but of course, the bulk of that can be coming in and can be expected to come in the right around the mid-range like I mentioned before. Now, with that comes a heavier lope because this is one of the bigger cams given it's a stage 3, the XE270AH cam we have here, is gonna give you that heftier lope. You can expect a heavier noticeable sound when you're idling at that red light. Definitely, something you want from a stage 3 cam, something you want from a muscle car in general. So as I mentioned before in the beginning of the video, this is going to be geared more toward the modified 4.6-liter Mustangs. Simply because this one is a bigger heavier cam that does require a lot of support. Now, speaking of support, Comp Cams highly recommends picking up in addition to this the Comp Cams beehive valve springs to really support the proper installation and to prevent any clearance related issues you may have while installing these. On top of that, they also recommend picking up brand new valve spring retainers which of course can support everything that you have going on especially the high-pressure springs you'd be installing as new. All this is highly recommended you can get away with other brands but of course picking up a Comp Cams camshaft would definitely be supported by a Comp Cams spring as well as the Comp Cams retainers.Like I said some of those things you can do without, but it's highly recommended to pick those up. There's also a couple more things that are leaning more toward on the required side of things when you're installing these. They're basically designed for 355 gears or steeper and if you've got an automatic transmission, a 2,000 plus stall speed converter should be also installed as well just to get this running properly, that's more again on the required side of things. So, if you're picking these up, tack all those costs on to the final price there when you're shopping around. So when it comes those modified 4.6s there are a few things that you would already need to have on your Mustang in order to support the Stage 3 Cams including an intake, maybe a full exhaust of course the cold air intake, the throttle body, those things all put together tied in with the Stage 3 Cams will really maximize all of the performance. Just sticking a Stage 3 Cams on a completely stock 4.6 will not have this thing running the way it should be considering it's such a big cam, it needs those supporting mods.There is also one more thing I'm gonna throw at you. That is a very good idea to pick up which is going to be the adjustable cam gears. Now, when you're setting up a bigger cam like this, you are modifying the camshaft to crankshaft centerline position so adjustable cam gears can help you fine tune all those little details to make sure this thing is running at its maximum potential. Tying all those parts, I just mentioned together in addition to the 270 cam we have here, all of that can expect to make around 40 rear wheel horse power as well as 30 to 40-pound feet of torque. That's something a lot of the customers are claiming, who have reviewed the product and applied it to their own 4.6. Of course those numbers are just ballparked figures, it all depends on your personal modifications so don't expect exactly 40 horsepower, it may vary depending on your own setup.Just to give you a few more specs on these cam shafts. Just to give you an idea of what you're working with. At a duration of 50,000, you can expect 270 on the intake side and 274 on the exhaust side. Just to compare those numbers to the stock cam for the guys out there with non-PI heads, you have a 200 on the intake, 209 on the exhaust and of course guys with PI heads bump that up to 201 one on the intake and a 210 on the exhaust. Noticeable difference when compared to the Stage 3 Cams. So obviously there is a big difference there. Now with those big jumps from the factory duration to the duration of the Stage 3, 270 Cam, you can see exactly where the improvements are coming from. This is exactly what's going to produce that heavy loping sound at idle which is something a lot of people are striving for when picking up new cams. Some of you guys may be looking after the power gains. Some you guys maybe just looking after the sound gains. Some of you might be a little bit of both. I myself I'm more interested in the sound gains, but of course, if you're looking for the power it's there. If you're looking for the sound, it's definitely there. So this one is a good cam to cater to the guys out there who have modified 4.6s and are looking for best of both worlds. With that in mind, I do want to point out this is one of the more noticeable street cams available on the market. The Stage 3 Cam is probably coming around one of the last options as far as street drivability. This one gives you the heavier lope. It gives you a deeper lope at idle and noticeable sound and the power gains at mid-range, but of course, all that tied together still leaves you drivability as far as daily driving concerned, and it's something you can easily do on the street without running into any issues. Now if you move up to a stage 4 that might be a little bit of a different story. So the stage 3 might be the cutoff line there as far as the comp cams options are concerned. Now, if you are interested in picking up the sound and power that this combination makes, now you're looking at spending around $600 which is a very average price tag when it comes to the camshaft alone. Now, you get everything you see here literally just two cams for your single overhead cam motor. With that said $600, a very average price tag but you want to factor in all the additional pieces that you need to throw in to get this thing running properly. If you are going with the beehive valve springs that adds a little bit more pricing to it as well as the retainers to go along with that.Now, if you're going with third party options, you still gonna tack on that price here. And of course, if you're not doing this yourself as far as installation goes the labor tacks on even further. Now, If you are still interested you're getting power gains again around 3000, 3500 RPMs dead center in the middle of the power band there, were for the maximum potential this offers. Just to give you a solid idea of what to expect if you are looking to pick these up with the $600 and additional parts after that, expect to spend just north of $1,000 for a proper install if you've got somebody you know doing it for you or if you have a helping hand doing it yourself.With that said, if you going take it to a mechanic, expect another $1,000 at least for the labor alone. So, this is a pretty pricey install, this is why it gets the three out of three wrenches on the difficulty meter, but I'll touch on that install in just a second. So, this one is definitely going to test the tool box as far as the install is concern. It requires mechanical expertise. If you're not comfortable doing it yourself, no shame taking it over to a professional but then, of course, you're gonna have to tack on the labor cost because this one does take several hours if not a full day in the garage to complete. The three out of three wrenches on the difficulty meter can be attested to. Taken off the intake manifold, really dig into the cylinder heads by removing the valve covers, removing that crank shaft, pulley or spark plugs. It really goes the entire nine yards for this one which is why I get such a higher difficulty rating and takes so much longer to complete. Just to wrap up the overview and install we've got for you today, if you're the owner of a modified 96 to 04 GT, and you're looking to pick up one of the heftier lopes for drivable street cam. While also getting mid-range power gains close to about 40 rear wheel horsepower and 30 to 40-foot pounds of torque you might want to check out the Comp Cams Stage 3 Xtreme Energy XE270AH Camshafts which of course can be found right here at americanmuscle.com.