Hey guys, Adam here with americanmuscle.com.
Today I'm bringing you a detailed overview and installation of the SR Performance Polished
Underdrive Pulleys, fitting all '86 to '93 5 liter Mustangs.
In this video I'll be going over exactly how underdrive pulleys work and what they are
in regards to the benefits to your engine.
I'll talk about the materials and construction, and I'll top the video off with the installation,
which I'll let you know upfront here, underdrive pulleys are a very simple bolt-on mod, something
that will get a one outta three wrenches on our difficulty meter.
The SR Performance Underdrive Pulleys in the polished finish we have here today will be
for any '86 to '93 5 liter Mustang owner who might be looking to free up some of the energy
that the engine is using to power the factory pulleys in order to free up horsepower that
can be used in other performance mods.
Now on top of that, the installation is extremely simple, it's a very simple bolt-on mod here
that we'll talk about a little later in the video, but upfront this is something that
just allows you to pick up some horsepower in other areas instead of using that power
for the factory pulleys.
So the first thing I wanna touch on exactly is what are underdrive pulleys, what do they
do, and what benefits do thy have for your engine.
Now in a nutshell, underdrive pulleys basically cut down on parasitic drive train lost by
reducing the amount of power it takes to run your accessories like the alternator, the
AC compressor, and the water pump.
So to explain that a little bit further, the engine basically uses it's own power to run
all the pulleys together starting at the crankshaft pulley or the drive pulley.
Now this particular pulley can actually be reduced in size to use less power which can
eventually use less power on the engine and free up around 10 to 15 horsepower.
So right here I wanna mention that freeing up 10 to 15 horsepower does not mean that
you're gonna gain 10 to 15 horsepower from adding underdrive pulleys.
What that basically means is now instead of using that extra power on the factory pulleys,
you have underdrive pulleys in their place and that power can be redirected to other
performance mods, such as the bolt-ons like a cold air intake, intake manifold, cylinder
heads, cam, exhaust, things of that nature.
Now you have the ability to add 10 to 15 horsepower with other mods such as those.
Now another valid question you might be asking is, if you're reducing the size of the crankshaft
pulley, wouldn't that mean that you're alternator isn't running at full capacity, which of course
affects a lot of different things in the engine and the car alone?
Now that's a valid question for sure, but of course when you're reducing the crankshaft
pulley size, you're also gonna compensate by adding other pulley sizes as well.
The changing in these sizes of the pulleys can actually reduce the amount of stress going
on the engine and it'll run absolutely at maximum potential, of course.
Now if you're running a smaller pulley for the alternator which we have here with the
underdrive pulleys and you're running, like, a massive amplifier in your trunk, you might
see a little less power, but of course it's nothing to really ruin any driveability, you
just wanna make sure you're checking with your amperage and things of that nature with
your alternator as well as your amp.
So everything you can expect as far as pulleys are concerned, you can see right here on the
table with me today.
Everything you see here, you would get a crank pulley, an alternator pulley, and of course
a water pump pulley.
Now all these come in with SR Performance being one of the most budget-friendly options
on the market.
Now reducing the parasitic drive train loss is very simple with just shy of a hundred
bucks.
Now my personal opinion, it's not too bad of a price for this considering you'll be
freeing up 10 to 15 horsepower.
Now redirecting that power could definitely mean the world to you guys if you're going
with simple budget-friendly bolt-on parts and you really wanna maximize their potential.
Now as far as materials and construction goes here, these are manufactured from a lightweight
aircraft grade quality aluminum alloy, they're made for strength and durability, they're
gonna be a long-lasting pulley replacement for your factory options that are pretty much
just plastic.
Now on top of this, it actually has a mirror-like shine, given it an aluminum-type finish, something
that's a little bit more attractive than just a gloss black like some of the other options
out there.
This is definitely gonna be good for the guys out there who want a show car quality appearance
when popping up the hood, so if you're not really interested in all the functionality
benefits, you can...you might be interested at least in the appearance aspect of it since
it is more of a show car finish.
Shifting gears over to the install portion of the video, like I said in the beginning,
it is one of the simpler mods you can do to your engine, it requires very few hand tools,
a simple ratchet and socket set will do the trick, and of course if you have a serpentine
belt tension remover, then that would definitely help as well.
Now in order to get these installed, like I said, one outta three wrenches on our difficulty
meter.
It'll take you probably about an hour at the absolute max.
Now all you would have to do is release the tension on the serpentine belt or the drive
belt and then of course unbolt each of the pulleys, replace them, and then put the serpentine
belt back on in the correct position.
Now as far as the correct position is concerned, when you pop open your hood, there should
be a logo or some kind of decal map right on top of the radiator cover that should direct
you on how to put the serpentine belt on correctly.
You definitely, definitely wanna make sure that's going on properly before you start
the engine.
Overall, like I said, about an hours worth of time in the driveway at home.
It'll definitely get a one outta three wrenches on our difficulty meter.
Just to wrap things up here, if you're the owner of an '86 to '93 5 liter Mustang, you
might be looking for a way to reduce the amount of engine power that's being redirected at
factory parts in order to free up some horsepower for performance mods.
Now if that sounds like something that's right up your alley and you're looking for a budget-friendly
way to do so, the SR Performance Polished Underdrive Pulleys might just do the trick,
in which case you can find it right here at americanmuscle.com.