Need help upgrading 1988 thunderbird

Let me start off with a little back round. I am in the military and am currently stationed overseas so I do not have access to the car I am asking about right now. I own an 1988 thunderbird V8 sport, that I bough in high school. I don’t know too much about car mechanics. I have replaced a few exhaust valves on it and done routine maintenance, breaks, tires, oil, etc.
I am currently debating whether or not to get a new car. I like my t-bird, but it is old, and heavy. I have decided that ether I will need to get more power out of my thunderbird or it will have to go. If I remember right the manual says it is producing 290whp. I want at least 600whp or more. The engine is the 5.0 V8 EFI I don’t know the base horses. It has a 3 speed auto trans, 2+od.
I was wondering what I should do to upgrade it, I was thinking to get a bolt on turbo. Is this the right thing to do? If so, how should I go about finding the right turbo for the engine?
The other thing I was thinking about changing is the trans. After 100mph the trans starts to slip, or at least that is what I think is happening. The RPMs jump from 3000 to 5000 which is redline with out any significant gain in power. I was thinking about getting one of the no clutch manual trans, the kind that comes with some of the European cars. Where there is a choice of manual and auto.
I also know that after the engine is upgraded the whole power train will eventually have to be upgraded to deal with the additional power.

Please give me some advice and guidance, all comments are welcome.

First off, that base 5.0 is rated at 155 horse, but it still has potential. 600 HP at the wheels is not an option with it though, (at least reliably) and cost would be enormous with all the supporting mods to feed and cool the motor, transmit power, and get down the road safely without twisting the car up. I'd recommend going through the 5.0 to get more from it or swapping in a 5.8. That still won't be 600 but it will be plenty. As far as transmissions go, the T5 from a V8 mustang seems to be the swap of choice.

Thanks for the reply, I briefly looked into the T5 online, it looks good. I will have to do more research about it before I make up my mind. My car is automatic though, I will have to figure out what all parts I need to purchase, and install.

Ok here is what I have so far, I went on ebay and got a T5 that was upgraded to handle 400torq, I also got a clutch for 400torq and I am working on buying all the misc pieces that I will need. I am debating whether it will be better to keep my original 302 or purchase a new one, I am looking at D & D motor sports. They have a 302 short block that can handle up to 500hp at 1500, while they have a long block at 4000 that gives 4something, I figure adding a super or turbo to that and its 500hp. Or I could upgrade my engine I have now, I was wondering if some one could give me some input on this, or a better idea? I was considering a different engine but all together, but I figure the car is already built for a 302 so it will keep the cost down a little and by going with a larger engine I would be creating more weight.

Switching to a t-5 is unnecessary but is possible my recommendation is either rebuild your tranny or replace it w/another AOD from a super coupe either way while its out put in a shift kit and a stall converter.
Now to the motor yours is 155HP the mustang same year was 225HP that’s a big difference so you must HO convert it start buy swapping your E6 heads for the better E7s and intake set-up then computer and cam both must be done together due to the timing issue then changing your firing order from 15426378 to 13726548 then complete exhaust starting w/stang headers H-pipe then duel out back. Though it’s a little more complicated then that I’m sure you will be happy w/ the performance and a turbo is not necessary. And if you due want a power adder the HO conversion should be done first.

This is a real nice write up thanks to Eric’s cool cats for an HO conversion.
http://www.coolcats.net/tech/advanced/ho_conversion.html

Also more help guys here specialize in 83-88 fox’s
www.foxtbirdcougarforums.com

Switching to a t-5 is unnecessary but is possible my recommendation is either rebuild your tranny or replace it w/another AOD from a super coupe either way while its out put in a shift kit and a stall converter.
Now to the motor yours is 155HP the mustang same year was 225HP that’s a big difference so you must HO convert it start buy swapping your E6 heads for the better E7s and intake set-up then computer and cam both must be done together due to the timing issue then changing your firing order from 15426378 to 13726548 then complete exhaust starting w/stang headers H-pipe then duel out back. Though it’s a little more complicated then that I’m sure you will be happy w/ the performance and a turbo is not necessary. And if you due want a power adder the HO conversion should be done first.

This is a real nice write up thanks to Eric’s cool cats for an HO conversion.
http://www.coolcats.net/tech/advanced/ho_conversion.html

Also more help guys here specialize in 83-88 fox’s
www.foxtbirdcougarforums.com (http://www.foxtbirdcougarforums.com)

Thanks for the info, I already have the T5 and parts, less a few cosmetic things and anything im missing, I decided to go with that; I enjoy driving manual trans that it is worth it for me. From what I have read the only difference in the T5 and the AOD computer is the wiring harness for the T5 and that the AOD checks to see if the car in park before starting, would you recommend switching to the manual computer while I switch to the T5. I also read that this computer is a learning computer, and auto adjusts if I were to add new components. I am thinking to add this computer, when I switch to the T5 and change the computer and cam then, I will change the headers once I have a little more cash, school is eating up a bit and I also just bought a new bike. Would it be a good idea to get a performance cam, and headers, valves, etc or would ones of the appropriate mustangs be enough? I ask this because I want more than just 225hp and I wouldn't want to have to buy the same parts twice. I decided to shoot for 400-450hp, my T5 is rated at 400 torq and my clutch is rated at 500.

Another question, when upgrading an engine how do you determine the max RPM? If I upgrade the headers, cam, piston heads and arms im not sure exactly what all I will need to do, but that should increase my redline right? How do you calculate it?

You can't go much bigger on the cam than the factory HO cam, unless you swap to dished pistons. I think a performance long block would be your best bet for something that will work with no fuss and reliably. Top it of with the GT40 upper and lower intake and 36# injectors, or an aftermarket peice if you're feeling spendy. Factory headers from a HO Mustang fit, and they flow fine, and aftermarket H/X pipes will fit with minor modification. Convert to mass air flow and have a custom chip burned for the ECM to take full advantage of the motor.