the 5.0 out of a 88 cougar will it fit in 87 thunderbird with abs

Hi Lex! That's a tough one. You'll need to check with a local mechanic so he can compare mounts and how it interacts with your tranny. That really needs to be an on-site consult. Good luck!

i'm not sure how the engine swap will affect the abs. but the 5.0 will physically drop in with minimal effort. you'll need the engine to k-member mounts from the 88 though and you'll need a tranny as well, as the 4cyl and v8 have different bellhousings. i'm quite sure the turbo coupe runs a T5 so maybe it's possible to just change the bellhousing, althought i believe the turbo T5 wasn't as robust.

Well I can tell you it will fit, but wiring would be much easier if you started with a car that originally had the V8 or even the V6. There are a ton of parts unique to the turbo bird that make this swap more difficult. (mostly electical issues) Check out http://www.coolcats.net for some general info (Cougars and T-birds are pretty much identical) and http://www.foxtbirdcougarforums.com/ for specific questions (since the turbo bird will have more things to deal with than other trim levels) You will probably want the entire harness out of the cougar as well as the K-member and mounts (unless you switch to a mustang K-member and mounts) If you are going to go to all of the trouble to do this type of a swap, you should strongly consider the 5.0 HO from a Mustang/Capri/Mark VII LSC rather than the standard 5.0 the Cougar has. In stock form the turbo 4 pot is actually a bit quicker (but sure is lacking in torque) but a HO 5.0 will be an improvement.