351 Ford Swap

[gordon17074]

You can honestly make anything fit if you put enough work into it. Although that isn't the case if you have regulations you need to adhere to.

[Elysian]

351 might have issues vertically, but that's what cowls are for :D

[Zanderr]

Fair enough, I haven't dropped my 302 in yet and just looked over the 351 so I thought better to not risk it. Still learning as I go haha

[Elysian]

Any updates? Was gonna Windsor swap my e30 but traded it for a complete foxbody parts car. Thought the heads on a 351 are a bit of a wider V and wasn't sure how well it would fit between the towers

A 302 fits between the towers pretty easily, I don't think a 351 would be a big issue. Considering people are stuffing M6x's in these cars and all...

[gordon17074]

I got a little distracted with suspension parts, hydraulic handbrake, drum to caliper conversion, and 1000 other things. Not to mention all this snow is slowing me down. Based on my measurements there should be enough room but you have to move the mounting position. It's a relatively simple fix compared to most stuff I'm doing.

[Zanderr]

Any updates? Was gonna Windsor swap my e30 but traded it for a complete foxbody parts car. Thought the heads on a 351 are a bit of a wider V and wasn't sure how well it would fit between the towers

[gordon17074]

I'll post any progress I make

[AWDBOB]

Just wondering since I know all us car guys get to a point and then need to go faster. Thanks for your help though!

No problem and good luck with the build! I hope you go through with it- it would make for an extremely fun car!

[gordon17074]

Just wondering since I know all us car guys get to a point and then need to go faster. Thanks for your help though!

[AWDBOB]

And that would be able to handle the 750 horses? That seems low to me.

When you are making that much power it is a shit shoot for reliability regardless. Completely depends on how you drive the car, too.

1) there is no way in hell you're going to put that much power down in an E30 so your chance of breaking things is greatly diminished without that hard driveline shock.

2) there are a ton of other things that "may or may not" take the hit of that torque and break first long before the trans has had enough.

Why would you push the block to it's mechanical limits, too? Have you ever driven an E30 with 300hp let alone 750? Unless you cement fill your 351w I wouldn't push your luck maxing out your setup like that because that likely equates to broken dreams and drained bank accounts.

That doesn't directly answer your question and there are stronger transmissions out there if you want to pay for them (viper spec T56, etc), but that's just my .02

[gordon17074]

And that would be able to handle the 750 horses? That seems low to me.

[AWDBOB]

Thanks for the help mate. You said the TKO is minimum I would need. Would that be the case even if I turbo it and/or stroke it?

You would want to be searching for the TKO 500 or the TKO 600 (both 500 and 600 are the torque ratings of that specific trans). The old TKO only had a torque rating of 425ft/lbs and the 3550 350ft/lbs, both of which were replaced by the TKO 500-600 line to my knowledge.

[gordon17074]

Thanks for the help mate. You said the TKO is minimum I would need. Would that be the case even if I turbo it and/or stroke it?

[AWDBOB]

You have a windsor motor, correct?

The vertical height difference of a 351 vs 302 is more or less 1". Obviously differing intakes and whatnot will change anything beyond that.

The windsor is also ~50lbs heavier but can be offset by using Al heads (but you can also get the 302 close to 400lbs with al heads).

There is no way a T5 would be enough, even a world class. TKO would be the minimum you would need.

All of that aside, a 351 will make a TON more power with a great H/C/I combo, and will be extremely torquey. Even more so, if you stroked the 351 to a 408 you have the potential to make some serious power.

You also have a much stronger block, as 302s are very weak with big power in the lifter valley, crank journals walking, etc. 302s are a time bomb around 500hp, whereas the 351w blocks can handle upwards of 750hp (early blocks are especially strong). But the 3" mains hurt if you want to spin past 6500rpm.

Just food for thought.

[gordon17074]

Ya I've looked everywhere I can to find a 351 swap and can't find any so I guess I'm pioneering a new plain. Considering the main difference is deck height, I think some hood modifications may be in order.