MDDYATV
New member
Looking to build a motor and later find a street rod to put it in. I would like to build a 351W. what years are better than others and why?
What year of the 351W is best?
- Thread starter MDDYATV
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Crude dude
New member
That question is gonna stir up some $*@&! Performance wise my opinion is 1969, reliability wise 1997. The 97 could run as good and better but you will have to do something with the terrible intake manifold. There are aftermarket manifolds but they pretty much revolve around the drag racing vehicles. I have seen an upgrade where they install a 302 upper manifold with an adapter to fit the lower 351 intake. I believe that is on the BC Broncos web site. The 1969 351 is a plus because of the cylinder heads, if you have the money to buy cylinder heads then any 351 will be the same ( assuming that you take the compression ratio into consideration)..........
love_my_bronco
New member
the 84! 4 barrel carb easy to tune carb. no electrical shit. prefomance is great. i love it.
MDDYATV
New member
Maybe I asked the wrong question I want to build a 351W so I am looking to see what year of block is best. I know that some years may have been detuned for emisions while some years had better performance and what about block strength I know that chevy has a 4 bolt main and a 2 bolt main. is there anything like that for a ford. I know that I can get after market heads and intakes I already have the Edelbrock intake and carb. I want to put this motor into a street rod not a 4X4.
Thanks again for the help.
Thanks again for the help.
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Crude dude
New member
I believe there were some blocks made in Mexico in the mid 80s that had a high nickel content. Those were supposed to be great blocks. I dont know if 351 had a 4 bolt main....the mains are the size of a big block already.
Seabronc
New member
There is a year range, I believe it is late 70s to early 80s, to stay away from due to poor quality castings. Right off the top of my head I'm not sure what the exact years are but when I get home later I can check that out. As far as 2 blot vs 4 bolt, stock is 2 bolt. Places like Jegs sell a 4 bolt rebuild kit primarily for building a racing engine, but that is probably overkill on a truck engine since they are designed to run in the 2000 to 3000 RPM range.
Good luck with your rebuild,
>-
Good luck with your rebuild,
>-
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BroncoJeff
fLoWmAsTeRs=RuMbLe
1988
BLADE262US
Active member
If I were looking for a builder I would looke for a 95 or 96 . Reason being they are roller cam motors and anytime you can reduce friction you increase horsepower . You could then with that lower go either way carb or EFI . I would go EFI but if you go carb any of the 302 ( 5.0 ) cams will work they are roller so you have options for lift and duration arr crane cams 1.7 roller rockers which are a direct bolt on and now you taken all the friction out of the valve train . If I were doing it thats what I would be looking for . /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />
/emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />If I were looking for a builder I would looke for a 95 or 96 . Reason being they are roller cam motors and anytime you can reduce friction you increase horsepower . You could then with that lower go either way carb or EFI . I would go EFI but if you go carb any of the 302 ( 5.0 ) cams will work they are roller so you have options for lift and duration arr crane cams 1.7 roller rockers which are a direct bolt on and now you taken all the friction out of the valve train . If I were doing it thats what I would be looking for .
I agree with everything but the 1.7 rockers. Run a proper cam and use 1.6 roller rockers.
BLADE262US
Active member
The crane 1.7 roller rockers were actually used in production mustang cobras they have a ford part number right on them . But you dont have to use them I would just make sure you use roller rockers . /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />
/emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />The crane 1.7 roller rockers were actually used in production mustang cobras they have a ford part number right on them . But you dont have to use them I would just make sure you use roller rockers .
that is right, with the stock cam! But run a better cam with more lift, and 1.7 rockers unless you cut the pistons for valve relief your going to run into trouble and besides you'll run into way too much lift for the application - a 6000lb bronco. maybe when your going balls out on a 1/4 mile track sure - but still a good cam and 1.6 rollers will do the job.
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