Thread: 351W and C4?

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How well will a C4 tranny with stall converter and shift kit hold up to the power of a 351W? I am getting a 351W for my 66 now because the 302 has some kind of internal problem and blowing tons of oil out of the dip stick and pushing the dipstick out and a few other things. The 351W will have a decent cam for street/strip, good ignition system, Air Gap Edelbrock manifold and 650cfm Holley or Speed Demon too.
Last question, how hard is it to get about 350 HP or 400 from a 351W? Would it take heaps of work or is that a reasonable goal? I'd be happy with 350 but if 400 isn't hard to get out of it then I will be happy with that. I want to give my 66 a pro street look but I just wont have the big block motor to make it run but it's my everyday driver so you get the drill.
This little 302 did fine in the heavy truck but just doesn't have any torque to get it going, I am hoping the 351W will have a little more at least.
Thanks for any help guys!

Shawn-

Sounds like you don't have your 302 vented correctly. I'll bet you aren't running a PCV and maybe don't have a breather in the other valve cover.

I have a working PCV with good vaccume and have a filter on the other side...

Shawn 350 to 400 horse is reasonable for a 351 W on the street. Good heads help, Edelbrock offers both Performer RPM and Victor Jr. aluminum heads. The early ('70 & '71) heads are also good with a bit of porting. Or, just go with a stroker kit and pick up some really good torque and horsepower numbers. Would work good in a pickup I would think. I have a 351 W in my '71, if I ever get the thing finished I'll let you know how it works!!!!!!

Originally posted by FMXhellraiser
I have a working PCV with good vaccume and have a filter on the other side...

9 times out of 10 that is a sign of a venting problem. Ask me how I know You could have a defective PCV. Just because they "rattle" when you shake them doesn't mean they work. If it's internal, what do you think it is? How many miles are on the engine?

Cool man. I found a full 71 or 72 truck for sale with no title for 100 bucks. A guy in my club found it... I am going to buy it I think and part the rest out and use that money to build this thing. What stroker kit do you recommend? 377 or 408? I don't want to bore it a ton or nothing to make thing cylinder walls.

I have no clue how many miles are on the motor. It is sucking good. I have two PCV's. I will switch this one and put the other one back in and see if it does it again. Either way I think a 351W will be much better for some more power, etc.

Any time you swap a 351 to a different transmission, be sure you have the right flywheel/flexplate. They're externally balanced, and there's a dozen different applications. Ford claims the same year 302 and 351 are balanced the same, but I know by experience that they aint!

408--they build some very good torque and will work great in a pickup. Also--reread and heed what Pope said--very important!!!!

FMX,

You might want to check out this book

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/188...lance&n=283155

It's not a "How to" but more history and info of that nature. They built several high performance engines, and they did a 351W with the Edelbrock package. The engine dynoed at 400HP with a decent idle and vacuum.

I basically built my engine around theirs but used Air Flow Research heads - which generated more HP than Eldelbrock Performer heads. I used a few different parts here and there, but I expect mine will be 410-420 HP at the flywheel...and will still be street-friendly.


I have a spreadsheet with a complete part list that I used. I'd be happy to send it to you if you PM me with your email.

Yeah right now I have a 77 LTD 302 in the truck. The truck I am buying for parts is a 72 F100 but the engine is a 75 351W. Should I reuse these heads or save and get better ones? Should I have the machine shop do work to them and all with all new internals or will I save money by buying something like already assembled heads? Edelbrocks are way too pricey and seems to be more for the looks than performance on something like World or such. Now do you have to overbore with a 408? How much worse gas milage will I get if I do that than just leaving it a plain 351W, bit difference little or none?
Thanks again guys and Bulldogcountry1, you have a PM!