I've got a 2000 Ford taurus right now and I keep hitting my head against the wall every time I try to modify it. I'm thinking of getting a project car instead. I've found a 1974 Merc. Comet in my area for $600. The body looks good, but the interior is a mess and the 302 engine is seized. I'm thinking of purchasing this and begining a 351W swap I've heard about. First of all, from the folks who have done this before, is it worth it? Are there lots of options out there that would really get some impressive power out of this V8 block? Second, is it terribly expensive to get a 351 up and running, or can you get a running rebuilt 351 cheap? Can you still fit in other options like AC in the engine bay with the 351 installed? Is the 351 easy to work on? Thanks for your input. -Dan
Lot less headaches to rebuild the 302, stroke it, and have pretty much the same power as a 351W. With the smaller main journals the 302 revs better (less friction).
That would work. And there's a lot of aftermarket stuff available for the 302 anyway, right? What's the displacement of the stroked 302? -Dan
Most popular are 331 and 347 cu. in. Some 347 kits are said to have problems with oil consumption because the piston pin intrudes into the oil ring land area. Coast High Performance kits use custom forged pistons and custom rods to get around this. If your not going to make this a daily driver I wouldn't worry about it.
Just to throw a little curve in, a windsor block can be stroked to 408...426....up to (I think) 454 inches! That would be neat on the street
A point on the 347 oil control subject. There are two kits for the 347 stroker assembly. The difference is the pistons used and the rod length. This problem has been solved several years ago but makes the better kit a little more expensive. It pulls the oil ring out of the wrist pin area so oil does not just go by that area.
""Just to throw a little curve in, a windsor block can be stroked to 408...426....up to (I think) 454 inches! That would be neat on the street"" The 351 windsor block can, the 302 windsor block can't. Plenty of speed parts for both....
Going 347 stroker leaves off a lot of problems that putting a 351 in would generate besides the extra weight of the 351 motor. 4cu inches difference can't be felt but 70 pounds difference in weight can be if comparisons were able to be done given the same engine setup. I am currently fitting a 351W into a winged sprint car with high flowing heads, Victor big intake. My engine prep race shop tells me to expect as high as 560 hp on alky at 7500 rpm which is about 40 more than I thought. The low priced dyno programs underestimate power from such an application even when optimized
