Completed August 1999
When I first started my 351W Fox engine swap, there weren't a lot of them already out there, so this is not how one would build one now. The main thing that I would have changed is the cam. I wanted a roller lifter engine, but the only kit I could find to do it was the roller conversion kit. The kit has a lifter hold-down spider that prevents the hydraulic roller lifters from spinning in their bores. The spider was retained in place in the center of the lifter valley using a large expanding rivet in a pre-existing hole. The rivet was pretty ineffective and fortunately, mine let go before I installed the intake. I think I ended up using epoxy to hold it in place, but I don't recall now. The use of the conversion kit requires the use of a small base circle cam due to the shortness of the lifter bores. A small base circle cam is required to be made of steel. A steel cam will shred an iron, nodular iron, or bronze distributor gear impressively fast, so a steel distributor gear must be used with the steel cam. Additionally, the lifters were a different height, which required non-standard length pushrods. Finally, their are fewer cam grind choices for small base circle cams. You can see the ripple effects of all of this in the build below.

So how would I do it now? Well now, it would be easier to find a roller lifter 351W block. 1994 was the first year as far as I know, which would have made these vehicles pretty new and expensive at the time of my build. The roller blocks have a deeper lifter bore and a spider and threaded hole to retain it. Assuming you want a heavy 351W block, you'll end up finding a non-roller lifter block from 1969. If you've seen a 289 block and compared it to a 5.0L block, you'll notice that Ford has removed most of the iron around the main saddles. That is why people look for the older and heavier blocks. My 1989 351W engine block has main webbing that is very close to the thickness of the mains themselves. Assuming that you go with a roller lifter block, you're pretty much going to have an easy time of it. If you go with a non-roller, then use the linked hydraulic roller lifters sold by Crane and others so you can continue to use any SBF roller cam out there. I suspect that you would still need to get non-standard length pushrods.

Onto the details of the build:

Engine Block

    The following machining work was accomplished on the factory engine block to provide a foundation for blueprinting operations on the engine. Blueprinting is the process of optimizing the fit of engine components so that every part is not only within the engineering tolerance specification, but also that any stacked tolerances are kept within the allowed completed assembly tolerances. In some cases, parts are worked to improve the original part beyond the manufacturing specification. There is a lot involved in the blueprinting process, so buy a book.
  • Hot Tank Engine Block
    • Cleans the engine block prior to inspection by soaking it in a hot caustic soda solution
    • The modern equivalent is a jet spray cleaner
  • Magnaflux Engine Block Casting Inspection
    • This process identifies cracks in the engine block casting
  • Align Hone Mains
    • Align Honing trues the main saddles and caps and ensures they are the same dimensions
    • As opposed to Align Boring, material is removed equally from the crank and cam saddles as opposed to just the caps
    • Ensures that the bearings will retain there ideal shape
    • Flatten the parting surfaces with a file
    • Deburr the main saddles and caps
    • Square the parting lines parallel to the crank axis
    • Thrust surface must be perpendicular to the crank axis to avoid premature main bearing wear
    • Engine block mains peened if the main caps don't fit tightly
    • Edges on main caps broken to prevent accidental scrapes during installation
    • Block-Main Cap assembly is torqued to spec and honed
    • Operator checks work after a couple of strokes to ensure a fresh surafec is cut, if not, more material is removed
  • Decking @ .002
    • Flatten deck surface where heads attach
    • Used a BHJ Block-Tru to index the decks to the cam-crank centerline
    • Optimize deck height for installed pistons, valves, and heads using component specifications and crushed gasket thickness
    • The ideal is zero piston to deck clearance when operating
      • Pistons rock
      • Piston pins flex
      • Connecting rods stretch
    • Decks can be milled or ground. I was given the choice and selected a milled surface finish
  • Cylinder Boring @ .030 over
    • Deck surfaces distort when the heads are torqued in place
    • The boring operation was performed with torque plates that simulate the heads being installed

Engine Short Block

The short block is the engine assembly minus the heads. The list below contains the parts I used for my shortblock.
  • Non-Roller Lifter Ford 351W Engine Casting from 1989 Ford F-150 that rolled
    • Reused Ford 351W Crankshaft
    • Main bearings - Clevite 77
    • ARP Main Bolts
    • Reused 351W 28.2 oz unbalance Harmonic Balancer
    • Ford Motorsport 157 tooth Billet Steel SFI 1.1 Flywheel 28.2 oz unbalance
    • Clutch Pilot Bearing (Dorman 14677)
  • Reused Ford 351W Connecting Rods
    • Dura-Bond HP Coated F.M. Connecting Rod Bearings
    • ARP Rod Bolts
  • Keith Black Hypereutectic Pistons +.030 @.002 clearance (KB181)
    • Speed Pro Sealed Power Moly Rings +.030 (E251K30)
    • Top Ring Gap @ .024
    • Reused press-fit Pins
  • True Roller Timing Chain Set
  • COMP Cams Magnum Hydraulic Roller Camshafts (35-412-8)
    • Small Base Circle Cam (Don't do this, use Crane 36532-16 instead, and then select the roller cam of your choice)
    • Part Number 35-412-8
      Engine 1969-1995 Ford 351ci, Windsor, 8cyl.
      Grind Number FW 260RF-HR10
      Description  
        Intake Exhaust
      Valve Adjustment 0 0
      Gross Valve Lift 0.48 0.48
      Duration At 0.006 Tappet Lift 260 260
      Valve Timing At 0.006    
        Open Close
      Intake 24 56
      Exhaust 64 16
        Intake Exhaust
      Duration At 0.05 206 206
      Lobe Lift 0.3 0.3
      Lobe Separation 110
      These Specs Are For The Cam Installed At 106 Intake CL
      Recommended Valve Springs 986-16
    • Cam bearings - H.P. coated cam bearings
    • Crane Hydraulic Roller Lifter Conversion Kit (44306-1)

Engine Long Block

  • Ford GT-40X head castings with 1.94, 1.54 valves
    • 58cc Combustion Chamber
    • Manley Race Flo Stainless Steel Valves
      • 1.94 Intake Valve (MAN11888)
      • 1.55 Exhaust Valve (MAN11575)
    • Crower Performance Valve Springs (68390X3-16)
      • Installed Height Intake Valve 1.825
      • Installed Height Exhaust Valve 1.825
    • Crower Steel Valve Spring Retainers (86032-16)
    • Crower Billet Performance 7 Degree Valve Stem Keepers/Locks (86107X2-16)
    • Crower Teflon Valve Stem Seals (86072-16)
  • 351 Windsor Pushrods - 7.77" Gauge Length - Small Base Circle cam prevented use of standard length push rods
  • No guide plates
  • FRPP 1.65:1 AL Roller Roller Arms
  • ARP 351W Black Oxidized Head Bolt Kit (170k psi) (154-3603)
  • FelPro .038 thick head gasket

Oiling

  • Blueprinted Ford 5.8L Oil Pump
  • Ford Motorsport HD Oil Pump Driveshaft (M-6605-A341)
    • Don't forget the Tinnerman Retainer
  • Canton Oil Pan (15-694)
    • To clear the factory K-member during engine install, the rear of the car was jacked up
  • Canton Pickup Tube (15-695)
  • Ford Motorsport Windage Tray (M-6687-A351)

Ignition System

  • Hybrid Build of Ford 460 and Ford 351W Distributor
    • The 302/5.0L distributor uses a smaller diameter oil pump driveshaft necessitating a larger distributor shaft
    • All of the larger displacement Ford V8s use the larger diameter distributor shaft (351C, 400, 429, 460)
    • Source a Duraspark Distributor with the flat on one side (no vacuum advance)
    • Drill/Grind the necessary holes in the side of the distributor to accept the TFI module
    • Disassemble the distributor top and install the 302 distributor parts
    • Milled the end of the steel shaft to the correct length
    • FMS 351W Steel Distributor Driven Gear (to mate with steel roller cam) (M-12390-F)
      The gear doesn't come pre-drilled to accept the roll pin. The existing shaft has a hole for the roll pin, but the chances of blind-drilling a hole through the gear that exactly matches the original hole is small. I took the gear and distributor shaft to a machine shop where a new hole was drilled perpendicular to the original hole.
    • Or do it the easy way...
      • Buy an aftermarket distributor that has already been designed for the swap
      • Source a 1989 Ford F-250 Distributor from a 351W Roller Lifter engine
      These options weren't available/known back when I did the swap

Intake

  • 351W GT-40 Lower Intake Manifold (M-9424-D51)
  • 302 Cobra Upper and Lower Intake Manifold (M-9461-A58)
  • 67mm Throttle Body Gasket (M-9933-A50)
  • 65mm Throttle Body (M-9926-A302)
  • Charlie Bruno 70mm Mass Air Meter Calibrated to 19 Injectors

Fueling

  • Carter HP 86-93 Mustang 110 lph Fuel Pump (P74105HP)
  • The hoses at the ends of the 5.0L fuel rails need to be replaced with longer fuel lines
  • 24 lb/hr injectors should be sufficient for mild builds, mine are 36 lb/hr

    • I won't go into how the fueling is controlled because there are a bunch of ways to accomplish this.

Cooling

  • 195°F Thermostat
  • 4 Core Radiator
  • Taurus 3.0L Engine Electric Cooling Fan - Draws 40A continuous
    • Console switch-activated 12v relay to secondary 70A relay to enable fan with LED indicator
    • Console switch for low-speed vs. high-speed fan with LED indicator
    • Requires an alternator amperage upgrade (factory was 75A) - Mine caught on fire
    • Typically runs for less than 30 seconds
  • SVT HP Water Pump

Starting/Charging

  • Summit Protorque Starter (SUM-820055)
    • Reclocked to hug the engine block, thus missing the Canton oil pan T-sump, and the headers
      • M6 12.9 adjuster bolts torqued to 176 in/lbs
    • Rewired so that the starter solenoid is no longer used to activate the starter

Other Swap Parts

  • 351W Accessory Drive Kit (M-8511-B351 with A/C, M-8511-A351 w/o A/C)
  • JBA Shorty Headers for Fox - Major grinding required for these badly made headers
  • 1"-1.25" Spacer stack under the front anti-roll bar mounts to clear any (OK, not dry sumps) 351W oil pan
  • The air tube at the back of the heads needs to be made longer to reflect the additional width of the engine
    1. Plug the holes with a specially made threaded plug
    2. Buy heads without the air hole provision
    3. Extend the tube using a welder
    4. Extend the tube using a length of heater hose (yes, it actually does work)
      5. If you need the air tube to pass SMOG, then you're left wih the last two options. The air tube is used to blow air into the back of the heads and eventually to the air injection humps in the exhaust ports. This secondary air injection system reduces emissions by burning hydrocarbons in the exhuast. When you're cruising on the highway, air also gets pumped downstreaminto in the exhaust. This heats the catalyst packs a lot, so the air is controlled by the secondary air injection solenoids. The PCM to activates the solenoids for each system independently when the cats are cold or are being cooled at sufficiently high speeds.


   Last update: Dec 7th, 2019