Ford 460 vs 351 Cleveland
- Thread starter Sparx
- Start date
I guess it depends entirely on where you are looking...I see 460s being built up all the time.
The real question is...what do you want from the engine you are going to put in that truck? Good friend of mine has the same truck with a very well built stroked 400 Cleveland (434 ci) and a custom EFI setup on top. He loves it..it's been stone-cold reliable for the 10 years he's been running to to shows and meets, etc. And you didn't mention an FE engine....I just finished building and installing a "vintage-build" 366 FE drag motor in a '63 Falcon B-gasser...guy is going to compete in the vintage classes that are becoming really popular.
But when it comes to just massive torque and HP..it's hard to beat the 460 as a good starting point. Not that I don't have a soft spot for the 351C..like the one in my Pantera. So...whatcha looking to achieve?..what do you have to work with as starting point? The first three years of 460 production engines were true beasts right out of the factory. Some of the later models were pigs...so..
The real question is...what do you want from the engine you are going to put in that truck? Good friend of mine has the same truck with a very well built stroked 400 Cleveland (434 ci) and a custom EFI setup on top. He loves it..it's been stone-cold reliable for the 10 years he's been running to to shows and meets, etc. And you didn't mention an FE engine....I just finished building and installing a "vintage-build" 366 FE drag motor in a '63 Falcon B-gasser...guy is going to compete in the vintage classes that are becoming really popular.
But when it comes to just massive torque and HP..it's hard to beat the 460 as a good starting point. Not that I don't have a soft spot for the 351C..like the one in my Pantera. So...whatcha looking to achieve?..what do you have to work with as starting point? The first three years of 460 production engines were true beasts right out of the factory. Some of the later models were pigs...so..
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Larry Gude
Strung Out
Didn't they use that block to do diesel's? We had an '97 box van and it was diesel and, IIRC, I was told that they used the 460 block because it was robust enough to use for diesel. Thing ran hard and reliable up to about 250,000 and that was it.
Nope..never. GM did the failed diesel-using-gas-engine-block experiment 30 years ago. Ford never made that mistake; Ford started buying their diesels from IHC/Navistar in ..'86 I believe was the first year (6.9L) and had Navistar build them for 20+ years afterward. With mixed results, I might add....nothing beats the last of the 7.3 Powerstrokes IMHO.
The bell housing adapter for the IHC diesel matched the 460 (385-series..more correctly) block pattern.
The 460 is a '90, the 351C is a '72 I believe. I'm looking for something in the neighborhood of 400-500hp. I think I'd want to change out the C-4 auto that's on the 351. The 460 has an automatic w/overdrive. (I'm assuming it's a tough transmission in a 1-ton van.) Probably sell one to help build the other. I'm also planning on a Crown Victoria front clip under it if the weight or size of one over the other matters.
That's an EFI 460..not the best foundation for a seriously HP engine unless you are willing/able to make a lot of changes to the top end. That factory combination of heads and intake isn't much to work with. The trans should be an E4OD...they can be built to work really well with a big motor putting out a lot of torque, especially if you use an aftermarket controller like Baumann's to operate the trans.
'72 351-C eh? 2-V?..4-V?...any idea what it came out of? The C-4 can be built to handle 400HP...C-6 is stouter to start with though.
I do not know. It has a 2 brl. carb if that helps you. I took it out of a station wagon years ago...
2V then. Well...you've got two pretty low power cores to start with then. Each can be built to 400-500HP but it's not going to be cheap. I'd lean toward using the 460, I guess..a little cheaper than the 351C to build.
The difference between the 2V and 4V is all in the heads and intake right? Is there any value in the Clev. block?
I guess I'm asking, what's the engine worth?
Maybe $200 for the block...assuming its never been bored. The 2V heads are not scrap either...worth 75-100 as rebuildable cores. Some of the guys building 400s like them because they don't have the A.I.R. ports in them like the later 351m/400 heads do.
Speaking of 400s...one of my favorite Cleveland engines...I have several cores you are welcome to. Most are the destroked 351m version but the 400 crank kit is 330 bucks. You already have the early 2V heads that fit...and the rest of it is "standard build" stuff. A well-built 408 Cleveland would roll your pickup nicely. The right cam and intake/carb and that combination will put out 400HP and 450 ft-lbs of torque.
Lots to think on. Thanks!
You're more than welcome..it's been a lifelong hobby and my favorite subject.