351w parts selection

purple96 · Jan 15, 2012

Ive started gathering parts for my 351w swap, and i cant decide on which heads and cam to go with. I plan on starting with a 351-358 for now with possibly a turbo or more cubes in the future. The car will run a GT40 intake with a fox lake ported lower. i figure ill have to run 36 or 42lb injectors. I will be using a PMS for tuning. Car has 3.55 gears as well. My primary goal for when this motor goes in is at least 350 horse at the wheels. Let me know what heads and cam you would suggest.

Venom351R · Jan 17, 2012

first of all why are you putting a GT-40 intake on a 351? That's your first mistake. I run #36lb injectors and so far its been fine, not sure where my power level will be with the new parts though. You should be thinking more a long the lines of a TFSR or Victor 5.8 for an intake and as far as a cam I would go custom since thats what I did but its $$ but I would call Trickflow or Comp and see what they would suggest for a cam if you dont want to go custom. As far as heads I really like Trickflow and a lot of people like AFR. For a 351 you want to be in the 185-205 range.

But above all before you buy anything you need to decide on if your going to boost it or not b/c that depends on what heads your going to buy, what cam and also the size of the engine depends on the size of the heads your going to want. No point in putting a 185 head on a 408. You need to do more planning before buying.

BLOWN 95GT · Jan 21, 2012

Well I have a gt40 on mine right now and pushed over 560 rwhp with no problem on 10psi with a v1 vortech. The gt40 may not be the best but mine with the cartech box upper is better than most. As far as heads go I would run nothing less than afr 185's or some trickflow highports. You do need to decide on the direction of the build before you buy a cam because that could make a major difference in a n/a and turbo setup. 36lb. Injectors will be fine in a n/a or wet nitrous setup but you will need bigger than 42's if you go turbo you will want at least 60's.

modo · Jan 21, 2012

you should pick a direction and stick with it. if you already have the shortblock then it would help to know what the cc of the pistons, piston location vs the deck at tdc, and if the valve reliefs are inline or setup for tfs heads.

a goal of 350 rwhp can be had with a stout na 306 let alone something with 50+ more cubes. if i was building a FI 9.5" deck motor i would be interested in 225+ cc heads and talking to people that recommend camshafts for a living vs people on a internet forum

just my worthless .02

also a gt40 intake is not a wise choice on a 9.5" motor unless you are towing a boat

Venom351R · Jan 22, 2012

BLOWN 95GT said:
Well I have a gt40 on mine right now and pushed over 560 rwhp with no problem on 10psi with a v1 vortech.

Thats b/c your running boost, its not as much of an issue as if your just running NA

modo · Jan 22, 2012

Venom351R said:
Thats b/c your running boost, its not as much of an issue as if your just running NA

yes sir. my stock 302 shortblock made a tad shy of 600 rwhp with a gt40 intake a a wee little s-trim.

purple96 · Jan 22, 2012

more than likely it will be a 351w with 205 heads and the gt40 intake, with a turbo. Any cam recommendations? From alphabet to custom?

purple96 · Jan 22, 2012

O and my 351 lower came from a 95 lightning and has fox lake's stage 1 port job

Musturd · Jan 22, 2012

PMS suck I have it on my fox garbage

purple96 · Jan 22, 2012

well then what do you recommend for tuning?

modo · Jan 22, 2012

pms is far from garbage. add interacq to one and it adds a lot more granularity that rivals true stand alone setups. i only sold mine so i could use a map and get rid of the maf... plus at some point i am losing the distributor and using a crank trigger / cop

unless you know what you are doing and understand ve tables then take it to someone who knows what they are doing

.02

purple96 · Jan 22, 2012

with the pms i planned on going up to anderson to buy it and see if i could get a "crash course"

modo · Jan 22, 2012

you should be able to workout a deal for the pms and tune. if you do plan on modifying the tune a wideband is a must and there is a ton of information on a lot of different sites to help you out. stangtuning.net has a large pms user base as does the corral. the hardest thing to grasp on the pms is how the timing tables are calculated with the map sensor. once you figure that out the fuel interpolation is a breeze.

purple96 · Jan 22, 2012

ill have to remember my login info for stangtuning.com

BLOWN 95GT · Jan 22, 2012

You would be far better off going with a custom cam if you plan on going turbo, and listen to Modo about the pms, if it was garbage why would most of the nmra racers use it.

purple96 · Jan 22, 2012

id rather use the pms anyway lol

modo · Jan 23, 2012

for cam selection talk to a cam expert. jay allen, fti, freezy74... pick whoever you want but you will need to know everything else in detail about the motor, trans, tire height, rear gear, intended use etc

purple96 · Jan 23, 2012

i know most of that....315/35/17 tire, 3.55 gear, T5 trans, GT40 intake, and street/strip (more emphasis on street)....the big things im stuck on are the heads and cam...and it will run on 93 octane

BlkoutGT · Jan 23, 2012

Ive personally dealt with/bought from Ed at FTI. Send him a email he usually responds same or next day. Gives you a cam sheet to fill out, fill it out best you can, send money. Done.