QuestionHi Steve,
I have been out of the hot rod loop for some 27 years. I used to build a '82 Capri Black Magic with the 351 Cleveland that I dropped into it. I really liked this engine for it's valve size as it responded so nicely with an Engle cam [.512 lift with 272 degrees duration dialed in at ZERO]. 9.5:1 compression, 600 Holly even bore with high volume air breather manifold [open channel]. It was really sweet because if I drove the thing normally, it got almost the same mileage as the 302 I pulled out of it. If you nailed it, it went like a bat out of hell right out of the gate and the power band didn't spike, it held everywhere. Radiator was cored for a 460 as it was forced to run lean. I was able to rebalance the flywheel from the 302 to work with the Cleveland and of course everything else just bolted up.
I just picked up a 2001 Convertible GT Stang with that 2 valve modular 4.6. I don't really know much about this one. What size are the intake vales? How are the intake ports compared to the old 4 barrel Cleveland heads (gasp) I really liked having those 2.25 intake valves from the 460 Ford to work with that long duration cam.
I know I can get the K member for the 302 which will make the Cleveland bolt in, but will it fit in these cars now? I don't mind going to a 5 speed tranny for the 302. Does anyone make an overhead cam head and system for the Cleveland?
The torque, cubes and breathing would be just gosh-aweful to try to beat if this were the case. I kind of prefer that engine, but I don't want to build another push-rod if it makes better sense to build this modular. The nice thing about the Cleveland was, with this cam, it made insane power without any "un-professionally noticeable shake" on idle. It was an amazing sleeper.
Can you please re-tweak my brain for the 99-04 generation with my Cleveland fave?
Dave
AnswerDave-
I'm not even sure that you can compare the two motors. They're just so radically different. Valve size on the 4.6L motors isn't even close to what the 351 Clevelands had. I'm not sure what they are exactly since Ford switched over to metric valve measurements and 38mm or whatever is harder to remember than 2.02" (at least for me). A Cleveland motor probably would fit into your Mustang, although I don't think I've ever seen it done. Pushrod swaps aren't all that popular with the newer cars but they do happen. To fit the motor, you'd probably need a cowl hood for increased clearance, but aside from that it should just be a pretty normal engine swap. It might, on the other hand, be cheaper just to pull your existing motor, send it to a place like Livernois Motorsport of DSS Racing to have it stroked and built, and then bolt on a power adder. These days 600-700hp is pretty routine for built 4.6Ls. As great as Cleveland motors were, I'm not sure any street-built Cleveland could outrun a built and blown 4.6L-based stroker. Hope this helps.
Steve
