Ford Repair: looking for a good way to sqeeze around 400hp from my 302, butt load, 331 stroker

Question
hello steve,
i am a kit car builder, well this is my first. i am building a kit diablo(lamborghini). in the beginning i was going to dump a butt load of cash to buy a ls1 and mate it to a audi 016 transaxle. i happen to get lucky and obtain a 5.0 ho from a friends lin mark8. well to get to the point. i am not only a rookie lambo builder i dont have much experience in building engines, but i am a gammer and beleive if there is a will theres a way.  i have been doing a fair amount of research and have taken a liking to the 331 stroker. i have seen articles on how it was combined with heads and a large carb to make 400hp. i would however like to spend a little more and keep mine efi. what would you suggest to be the smoothest and most affordable route to achive this goal. if it can be achived at all.  

Answer
John-

  Hmmm...400hp from a 331?  No problem.  I'm currently pushing cluse to 700hp at the wheels from a 331 with the help of EFI and a turbo.  The 331 is a great choice because it's got more displacement than a 5.0 but a better rod to stroke ratio than a 347, plus there's no block clearancing issues like there are with 347 kits.  Aside from the stroker kit, all you really need is a good set of heads (I'd recommend either AFR185s or Canfields), a healthy cam (go to Comp Cams' website and use their cam selection service.  Tell them how much power you want, what parts you're working with, and what you want from the engine in general like idle quality, transmission, etc.  Their online service is top notch), and a healthy intake (again, I'll recommend the Holley Systemax II intake).  

For EFI, it depends on what you want and how much you want to spend.  I wouldn't recommend using the factory ECU or any other factory equipment.  It's just too complicated, especially in a totally different car.  You've got a number of stand-alone programmable ECUs to choose from, some better than others.  If you have a laptop readily available you can go with a DFI system like F.A.S.T or Accel or Motec.  All great with tons of nifty features through the laptop software and interface.  If you want to go a bit more simple, a company called SDS (Simple Digital Systems) offers a great DFI (digital fuel injection...it's just the user programmable version of EFI) kit with it's own little handheld controller.  All changes are made through the controller and it's LED screen.  It's not quite as flexible as the laptop based systems, but it's cheaper and easy to use.  This is what I run and I'm a big fan.  Plus you don't sound like you're trying to build a full on racer so you don't need a ton of tuning options.  

All you really need these days to build a 400hp 331 is a few phone calls, your credit card, and a good relationship with the UPS guy.  Aftermarket parts are great, huh?  Hope this helps.

Steve