I just purchased a 54 F-100 for my son and I to convert to a daily driver street-rod for him. Never built a Ford. In my younger days built a Camaro and no some about building GM stuff. Want this truck to be all Ford. Some tips would be helpful. eg:which engine has more parts available 289, 302 or 351. We also want to put a manual transmission in the truck. Which car or truck would be best for a donor. Currently the 54 is stock with a straight 6 and 3 on the tree.

 

Sounds like a great project.

Lots of stuff available for either the 302 or 351W. Id opt for an 80's F150 donor with the 351W, you get a complete drive line to swap.
If a truck tranny isnt to your liking there are other choices

 

Jozai,

Based upon my own experience/knowledg/reading/research, 302s are far more common than 351Ws , like about 8 to 1.

While performance parts for the 351W are not at all difficult to find, there is more stuff for the 302s.

The two or three Ford (read that Mustang) related performance magazines contain about 98% 302 info and about 1% 351W info.

There are soft covered books covering both.

I fully intend to use a 351w as it puts out about 25 - 30 more HP and approx. 30 - 50 more ft .lbs. of torque than the 302. With the same amount of money or effort put into both engines, you'll always get more power from the 351W - there's no replacement for displacement.

An idea of your target HP & torque would help us make reccommendations though.

Later,

 

I would opt for the 351W or the 302. Same block for all (289, 302, 351), but much fewer complete upgrads available for the 289 for some reason. 302's are the most common and therefore have the most aftermarket parts available, but...

The 351W will be pushing 400+ hp with heads, a cam, and the usual weekend warrior bolt-ons (ie, manifold, carb, proper timing and gear drives, headers/exhaust, ignition system, pinion gears). True, lots more 302 upgrade parts available, but 351W upgrade parts are not that difficult to come by. I'd opt for the 351W... and that's coming from an owner of a '59 F100 with a 302 in it.

Both will get you from A to B nicely, but I agree, there's no replacement for displacement!

One other thought: It may come down to which engine has a manual transmission available for your truck. You might have to make a decision based upon that, so do your homework on complete systems (ie, engines & tranny combo's) as well !




Daryl
~350hp 302 in a '59.

 

Jozai

A 351W is your best bet. I have a 302 in mine. I had to throw over $500 worth of aftermarket parts at the 302 so it would run like a stock 351W. Aftermarket parts for a 351W are not much more expensive than a 302 if you are going to modify it at all. I can't think of anything you really need that isn't readily available.

My next engine will be some variation of a 351W. Probably a stroker though.

 

I'd aim for a mid to late 80's Mustang 5.0/T-5/8.8 combo. Top choice for turn-key is 86-88 speed densiy. Top choice for something you'll modify heavily (stroke) is 89-93 mass-air.

Those roller-cam engines make a lot of low end torque, get great gas mileage and are light weight.

The speed density can be tuned nicely for about 260 horsepower but beyond that you'll want a mass-air system. You want the whole car because you need the wiring harness for the engine. The 8.8 axle is four bolt so youll have to figure something out there to go to five bolt.

Me, I'm going to use a 312, a stock truck bellhousing, an overdrive transmission and a truck 9".

 

How fast of a truck do you want your son driving? I met a guy last year selling his truck because he built it for his son but after it was done, the 460 in it was too much and he was afraid the kid would kill himself. Just a thought. I'd go with the smaller engine and no power upgrades. Good luck, John