Would like advice on bringing my 83 351W back to life. Truck has not started in 1-2 years so I want to do it the right way.

This engine was an Auto Store crate engine installed in 2002. Drove daily for a while, then not as often, then every other weekend, then only when we needed to throw something in the back, and then it sat.....

My son and I started bringing it back to life about 1-2 years ago and did the following:

• Drained and replaced oil.
• Pulled all spark plugs and rotated engine by hand for several revolutions.
• Cleaned dist cap and checked all wires.
• New battery.
• Checked all other fluids.

Engine fired up easily and smoothed out shortly. We drove it around the yard to get the trans moving and check the brakes. Got engine up to temperature, all going great. Then it stopped and wouldn't restart.

We were not able to fully diagnose why it stopped. Knowing that we have had several ignition issues with this truck, we planned to install a Professional Products Powerfire ignition. That is where we stopped.

Looking for advice on getting this truck running well again, and have the following questions.

• Best retart procedure for a sitting engine.
• Should I install the Pro Products distributor first, or diagnose the current starting problem?
• Best options for fuel delivery. I have a 2bbl motorcraft carb on it now, but it delivers pretty anemic performance. Am looking at 4bbl carb vs Holley Avenger EFI setup.

Once I get it running well again, I'll address the best way to get towing performance, mileage, etc.

Thanks in advance for the help!

Jonathan

 

This is a low compression smog era motor so it's never gonna be that impressive towing.. stock rating was about 150hp. You'll want to swap out the heads with a later version and install a cam that actually opens the valves enough to let a motor this size breath to get somewhat reasonable power from it, and then it'll make better use of a 600cfm 4bbl, dual plane intake, and something other than the stock exhaust system.

As for getting the motor running shoot some oil into the cylinders, remove the distributor and prime the oil pump, and if the truck has an electric fuel pump disconnect the fuel line and pump the tank dry to get rid of the old gas. A high performance distributor is a bit of a misnomer, the distributor just provides spark timing so as long as it's working correctly there is nothing that can be improved upon.. assuming both are electronic and you're not coming from a mechanical points system.. then I'd have to say yes the aftermarket distributor is an upgrade.