If you do go with headers I would get the ceramic coating to keep the heat down, Its tight under the dog house , not great air flow .just curious does any one make long tubes that fit these vans ?

When i bought my shortys for my 1996 5.8 I called everyone that makes headers ( and i mean everyone) and not one manufacturer could determine if their long tubes would fit my van , None of them would guarantee a fit . the best response was from pacesetter who said they would take the return if they did not fit .

 

dint order any yet but I figure that with the floor being as it is ,,,it should fit

 

anyone knows what size injectors those 351W have ? 19 lbs or bigger ?

I have some 24lbs and some SVO 32 lbs in stock !

 

 

 

Looks very cool. Back to my earlier posts, I asked about weight and you said 4750 lbs or something. Being an extended van with the camper stuff, it looks like it's 6500 lbs empty at least and has a raised roof to make for additional wind drag. So I would expect it to feel kind of slow....actually really slow with the kind of HP that your engine would make stock. Good luck with any engine mods, but you need big time low end torque more than high end horsepower carrying that kind of weight around.

I have a soft spot in my head for camper vans--my first 2 vans were Turtle Top conversions that were sort of cool but were really shoddily built. Yours looks like much higher quality. I had the same kind of inlet/outlets for a propane furnace that you've got behind the right rear wheel well.

Enjoy it,
George

 

Its a beauty,my 1996 is a conversion van but this is one cool camper!

I hope you give it the power it needs its well worth any time and money you invest.

good luck and enjoy keep us posted .

 

George , when i wrote this ,I had the van for a couple of days
with the serial number ,did a search and the weight is for the cargo van before the conversion ....so definitely around 7000 lbs it`s a E-250 !

this van his a miraculous survivor ...original paint job ! no bondo
it`s flawless .....
it`s a Glendale Vantrax ....

that`s why ill invest in the original 351W .....

 

I saw some GT-40 M-6049-X306 heads on sale at summit .....
they have 1.94 intake valves 64cc ( I wish they had 60cc) .



will my MPFI intake fit ?

Is this intake bolt pattern bolts on any SBF heads ?
I`m ready to order all the good parts !!!

 

The heads alone will cost you $1200; you probably need a new cam and intake and a whole lot of labor to make yourself a race engine that is designed for a hipo Mustang that weighs less than half of what your van does.

No offense, but I think this is insane. Put a 460 in the van if you want the torque you need. You are NOT gonna be driving around with your engine at 5000 RPM all day and on the dragstrip you will improve your van from a 22 second quarter mile into a 21.9 second quarter miler. It will make more noise with headers and stuff.

Sorry, but I'm an old hot rodder (had 2 426 Mopar hemi cars and 4 or 5 other big block cars, couple Corvettes) and a hopped up small block is totally irrelevant to your needs.

You need a big engine and torque. People don't soup up camper vans. Don't you need to save your money for retirement or something?

George

 

George ,

I`m 63 years young , retired for 5 years already from Pratt & Whitney !

been in racing engine for 35 years .....
The Crane cam that I plan to install is 444232 with 206/214 dur @.050 lift
.448/.460 lift with 114 lsa ,perfect for the original MPFI ....
it is slightly an upgrade over the original one .....nothing for high revs there !
new true roller timing chain set ( normal when cam change )

headers + dual 2.0" or bigger 3" single exhaust to uncork the flow ...

these are my first goals .....
The heads are optional ,but in direct line with the mods

I am convinced that the setup will give 35 hp and lower fuel consumption too .....

In the 70`s going for 7L was the thing .......( gas was so cheap )
now it`s way better to obtain better performance with a 5.8L then switch to 7L .....( for my goals )
Ill get best of around 18 mpg with the modified 5.8L ....this is the goal !


where you put me in doubt ,is when you say that ill have to change the intake with the GT-40 heads ,...is it so ?

I dont want to fool around with the intake ...it has to be a bolt back on those heads .....

thanks ,

Dan ,

 

I turn 63 next Friday and have been retired since I was 55 (although I did do contract work till a couple years ago)... I am saving my extra money for replacement of my own failed body parts if Medicare does not pay. (I have 8 screws and 3 rods in my spine, just got a new lens in my right eye, and am "looking forward" to hip replacements in 5-10 years.)

Here is the Ford description of the heads:
302/351W "X-HEAD" ALUMINUM ASSEMBLED 64CC | Part Details for M-6049-X306* | Ford Racing Performance Parts

An excerpt from the description: "Ford racing X-heads use either GT-40 or aftermarket performance intake manifolds. Check your intake manifold for port match; not all intakes are compatible due to the tall high-flow ports. Does not fit M-9424-Z51/-Z51P"

I am assuming you don't have a GT-40 intake manifold so you're gonna have a major port match issue I think. (I have never been into hotrodding Ford engines).

No way you're gonna get 18 mpg, sorry. I am guessing on the road you now get 11-12 mpg and I could see you getting up to 13 after mods maybe IF you drive it like a little old lady. I used to get 13 mpg at best in my '86 GMC 2500 Turtle Top conversion which was well under 5000 lbs and had a 305, turbo 350 with lockup, and the Turtle top when retracted added only 4" to the height. Likewise, my '73 E200 flatnose Ford with 302 (also a Turtle Top) got 13 mpg on the road. Those vans had car tires.

I can get 18 in my '02 E150 with a 4.6 and overdrive transmission if I keep the speed at 65 or less (and I can't do that very easily) or 17 mpg at 70-75 mpg. You have probably 1500-2000 lbs more weight and a raised roof. And no overdrive. If I add 1000 lbs of load I lose 1-2 mpg. My van was also available with a 4.2 V6 and those got less mpg than the 4.6 which is "right sized" for the big vans.

Just like your original guess of 4750 lbs, I think you need to recalibrate your thinking for the vehicle you are working with regardless of your past racing and engine building experience. Your van is not a Mustang--it weighs more than twice as much. It has the frontal area of a barn. I have been driving big vans since 1986 and until they got port injection and overdrive transmissions they all got 12-13 mpg even in the days of 55 mph speed limits.

Here are the EPA ratings for '88 E250's which are EMPTY cargo vans: Fuel Economy of 1988 Ford E250 Econoline 2WD

Good luck, and I honestly intend no offense but instead am trying to give you a reality check which I believe you need.
George

 

George ,

I may put an overdrive too .....E4OD with a controler ....

my 18 mpg figures are after reading someonelse here that states he does 18 mpg on the highway ( conanski)

one way or the other ,,,I have to give that 351W a little oomph !

had a 76 302 Bronco ......original 2V , W/C4 , 4:10 gears on 35's : 14 mpg best
shaved the heads .030, RV cam . 4 V ( quadrajet ) headers dual 2.0"
22 mpg and way better power ......

I cant expect the same from the van ,but still better then what it gives now !

just that air injection pump thing makes me puke !!!

Dan ,

 

I call BS on going from 14 to 22 mpg on your Bronco with 35" tires, sorry. I could get 22-23 mpg at 55 in my '78 F100 with 300 inch six (1 barrel carb), 4 speed manual OD, and 2.75 axle (giving a final drive of 2.19) at 55 mph. The EPA's on my truck were 19 and 28 and I bought it brand new for gas mileage.

Quadrajets are GM Rochester carburetors, not Fords (which used Autolite and Holley carbs); I used to modify Quadrajets when I ran GM cars at the strip in the 70's. I wrote my college thesis on the Rise and Fall of the Musclecar...really.

Good luck, really. But you're never gonna get a payback in gas cost from any of the mods you are proposing for your van and it's never gonna be fast enough to give you any kind of jollies. Enjoy it for what it is (a little motorhome)--take it camping with some friends and some mountain bikes, fishing gear, beer, etc. Summer is coming and that's the time for enjoying the outdoors.

George

 

George , I had quadrajet on everything in my yard ,

even on a 4.2L ( 258 )Jeep with an offenhauser 4V intake ,
the small primaries provide throttle response and great fuel economy .
Ford had some quadrajets on 429 CJ too.....

And sorry , but I did easily 22 mpg with the bronco !

I dont intend to gain my investment back ...
I want a better power/economy ratio for a $ 2000 investment ....

Paid the van $3000 it's mint ! I figure final investment of $10,000
when 4x4 converted ....

And yesss as you say, I want to enjoy it as a great camper , for mild offroad capabilities too ! ( 15 mpg )

we might have a cold one one day ! bench racing too , lollll

Dan ,