I do some mudracing, and my old ford truck is gettin alittle wore out. i recently built a 428 FE, and was trying to figure out what it would take to put that in a early bronco. i have a c6 tranny and NP205 to go behind it, along w/ dana 60's. let me know what you guys think.

 

Better get a big shoe horn to get it in there. I know a guy that has a 351 Clevland in his EB and it was tight! Thats with a 2 1/2" body lift to boot. Even the 351W is pretty tight compared to a 289 or 302. I would bet you would have clearance issues with the front axle/ oil pan and the exhaust manifolds.

 

Are you making the Bronco into a mudder? If so, you can always remove most of the wheel wells and put your headers out the openings and you wouldn't have to worry too much about shoe horning it in. You may have to cut up the firewall too..not sure there. If you are making a streeter, then I'd have to agree that there just isn't enough room there for a block that size.

 

the end result will be a super modified mudder so it dosnt really matter how much i need to cut up. im mainly going for the light weight, short wheel base of the bronco, but w/ the power of a cobra jet big block. also could someone tell me the inside width of the frame on a bronco. that would help as far as making my mounts. someone told me mounts off a 2wd pickup would make this work. im pretty sure ill get good at fabing mounts by the time this one is finished.

 

An FE is 3inches wider, 3 inches longer, and 1 1/2 inches taller than a 302. The mounts off of a 2 wheel drive that fit a bronco are for the big bronco, I think 78 and 79. Those mounts probably won't fit the little bronco. I know that the engine towers for a straight 6 and an FE are the same in a pick up. If there was a little bronco available with a straight 6, I would try to sit the FE on those stands. I bet it would bolt up, but not 100% sure. It is worth a try. As far as the exhaust.....how about using fender well exit headers? I know they make them for 4 wheel drive trucks. Surely they make something for it, or something that would interchange. They put 390's in to 67 model mustangs, I don't see any reason why you couldn't get a 428 in to a bronco. 390 and 428 are the same size. I think that little swb 4 wheel drive bronco would be the neatest thing since ice cream. Take your time, do some research, most importantly....do it right. Make it look like a factory instalation. If you can do that you will never get tired of the looks of shock you get when you pop the hood. I wish we lived closer together, I wouldn't mind scraping some knuckels on a cause like that.

 

thanks for the info. i think i have the exhaust handled. i plan on cutting up an old set of headers and takin them out the hood straight up. i dont know much about older broncos. what kind of axles are in them? i have a set of dana 60's that i would love to use if they would work.

 

The axles are Dana 30's up to 1971. From 1972 on they are Dana 44's.