ok so i'm looking around to buy a f150, and am wondering what upgrades i can do to a 351w with EFI, i want to upgrade to MAF if it doesn't already have it, and i'm wanting to make atleast 300 HP if possible on stock tune

 

Great place to start reading https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...get-first.html

as usual you'll need a good exhaust, and air filter. Mass air conversion if your gonna upgrade a lot of stuff. Swap the heads To something better. Cam swap is a big thing on the 351 cause it sucks really bad.

It all depends on how much money you want to spend.
What's your budget and what's your mechanic skill level.

 

gt 40 heads, longtube headers, and a aftermarket intake manifold should put you close. maybe a set of roller rockers. Dont forget a nice exhaust set up to go with those headers. stock cam should be good for at least 300 hp.

 

It makes absolutely no sense to upgrade the heads, exhaust, and intake and leave the factory cam in place.

 

the cam is not the biggest setback on a 351. the stock E7 heads and stock lower intake are

 

If its not the newer 94 + roller then the cam sucks , even with the roller cam there is alot of room for improvement....

 

X2 Lew!

 

my bad. in my experience ( roller cam) ive thought the stocker was a good all around cam. especially with a set of 1.7 rrs. learn something new every day

 

i was thinking about the gt40 heads, a mild cam, long tube headers with 2.5in true dual exhaust and high flow cats since i am in an emissions area.

would the edlebrock lower intake manifold for these engines fit the stock upper?

 

The edelbrock intake is a different bolt pattern. You are thinking the Holley systemax that matches the stock truck upper.
The systemax 5liter intake is identical to the stock truck lower. The systemax upper will bolt right onto the stock lower intake. It will also bolt to the stock 351 lower, but the ports on the 351 are oval and need port matching. (probably need a spacer also cause the 351 lower is much lower then 5.0 lower)

Edelbrock makes a replacement truck intake, which uses the regular edelbrock lower, but has truck style upper. Very nice piece.
Be careful with the gt40 heads from the explorer. Most of them are gt40p heads and had straight spark plugs that interfere with manifolds and most headers.

 

you werent that far from being accurate. the aftermarket cams arent that much different than a stocker w/ 1.7 rockers. yea, aftermarket cams are still better, and if youre willing to do a cam swap then it'd be stupid not to. . .but someone who is just keeping factory e7 heads wouldnt notice a huge difference between 1.7 rockers and an aftermarket cam. both would be way noticeable over stock, neither would be anything phenomenal. the better the top end setup, the more noticeable the extra (albeit slight) duration of an aftermarket cam would be over 1.7 rockers and the stocker.

 

ive found that gt40p heads and long tubes get along just fine. i wouldnt say that each and every long tube design out there fits, because i'd never be able nor would i be willing to test them all, but the inherent shape of the primaries associated with long tubes naturally keep the tubes further away from the head vs shorties or manifolds, clearing the spark plugs much better. i could definitely see why lots of shorties and manifolds wouldnt work. since the inherent design of the short primaries, collecting so soon @ the back of the head, stay "higher longer, and tighter" than long tubes. of course, the high-heat sleeves are a great idea with any header/head design, and would be an even better idea to use them with gt40p's due to the close proximity associated with the plug angle.

gt40 heads require milling in order to retain even the super-soft factory compression ratio, whereas the gt40p's will net a slight increase. i milled my gt40p's to take it a bit further.s

 

What is a good camshaft? Brand, grind profile, etc.
Say for a later 351.
I am thinking about an upgrade too.

 

i have read about the spark plug angle on the gt40p's and don't really mind if it clears my headers with heat wrap i'm good as gold. here's is a question i wanna ask you guys what type of cam should i go with for best results, roller or flat tappet, cuz i also wanna try for some good gas mileage too but i'm not expecting anything to crazy, i just want a good strong feeling engine that is not horrible on gas, the reason i wanna build the engine for this is cuz my buddy has a 98 mountaineer with the 5.0 and its got some great power and pretty good on gas too like 17 mpgs city with no highway at all and i think thats amazing for what it is

 

contrary to the wildly popular belief, true duals are not ideal for your truck. they wont help your 302 at all over a free flowing y-pipe setup. stick to the y-pipe behind the long tubes (long tubes are the only way to go). its cheaper, easier, generates more torque, and is the only way to go in order to achieve max mileage. true duals are pointless for a daily driven truck.

youre not gonna get 17 mpg, and neither is he. 17mpg city with a 302 explorer is bogus, especially with no highway driving at all. hes getting 12-15 at best, and 15 is a long shot.

at any rate, you will squeeze an extra mpg or maybe 2 by givin the 302 some life. the compression bump of the gt40p's alone is worth a slight mileage increase.

the year of your truck (and possibly how much time/money youre willing to spend) determines what cam you can/should go with. roller cam would be the best hands down, but if you dont have a roller 302 already then you have to collect the lifter guides and the "lifter guide tree" out of a junkyard truck (the explorer that you acquire the gt40p's from would be a perfect donor candidate). roller cams are more expensive, but they last forever and create less heat, while freeing up a bit of hp especially in the upper rpm range.