I am in the middle of a partial rebuild of my 64 f100. I have pulled the motor and trans and installed a crown vic front suspension assembly. Now it is time to start putting the motor and trans back in the truck.

I pulled out a 292 with a 3 speed manual trans. It was running good when pulled, but had a few issues with idle and starting. I feel pretty confident that I could correct these with a little tlc.

My problem now is that I went into this stage of the truck overhaul thinking that I would either rebuild the y block, or do a motor swap. I could always just stick the y block back in as is, but since I have gone through the trouble of getting it out, I feel like I need to do something with it. I am also trying not to go crazy with money at this time. I originally wanted to put a crate motor in, but I need to give the bank account a little breather.

So now my question for all you y block guys. What makes you decide to stick with the trusty ole y block, versus swap in something more "modern"? I liked the idea of having the y block and rebuilding it, until I saw the parts prices and availability (namely performance parts). I also like the idea of an upgraded trans (5 speed manual), and I know it can be adapted to the y block, but it looks like more time and money.

I am looking to build a mild hot rod truck, and want a motor with some pep. Stock, the y block does not have that. I am thinking somewhere around 300-350 hp. Also want to be able to cruise at 70 mph, becuase most places I will be driving require some amount of highway driving.

I really am trying to love the y block, and like the idea of having it in the truck for nostalgia reasons. I just look at the money involved with getting to where I want the truck to be, and an engine swap seems to make more sense. I would really like to be able to piece together a mean y block, but dont want to be stuck with only one source of performance parts.

Am I seeing the big picture here? Are there more hot rod parts for the y block besides Mummert's? Thanks.

 

Congratulations on the Crown Vic swap!
You've deleted the original mounts so now anything will fit. I'm doing something similar with my '66 but I will keep the FE, well, because it's the best.
If I were in your spot I would consider a 5.0 with EFI. Inexpensive, easy, and not too hard on gas.
Eric

 

As was said a 5.0 is not that difficult to do. Personally, I would keep the y-block.
I have the original y-block in my 64 and it runs great, it's stock with the exception of headers and electric fans. I have a 9" with 3.00 gears that cruise with no problem at 70-80 MPH. However, I cruise the speed limit, never in a hurry to get from point A to point B, but I look good getting there.
I was never into performance parts on a street truck, because ,.... Why?

Yes it is a 64

 

Thanks for the input guys. Like I said, my main draw back for the y block is the lack of choices in parts. I dont want to spend a little money on it now, and find out later that if I want to chase horsepower, that my choices are very limited or none existant.

I am leaning back towards the y block though. One plus of the CV swap with my 64 is that I still have all the stock motor/trans mounts. The y block will be the cheap and quick option for getting the truck back on the road.

Initially I was leaning towards a 302 or 351 swap, but I think for the time being I may stick with the y block (unless I find a deal on a windsor). I just spent a pile of money on my daily driver, and am getting antsy to get my 64 back on the road. There is only so far you can go by sitting in the garage in the truck and making motor sounds!

Keep the input coming though. What would really sway me towards the y block is id I knew of more sources for aftermarket parts. Thanks.

 

In Cypress, TX, you are not far at all from one of the best builders of Y-block engines, Ted Eaton at Eaton Balancing in Lorena. He built the Engine Masters Y-block that beat many more "modern" and developed engines with ease. I think it placed 16th out of 40 based on score. 13th out of 40 if you only looked at hp. Impressive for an engine with little development and relatively few aftermarket parts

If the options are 302, 351, or 292, then it is a no brainer for me, 292. Since you have the crown vic installed, I would consider a 302 only if it was a roller, and efi. Flat tappet and carb, absolutely not - That is hardly more "modern."

A stock '64 Y-block with untold miles will be pretty boring performance wise. That was not a performance engine by any stretch, to begin with. You can really wake it up by first evaluating it and getting all of the bugs worked out, then adding a 4 barrel, dual exhaust, and rebuilding or replacing the distributor and tuning everything. That will give you a great starting point. Then you can find heads to bolt on as cash allows and when you're finally ready for a complete teardown, get a decent cam. This is quite vague but if you do all this, you should get it in the 250-300hp range quite easily without anything real fancy, no porting, no aluminum heads, etc. All said and done, it should be in the neighborhood of $2500. It will vary some from area to area but if the cost is significantly different, something is wrong - you're doing more than necessary or being ripped off for machining, etc. If you choose to use the Y, contact Ted. The price will be right.

Re the lack of choices in Y-block parts, it is true that there aren't many options. However, the parts that are available are excellent. 400- 500 hp is easily attainable with bolt on parts now, even more is not difficult but you need more $$$ to spend. Your goal of 300-350hp is really very easy. Because of the quality of the parts available, choice isn't really a factor, but price is. I'd rather have a few excellent parts to choose from than many poor parts - for any engine. Price is about the only downside to a Y-block. What you get for that price, when we're talking about similar displacement, is better performance and fuel economy, plus a great platform to build on. Ys do not yet have the luxury of aftermarket blocks and at this very moment there are 7 I know of in excess of 500hp in dragsters and street vehicles that are living just fine (one is a twin turbo that put 800hp to the WHEELS) - try that with a stock small block. The twin turbo started in a '60 F-100. Now it's in an F150.

A T5 is a very simple and pretty cheap upgrade. To make it apples to apples, we won't consider the price of the transmission, and time fitting it to the truck since those will be necessary in either case. We'll talk about only what is required to mount it to the 292. So you need a bellhousing, a throwout bearing and a clutch. You can get quite fancy with the clutch so that is minimum about $400 for the swap components. And you may get a new clutch in either case so maybe that should not even be factored in. It will not be a Y-block specific clutch so it will not have the associated Y block cost. If a nice Y is already installed, this is also a no brainer for me. However, I do understand, when you figure this on top of the cost to build the Y, it can be daunting. Any manual other than a T5 will be almost entirely custom behind a Y.

 

X2 what Charlie said.

If it were me, I'd clean it up, replace any gaskets/seals that it needed, add a good distributor, intake and carb and maybe headers then drive it. Add the t5 would be nice too.
Speedway sells some Y block parts and probably Summit as well.
Also there are lots of good used speed parts out there if you look around...

 

Good info Charlie, thanks.

I was not aware that I could get to 300 hp with a 4b carb and intake, and a cam on the y block. I was thinking that heads would be required, and at $2200 a set for the aluminum flavor, they are a bit spendy. I think I could live with 300 hp in the long run, and agree with what you say. Better to have one good choice in parts, than many not so good.

As she sits right now, the motor is out and I removed the heads. All cylinders look in good shape, and it appears the motor has been rebuilt at some point relatively recent. It is .030" over now, and the heads look in good shape. I have not opened the pan yet, but the top end looks promissing. It also appeared as if the previous owner already put an upgraded distributor on it, as there are no points.

My thoughts are to drop the pan and see what the bottom end looks like. As long as it looks good, I will just reassemble with new gaskets. In the process of removing the motor, I hacked up the old exhaust pipe. I knew that if I kept the y block, I would be installing headers and dual exhaust. So that will be installed, and I may look around for an intake and 4b carb. Can I run a 4b carb with stock truck heads and see a good gain in HP? Should I take this opportunity while the motor is out to do the cam?

I like the idea of a t-5 behind the y block, but may just stick with the 3 speed for now. That can be a good project for later on.

Thanks for the help guys. Keep the advice coming. You may just convince me to stick with the y block! So far I am leaning that way now.

 

Have you looked at the y-block forum on this site?
Click on "Forums" upper left, scroll down to the "y-block" forum and start reading.
You'll be amazed at the possibilities you have. Just read and read and read.

 

If that 292 is the original for the truck, then you will need heads to hit the 300hp mark, but they will be factory iron heads, not aluminum, so the cost won't be too bad. 300 hp is about the upper limit without porting or the aluminum heads so between 250 and 300 is most realistic.

Re the distributor without points, there are conversion for stock distributors which is most likely what you have. A conversion does nothing for the timing curve or worn out advance components. You will want to inspect the distributor to determine it's overall condition and you will still have to tune it if you want to reach the 300hp mark. Even if it is an aftermarket distributor, those have been around a while now and can be just as worn out as a stock unit.

On an otherwise stock engine, the 4v carb and intake will not provide much of a gain but it will probably be something you will notice. It is very important for the whole picture, though, so it's definitely a worthwhile upgrade. If you think 300hp will be enough, go with a factory 4v intake. If you think you might want more down the road, go with the Mummert aluminum intake or try to find a Blue Thunder.

Since you do have the engine apart, now is an excellent time for a cam swap. Because of the difficulty to swap a cam, really think about what you want to do with the truck and pick a cam accordingly. Custom grinds are not much more expensive than off the shelf grinds so the best thing to do is to call your favorite cam grinder, tell them the driveability characteristics and usage you are after and take what they give you.

Check out John Mummert's site, FORD Y, and contact Ted Eaton. He might have parts you can use on hand and he's practically right up the road.