i'm trading in my f150 for an f250 and am looking for a 351. most all the f250 extended cabs i see are 460s. i'm wanting to hear pros and cons of both engines. will a newer 460 with efi really get over 10ml/gal empty? what is the power difference, and the differences of the 351w and the 351m. people tell me after the 86or87 351s they get a little gutless. what are the pros and cons of efi opposed to a carb? i'd liked to have a manual overdrive tranny and the granny sure would be nice. should i be looking for the zf5? and what are my other options on trannies. any input would be appreciated.

 

I have a 97 F-350 4x4 crew cab with the 460 and ZF 5 speed and 4.10 gears. I get 12 MPG at 70 MPH on the interstate and 8-10 MPG in pure city driving. The ZF 5 speed has a creeper first gear and overdrive and is the only manual overdrive transmission ever offered from the factory with a 460 or diesel. At 2400 RPM in first gear the truck travels approximately 10 MPH. At 2400 RPM in OD the truck travels 70 MPH.

 

Go with the 460. You will kick yourself if you don't. Trust me.
-Jason-

 

The 460 is a great engine, don't get me wrong, but it can be a real dog. The mileage is pretty crappy as with my cousin's husband's 95 F-350 dually dump. He gets roughly 8-10mpg city, and at very best, 12mpg highway. If you're not going to be doing alot of work with it, just using it as a truck with nominal use, the 351W would be more efficient. I have heard also the Windsors got a little weak after the 87 model year. Mine's an 86, and the thing hauls butt. Plenty of power, I regularly pull a 30 foot landscaping trailer fully loaded with 3 scags, back blowers, ladders, the works, and it has plenty of juice. I get 11/12 city and at best 15 highway. Not a huge increase, but not bad either. As for carbed or EFI, I guess it's a matter of taste. On a car, I like EFI, on a truck, especially an older one, it has to be carbed for me. I find the carbed easier to work on by a long shot, you can adjust your mix, and a nice new chrome Edelbrock topped with a Pro-Flo....hehehe, looks killer. The only thing I can say is that I've heard that carbed is compared to EFI as being the "Stone Age" way of mixing fuel and air. I've been told they're not efficient, they are not as reliable...but I have never had a problem, and I love being able to work on it myself and not need a mechanic with a doctorate in fuel injection to work on my truck. Plus if there ever is a carb problem, it is alot cheaper to fix than say replacing your fuel injectors, though that will probably never happen.

Ryan
1986 F-250 HD 4x4
4.10 gears, C6 trany
351W, Edelbrock 351 Performer intake
Edelbrock Performer 600cfm 4bbl carb
Edelbrock Pro-Flo air cleaner
Extreme 4x4 camshaft
Flowmaster 30 series dual exhaust
Custom headers
3" Warn body lift

 

get the 460. 351's dont get much better gas mileage at all, and have way less torque. The horsepower is higer on the 460, but not by much. You'll kick yourself if you get the 351, I promise! If you dont kick yourself, someone on here probably will! J/K

 

I can't help but agree with almost everyone else on the forum. I have two trucks and 85 F250 with a 351w and an 84 F150 with a 351w both run great don't get me wrong but on my next truck I am positive I will go with a 460. The mpg is not much better on the 351 and you get more power with the 460. I suppose it all depends on what you want to do with your engine though. If you are going to build your engine for lots of power then the 460 is a better way to go but if you want to build your engine for more RPM's and power then I have been told the 351 is a better way to go. My vote is for the 460 but I still love the 351's.

 

Like I said, the 460 is great, but I guess it's just a matter of preference, and I like the 351W. I've found that it is really easy to build up for power, as I'm sure the 460 is, but I think there may be just more available, or it's easier to get 351W performance parts. The 460 is great for torque, it definately does have more than the 351W, but like everyone else has stated, hp is relatively the same in comparison...the 460 has more, but not by much. But if you're just looking for torque, why not go for a psd? You'll get the mileage and the torque. Just as a sidenote, have you considered a 400? That's not a bad engine at all. One of my cousin's husband's landscaping trucks is a 1980 F-350 Ranger with the 400. It is the original engine and tranny, no mods at all, and that thing runs honest to god like a new truck...she has a beautiful purr and lots of power to tow the trailers. I don't know how many miles cause it's probably gone around already, but the odometer reads 97,300 (thought that was always weird how the older Ford's didn't have the 100,000 odometer). I would guess it's easily at 297,300, cause he drives from Danville, NH to North Reading, MA every day and has been doing so for years and years.

Ryan
1986 F-250 HD 4x4
4.10 gears, C6 trany
351W, Edelbrock 351 Performer intake
Edelbrock Performer 600cfm 4bbl carb
Edelbrock Pro-Flo air cleaner
Extreme 4x4 camshaft
Flowmaster 30 series dual exhaust
Custom headers
3" Warn body lift

 

the gas mileage sucks, but gosh darnit, the 460 sure is fun to drive.

 

I have a 85 F-250 supercab with a 460 and it doesnt pass a gas station. Lots of power but I only get about 8 miles to the gallon. I also get a reocurring ehaust leak on the drivers side ehaust manifold that I had since the truck was brand new. Ford replace it several times when the truck was in warranty. I retighten the bolts and about eight months later exhaust leak. If you absolutely need the power go with the 460 other wise the 351 EFI is probally the way to go