gt40p head help pls
I see no reason why GT-40p heads wouldn't work on a carburated engine, but I doubt you'd really see much gain. You would see some, since your stock heads are from Ford's worst years and you'd be bumping the compression up a tad.
However, there are a few considerations:
The "P" heads have a different angle on the spark plugs, which makes header fitment rather tough as the tubes for headers that aren't P-specific tend to turn right towards the plug and can cause an interference problem in many cases, particularly on the driver's side. Even some exhaust manifolds can be a tough fit so it's best to stay with Explorer manifolds or P-specific headers.
The exhaust port shape is oval rather than square on these heads as well, which can make a bit of a port mismatch with some headers and manifolds.
And, if you are required to run smog equipment where you are and wish to keep the vehicle legal, P heads are not drilled for Thermactor ports since the Explorer they were designed for didn't run a smog pump. They reduced emissions due to the redesigned combustion chamber shape and so didn't need one. But try explaining that to your smog inspection station!
I presume however that the last isn't really an important consideration to you...
But to add different heads, if a good set of aftermarket heads aren't in the budget I think there are a few other stock heads that would be an improvement for you. I prefer the older heads, my favorites being the '69-'70 351W heads but they're getting a little harder to find these days.
Whatever you can do to get the engine to breathe will be an improvement. Headers/exhaust, aftermarket intake, better carb, good ignition to light it off, those are the basics in external mods. To go deeper, especially if you change the heads you might as well go a step further and add a good cam. Along with that will most likely be a valvespring upgrade, and of course you'll want to put a good double roller timing set in there.
As you can see, it's easy to get carried away. Your potential is limited only by the depth of your wallet.
Last edited by TigerDan; Feb 14, 2006 at 01:57 AM.






