As some of you know, I have a brain disorder that disallows me to leave anything stock. As a result, there has been a topic that is constantly running throught my mind: What am I going to do with my truck? And more importantly, what am I going to do with that 300 under the hood? Well, after much debating, I've finally come to a conclusion. Before I start, I want all naysayers to keep their comments to themselves. People whining about price, or the typical " why do you want to do that? " is not what I am looking for here. I am however looking for advice concerning certain aspects of this build. Alot of the things I am doing are either for "show" or are going to be overbuilt, so that I don't have to worry about them for a LONG time.
I have access to several 300 blocks, so I am going to buy one from a friend and build it on a stand, and then put it in the truck. First thing is first, I am going to be boring the block .060" over and rebuild it with Clifford's rebuild kit. I have talked to an ASE master tech, who expressed the possibility of overheating. This was my concern as well, I'll be using a Flex-A-Lite aluminum radiator and dual fans pulling 5500 cfm. Is anyone aware of a high flow water pump for the 300? When I am using an electric fan instead of the stock fan, do I just remove the fan and fan clutch, or do I have to attach anything else to the water pump pulley? I will be using a Melling high flow oil pump, and a Cloyes timing set. All of the lines and hoses are going to be stainless steel or steel braided, except for the vac lines (unless anybody has found some, cuz I haven't). I'm debating on using the Clifford head, it really depends on if I can get the headwork done cheaper at the local machine shop. I'm going to use roller rockers, I'm thinkin' Crane Gold Race Roller Rockers (1.7 ratio). I will be going with Clifford's 4bbl intake, and valve cover, as well as their long tube headers. I'm going to route the exhaust out a 4" miter cut chrome stack through the front bedcorner on the passenger side. As for a carb, I am considering the Holley 390cfm 4bbl. Do y'all think the 390 will be big enough? Or should I go with a 500cfm carb? At first I was going to go with EFI and a megasquirt system, but I really like the idea of a carb'd setup for alot of reasons. Does anbody have any info on an oil pan that might allow for better oil cooling, and maybe just a little more capacity? I am using a DUI distributor from FordSixParts, and Accel 8mm plug wires. An Optima Group 31A battery, and a Powermaster 200 amp alternator will handle all the power needs (offroad lights, onboard air/horn compressor, CB and sterio stuff, no subs though). I will be putting a ZF tranny in place of the M5OD, and I will be using a CenterForceII clutch and a CenterForce flywheel. Would the stock motor mounts need replaced (do they wear out), or could the ones from my old 300 be reused? I know that seems like a stupid question, but on many vehicles, the bushing wear out, or the mounts crack and rust. Sorry for the long post, but I really want to do this right, and I value everyone's knowledge and insight where these sort of things are concerned. If you think of something missed, please let me know. Thanks in advance!

 

I have this same disorder. sounds good, and my opinion is your motor mounts should be ok, however new stock ones aren't too much money. Just keep an eye on them, unless you get 600hp out of it. the water pump will need a pulley where the fan would typically be, so something needs to hold it in place.

 

Oh, so the bolts do go through the fan, fan clutch, and pulley, and then into the water pump flange?

 

older 4 bolt style they do, which you could just shorten the bolts, but the newer left-hand thread fans might not. I can't remember off the top of my head right now.

 

I would check the mounts. See if their cracked etc.. Replace If in doubt.

I have seen 300 I6s lay on their side once they broke. My fathers 1976 could not keep motor mounts in his truck.


Depending on what year 300, there is a difference in how the pully, fan, and clutch, bolt up to the waterpump.

1983 and newer have a sadistic system where one nut holds the clutch to the pump, that requires a special wrench. The pully is held on by four bolts however.

1982 and older use a more conventional attachment of the fan clutch, if equipped, to the waterpump, and uses the same four bolts that hold the pully on. No special tools needed. If you used shorter bolts with this version you could remove everything and still have the pully attached etc..


hope this helps...

 

well, one engine is from a 76, the other is from an 87, and then there are other various blocks from different years of which I am unaware. I have done some baseline figures, and I will probably have about 500 lb ft of torque when all is said and done; maybe more, that is the reason the motor mounts concern me.

 

Just figgured I throw this in here too. I am going to be using a 22 gal. fuel cell that I will install in the bed under the tool box, and remove the 2 factory tanks. I will be doing this mostly for cool factor, but also because my rear tank already leaks, so my front is probably going to soon as well, and it will give me a place to put my air tank, and still have room for cargo in the bed. Also, Just because I can, I am going to get a set of Auto Meter gauges, mount them in some Diamond Plate aluminum, or aluminum sheet metal, and make a custom gauge set located in the stock location. Wiring it up will be a pretty simple task, and will be one of those somewhat subtle changes that is not stock.

 

Kill two birds with one stone by adding a oil cooler and external oil filters like they do for Baha racers. They make alum. fins that slip over filters for extra cooling. You might have to use a bigger oil pump. I always fill my oil filters up with oil before I put them on any of my motors and you will be supprised how much oil they hold. Side note: If you have not seen the Baha film, Dust to Glory, by Dana Brown, do it. He also made a excellent surf film Step Into Liquid.

 

after spending all this money why not spend $30 for new motor mounts? I do think the 500 ft lbs of torque is alittle far fetched without a turbo.

 

no the 500 ft lbs is actually very achievable with the 300. i also would recommend new mounts just as a precaution. i am doing some hi performance stuff to my 300 in the next few yrs and will hopefully achieve 600 HP. If u get the clifford rebuild kit u should probably get the dual quad intake and dual 390s(at least thats what im doing) the Torque Monster cam and all ignition upgrades. long tube headers, cylinder head from clifford.definitely need the valve cover from clifford to clear those Crane Cam gold series rockers(i have been doing research on hi performance stuff for the 300 for a few months)cant wait till i roll into my highschool in 2 yrs(11th grade) and people will just stare at that rumbling truck that can melt tires without trouble

 

Im going to have to see some RW dyno numbers to believe the 300, regardless of how I feel its the greatest truck motors ever, will produce 600hp and 500 ft lbs under natual aspiration and be any where near streetable.
Colonel or Frenchtown help me out on this

 

like I said previously, this is just doing some math regarding factors such as stock torque numbers, and reported gains with diffrent modifications. Decking the block .060" and booring the block .060" over stock should raise my compression ratio a tad, which means more hp and more importantly (to me), more torque. The Clifford head is reported to give a 60% power increase when used with their intake and recomended carb. Thats a jump from around 280 lb ft to 448 lb ft. Plus a torque monster cam, longer roller rockers, and a free flowing exhaust, then couple that with better cooling and lubrication, as well as lighter internal components, and a balanced crank, 500 lb ft doesnt seem too far fetched, at the flywheel at least. I will probably use the Clifford head, as it seems more logical to me. I can either wait and wait for the stock head to be done, or buy one and assemble it. Then again, the block being bored and honed will probably take some amount of time. Its a toss up right now. Melling makes a high volume oil pump for the 300, and I have seen the oil filter coolers you mentioned 300I6VAN85, they had crossed my mind too. The Flex-A-Lite radiators can be bought with an external oil cooler, and that had cross my mind as well, but I've never added an oil cooler onto an engine. All of the engine building I have done was rebuilding worn out OTR diesels.

 

If you do go with the oil cooler idea, make sure you don't cool the oil too much. You might have a by-pass to cool when needed only. Cool.

 

well, once I get the engine built, I will have an assortment of gauges: coolant temp, oil pressure, oil temp, fuel level, a voltmeter, and of course, a speedometer and tach. About the only thing I can do is build it to the best of my abilities, because I already know most of the stuff I have to watch for, and just keep an eye on my gauges. My coolant temp I am going to try and keep around 170-180*F, and probably the same for the oil. This is actually one of the things I don't know a whole lot about, as my truck currently has dummy gauges. What are stock oil pressure and temperature #s suppost to be? There is another thing that is really bothering me. The stock intake on both my 94, and my friend's 78 300 have fittings for the vaccum lines for stuff like the carb, and the brake booster. I haven't seen any fittings or holes on the Clifford or Offenhauser intakes for such lines. Anybody got any ideas on this one? Also, was there a year that the 300 was made without the smog pump, but with a serpentine belt? If not, do y'all think I could buy a serpentine belt for a truck w/o a/c and use it instead? Its too dark to go measure that now...

 

Rot,
your new carb will have the provisions for the lines. Actually my holley 390 has 1 extra port that is not needed.