[ConceptionX]

Hi, im a 16 year old putting a chevy 350 into a 67 mustang. Now before you all go off about putting a chevy in a mustang, I bought the mustang with no engine and got a really good deal on the engine and tranny. I rebuilt the engine myself but when we went to put the engine in, it just wouldn't fit. Any ideas what I could do to make it fit?

 

[BogiesAnnex1]

Won’t fit how?

As in length, width, height, Chevy uses a rear sump pan Ford needs a front sump, Exhaust manifolds don’t clear the spring towers. You know details like that.

As swaps into pony cars go putting a GM engine into a Ford is more difficult than a Ford into a GM body. The devil is in the details and there are a lot of details. This includes potential body modifications as typically the Mustang gets into cutting the front spring towers to get clearance, this of course is structure and requires the welding of plates to restore the needed strength.

This is a tough swap to do requiring a lot of fabrication and welding skills. Since your modifying primary structure your life will depend on these skills.

Bogie

 

[ConceptionX]

Won’t fit how?

As in length, width, height, Chevy uses a rear sump pan Ford needs a front sump, Exhaust manifolds don’t clear the spring towers. You know details like that.

As swaps into pony cars go putting a GM engine into a Ford is more difficult than a Ford into a GM body. The devil is in the details and there are a lot of details. This includes potential body modifications as typically the Mustang gets into cutting the front spring towers to get clearance, this of course is structure and requires the welding of plates to restore the needed strength.

This is a tough swap to do requiring a lot of fabrication and welding skills. Since your modifying primary structure your life will depend on these skills.

Bogie

The oil pan is hitting the lower bar in front of the steering colum bar, im going to get rid of the metal fan, I kind of have a small list of what I need to do, but some more help would be great. I dont have the manifolds on right now because I am just testing the fit so I need to see how its going to fit. I also need to create a custom motor mount (I took welding in school so I kinda know what to do a little). I was told by a local mechanic that I should come on here. I might also need to get a custom oil pan to fit.

 

[ericnova72]

You might try the 1964-67 Chevy II Nova front sump pan, pump, pump driveshaft, and pick-up. The early Chevy II's were much like the early Mustang. Both are front sump pan, shock tower designs.
Motor mounts and trans mount are going to be custom, for sure.
Headers for the early Chevy II might also be a fit. No gaurantees though.

You may have to use an aftermarket notched rear sump race pan for the Chevy II.....but without pictures and some measurements it is hard to say online exactly what is going to fit and what you are going to have to either fabricate yourself or pay someone to do it custom for you.

What you are doing is not exactly a popular swap, most Ford guys bleed Ford blue and can't stand the Chevy motors. Not going to be a ton of info online but you might get lucky and someone has documented a build somewhere.

 

[BogiesAnnex1]

Yeah the oil pan is a big pain this might help.

1962-67 Chevy II/Nova SBC V8 Oil Pan Kit

Oil Pan Kit includes: Oil Pan, Oil Pan Drain Plug and Gasket, Oil Pan Gasket Set 4 pcs. Oil Pump and Shaft, Oil Pickup Tube, Oil Pan Dipstick, and Oil Pan Dipstick Tube. Complete Ready to Install. Oil pan kit Includes LH Dipstick Oil Pan, Oil Pan Drain Plug and Gasket, Oil Pan Gasket Set 4...

www.speedwaymotors.com

But the rear Chevy oil pump bulge can be a problem with the steering linkage. I did see a swap about 5 or 6 decades ago where a Chevy swapped into a Ford used a tube welded through the rear Chevy sump to pass the drag link. Ugly to work on but functional.

The Chevy II pan may require you position the engine higher which for the taller than Ford small block the SBC may get into hood clearance issues. It also will raise the front center of gravity which will degrade handling which is also going to be degraded by the heavier SBC which is about 70 pounds more than the 289/302 SBF.

I did put a Ford 302 into my old Chevy Monza a long time ago, my thinking came from my brother’s factory V8’s Monza in which changing plugs was an all day ordeal and the handling was reprehensible, he finally crashed it because of loss of control in a corner. Actually the SBF in mine was terrifying in corners as well; you had to be very careful about bringing the power up in a turn. If your excitement got ahead of your judgement in a turn you could expect to find yourself busting hay bales and making huge clouds of dust.

Bogie

 

[joe_padavano]

I bought the mustang with no engine and got a really good deal on the engine and tranny.

Yet another example of how the "low cost" solution usually isn't. The collateral damage and resulting costs of a swap like this usually far outweigh the savings of the free or cheap engine and trans. Can this be done? Sure, it's been done many times. Is it the lowest-cost solution? Highly unlikely. As you've found out, the Mustang needs a front sump oil pan. That means an aftermarket pan and pickup for your SBC.

 

[lg1969]

Sell the 350 and get a 351 winsor motor. It's cheaper.

 

[aisr]

Back when I was a kid in the 70's, I swapped a sbc into a '61 Falcon. Used a Nova front sump pan and a set of homemade brackets. For the exhaust, I flipped a set of stock manifolds side for side so that the exits pointed up, then cut holes behind the spring towers so that the exhaust could exit behind the tires similar to fenderwell headers.

Grant

 

[ConceptionX]

So I did some searching and ended up finding a 390 engine that ill just swap into it instead
Thanks for all the advice though

 

[123pugsy]

So I did some searching and ended up finding a 390 engine that ill just swap into it instead
Thanks for all the advice though

Good move even though you really wanted the SBC in there. I did too, just to piss off all the haters, ha.....

 

[BogiesAnnex1]

So I did some searching and ended up finding a 390 engine that ill just swap into it instead
Thanks for all the advice though

Wait till you find out the tricks Ford went through to stuff FE into those.

Bogie

 

[joe_padavano]

Wait till you find out the tricks Ford went through to stuff FE into those.

Bogie

Having worked on a couple of FE-powered 67-70 Mustangs, I was thinking exactly the same thing.

I had one friend who had a 69 Mustang that he had dropped a 427 side oiler into. He liked to tell the story that the only way to get headers in the car was to remove the heads, drop the headers alongside the block, bolt the headers to the (loose) heads, and THEN bolt the heads to the block.

 

[ConceptionX]

Having worked on a couple of FE-powered 67-70 Mustangs, I was thinking exactly the same thing.

I had one friend who had a 69 Mustang that he had dropped a 427 side oiler into. He liked to tell the story that the only way to get headers in the car was to remove the heads, drop the headers alongside the block, bolt the headers to the (loose) heads, and THEN bolt the heads to the block.

would that be the easiest way to put it in? Might as well start research now, you know? so you have to disassemble the whole top just to put it in the car?

 

[ericnova72]

would that be the easiest way to put it in? Might as well start research now, you know? so you have to disassemble the whole top just to put it in the car?

Just research "1967 Mustang FE engine install" or "swap"(the 390 is part of the "FE" engine family of big blocks).
It's a really tight fit, even with stock exhaust manifolds. Changing spark plugs is a pain-in-the-ash. Header fit is challenging.

If you want an easy swap, 5.0L/302" small block, or a 331or 347" stroker using the 302 block is an easy, buy the parts and drop it in deal.
A 351Windsor makes a nice swap candidate, or a stroker built on a 351W block, header fit is a little tighter.
Then there is the 351C, or a 351W with Cleveland type heads(called a "Cleavor"), its do-able, most all the parts are available but header fit gets tighter yet.

Then it's a pretty big jump in physical size to the 390FE....and weight. Fe is among the heaviest of big blocks. Big ole hunk of 1950's tech and design.

Was your car originally a inline6 cylinder, or a V8 small block 289?

 

[ConceptionX]

Just research "1967 Mustang FE engine install" or "swap"(the 390 is part of the "FE" engine family of big blocks).
It's a really tight fit, even with stock exhaust manifolds. Changing spark plugs is a pain-in-the-ash. Header fit is challenging.

If you want an easy swap, 5.0L/302" small block, or a 331or 347" stroker using the 302 block is an easy, buy the parts and drop it in deal.
A 351Windsor makes a nice swap candidate, or a stroker built on a 351W block, header fit is a little tighter.
Then there is the 351C, or a 351W with Cleveland type heads(called a "Cleavor"), its do-able, most all the parts are available but header fit gets tighter yet.

Then it's a pretty big jump in physical size to the 390FE....and weight. Fe is among the heaviest of big blocks.

Was your car originally a inline6 cylinder, or a V8 small block 289?

It was originally a v8 smallblock 289

 

[ericnova72]

It was originally a v8 smallblock 289

I would think a 1990's -2005-ish hydraukic roller cam 302 or 351W is still a pretty easy to find engines. Convert it back to carburetor if you don't want the modern fuel injection(The EFI makes a really nice daily or nice day driver though).
Drop it right in with just a motor mount and maybe an oil pan change depending on what specific small block you happen to find, but the parts are all easily available.
No fabrication needed, just wrenching.

A lot smarter choice than the 390 FE.

 

[BogiesAnnex1]

The FE Mustsngs had different brakes, different springs and shocks, specific reinforcements in the platform. Different exhaust manifolds which drove a head change for the exhaust bolt pattern.

I had a 68 GT Mustang and a 67 Fairlane GTA. They were as great as the movie Bullet makes at least the the Mustang look. The FE’s are heavy engines, they really need an aluminum intake and if the budget allows aluminum head’s.

If this was my build in today’s world and given your ‘stand had a 289, I’d belly up to the bar and take a later model 302 with a 347 kit in it. With GTP head’s off a 90’s something Explorer, a roller cam and decent intake and 4 barrel this would be one potent machine that is better balanced front to rear than it would be with an SBC and certainly with a 390 FE not that I’m knocking either, but your money will go further into being fast than it would going through these other conversions. And if you’re looking for technical adventure you’ll find plenty building a 347. That was one of my last Ford builds which was for a kit California Special copy of the Ferrari. It made a nice balance and powerful car, it just sounds like a V8’s instead of a V12 which I prefer. I made the local Ferrari dealer a bit miffed one day while wating on the phone they play this tape of Ferrari engines racing which sound to me like a bunch of 4 cylinder motorcycle engines, he was not happy about my statement at all.

When I lived in Houston some how I found time to put a 302 Ford and hacked up Mustang II driveline into an 86 Alfa Spider, that made a mighty mean machine.

Bogie

 

[joe_padavano]

I would think a 1990's -2005-ish hydraukic roller cam 302 or 351W is still a pretty easy to find engines. Convert it back to carburetor if you don't want the modern fuel injection(The EFI makes a really nice daily or nice day driver though).
Drop it right in with just a motor mount and maybe an oil pan change depending on what specific small block you happen to find, but the parts are all easily available.
No fabrication needed, just wrenching.

A lot smarter choice than the 390 FE.

^^^THIS. My first reaction when I saw your thread was that 5.0 EFI motors are a dime a dozen and pretty much bolt in. Frankly, unless you plan to do serious mods to the FE, your power-to-weight will probably be better with the small block. The FE looks impressive, but it's 1950s technology.

 

[ConceptionX]

Frankly, unless you plan to do serious mods to the FE, your power-to-weight will probably be better with the small block. The FE looks impressive, but it's 1950s technology.

I hear ya, I thought it over and did some research and im just going to make the 350 fit. I put months into the rebuild. So anything that will help with the fit that I need to know? (schools starting next monday so all this will be after school)

 

[ConceptionX]

If this was my build in today’s world and given your ‘stand had a 289, I’d belly up to the bar and take a later model 302 with a 347 kit in it.

Sadly I don't have a 289 available. Besides I really love the chevy 350's reliability and power. Also the time and money ive put into this id love to see it in the stang.