[brozach]

What powertrain would you use in a 69 Fairlane Cobra rolling chassis? I'm wanting reliability, highway mileage in at least the teens, and performance comparable to the original engine.

Let's assume I'm not lucky or rich enough to come up with a 428 Cobra Jet. (But I am looking!)

 

[dfree383]

Well The milage thing kinda makes it a little interesting. how about a stroker 351W? 383 or 392? EFI'd and an AOD with some 3.25:1 or 3.50's or just forget about the milage thing and build a 521 460 based stroker, C6 and some 4.11's? So what if you can't pass a gas station the fun is in how fast you can get their !!!!
If you want fuel ecomony get an Escort !!
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1991 LX Mustang 347 C4 combo Mid 11's with the AC on.
1984 Mustang GT 460, Powerglide "Still putting it together" hoping for 9's !!

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: dfree383 on 3/4/06 3:30am ]</font>

 

[brozach]

Hmm... the Escort Idea has me thinking...

My Grandmother drove a 1990 Tempo the last few years of her life. That 2.3L engine only has around 30,000 miles on it, and with a little massaging it should fit under the hood just fine. Now if I could just find some little chrome garter snakes to replace those cobras...

10-12 mpg wouldn't be the end of the world.

I've found a couple of 429 Cobra Jets, a few 390s, and a 351W I can have for next to nothing. What would y'all hunt for?

 

[dfree383]

429 CJ Where ? I'm interested you have my attention. You could always make the garter snakes out of pipe cleaners ! LOL A 390 would make the car look correct, but probably won't make the most power for the $$. The 429 has the most potential out of the bunch but forget about the Fuel economy. So we have whe lonely 351W, Light,alot of inexpensive speed parts, Can be stroked to over 427 Cid relitivly cheap.

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1991 LX Mustang 347 C4 combo Mid 11's with the AC on.
1984 Mustang GT 460, Powerglide "Still putting it together" hoping for 9's !!

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: dfree383 on 3/4/06 4:48am ]</font>

 

[ujt389]

best bang for the buck is a stroked 351. Cool factor goes to the 390. and the engine with the most potential is the 429.

 

[Magic]

the CObra Jet an AOD and 3.27s lol

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92 LX coupe

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Magic on 3/4/06 11:16am ]</font>

 

[MarauderMan]

If it is an original 428CJ car, that would be choice #1. They don't fall out of trees, but they are not unobtanium either. A good blueprint to factory specs, with adjustments for unleaded premium (hard seats, cam profile, etc) is a good 400 hp, sure as shootin.

Now, if a little browsing of these classifieds and ebay doesn't turn anything up, it would be a tossup between the 351 C and W. I like the more burly look of the -C; the new Edelbrocks just cinch the deal for me.

One of the Ford mags did a buildup with stock 351C4V heads and intake, and got 400 hp plus with a stroker crank and a .060 overbore.

The -W has so much available in the aftermarket, the only hard part is deciding what combo to use; I've seen the stories (believe how much you want of those) that put them north of 600 hp, but I wouldn't want to drive one to the supermarket.

429-460s make sick power but they require a whole driveline upgrade

 

[brozach]

I asked a friend for some info on one of the 429's. He said...

IT'S IN A 1972 FORD GALAXIE LTD BROUGHAM. THIS CAR IS A N CODE CAR, WITH A 429 COBRA JET MOTOR, 360 HORSE, WITH 65,000 ACTUAL MILES, YOU CAN DRIVE IT HOME.

I can get the car for $2000. Other than the mounts, radiator, and tranny, are there any other parts I should be interested in using from the Galaxie? Could I get a decent price for the leftovers?

I'm leaning away from the 429, but I want to make sure I'm not passing up a way to get lots of goodies at once.

Thanks for the advice so far, and please keep it coming...

-Zach

 

[Luv70sFords]

N code 429 is a Thunderjet, not a Cobra Jet. Thunderjet was the fancy name for a plain jane 429. 1972 also likely has the D2VE heads, arguably the WORST 429 head to roll off the line.

Unless that Galaxie is in premium condition, its worth maybe 1500 running, the engine itself, about 2-300 for a running core engine.

 

[brozach]

Thanks for the heads-up!!!

The other "429" is in what's left of a Mach 1 Mustang. It may even be a 428, but since dad said "the engine fits so tight you probably have to pull it to change the spark plugs" I'm thinking it's a 429. I'll know more this week when I see it in person.

Thanks again. If I decide to go with a 390, are certain years better than others? There's a Ford 3/4 ton with a 390 and 4 speed tranny I can get for around $600.

 

[Paul78Zephyr]

On 2006-03-03 12:23, brozach wrote:
What powertrain would you use in a 69 Fairlane Cobra rolling chassis? I'm wanting reliability, highway mileage in at least the teens, and performance comparable to the original engine.

I would definately go with a 5.0L or maybe 5.8L based engine. There is lots of parts, tech, and support out there. To get all the attributes you listed then I would recommend an EFI engine. I think the best combo would be a 5.0L based stroker (342/347) with mild/mod cam, mild aftermarket heads, and the late MA EFI. You could also go the same but with carb instead of EFI - a bit simpler setup. Auto vs manual trans is your preference but the late transmissions (AOD/T-5) gives you overdrive which helps with milage but also allows you to use a better rear ratio for great performance.

Please click here to see my Zephyr at my crappy Cardomain webpage

Paul

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1978 Mercury Zephyr 4-dr / Holley 600 vac sec carbed 1989 5.0L HO with Edelbrock Performer intake / MSD-6A / T-5 / 8.8" rear 3.27:1 / Mustang 5.0L brakes, suspension, steering / Dual exhaust / Mustang 10 hole wheels / P225/60R15 Goodyear Eagle TR

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Paul78Zephyr on 3/6/06 3:19am ]</font>

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Paul78Zephyr on 3/6/06 3:20am ]</font>

 

[mustangboy]

Actually the 428 is slightly wider than a 429/460..A mild 429 thunderjet would work well.I had a 1969 two barrel version 429 thunderjet engine in my pickup.It had 10.5 compression stock and I swapped the 2V intake to a stock 460 cast iron 4 barrel intake.I ran a 750 holley and a set of swap headers to put it in the truck and got 12-14 mpg.I tried a ford carb off of a mid 70s 460 and it got about 17 mpg on the highway but it would ping like crazy if you got into it.Still I think with fine tuning it could have gotten mid teens for gas mileage and still have tons of power....Parts to swap in an FE motor would be easier to get since it was a factory option.

_________________
1968 mustang 306,stock ported heads,650 Holley DP,weiand xcellerator intake, Comp cams Magnum 292,[email protected] and 518L,heddman headers,4speed with a 4.11 detroit locker.13.69 at 101 mph.

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: frdnut on 3/6/06 4:51am ]</font>