Best bang for the buck????

[buckn67]

I have a carberated 302 that was rebuilt 15000 miles ago.I have never had it dynoed, but feel like it has around 200 hp. I want more horsepower!! I Deffinitly want to go fuel injected, but don't know what the best bang for the buck would be as far as rebuild, crate, or doner engine. I have heard great things out of the 331 stroker, but I'm leaning more toward a 351w. My rig is on pavement 75% of the time. Light wheeling the other 25%. what are the best options for the money?

opinions welcomed!!!

 

[Broncobowsher]

How much more bang?

351 is great. The torque it makes gives you something you can feel. Add a stroker to that and you won't be shy of torque. Having owned a 331 and a 351, dynoed both on the same dyno and got the same HP to the ground, the torque of the 351 completely kicked the 331. Even through the 331 was in a lighter vehicle, the torque of the 351 just made for way more fun.

But it is a bit of a shame to set aside a freshly rebuilt engine. Is it a stock rebuild, any performance parts? A couple of wisely picked upgrades could wake the 302 up.

Maybe it isn't even the engine. What tires, gears and transmission are you running? Too tall of a tire for the gears will make any engine feel like a dog. It may be best to leave the engine alone (maybe a real tune) and just add some proper gearing tothe axles.

 

[Timmy390]

When I did the last rebuild, I put on a set of nice heads, a better cam, increased the compression, and added a four barrel. It ran really good but still felt poopy. I then swapped out the 3.50 gears for a set of 4.11s. I wish I'd done the gears first. The gears are really where it's at if you have anything bigger than the stock G-78-15 tires.

X2 on the gears....I also went from 3.50's to 4.11 and looking back, I wonder what if had gone 4.30's or maybe 4.56's. 4.11's Woke my rig UP......

Tim

 

[bronconut73]

X2 on the gears....I also went from 3.50's to 4.11 and looking back, I wonder what if had gone 4.30's or maybe 4.56's. 4.11's Woke my rig UP......

Tim

3.50 to 4.11 gear swap here too.
And like Tim I wonder how 4.56 gears would have felt because 4.11's really woke up "my" Windsor.

By the way the Windsor's low rpm torque is addicting. I have driven eb's with nearly 400 horse 347's in them and " they were " fast but it really didn't compare to a mild build Windsor making around 330 horse because of the Windsors low rpm torque. The Windsor is just far more drivable and has no problem with moving big tires off the line.
I love my Windsor. I may continue to enhance it but won't go back to the 302/331/347. They are cool but I love my Windsor.

 

[WheelHorse]

Do you have any highway driving?

Gears would make the biggest initial wake up.

 

[buckn67]

I'm running 456 gears with 35 in tires. 75% pavement,25% off road.

 

[Timmy390]

I'm running 456 gears with 35 in tires. 75% pavement,25% off road.

What trans you running? 35's need mroe gear from what I've read. Gears would be the cheapest way to go but the 351W is a GREAT move as well.

If I had the budget, I would already have one installed.

Tim

 

[needabronco]

A rebuilt mill with only 15K on it, and you want more power? I'd start with a cam and exhaust, after that I'd add fuel injection to it. Frankly all your going to do is swap the intake manifold, add an additional fuel line, a fuel pump, and some wiring. If that doesn't do what your looking for swap gear and/or put a Windsor in it. You can use the same fuel injection and exhaust if you feel inclined.

 

[Ranchtruck]

What heads does it have on it? A set of GT40's from a 96 explorer v8 would be a cheap upgrade, and there are many excellent aftermarket heads available if you have the budget.

If you did a 351w firing order RV spec cam at the same time you put better heads and the EFI from a Mustang HO 5.0 at the same time there would be a noticable increase in power.

What does it have for exhaust right now? The stock single 2" pipe is pretty restrictive.

 

[buckn67]

I'm running an aod, with dual exaust. The motor was rebuilt when I bought it. I don't know any of the motor s specs.

 

[Timmy390]

JMO......you have a few thigns working against you (35's, gears, aod and 302).

302's like to rev and make power up high that's why gears wake them up so much. Sure they can be made to produce down low but that gets $$$$ Moving my cruse RPM's up made an incrediable difference with the stock 3 speed.

The 35's, slightly high gear and the aod is killing your power as the RPM's you need to get the power just aren't seen when crusing. What is your cruse RPM now? Mine is 2900ish at 60-65. It feels like I added 50hp or more to my rig....

You can add all the HP you want but till all the things mentiond are working together it he right zone, it will feel like a slug. If I'm running 4.11's and wondering how much better it would be with 4.30's or 4.56's then you should be looking at 5.??'s.

Bang for the buck, I would buy a cheap set of gears off eBay or from one of the vendors for the 9 and see how they feel. I "feared the gear" and didn't do this and now wish I had.

Lots of threads on gears and what everyone is running with what combo over in the tech section. Do a search and read till your eyes bleed.....LOL

Tim

 

[Spartan]

This is all interesting info,
I initially thought I was going to 4.56's frt &rr, now I'm thinking 4.88's?
(35's, 302, 3spd man)
Perhaps I should look into 5.13's?

 

[rguest3]

x10 for the 351w

The torque of the 351w compared to the 302 is night and day. Low end response is perfect for a Bronco.

Since you have an AOD I would go with more gear as well. 4.88 would be great for 1-3 gear while in town or off road as well. Overdrive would knock the RPMs down equivalent to about a 3.41 gear with a C4.

 

[asinor]

Go play with the Grimjeeper calculator.

I don't think you would *need* 5.13 with any transmission, 35s and a 302. I'm running stock 3 speed, stock 3.50 and a 351w and I don't really need anything deeper. Though it would certainly pep it up off the line, it would also force me to move to an OD transmission.

4.88s with 35's and no OD = 3045RPM @ 65
4.56 = 2845rpm @ 65
4.11 = 2565rpm @ 65 <- about where I want to be.
5.13 = 3201rpm @ 65

If you want more off the line without sacrificing top end, look into the NP435 transmission or one of the OD 5 speeds with a low first.

 

[broncnaz]

While I agree a 351 would be a better choice, there is a lot that can be done to make a 302 better, A decent cam that is suited to your driving needs will make the biggest differance. As was said other upgrades like exhuast and intake all make a differance and are really needed to get the most out of a upgraded cam and your engine. Gearing is critical with OD transmissions and big tires but your gearing is really not that far off so I'd look more toward the engine.
EFI doesnt really add anymore power so that would be last on my list.

 

[u10072]

SEFI and gears will awake that engine you have -- like feel new again awake! I put SEFI on my EB back in the summer of 99 and it was on a strong 302-- the SEFI just makes it work so much better. Not that a good carb guy cant work with it to do the same thing but a carb wont do what SEFI will off camber and in the rough. You gear it and go injected you will forget about the 351. The 351 is by far the best engine to go with but its got its own issues like size and and cooling to deal with-- both are not the easiest issues many times..

 

[blubuckaroo]

buckn67,
What have you done in the tuning department? I've seen motors respond well to proper ignition timing and advance. I remember a terrible beating I got once while bracket racing against a stock looking '66 Mustang.

 

[Rustytruck]

First thing I would do if it were mine would be to pull the timing cover and check the cam timing then i would run it advanced 4 degrees from straight up. this will bring the power band down about 300 rpm moving the torque closer to your overdrive profile. costs a gaskit set and maybe a new timing set if you dont have a multi keyway timing set. After that I would set the timing for the distributer from stock 7 degress advanced to closer to 14 degrees at Idle with no vacuum advance. Then drive it and see if it pings under load. If it pings go up in gas grade or back off the timing some. This will give you as much power as your motor can make without expensive modifications. next take off the top and doors for about a 20 % seat in the pants boost in power. If this doesnt make you happy then I would be looking to go 351 as it will be likly to pull your rig in overdrive without a gear change.
building a hotrod 302 that makes power at 6000 rpm makes no sence when your not even turning 3000 rpm on the highway.