Which Intake?

[cldonley]

Picked up a ‘93 351W out of a van. I want to stay carbed for now. I have a Ford (Holley) 4bbl off an ‘89 Mustang and the original 2bbl off my 302. Also have the shorty headers off the mustang. Looking for your opinions on what set up will be best under the circumstances, the primary circumstance being $. (Read, I ain’t got no mo money!)

So, better to use stock exhaust manifolds or the shorty headers? 2bbl or 4? And what intake will work? Can I get a stock 2bbl 351 intake and bolt it up?

Merry Christmas y’all!

 

[bronconut73]

Mustang shortys come out real close to the frame on the passenger side I think....
Edelbrock Performer is a rather low 4 barrel manifold.
Its popular in the eb community for that reason.
There are others if you find a good deal you can't pass up.

 

[blubuckaroo]

The intake on a 351W is one of the few bolt on items that is different from the 302/5.0. You'll need one specifically for a 351W.
Again, the Edelbrock Performer is probably the most popular, but I prefer the Weiand Stealth.

As far as headers are concerned, long or mid length are the best. Little will be gained at normal "Bronco" RPMs with shorties.

 

[jckkys]

The '69 Mustang/Cougar 351W 4bbl intake is about 1" lower than the Edelbrock Performer. It also has a generous carb mounting pad. The only advantage to the Performer is 27 lbs. in weight saving. The 351 engine swap pushes the hood clearance issue without aggravating things. The Performer is an inch taller. It also has a skimpy carb mounting surface that is prone to vacuum leaks. Mustangs 5.0s had EFI from '87 up. So your Holley 4180 would have come off a '84-'86 Mustang. These same carbs were used on 5.8 HO 4bbl light trucks and would be a good choice for any 351. The early OE intake used a 1" carb spacer with a PCV nipple in the rear. With the Holley 4180 series there is a PCV hook up in the front of the base plate. So a tall insulating carb spacer can be used to minimize percolation. To sum it up the '69 factory intake is the best choice and the 4180 is good but not the best off road. I like the Autolite 4100s that have all the advantages of the OE 2100/2150 EB carbs with more air flow through the secondaries. The stock exhaust system works well and everything fits with no leaks. The engine compartment stays cooler with the cast iron manifolds too. I've used this combination for about 20 yrs. and it works far better than the 302, with a huge increase in torque.

 

[cldonley]

If I go with the OE 2bbl carb, what am I really losing over the Holley 4bbl? All the reading I have done leads me to believe the 2bbl is the most reliable for off road applications and will supply all the flow a stock 351W can use. Waddaya think?

 

[blubuckaroo]

I like to use this calculator to select a carb. For most of our applications, less carb is better. I plan to use my present little 500 CFM Edelbrock on the 351 I'll be building. It looks to be perfect up to about 5500 RPM. That's a match for the RPM of the intake and cam I'll be using.
Also, if you remember, Ford used 2 barrel carbs on some pretty big engines.

The only reason I went to a four barrel carb was it worked better with the auto tranny and lower gears. With a two barrel, it would run out of steam when you were passing on the highway and passenger gear kicked in. It would just flatten out and leave you hanging there. A little more carb and exhaust flow fixed that.
https://www.summitracing.com/expertadviceandnews/calcsandtools/cfm-calculator

 

[B RON CO]

Hi, you will be fine with the 2 barrel carb and 2 barrel intake. 351 2 barrel intakes should be cheap. There is nothing wrong with the cast iron exhaust manifolds. They will be trouble free and last forever. The 4 barrel stuff is for higher RPMs, where most Broncos hardly ever go. Most of us go for low RPM torque and the Ford 2 barrel setups are good for that. Good luck

 

[cldonley]

Thanks for all the input y’all. I was thinking that I would be fine and have a solid, reliable platform with a 2bbl and stock exhaust, but wanted a little affirmation. My stick 2bbl is a 1.21 so it should give me what I need to run the 351 until the golden goose shows up and I can get EFi and a 4R70. $28.99 for an intake at the local pick n pull.

 

[jckkys]

The 302 2bbl carbs came with a 1.08" venturis. The 351s had 2100-2150 carbs with 1.23" venturis. Ford went to great lengths to match the carbs to the engine and the application. If you choose to use a 351 2bbl induction, do it correctly. Ford made both EGR and non EGR intakes in cast iron and aluminum. The port size and configuration is identical in all of them. They also made 351 4bbl cast iron intakes in both EGR and non EGR configuration. The carb mounting pad height and ports are identical. The cast iron EGR intakes all have a hole in the carb mounting surface open to hot exhaust gases. The 2 bbl 351 aluminum intakes have the EGR routing internally. These are easy to use with non EGR applications with a simple EGR delete plate where the EGR valve would be mounted. On these intakes Ford used phenolic plastic insulating gasket/spacer under the carb, like this;https://www.ebay.com/itm/Fel-Pro-85...ash=item43deb47a07:g:iwkAAOSwLVZViW~3&vxp=mtr. The intake has built in vacuum nipples for PVC. The pre-73 2bbl intakes are common and cheap too. Either way you'll need a 1.23" venturi 2100-or 2150.

 

[cldonley]

My ‘69 had a 1.21 2100 on it when I bought it, along with the phenolic (plastic maybe?) spacer. Hope to find a cast 2bbl intake for the 351. According to my research the 1.21 carb supplies 351 CFM which will support the 351W up to 4000 rpm. Thanks for the info on the intakes!

 

[jckkys]

The exact specs and part numbers of Ford carburetors was available on the Mustang Tech site. For some reason they are gone. I remember the size for 351 2100-2150s included 1.21" venturis. This carb size was also used on 352, 390, 351C, 351M, and 400M engines. As I said Ford made dozens of different carbs calibrated for specific applications based on vehicle weight, altitude of DSO, transmission type, gearing, etc. I like to use carbs made in the mid to late '60s. This was before the emissions laws took priority over drive ability or fuel economy. Later models had some good features but were calibrated to work with EGR, retarded cam/ignition timing,high idle speeds, etc. The carb off your '69 was definitely not a 302 carb and would work better on a 351. This begs the question what was it made for and when? If the aluminum ID tag is still there what does it say? If not there were letters and numbers stamped on the vertical surface of the base next to the front drivers side mounting stud hole. This also IDs the year and application. What do you see there?
I have an '87 351 aluminum 2bbl intake I don't need. I figure it is worth about $15 for scrap. Your welcome to it for that plus shipping.

 

[cldonley]

The carb has A21 stamped below the 1.21 that indicates Venturi size. On the back of the float bowl, above and to the left of the accelerator pump is a circle with 56 inside, with a raised slash between the 5 and the 6. No other numbers I can find. Motorcraft stamped on top.

Very interested in the intake, will send a PM

 

[rguest3]

If the 351W is stock, a Ford 351W 2B intake with Phenolic Spacer and the 1.21 crab would work great. Add some headers with 2 1/4" 2-into-one exhaust and you are set.

Use the original Bronco Air Cleaner and it should still fit under the stock hood.

 

[cldonley]

If the 351W is stock, a Ford 351W 2B intake with Phenolic Spacer and the 1.21 crab would work great. Add some headers with 2 1/4" 2-into-one exhaust and you are set.

Use the original Bronco Air Cleaner and it should still fit under the stock hood.

That’s what I was hoping for. I have the original air cleaner. Headers will have to wait though. If I had to choose between headers and regearing the 9”, I think i’d Choose gears.

 

[Skiddy]

That’s what I was hoping for. I have the original air cleaner. Headers will have to wait though. If I had to choose between headers and regearing the 9”, I think i’d Choose gears.

for sure, gears will make it seem like a new engine

 

[Prizefighter]

My old Bronco with a 351W had a Weiland Stealth intake and stock manifolds.

Lots of reviews on the Weiland Stealth intake discuss poor casting now... I have been doing my research because I wanted a Weiland over the Edelbrock Performer. Not sure if Weiland is made over seas now but there are some issues. Edelbrock is made in the USA so the quality is better.

I perfer stock manifolds over headers for same reasons mentioned above.

 

[nvrstuk]

These numbers are a result of not accurate testing but ... my Dad's stock '69 Bronco w/302.

It took me years of trying to convince him but after looking at how my 289 outperformed his 302...he let me do this.

4bbl intake and small, crappy but cheap Carter 4bbl carb.

3 months later we converted his stock exhaust to dual exhaust.

2 bbl in second gear max'd out at 50mph

4 bbl installed, same tires etc no other mod's... 60mph...

4 bbl with headers/dual exhaust 70mph...

He was blown away as he never thought his Bronco could do this... now he didn't have a tach but it was a huge difference. Ended up putting a Holley on it about 3 yrs later and it helped out some more but I don't remember those numbers... SBF's are notorious for not breathing from the get go and this proved that theory...

 

[jckkys]

The OE Ford intakes are consistently better quality than any after market intake. The only advantage an Edelbrock Performer has over OE Ford 4bbl intakes is reduced weight and the truck isn't going drive or handle any better as a result. The idea that Performers offer anything else is an example of group think. It's like the child who says everyone else is using one.They are far more expensive and are more prone to both coolant and vacuum leaks. Their added height is something an EB 351 swap needs to avoid. The Stealth is even taller. If you look at the support bracing of an EB hood it's obvious that a flat top air cleaner has to sit so low over the top of the carb that decent air flow is blocked as it would by putting your hand over the top of the carb. The size of the filter element is irrelevant if the air is blocked by the lid. Fords engineers saw this problem and designed an air cleaner routes the intake air ahead of the cross member creating more room over the choke. What works on an early Mustang, won't on an EB. The traditional gear head approach to topics like air cleaners, carburation and headers, won't serve an all terrain truck well. Ford knew that a 289 HiPo set up wouldn't work on a 4X4. They spent good $ on a unique and very different air cleaner. They did it for good reasons not to frustrate EB owners who like the look of a billet open element air cleaner they think looks cool.
The A21 ID on your carb is likely an incomplete or unreadable light stamping. I have a '77 2150 1.21 stamped 7TAPA on the base and D7TEAPA on the aluminum ID tag. The base stamping is usually an abbreviation of the full ID on the tag. There should more there. The first character is the year.

 

[nvrstuk]

I sure loved my HP289 in my Bronco... I went thru a LOT of 28 spline axles tho... lol