I have a 1971 ford Torino 500, the vin says a 351C 2 barrel but the car came with a 429 SCJ with a high rise intake. I found this car in a barn and has been siting for 16 years.
10 Answers
Jeez that's a heart transplant! Check the engine code and run it at http://www.mustangtek.com/FordDecode.html They are good guys there and aren't just mustang freaks! Your engine may be from a 72 mercury Marquis with some sc bits added to make it look more authentic and powerful. If I were you, I'd pull that 429 and sell it, then use the profits to buy an original balanced and blueprinted 351 cleveland. Not only will you go up from 7 mpg to about 20 mpg but you'll have an original car with a totally bulletproof engine.
I checked the the code on the engine and it is from 1970 429 Super Cobra Jet. I got the block redone, crank rebalanced, new bearings, new rings and water plugs. I only had to get the cylinders rehound. I have the heads getting ported and new valves, plus new seats and springs.
Is dead born classics a good place for interior, because I redone a 1972 Ford 100 and bought stuff from LMC truck and it turned out to be crap. I bought door hands and chrome pieces for the wings.
Your gonna look pretty silly when a stock fe in a rusted out pickup blows past you.
If you have already invested that much in the engine, then you might as well hang on to it. If you are going to use it as a show car or as a classic drag racer, I'd just leave it in the Torino. The problem with the 429 is simply that Ford was keeping up with the bigger is better competition. Not thinking that bigger was heavier and bigger was more fragile. I have seen many 429's with a rod hanging out the side of the block, and many more 429's beat by a good boss 302. Our barn find 1972 Gran Torino Sport was a similar state of condition several years ago. For $250.00 we got a 69,000 mile car with a blown 429 and an extra engine. It literally was a barn find as it was in a disused chicken coop and the owner's dad had no idea what it was! The 429 wasn't original... obviously (thus my earlier merc Marquis comment) but the spare engine was the original 351c. The original engine was totally unmolested and so it got cleaned, checked, and dropped back in. It's my wife's classic car and would blow the doors off my 1972 Charger SE 440 4BBL any day of the week in a straight line! As for Ford reprodution parts: see year one. I have never been disappointed. You really do get what you pay for!
MrBlueOval answered 11 years ago
OK, First of all. We are talking about a '71 Torino 500 with a 351 and 2 bbl carb. It's not a factory GT and obviously not a 429SCJ either so we are not talking about a high dollar car. Putting back in a 351/2bbl engine or keeping the 429SCJ doesn't really matter as neither one of the engine options in that car are going to bring any high dollars or add to the authenticity of the car either. If it were the other way around, then yes an original 429 SCJ Torino should have the original 429 motor and it would bring super high dollars but an originally equipped 71 Torino 500 with a 351-C and a single two barrel carb was more like what my mother drove back in the 70's as a grocery getter. It wasn't considered a musclecar or a high performance car either and you won't have to worry about messing up a highly collectible car as it's not one anyway. Whatever you are comfortable with is the way you should go. Either way is not going to make a big difference in price. If it were me, I would sell the 429 and put the car back to the 351-C but update it with some chrome valve covers,an Edelbrock aluminum manifold and a 4 bbl carb like a Holley or an Edelbrock carb. maybe a set of Supercomp headers too and a pair of glasspack or turbo mufflers and a set of chrome magnum 500 wheels and some BFG Radial T/A's. You'll then have a nice old car that you can cruise with and maybe take it to a few carshows besides and you'll still get decent mileage running around town if you keep your foot out of it. MrBlueOval/Kenny.
Here's an example of the potential of a 429/460 big block vs a big block Chevy in a similar car.: http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=vrBrlhUKQxI&list=UUsHSSv-ydh6IwoccZX8YXfw&index=1 The real choice here is what kinda fuel economy do you want? If economy isn't a concern, keep the 429, the motor is probably worth more than the car. The SCJ block is a 4 bolt main block and the heads have massive ports, so big that you have to make sure all the valve cover bolts are in or you will have a vacuum leak because the bolt is threaded into the intake port. A 383 cubic inch 351W stroker motor would be the way to go if you want economy, as the 351C's are a dated motor. There is so much more that can be done with a windsor these days.