Need advise on carb and cam choice for a 351W reliable street use First the carb at the moment i have 2 bbl manifold but looking to change for 4 bbl i have been offered a choice of used 4 barrel carbs , Holley H4 -4160 with list numbers 4668 and 6252 which i think are for Mopar 383 and 440 (these are from the 70s ) the others are Motorcraft Autolite one with small primaries and large secondaries the other looks more equal sizes (Both look like the have been apart before ) Are any of these worth a toss or am i best just to go for a new carb , if so what is recommended On the cam i just want a mild cam for street and towing travel trailer (limited to 60mph on highway ) Or am i best stick with the stock cam Any advise welcome
If that Motorcraft is a 4100, I would choose it over a leaky sieve Holly any day. Call the tech support line of the cam makers or use their on line "cam finder" systems. Dual exhaust system is is needed.
First ran a Holley 600 - when it was good - it was good - but leaked often. Went to Ford 4100 off a 390 - not bad - but cam little too much for it. Went with Edelbrock 600 - elect choke - adjust with rods and springs - runs very consistant - even when cars sits for 4 months and not driven. No leaks or issues now for 20 years.
i have tried every carb made and i like edelbrock the best....on a stock 351 a 550 or 600 is a good way to go...
The Mopar Holley carbs will lack the place for connecting Ford kickdown linkage if you're running an automatic trans. The issue with Holley's leaking is almost always because whoever worked on it failed to torque the float bowl screws; get it wrong and they'll leak. Tightening the screws more trying to stop the leaks will result in a warped main body, then they get real hard to seal... Never had a problem with a Holley leaking once I learned that simple fact as long as the body hadn't been warped. You need an inch-pound torque wrench to do this. The spread-bore Autolite will be hard to find a manifold for, and isn't that great a carb IMO. Never popular even on Ford products, you may have issues finding a rebuild kit for it. The equal-bore Autolite 4100 is a good carb, will have the kickdown linkage on it, but depending on which bore size it is may be a bit small for your 351. All Autolite 4100 carbs feature annular-discharge boosters, an expensive upgrade on a Holley. On all of them, check for signs of worn and/or leaking throttle shafts. Carbs do wear out there and while they can be repaired, it's almost always cheaper to just replace the carb. If you look at new carbs, take a look at the Summit brand ones. They're an upgraded/updated version of the 4100 Autolite and use standard Holley jets and other small parts for easy access to replacement parts. They're getting good reviews from users...
I used one of those Holleys that was a warranty return core with a sunken float off a 440 plymouth. Replaced the float and put it on a 64 390 4 speed and it worked great and if I am remembering correctly virtually no modification to linkage or anything.
I have run these for years. Holley 4160, 600 CFM vacuum secondary. Never had one leak easy to tune and reliable as an anvil.
I have an O/T 1977 Ford E-250 with a 351W. Even though I’m a pretty died in the wool Chevrolet guy, the ol’ 351 is one of my favorite Ford V8s. I rebuilt the engine 25 years ago for our first E-250. When that van rusted out, Dad and I swapped it into a different E-250. At rebuild time, it was 100% stock right down to the Motorcraft 2150 carb. When we swapped it, I installed a Melling MTF-5 cam, Edelbrock Performer intake, and a new Holley 600 with the correct A/T kick down and electric choke. Talk about a night and day difference! It pulls a trailer beautifully, runs great, and always starts. The cam is also a bargain, it’s $65.79 on the Rock. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Thanks for the encouraging replies, things are looking up on this engine , I bought it as a seized junker about $75 in your money ex marine engine I stripped the heads off the bores are perfect (not even glazed ) with +30 pistons looks like a recent rebuild The reason it doesnt fully turn over is the distributor is broken and bent , next thing is to flip it over remove the oil pan and check the bottom end The water jacket has a bit of powder/scale in it but it falls off when touched, from what i can see the casting is clean with no pitting So far i have managed to find a 4bbl cast manifold and valve covers for next to nothing , which is good for over here in the UK
I have the same setup as Truckdoctor, except have the Edelbrock carb, and been using it in my coupe for 25 years. Starts and runs great, moves it on down the road.
My granddaughter learned on these. On one of her first dates with her now fiancé their rock climber lay down on them on the side of a mountain in Washington. She took the carb apart right there cleaned the crap out of it and get it to the top of the mountain to their camp sight. She then pointed out to her boyfriend that he really need a fuel filter. LOL
Nothing but a good review from me on mine. I put one on a 460 in a E350 based class C motorhome, much better than the Ford Holley that came on it. Cranks easier,pulls better and gets better mileage, right out of the box. I bought another for the 302 in my Lincoln, haven't cranked it yet but expecting the same results.
I have been used the last designed Holley’s OEM on 351W , 302 and 460 . They are annular discharge and work sweat as fine wine . A few mods are necessary as in opening the 4 corner idle adjusting screws . They are called 4180 design . Look into this before calling it quits on a Holley .
Much depends on how much of the vehicle's use will be in towing the trailer, and the size (mass) of the trailer. And I do not know what manifolds might be available for the 351W. If the trailer is relatively small, a spread-bore carburetor is going to give good results when towing, and the best results when not towing. If the trailer is larger, or if the vehicle is used ONLY for towing the trailer, a square-bore carb will generally give better results. Brand of carburetor is less important than the style. No aftermarket carburetor is going to be perfect right out of the box. Some are better than others. Pick the brand that you, or your mechanic, is most comfortable in modifying. After 53 years of professionally working with carburetors, I have my preferences; but these are meaningless to you, as I won't be doing the carburetor. If you go with a spread-bore, most are 750 or 800 CFM. But this is deceiving to many; as they are a fixed 150 or 200 on the primary side, and a variable 600 (use only what the engine wants) on the secondary side. The small primary side results in higher venturii air velocity, thus better efficiency at almost everything except WOT. If you go square-bore, the primary and secondary sides are close to equal, or equal. Back to the large trailer: the mass (load) of the trailer will cause lower vacuum at all RPM ranges, and the square-bore with somewhat larger primary side will be more efficient when pulling the large trailer. Also to consider: SOME Ford automatic transmissions require a kick-down lever on the carburetor. Some carbs have it; most do not. So, in order: (1) Does your transmission require a kick-down? (2) How large is the trailer/what percentage of vehicle time is spent on towing? (3) If from the above, it would look like a spread-bore is indicated, is a manifold available? (3-A) Don't even think of considering to use a square/spread adapter! Use the correct manifold. (4) What brand do you (or your mechanic) like to work on? (5) Carb size? Jon
Jon, You are aware that you just wrote something that only about 15% of the people reading this understand. I personally like your carb info always makes me think a little bit. Got to keep the gray mater active. LOL (actually I like you too a little bit, but don't tell anyone.) Oh I don't know if I told you its been a year or two but me and the @raven got lost on the way to Jeff City and ended up at the Creamy in Eldon. They guy at the window recognized me and already knew what I wanted. Made me feel pretty important.
It’s been my experience when a person claims something is a total pice of crap and has tried 4 of them and none worked..... usually that person is uneducated to that product. That being said some items do have tendencies and peculiar ways. But most any item will work satisfactorily, if used and adjusted right. Just my views over the past fifty or so years. Bones
Beaner - glad you are spending some money in Eldon. The locals need all the sales tax money they can get. There are potholes in our streets that can be used for fishing in the rainy season! I try to explain my posts, but if you think I am only reaching 15 percent, I need to do a better job of explaining. Jon.
If it was used in salt water very carefully examine all of the water passages. Marine engines rust out from the passages. Have you checked to make sure the intake fits? Up to '77 uses 351W heads, '78 & up uses 302 heads & have a different number of intake bolts...