More Engine Ideas (was TMeyer 400 Kit)

yes and they add several business days to the order, probably because they're not sure if it's in stock, I've already looked there and it seems everyone is out of stock of these things, yet they claim they can get them but in reality they can't...reminds me of vaporware

I'm having a yard pull something asap. The place in Dallas (County line Classics) and they're not in til the 3rd. I just need to find something somewhere...

edit: coming from Oklahoma and should be here Friday. Ouch.

edit2: they called and cancelled, turns out the yard monkeys torched off the mounts when they pulled the engines...DOH!!!

edit3: torkair covered it for me

edit4: no snow, but it was raining on Christmas Day for awhile...not sure how he thought an open carb with nothing covering it would not cause a problem when I go to sell the 351M to someone...

Edited by occupant - 01-January-2011 at 1:57PM

Send me your address, I have 2 sets of mounts and can get them in the mail TODAY.  I can send priority mail, that way they should be there by Thursday or Friday at the latest.

left Woodway (waco) this morning at 1am, so expect it to be here Monday and I can run it over to Windell's shop. He has the 351M out now, valve covers and oil pans swapped, bell is on the transmission, he's just waiting on those mounts. Mailman should be here 10am Monday. I'll meet him at the curb, run the other mail inside, then walk across town to the shop and I might get the car back Monday afternoon or Tuesday maybe. Not sure how much else needs done but it looked like the mounts were all he was waiting on...

Very excited here, can't wait to not burn a gallon of oil per tank of fuel!

Technically it would take 26,000 miles in oil savings to cover the whole thing, but selling off the extra bits will bring that down some. The 351M engine as a long block, the 2-barrel intake/carb, the big FMX bell, the M-block motor mounts, the Erson valve covers, all that I think I can fetch 300-400 for over time. That takes the mileage to amortize the swap cost down to around 17,000 miles.

They did and they are on and the CJ is sitting on them now. He still hasn't hooked other things up and I'm just hoping he doesn't need anything else at this point. You should have a return package by today or tomorrow.

If you're running single exhaust, the crossover pipe may need an adjustment. With the taller deck on an M, the width between the manifolds is greater than a Cleveland. If you're running duals, probably won't be a problem.

I think the difference in width should be small enough that you could squeeze it together with a pry bar or similar, or it might take a bit of heat to bend it.

I'm definitely taking the cats off and replacing them with straight pipe, but I need the muffler and the single exhaust to stay put for now. Can't afford to spend another $300-$400 on this car just for audio. Later on, it'll definitely get done, Magnaflows, duals, H-connector, debating over an exit strategy. I could do turndowns just ahead of the rear axle, that would keep me from banging chrome tailpipes around the yard here. I could do a stock style pair of tailpipes where you can't see 'em but they're just before the rear bumper. I could do big pretty chrome pipes. But for now it'll be stock appearing and single.

CJ is back in. There's some minor issues but nothing keeping it from driving under its own power at this point.

1) The starter is the one off the 351M and it's pretty dang big. Big enough in fact that it touches the exhaust manifold flange on the passenger side there. So mechanic had to leave off the stud. That was the broken stud and it removed easy enough but he can't get another one in there unless I can find a starter with a smaller case, or a different manifold. It's pretty tight. It's also loud, but not disgustingly so, I like it. But I definitely need to get a non-cat Y-pipe and some other sort of passenger exhaust manifold (or screw the whole thing, get shorty headers and duals with Magnaflows and listen to the music....)

2) The A/C compressor and its bracket bolt on just fine but the idler pulley that keeps the belt from rubbing on the fan pulley won't go on at all. This is a deck height C vs M issue and I need to find a different set of A/C brackets. A/C will be off for now, which will leave me more room to work under the hood for a few months, anyway.

3) The mechanic bolted the bracket for the alternator and air pump on and forgot that the 351C doesn't use an air pump, so there's an air pump there but it's not hooked up and it will have no belt. I'll take the pump off later I guess, it's not in the way, not a big concern, just doesn't need to be there.

4) The support arm for the transmission dipstick is for the large pattern bellhousing and therefore doesn't really attach to anything, but I'm not concerned about this since it's not in the way of anything else. Just need to change the dipstick tube at some point unless I get around to the AOD swap sooner.

5) The top radiator hose won't fit from the 351M so I'm stuck with the flexihose from the 351C for now until I order a molded hose.

6) The carb that came with this engine actually works, but it's a 1405, manual choke, and the butterfly plate is missing. So it'll be REAL cold natured. But I'm ok with that as long as it runs out warm.

7) The oil pan on this engine is the 6-quart model and the drain plug is right there on the cross member. Too late to change it. Oil changes are gonna be messy. I might have a small portion of the crossmember cut out so it'll drain okay.

8) There is no 8. I don't know why I'm still making a numbered list here, because that's it, there's nothing else causing problems. Mechanic is going to kill some time until I get paid again Friday (I have the cash but want to wait for sensibility's sake) with a few minor projects (dash lights aren't working, left rear door handles need hooked up, driver window doesn't roll down, check rear axle fluid level and condition, and find the CVPI center cap he misplaced somewhere in the shop from my right front wheel ;)

Edited by occupant - 11-January-2011 at 1:00PM

re: 5) Can you change the thermostat housing to the 351M one so you can use your original rad hose? Or maybe it's easier to get another hose?

A few years back I put the 351CJ in my '78 F150 (which never came with a Cleveland, only 351M). Bought the T - housing and upper hose for 351M...problem solved.

Sure, if I was running a dry sump.

Jon Kaase has something to say about it.

I'm not sure what to do with it just yet, I may PIF it to someone who needs one, sell it on CL/eBay, or just hold onto it in case the Federales decide to bring back emissions testing on older cars.

I'm definitely holding onto my A/C stuff, though.

Turns out the exhaust fits fine I guess. The engine runs WAY quieter than I expected it to. It was loud before because he wasn't done with it. With new donut gaskets, it's as quiet as my wife's Durango. UNTIL YOU STEP ON IT. This thing revs up really fast. I'm shocked. I can't believe how good this thing sounds tuned up right and running off tank gas instead of a plastic gas can and a few shots of ether. Windell had to Frankenstein up the carburetor. He use my carb, but used parts off his, a couple of gaskets, the butterfly valve, throttle and choke linkages, and some of the other fittings. But it's perfect now. Smooth as glass. Idles good, too, it's ever-so-slightly lopey form the cam, and it just jumps when you hit the gas. Wow.

There's still a few things to do. The old fuel pump from the 351M was leaking, which is what started this whole swap thing when I decided to seriously look for an engine. Well, the "new" fuel pump on the 351C looks great, doesn't leak, but also doesn't pump worth a damn. Windell got it to pump by hand but once back on the engine, it dies after ten seconds. So he put the old pump on for now with a catch tin under the pump to catch the fuel dripping when he shuts it off. He'll change the pump out Monday morning, slap the kickdown rod on the carb, and then put the hood in place and he's done.

I will need to get an air cleaner that fits. The 351M one won't go at all without a spacer, and it's probably too tall with one to clear under the hood. So I definitely need something. Can't afford a proper CJ air cleaner. Probably get a regular 351C-2V one and not be flashy for awhile, or use a generic 14x3 setup until I find something I like.

I also might need to re-do all the vacuum lines. One goes to the PCV on the driver's side valve cover and then it loops twice to fit on the front of the Edelbrock carb, so that needs cut shorter or something. The brake booster is running off the back of the Edelbrock carb, it's got plenty of vacuum, feels good, so no problems there. And then there's two ports blocked off at the firewall, but surprisingly enough, everything works. Even my dash vents go to the defrost, vent, and floor positions right. It wasn't hooked up right before, evidently. And I have two vacuum ports left over on the firewall tee for whatever reason. I don't know. But if everything works, I won't mess with it.

Another thing I need to deal with is the AC stuff. Hoses all over the place under the hood and the compressor is in the trunk. I'd need a 351C bracket to put the compressor back on, but I think I'd rather disconnect the lines from the condenser and the evaporator, plug them up, and put the hoses away until I'm ready to do it all. Probably buy new hoses, new condenser, new evaporator anyway. That will probably wait until after I get an AOD swapped in.

The wiring harness is slightly damaged from all the messing around with it. It was rubbing on the AC compressor and wore through so that needed redone and taped up. The ignition wiring from the 351M Duraspark is pretty good except up by the coil. I might need to get a pigtail or two off a junkyard car to make it right again. Also, the temperature gauge still doesn't work, so there must be a problem with the wiring, the gauge itself, or the voltage regulator in the dash cluster.

Rockstanksky, I'll think about the smog pump as a vacuum pump thing, but as good as this thing sounds, I don't want to mess too much with a good thing except to polish it up and make a few minor details right.

I appreciate the offer but it's all spliced neatly and taped over for now. I may redo the tape and run plastic looms over it later. I have a feeling this will not be the last engine I put in this car since I'm keeping it until I die. If it dies, I can always repower it. If I die, my wife can do whatever she wants with it.

Pics and video to come when I pick it up Monday if weather permits. Been quite rainy here the last day or two and supposed to again tomorrow.

The most important thing I'll need to do with it is put an air cleaner on.

Not trying to be morbid, but if you get buried in your car your wife won't have to figure out what to do with it....only how to get a big enough hole dug to put it in!!