Hey guys,

I am considering buying a 1965 mustang that currently has a 289 for it, the car is in primer and the motor is out of it, i talked to the guy that owns it is the agreement would be is that me and a (Professional experience builder) Friend would build the motor.

After looking online for some time now, i have come to think that a 302 roller cam motor would be the best option for some good galloping horses (around 400) but still being a car that idles great, and drives normal.

How would i implement a 302 roller block in a 1965 mustang?

Because orginally the 302 roller block has EFI, so how would i make it non-electronic removing the sensors and such? and what about smog stuff?


Do you just remove it of what?

Sorry guys for being a noob but i have lots of questions

I also have a pair for GT40 style heads from a 1993 Ford lightning, would those be great on a 289 or a 302 roller block?


My real goal for the car is for it to be reliable and idle like normal. Hopefully have more than 300 hp (i am shooting for 400)

Second part,
The car has a C4 transmission (Does that mean its a toploader? Btw, what is a toploader?) My mechanic friend says there is lots of kits to build up C4 trannys, but what gears would i want to run in the rear end? I am not sure if it has a 8 inch or a 9 inch, would anyone know?

Thanks guys lots of questions and i need answers!!!

AND OF COURSE Money is a huge issue!

 

A roller 5.0 is a great conversion. Roller cams have much more streetable power potential than flat tappet cams. Your goals aren't outrageous, but they'll need some tweaking.

Dropping a 5.0 in that car is cake work, especially since you have a 289 to steal parts from. You'll need the front-sump 289 oil pan, new oil pump (a must-have during a rebuild, anyway), new intake/carb, 50oz imbalance flex plate (not sure if you can use one from a 5.0), distributor from an '85 Mustang, and I'm sure a couple other things I'm missing. For the front, you can either use the 289 timing cover and accessories with a new 50oz balancer (you'll need one with both 3 and 4 bolt hole patterns), or you can keep all of the 5.0 stuff for a serpentine belt setup. If you do the latter, you'll have to add an oil dipstick somewhere.

If you don't want the EFI, simply disconnect it. The engine will run fine without it.

GT40 heads are good heads, but they won't match aftermarket performance. They'd put you in 300hp territory. Something like Trick Flow Twisted Wedge or Edelbrock Performer RPM heads would be much better suited to your goals.

400hp is doable, but you'll need good heads and you'll have to wind the motor up to get there. Even with a roller cam, I'd suspect you'd still be sacrificing low-end throttle response with a cam that pulls to 7k. Low gears are a must at that point.

Your transmission is a C4. A toploader is a ford-designed manual. C4's can be built to take a lot of power, don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Your rear end (and some of the rest of the suspension, for that matter) will depend on what motor the car originally came with. Only V8 cars came with 8" or 9" axles, and only the K codes in that year came with 9". If you have 4-lug wheels, the car was originally an I6 and will need all of the suspension (including front spindles) and drivetrain replaced to handle V8 power.

Gearing will depend on your transmission and engine build. If you use an AOD or convert to a manual 5sp, you can gear lower (higher numerically) and still be able to drive it on the freeway. I'd hold off on gearing selection until you figure out your exact build goals.

 

The accessories on the 289 will bolt right onto the 5.0. Make sure you have a fuel pump cam on the timing gear while the timing cover is off, switching to the289 cover. You'll need the "conversion" harmonic balancer, these are made specifically for what you are doing, and allow the use of the pulleys and brackets from the 289. You'll end up with a wolf in sheeps' clothing, your 5.0 roller will look exactly like the stock 289, especially if you don't go for a lotta chrome, etc.

 

Wow thanks guys, Great response.

I will try to keep all of this in mind.

If anyone knows of any good Coupes or Fastbacks for Sale in the MN, ND, SD, iowa, or Wisconsin area gimme a tell.

I also wasn't sure about Emissions control stuff...

What do you do about all of that?

 

Nothing. Even California didn't require it in 1965, other than a PCV valve, so you just install the 5.0 with the timing cover, pulleys, valve covers, etc. for 1965. All of this stuff is available new, so even if you used a "crate motor" you could put it all together.

 

I'd say the GT40 heads along with something like a trick flow stage 1 roller cam (you'll need to have stiffer valve springs installed when you get a valve job on the heads) would be nice on a 5.0 in your car and would be pretty cheap.

 

If i got a valve job, can they open up the ports for bigger valves? And would it be expensive to have someone port the heads to match the gaskets? I've disassembled a Head before with the tool that compresses the springs and then you just pull out the keepers. Is that all they do when they rebuild a head?

And would i need new valves? Or would they just need to have the angle cut on them?

Another thing, What intake manifold is usually the best to use? The Edelbrock one or what?

(Forgive my noobness if whatever i am asking makes not complete sense!)

 

if your going to go with bigger valves you might as well buy an aftermarket set of heads cause the price will likely end up very close. the gt40 heads already have bigger valves and better flowing ports than the stock 302 heads, so if you are to use them i'd just leave em alone.

as for an intake, i'd suggest either the wieand 8124 or a performer rpm/performer rpm air-gap.

 

Inspect valve guides and install valve guides, recut the valve seats to be concentric with the valve guides, 3-angle or better valve job, new valves.

It may be possible to port the OE heads and install larger valves, but that seems hardly worth it when aftermarket aluminum heads are available like that right out of the box. As far as aluminum heads being expensive - head porting done by somebody who knows what they're doing doesn't come cheap either.


Edelbrock and Weiand are two of the more popular manifold names, but each has more than one SBF manifold to choose from. You want to choose the manifold configuration (dual-plane, single-plane, air-gap style, etc.) that matches the rest of your engine combination before settling on a brand. Make sure that it will accept your choice of carb. Don't let advertising be your only source of "technical" information.

FWIW, it seems like the vast majority of folks who build up big or small Chevvies seem to gravitate toward the Edelbrock line, while I hear the name 'Weiand' much more frequently in discussions about the small Fords. FWIW #2, last I looked at rpm ranges for carb manifolds (admittedly some years ago), I felt that Weiand might have been overstating the numbers a bit.


Norm

 

What i ment about the emissions control stuff i was talking about the 302 roller block. What would i do with all the **** that the roller has?