Why isn't the 351C more popular in Cobras?

[Cobrabill]

Sigh...........rumors & folklore.

The 4V Cleveland was a stinker of a street motor.Ports were way to big.The 2V was limited to a 2bbl from the factory(but Edelbrock fixed that)"Mis-use"(if you will) pushed more "attention" to the Windsor.The Windsor has much more available in the way of intake tract choices today.Once the oiling issue in the Cleveland is rectified,they are a great engine,but combination choice is critical.

Back a few years my GF had a 73 Bronco that someone had stuffed a Cleveland(2V)into.That thing was a handfull.

[spl310]

Originally Posted by Cobrabill

Sigh...........rumors & folklore.

The 4V Cleveland was a stinker of a street motor.

I would have to disagree with that. They did have huge sewer pipes for ports, but once you got the air moving, they hauled the mail!! I know of a few 71 - 73 Mustangs (the big boys) that would FLY with the 351C 4V engines and they were not that modified. They would certainly do more than a similarly prepped 351W...

[Cobrabill]

Originally Posted by spl310

I would have to disagree with that. They did have huge sewer pipes for ports, but once you got the air moving, they hauled the mail!! I know of a few 71 - 73 Mustangs (the big boys) that would FLY with the 351C 4V engines and they were not that modified. They would certainly do more than a similarly prepped 351W...

"Waiting for the air to get moving" gets you beat on the street.No arguement about them once that happens but the 4Vs weren't that successfull on the street.

[Dwight]

The Cleveland has 2 3/4" mains which allows it to turn higher rpms. The Windsor has 3" mains which will see 20% more fiction than the 2 3/4" main. The Cleveland had bad oiling problems. The 4 v heads are to large for street. The best of both worlds is a Windsor block with 2 3/4" mains ( spacer kit from Ford or a World Class bock). 7500 rpms and no oiling problems. There is a great selection of aluminum heads for the Windsor but not the Cleveland. They manufactured the Cleveland from 1970 to 1974. The Windsor from 1969 to 1996. The cheaper of the two would be the Windsor.

Dwight

[767Jockey]

Guys, I'm not trying to push the Cleveland over a Windsor or an FE. That's up to you guys what to use. Last thing I want to do is start another pissin' match over what engine is better. In the end that usually ends up being just a waste of bandwidth. I was more interested in asking why the 351C is so uncommon, especially give the huge advances made with the engine the last 5 years or so.

For those of you who may not be aware, the Cleveland always had a reputation, mostly deserved, of having ports that were, believe it or not, simply too big. It wouldn't wake up until you revved it way up. The biggest thing to come along in the Cleveland world now are stroker kits. This explanation is a vast oversimplification, but in general terms the bigger engine size resulting from the stroker kit now has the engine size grown to match the head ports. The flow velocities are way up, and the performance of the engine is just unreal. Again, that's a vastly oversimplified explanation, but in general that's what the deal is. I'm told that no engine responds to a stroker kit like a Cleveland, given the right cam and marriage of other components, of course. I've talked extensively with both Keith Craft and Scott at Reincarnation Automotive out in Washington State. Both had great things to say about the Cleveland. It's an exciting alternative to the same old same old.

For those of you who have a Windsor or an FE, heck, there's nothing at all wrong with that. If you're still undecided about an engine, give the 351C a look. It's amazing what they've done with this thing. The power potential is awesome. It's a great LOOKING engine, too.