How many people have actually done I6 to V-8 Conversion
- Thread starter steel1212
- Start date
i have done a number of engine swaps, including I6 to V8 conversions. would i do the conversion again? that depends on what i was building. for a street car i would build a healthy six that would surprise many V8 cars. in fact my falcon is going to get a built up six for the street, along with a T5. for the race track i would build a V8 car, but then i would also be building a custom suspension as well as a custom cage.
I've never been a detractor of the idea but many folks underestimate just how many things were different. Once you add up all the parts you'll need and the labor it USUALLY comes out to be more expensive then the increased cost of a V8 car. Plus we've all seen I6 to V8 conversions that weren't done right, often with catastrophic failures.steel1212 said:This is what I keep trying to tell everybody but nobody seems to want to listen lol. Oh well I'll keep preachin
But as has been said, if you are replacing EVERYTHING anyhow, there's no loss and may actually be a savings.
S-Car-Go
Member
One other thing to consider is down time for the car. I've done swaps, but it's been on cars were everything was off the car while I built it. I'd do it again if I were stripping a car down. My current car is more of a series of small projects that I can do as time/$$ permits. I wouldn't want to drive around with a 7 1/2" rear end and a 5 lug front end.
69Rcode_Mach1
Active Member
I agree with this, it all depends on how extreme you want to go. When I want to bulid an autocrosser, I will probably be searching for a 66 coupe that was originally a I6. Mostly because I will be fabricating and replacing all of the components, including an IRS swap in the rear, and of course a warmed over 347 stroker.
DukeGnarley
Member
I've done it and i would definitly do it again. if you're planning on building up a more powerful car, you're generally going to be replacing the engine, tranny, rear-end, suspension, and brakes anyway.
65up2d8
Member
DukeGnarley said:
Bingo. :Word: Especially if you saved $ by starting with an I6 car as opposed to a V8 car, which I assume is your point.
I did a V8 swap too. The $400 66 coupe I bought had a broken input shaft on the c4 auto, a 302, and 4 lug suspension and 7.5 rear. I wanted Disc brakes, a 351w, and a t-5. So all that would have to come out anyway. I found a Monarch(Mercury's Granada) in the junkyard and pulled the front brakes, and thought I was pulling an 8" out of it but found a disck brake 9" with a Trac Loc. The front setup complete was around $100, the rear end complete was $125. I even took the Monarch driveshaft and had it shortened. I found a 351w for $125, and a T-5 for $300. For the money I saved it was well worth the swap. And I didn't have to worry about keeping any of the stuff I pulled off the car.
depends on the car. My 66 falcon was not fun and I spent a lot of money and time figuring out what other fords shared the same parts. No aftermarket support (custom 5 leaf springs, homemade traction bars and subframe connectors, stock hood modified into a 3" cowl hood). I essentially had to buy a parts car to convert it over. Ironically enough the parts car had less rust and cost me $200 complete with 8", c-4 and some crappy 255. So, I would not do it again. In fact I would make my life easy and buy a foxbody so I have no fitment issues.
Hack
15 Year Member
I think this post could help people decide whether they should do the swap. I did a I6 to V8 swap in my '70 vert and I thought it was a lot of fun. It all depends on whether you enjoy doing the work, research, etc. If I ever run out of projects for my Mustang, I'll have to find a different vehicle to work on. I'm not that interested in being "done". If you just want a nice car to drive, it's probably better to buy a car that already fits your desires.57fairlane said:
mdjay
Premium Sponsor
I've done it twice. I feel it's better to just start with a v8if you plan on restoring the car. However my intentions are closer to heavily modifying the cars so I basically just look for a good shell with not too much metal work. With my latest project, the Vert, it was just a cost effective way to get my hands on an aging conv shell. Then arguments for deoriginalizing are lessened slightly.
steel1212 said:
I built the 306, bought a TCI street fighter c-4.
So yes the running gear is the same but that wasn't the problem I had.
Luckily the parts car had the 8" I needed (same year) so that meant the driveshaft with it (which ended up needing an entire new cap on the rear end side because it was twisted where it held the u-joint).
The problem was everything else. Any early model mustang is apparently an inch shorter from where the eye bolt is to where the shock plates are on the rear end and another inch from shock plate to shackle. So the two mustang springs I tried were both two inches too short.
I needed to get a cowl hood for clearance issues, but none of the mustang hoods cross over . . .
The frame mounts were impossible to find for the falcon. Which is incidentally why I bought the parts car in the first place.
Being that the falcon is shorter, I couldn't find any pre-made subframe connectors specifically for it so I found some for a fairlane and made those work.
The traction bars were the worst. I bought the mustang plus kit and cut the ends off of it (circle that holds the bushings). Welded those to some stock I had laying around after measuring the distance I needed. The original mustang length was actually 4 inches too short, I think mine ended up at 29 inches long. Then I realized the shock plates are completely different on a mustang. I slotted the holes on the plates from the kit and welded the tabs for the end of the traction bar to the bottom.
So, I did enjoy finally getting it to work. Add to the fact I have seen very few late model falcons, it was worthwhile. It was just annoying that every step of the process I had to stop and make something work. The thing sat in my garage with the motor and trans in for about 3 months.
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Look at it this way, a 6 cyl car is going to be cheaper to buy, and USUALLY in better condition than the V-8 cars. Most V-8 cars I had come across had been beat pretty hard. I'm not saying that they all are, and that ALL 6 cyl cars are in good shape, but, that is the car that I'll contiue to look for when restoring in the future. You gotta replace it all anywho if youre restoring. Just MY thoughts....
Oh, I pulled the 200-I-6, and stuffed in a punched out 351C. TIGHT FIT!!! But MAN, what a blast....the reason I did it was a dude with a Camaro (POS '76) with tunnel rams (one was actually leaning and bent???) and he pulled up to me and revved his 350, backed by glasspack header mufflers, everytime he pulled up next to me at stop lites. I got REAL tired of him and other Bow Tie "men" wanting to race my nice little 6 cyl coupe. SO, one day I had a drag racing buddy sell me his used 351C, tranny, 9", and we had the 6 cyl swinging in 20 moinutes, and the monster breathed it's first breath (in my car) within 4 hours. WHAT A DIFFERENCE. Needless to say, that POS Chebbie pulled up next to me and revved it up, I engaged the MSD backed rev limiter to 3000RPM and launched of the green and watched him disappear into my reaview mirror. The Chevy Killin had begun....what a rush....
Ok this post has been up 3 days and its 21 to 5 right now. The other reason I had for posting this was that everytime somebody brings up the suggestion of doing the I6 conversion I'm usually the only person that steps up and says go for it. Everybody else just watches and lets everybody tell them to find a v8 car. I know all the old timers have heard that questions hundreds of times but if you don't keep spreading the word the word dies. :Word:
have heard that questions hundreds of times but if you don't keep spreading the word the word dies. :Word:My 65 fastback was an I6 to V8 conversion. I feel more comfortable modifying and driving it becuase it's not as valuble as a V8 fastback would be. I also just bought a 66 I6 coupe to rebuild into a daily driver. I want the shell to be original 66, but everything else modern, like EFI, 5-speed, power R/P steering, AC, etc. So it made sense for me to get a 6, plus I know it hasn't been ragged out at the drag strip.
