Thread: Which 351C
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Old 03-26-2011, 12:29 AM   #13
deucemac
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Default Re: Which 351C

Quote:
Originally Posted by Merc Cruzer View Post
Food for thought:

Remind folks that there is no such engine as 351!
They are ALL 352s, no matter if they are small block, big block, or FE.
In the late sixties when they were developing Windsors, Modifieds, and Clevelands, remember Ford dealers were still doing warranty work on 352 FEs!
They called the newest 352 a '351' to avoid confusion. We now call it 'Windsor'.
Then they made it worse by adding the 352 that we now call a 'Cleveland'.
Shortly thereafter came a tall block 'Cleveland' 352 (and identical 400) that needed a name... They called it 'M', and it had a small block bellhousing for part of the first year. Before the end of the year it went to the Lima big block bell. Ford never made it clear what the 'M' stood for, but folks have made up things over the years... Midland, Modified, Michigan, etc...


ratio411
Ford made it VERY clear to us Ford mechanics that worked on them at the time and the new car books that were issued to us then stated that it was a 351 MODIFIED and not to be confused with the 351C or 351W. It was called a modified because the block is in fact a 400 tall deck using a short stroke to arrive at 351 (352) cubic inches. It was designed strictly for smog and nothing else Appearantly (and I'm guessing on this) the rod angle in the tall deck was easier on pollution production. The lousy part is that each of the 351/352 engine used different bellhousing patterns and would not interchange unless the correct transmission was used. Another reason Ford handed the performance world to Chevy on a silver platter. I told that to Ford execs at SEMA a few years ago and gave references. They weren't pleased at my discertation but one reluctantly agreed with me.
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