66 Fairlane

[rockstar96]

Hi Folks.
Just joined and had a look round and can not see a thread,so i am asking
has any got a 66 fairlane with a 351c and c6 in it.
Is this a good/bad combo?,it is not standard,has cam,headers,msd and double pumper,sounds awesome,but is a bit of an animal to drive.
would like to find any one who has this or has done this.

 

[craig]

Never had a Fairlane, but had a 67 Mustang with a 351C and a C6. was a simple bolt in and it worked great. Mine was a '72 CJ engine with open chamber 4V heads, stock hydraulic CJ cam and the factory 10" convertor. Originally I had 1970 Mustang Hooker headers, but I got tired of the leaks and poor ground clearance so I dumped them for '70 Mustang 351C exhaust manifolds. The beauty of the '72 heads was the compression dropped from 11 to 1 down to 9 to 1. The thing ran on any gas I bought, got respectable mileage and ran an honest 12.97 with 4.10 gears. Most people believe the myth that the 4V heads were too big and don't flow properly, but most of those people weren't even born yet. The right parts and some tuning and this thing makes a great street engine..Besides you already have it, enjoy

 

[rockstar96]

Hi Craig.
I do not know a real lot about this engine,but it has 4V heads and and a comp cam
but do not know the specs.
it does not have flat top pistons,but does have edlebrock 351 manifold and a 800 cfm double pumper.

 

[Ole Don]

That engine looks really cool, I'll bet its a real bear. Your question seemed to be about handling. Exactly what is the issue?

 

[rockstar96]

Hi Don.
I do not think it has a handling problem,when i said it is a bit of an animal i meant
that with this combo it revs fairly quick so driving in traffic at slow speeds are what you might call interesting,it always wants to pick it's skirt up and go,now if that is what clevelands are like then i have no problem with it.
Had a few fords,small and big block,just never had one that wanted to rev like this.

Dave

 

[bobss396]

Do you have a stall converter in the C6? That would help it drive better at low speeds. Otherwise it looks like fun. A taller rear gear will help it as well, like a 3.55 up to a 4.11.

I have 3.56 gears in my '59 with a M20 4-speed with a 2.56 first gear.

 

[rockstar96]

According to the spec sheet when i bought it,it has a 2300 stall torque converter and a beefed up c6,it is running a LSD,3.57 i believe.
the rear looks like a Dana 44 on homemade coilover system,which i have reservations about as it has been fitted with fixed disc calipers,so e brake does not work and neither i suspect do the rear brakes.

Dave

 

[bobss396]

The 2300 stall should be okay if it drives good for you. My cam called for a 2500 stall or steep rear end gears. I'll eventually be going to a 3.91 or 4.10 posi.

Post some pix of the rear suspension, I'm just curious. Lots of disc conversions have no e-brake which you can get by with on an automatic.

 

[rockstar96]

This is the rear axle and disc setup.
As you can see it looks like a fixed caliper,not a sliding caliper.
that being the case it is only working on the one side of the disc,possibly warping the disc.

Dave

 

[craig]

that's a scary looking rearend/brake combo, any chance of putting back the leaf springs, a 9" and possibly some quality rear discs?

 

[bobss396]

I would have to see the whole dealie to make an accurate assessment, but it does look less than optimal.

 

[Ole Don]

For street use, I would recommend a converter with about 2800 to 3000 stall, and massive torque arms from the rear axle to a subframe. A welded in subframe connector from rear to front is nearly required to hold this power without twisting things up sooner or latter. The torque arms from the rear axle then connect to the subframe. Also, to slow the way the motor comes up, pull out some timing. Experiment with two degrees at a time. The combination you have can be safe, fast, and reliable.

 

[rockstar96]

Hi.
Thanks for the input,the parts required to go back to leaf springs and a 9" are few and far between here in the uk,so am stuck with what i have got,once i can sort out the caliper problem i intend to fit frame connectors and a proper 4 link system.
The thing is finding what this axle came out of as there is no tag on it,looking at the diff cover it looks like a Dana 44,and if you put that in google the only vehicle it comes up with is Jeep,so the saga continues.

Dave

 

[miker98038]

Dana 44's were used in a lot of other vehicles. 55 ford wagons, thunderbirds, and trucks. Jaguar used them, many 4x4's used them in the front axle, and even early Vipers used those gear sets. I can't ID that one, so it's not much help, but you need to widen your search.

Fitting rear disc to the early Ford units is problematic. I've used two types, early GM, where the parking brake hooked up but really didn't work, and late Mustang, where it sort of works. So, I suspect you've got a cobbled up unit like I do.

I've got 2 on topic and one off topic cars with coil overs, I might be able to point you in the right direction on that.

Rather than get OT from the engine post, PM me if I can help.

 

[rockstar96]

Thanks miker,i might just take you up on that offer of help.

Dave

 

[bobss396]

Looks like a Jeep rear, Dana 44 for sure. Some Ranger & later 8.8 rears are pretty easy to come by I'd think, even in the UK.

 

[rockstar96]

As the saga continues,it has been proved that the rear axle is a Salisbury 4HA probably
out of a mk2 jag or a v8 daimler.
The rear calipers were sliders after all,they are off a Detomaso Pantera which are totally
shagged,cant even get them rebuilt as parts are like hens teeth,even in the states,so am going for a more modern caliper and make adapter brackets.

Dave

 

[willowbilly3]

Catalogs like Speedway have some simple, cheap weld on brackets to use GM calipers. They also sell those calipers with parking brake provision. Also IMO, 800 is way too much carb for a street 351. It might just be jumpy because of the throttle linkage. Look for a different hole on the carb for the linkage to mount further away from the throttle shaft.

 

[bobss396]

No shame in going back to a drum brake rear and leaf springs, something close to what the car came with. If you want to go disc, lots of guys have gone with Explorer rears. Post a picture of the whole rear.