why cant you put 351w heads in a 5.0 302???

slo95.0

New Member
Oct 24, 2003
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fort worth texas
95gt is the car in the swap, the 351w heads are out of a lightning

351w gt40 heads in example
62cc for the e7's vs 64cc for the 351's



the 351's have longer pushrods and the heads themselves are taller as well.

this being said, how is it possible for 351W heads to fit in a 302 5.0 while using the stock valve covers, using the stock lower intake(cobra intake for a 302) and everything fitting without any problems and only having to use different head bolts.

everyone at my job(auto technicians) say it wont work and showed me all these books saying they need different pushrods and wont bolt up correctlly , yet many on here say no problems, has anyone done this swap themselves??

:bang: :bang:


btw thanks for the help and say hi to the newb, dont worry other then bad grammer i have pretty good nettique and im glad to be a part of such a good forum for us 94-95 guys
 
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i dont know about the intake/valve covers but I do know that they will bolt up just fine as long as you have washers. 351W's use 1/2 inch head bolts and 302's use 7/16 inch head bolts. a set of new pushrods is pretty cheap.
 
a friend has just totally cleared this all up for me, FYI you have to use stock pushrods whether you like it or not. the block determines the pushrod length not the head,
302=302 pushrods even with 351 heads
351=351 pushrods even with 302 heads

thanks for helping the newb!
 
slo95.0 said:
FYI you have to use stock pushrods whether you like it or not. the block determines the pushrod length not the head
That's not true. Yes, the block has an impact on pushrod, since it has a taller deck. But the valvetrain geometry, rocker selection, and even the cam (if it has a non-stock base circle radius) all affect required pushrod length. If you're going with 100% stock 351 heads and valvetrain (a mistake in my opinion), then sure, stock 351 pushrods will work. Otherwise, I would use a pushrod length checker and get exactly the right length pushrods, that's the best way to do it.

Dave
 
Lots of people spend a good ammount of money for ported E7's. If you can get the heads and all of the required parts for less than a set of ported E7's, it's a pretty good deal.

Also, with those GT40's, you don't need to change your exhaust to change your spark plugs like the GT40p's.

Just make sure that they don't need a lot of work. Milling heads and a valve job are pretty cheap, but it does add up.
 
What would you need to put a set of heads that were previously on a 351 on to a 302? What is the part number?

I just yanked off the ported trick flow heads off my 418 and want to sell them but want the right information in case somebody ask... Im sure 302 guys would want these a lot more then 351 guys..