I need advice,
I have a 79 with a 351 M stock--needs rebuilt , has slight bearing knock and alittle blowby.

should i rebuild it and use strait up timing gears,cam, 4bbl and headers

Or i can get a 460 out of a 1978 Mercury that needs rebuilt too, but runs good

I know the 460 is a better engine but i am on a tight budget

ill do the same mods to the 460 but it will cost me an extra 500.00 for the engine and 130.00 for the engine mounts.

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Do you have any kind of body lift on the Ranger Body I do not see a 460 And a Radiator fitting in a Ranger front clip. JM2C

go 460. better block. better potential. better choice. if you have the money for it. the 400 is a good truck motor. doesnt get oil to the top end at high rpms though.

You will be happier with a 460 running like crap over a well running 351.

You know, everybody talks about how bad the 351m is. I've had mine for about 12 years now, for the last 8 it's had a bit of a knock. It's pretty much stock with a edlebrock intake and holley carb and it has never let me down and always goes wherever I want it to. I'm going to do a 400 long block one of these days instead of going 460. Just my .02 cents.

I am not a fan of the 351m but that is just me! it has its good + bad points, I myself beleive "there is no replacement for displacement" if money is a problem stick with what ya got! its a good motor when built right! also if ya put that $500 into what ya got instead of buying another motor that needs work , thats more stuff ya can get for the one ya got + weight is not an issue for you , + if ya like the way it ran before you will like it more when freshened up! so i say 351M, but if ya decide to go 460 it will fit cause its about the same size as what ya got i think . jstm.02

IM just starting this project

I have the 1979 bronco Im in the process of taking the body off

The ranger body will fit as will the 460 and radiator

(i will make it fit) im not sure how much body lift i will need

I could mount the radiator in the bed with fans if i had to

Thanks for the advice, Im still not sure what to do

Its too bad the add on stuff will not fit each other ie: headers,intake,cam
cause if it would, i would build the 351 then upgrade to the 460

for now i'm cleaning and spraying the frame w rust bullet then rhino lining

then the rear,transfer case, trans then engine
everything exept the engine just needs to be cleaned and re-sealed.

i am still learning. my 351m is great. a 460 would be more fun. my truck is kinda big. if you are going that way. more power/torque= broken drivetrain parts. good luck in your choise.

What you need to do is look at your pros and cons. You also need to take a look at something else, your 351m may have the power you need right now but does it have more than you need just in case? Not knowing what purpose it will be used for, but having extra is nice at times. Also, look at how much money you have now, if you do the 351m becuase you dont have the extra to spend on a 460... just wait. Because if you end up wanting to do the swap later, now your spending double than before.

Think about your budget and its purpose. Spend wisely and DO IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME! Going cheap, just to do it over, is retarded and will piss you off.:doh0715:

very good advice JChrisM, if you are still goign to drive it mostly on the road, go with 351M, but trail truck go with 460

It is a trail/wheelin truck --but with a rebuild and some upgrades I can still get about 400hp --i can always go with a 460 later (when I have more $)
for now im building the M motor

Thanks for the feedback !!!

I just got the body off today
now i have to find a 93-95 ranger body reg cab/short bed to fit

good for you. i listened to everyone on team chevelle about my chevelle. it is in a still does not work faze. as far as my bronco? i listen to very few, and my bronco works. so i guess my point of veiw is kiss my ass a 351m is a good motor.

460 is the way to go, but you will have to spring for headers, mine were 500, 3 years ago; alt and power steering brackets; billet pulleys if you want to run A/C; i got all my stuff from L&L. i went with a bigger radiator also. im probably forgetting something. believe me it adds up big time

460 is the way to go, but you will have to spring for headers, mine were 500, 3 years ago; alt and power steering brackets; billet pulleys if you want to run A/C; i got all my stuff from L&L. i went with a bigger radiator also. im probably forgetting something. believe me it adds up big time

You don't have to run headers, truck manifolds will work. When you get your donor motor, make sure that you get all of the accessories and related pulleys. I have A/C without billet pulleys, never heard that one. I have the same radiator that the 351M came with. Some say that a 460 is easier to cool because the 351M/400 does not run any coolant through the intake manifold.

i stand corrected, i didnt have any of the OEM 460 brackets, so i went aftermarket. its been a few years. my L&L stuff worked out nice

Im staying with the "M" engine 475 hp 550lbs tq

Id say 460.....I did 1 in mine......But since you have the body mod and all that jazz....Id say dont worry about the 351m for now....Do the body swap and afterwards....Put new rod and crank bearings in and clean the oil pick up out....She should be good for another year or two........After that do the 460............

I love my 400. I would definatly build another.

If i were you i would go with the 460, i made the swap and am extremely happy with the swap, and i dont know where you are gettin your mounts at but an FE motor mount will work the same with little modifications.

I am doing about the same. Swaping the 351m for a "high top" 460. But what I'm wondering is do I have to switch out the C6. Is the bolt pattern the same for the 460?

Yes, the trans will bolt right up.

for you guys that did the 460 swap - what is the mpg difference, before and after.

i get around 11mpg with a '76 460...strait up timing set, and a 600 edelbrock.idk what it got w/the 351m..it was blown when i got it.
my old '78 with the 351m got about 8mpg w/36" tires and stock gears.but that was when gas was .99 a gallon.:cry:cry

460 for sure. I have a new Edelbrock intake, cam, and carb sitting here that I picked up for less than $300. I'm also picking up a new distributor, ignition box, and gear drive for another $150.


The engine is a great one, cheap to work on, and easy to make gobs of power with.

5.5 maybe 6 if I'm easy on the 429. I did'nt build it for mileage though.

I am doing about the same. Swaping the 351m for a "high top" 460. But what I'm wondering is do I have to switch out the C6. Is the bolt pattern the same for the 460?


Hey bonehead (LOL), the original C6 will bolt right up to a 460. The 351M has a Big Block bell housing. They made a small block bell housing C6 but it was never put into a 78/79 bronco. the 351W and 351C have small block bellhousings just in case you were wondering.
The 351M to 460 swap into a 73-79 Fseries and 78/79 bronco is one of the easiest swaps you will run across. I had never even attempted an engine swap before and with another 2 sets of hands I did it. the exterior dimensions are almost the same, just get new mounts, I got a set from L&L.

To get good gas mileage out of a 460 you need to go EFI.

I'm getting 13 mpg on highway with my 460.
The best i could get out of the 351 was 9 mpg highway.

Both where running 35 with 350 gears but i do have OD now so that helps a little.

I was thinking about uprading to fuel injected 460, But after I put a new mill in my friends truck and seeing how much fuel that thing eats up,I have changed my mind

I was thinking about uprading to fuel injected 460, But after I put a new mill in my friends truck and seeing how much fuel that thing eats up,I have changed my mind

only way you'll get anything decent is with a 300 I-6.
even the 351m sucks...(gas that is)

i was gettin 14 mpg with my stock 78 400 with 35s under it.. as for the 460 or the M.. its all what u think is best.. i love my 351M that i built up.. my buddy had a 460 in his pickup that he "Built up" and on the street i would walk away from his 460 with my 351M.. and at the time he had stock tires and i had 35s with stock gears!

Just buy the 351M that I have in my garage. It has about 30K on a rebuild. $300. $250 if you come get it this Sunday.

I need advice,
I have a 79 with a 351 M stock--needs rebuilt , has slight bearing knock and alittle blowby.

should i rebuild it and use strait up timing gears,cam, 4bbl and headers

Or i can get a 460 out of a 1978 Mercury that needs rebuilt too, but runs good

I know the 460 is a better engine but i am on a tight budget

ill do the same mods to the 460 but it will cost me an extra 500.00 for the engine and 130.00 for the engine mounts.

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If I were you Id keep running that 351 until it takes a shit... save your dough and work on that 460 in your spare time, acquiring parts, gaining info, basically build it right. By the time your motor takes a shit your 460 will be done and ready for a drop in. Im waiting for mine to take a crap. Its got about 280,000 miles on it since the rebuild and the only problem I have is a lifter loosing compression and giving a slight tick. Truck pulls hard and runs good. Your 351 should last a while, even if it has low oil pressure. Id save and do the 460 right.

If I were you Id keep running that 351 until it takes a shit... save your dough and work on that 460 in your spare time, acquiring parts, gaining info, basically build it right. By the time your motor takes a shit your 460 will be done and ready for a drop in. Im waiting for mine to take a crap. Its got about 280,000 miles on it since the rebuild and the only problem I have is a lifter loosing compression and giving a slight tick. Truck pulls hard and runs good. Your 351 should last a while, even if it has low oil pressure. Id save and do the 460 right.

ain't it funny...when your waiting for a motor to die, trying to kill it......it just don't wanna die.:twak

Im sorry if this post is a little late.. Check out what they say on projectbronco.com they give you all the pros and cons of staying with 351m or swapping a 460. ]http://www.projectbronco.com/Technical_Articles/should_I_Keep_it.htm[/URL]

I went with the 351M, about 400 hp, Aussie heads, forged pistons, roller cam & lifters,650 carb, Edelbrock, headers......etc

My project is comming along nicely all I need is tires & shocks and alot more time http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q211/fleetbob1/Rono113a.jpg

You remember what happened last time you started throwing H/P numbers out there don't you Bob-O??? I would like to see some pictures of the build. how about that bed? did you shorten it? this spring I am thinking about turning my long bed F250 4x4 into a short bed and change out the front leaf springs for a radious arm set up? those leaf springs ride so damn stiff

Ok forget the HP

I had to crop the bed about 12 "
I took out the gas door

I still have to figure out how to get gas into the Bronco tank

I got the roll bar too thats where the radiator will be mounted
I did all the plumbing last night

cant you come up threw the bed

Yes thats where I routed the pipes to.