what happened to the 351 Cleveland?

[shortrack]

Im not much of a Ford guy at all but it seems to me that everything you see for sbf's is Windsor based......like aftermarket blocks, heads, blower kits, you name it.....did the Cleveland fall out of fashion?

[gsxrken]

Sheer numbers. The C was only made from 1970-1973, compared to a 30 year run for the W. The C's are 50#'s heavier, too. And the 5.0 aftermarket tsunami- particularly the advent of aluminum heads identical to the 351W- relegated the Cleveland to an interesting part of history.

[trapin]

I've always been curious about this, not being too familiar with Ford engines....but what exactly was the difference between a Cleveland and a Windsor?

[Restomod]

The 351c has BIG heads,basicly a big block head on a small block. They were also gas hogs that did not help them survive the early 70's. The w is much like the 302 just a little wider.

[shortrack]

isnt the Ford Nascar engine a Cleveland?

[andrewb70]

isnt the Ford Nascar engine a Cleveland?

Sort of. Just like an SB2, or whatever the latest Chevrolet version is called, is a small block.

Andrew

[parsonsj]

The real death knell for the Cleveland motor was the higher emissions compared to the Windsor.

The Chrysler Hemi had similar problems, but it was kind of fixed for late model usage by a modified combustion chamber (not so hemi any more :) ) and dual spark plugs.

jp

[jaybee]

The Clevo was made WAY longer in Australia than in the US, including a 302 version. Of course in this country we knew the 302 with 351C heads as the Boss 302 (although the exact parts combination was a little different).

[mpozzi]

The 351c has BIG heads,basicly a big block head on a small block. They were also gas hogs that did not help them survive the early 70's. The w is much like the 302 just a little wider.

IIRC, the Cleveland 351 block also had four-bolt mains. The Windsor block was two-bolt.

Cheers,
Mary Pozzi

[amx2334]

The cleveland block is closer to the 351m/400 motor. The thermostat housing bolts to the block not the intake manifold.If you look in the rear of the Ford motorsports catalog there is a brief description of the diff. motors.

[kmcanally]

The Cleveland has a 9.2" deck height vs 9.5" for the Windsor. The Cleveland also has a smaller main bearing journal...which is a popular option for aftermarket W blocks to reduce bearing speed. The 2006 EMC (Engine Masters Challenge that allowed both big blocks and small blocks) was dominated and won by CHI (http://www.chiheads.com/) "3V" headed Windsor blocks.

[4MuscleMachines]

As an FYI, the Cleveland had two or four bolt mains, depending on the block casting. I have a 351C four bolt main Boss 351 engine in my 71 Mustang. Factory solid lifters and 11.3:1 compression, it's one of my favorite engines.

[Zee]

Me too. I've always wanted to do a CHI 3V headed 351C stroker.

[69Pony]

Let me jump in here a bit. There is a 2V and 4V version of the C. The 4V is the big head monster and with some minor work will flow incredible numbers. My 4V heads are larger and flow better than those from the 502 Chevy Crate. The C was big in the NASCAR scene for a short period. Ford states the reason why the C died was they didn't want to carry two engines with the same displacement and the gas crunch was on it's way at that point.

While the Windsor has more aftermarket goodies out there, the Cleveland is making somewhat of a comeback. There's even a foundry making aluminum blocks now. CHI makes some sweet 3V and 4V heads along with a nice intake as does Blue Thunder.

The Cleveland is big in OZ land and there are some real exciting aftermarket parts down under.

Here is a link to determine Windsor .v. Cleveland.

http://www.karmustang.com/cleveland_engines.php

I would disagree with GSXRKEN - the Cleveland is still around and found in some very interesting cars such as a 34 Ford coupe down the road from me and a 70 Maverick that is a 7 second car at a track not far from Baltimore.

Now all said and down and I could do it all over again I would have pulled my C and replaced it with either a Ford Racing or Roush engine just to have something with more "options". But almost 600hp out a 35 year old block running iron heads isn't too shabby.

[NOPANTS-68]

The 351C is my all time favorite powerplant. I just finished installing one in my dad's Factory Five Cobra just because so many people said I couldn't. It's a four bolt Boss block, stock rotating assembly with the usual tricks done, large solid cam, stock Boss heads and a Strip Dom intake with an HP 750. It makes 488 hp with 10.5:1 comp with stock Boss parts. I can't think of another small block that makes that kind of snot while using original components. It's a "dry" intake making it super easy to make intake changes and experiment with. I wasn't shocked to see three CHI headed units make some of the top numbers in the last shootout. It's a hell of an air pump. Here's a pic of the Cobra's 351C.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

[69stang]

Gotta throw my 2 cents in here. Got a 70 351C 4V in my 69 stang. My car had a 351W in it when I bought it. The C is staying. I'm tossing around the idea of building another version with a dry sump oil system for a replacement.