Reply to "408 Cubic Inches Using All Ford Parts"

By the way, Quicktime now makes the bellhousing for a 400/460 swap with a ZF in the Pantera position (they just added the right holes to the GT40 kit car bellhousing for the inverted Pantera-style ZF) Just over $400- ask Tim Meyer with Tmeyer Inc.

As Brooke (Pittcrew) told me, the coolant lines to the water pump and thermostat housing have to be slightly modified for the swap, and he said that the mounts were fairly easy to fabricate. His mounts for a 400 in a Pantera look nice (I have seen them) and we talked about using a set of headers intended for high-port heads and then modifying the head flange for a 400 swap.

So what's the difference with using an aftermarket 351 Windsor block? Instead of a bellhousing, mounts, and potentially-modified headers, I understand that one needs to get a "swap kit" from a vendor to get the correct front accessory mounts, pulleys, etc. One would also need to modify or use a specific 9.2 deck height 351w-based manifold if Cleveland-style heads are used. I think that swapping to an aftermarket 351w-based block has it's own issues, and is not a direct comparison with a 400 swap IMHO.

Since I'm looking for a Pantera myself, I would consider a 400 swap an enhancement to the car and not detract from the value. The engine family is the same as the stock. Granted, the engine isn't stock, but if you're swapping motors, you're not going to worry about how "stock" the car is, right? You've probably done other modifications beyond stock if you're considering an engine swap.