Oil Mods for a 351

[bigfoot72]

I've heard about oil mods before from someone building a 351. He said in the 351 Cleveland the oil is directed to the cams possibly starving the main bearings of oil if the engine becomes modded. Is it recommended to do this oil modification? How do you do it? Is it cheap?

If i got any of my facts wrong please let me know. I'm just a beginner and this is my first post.

-Zak

 

[mustang7173]

bigfoot72

I would recommend several books to get. I find these two are among the better books to read. Also, I have provided several threads through the search engine on the forum. There a lot of members here who rebuilt their 351C with a lot of good information.

Ford 351 Cleveland Engines: How to Build for Max Performance Paperback – May 10, 2013

by George Reid (Author)

http://www.amazon.com/Ford-351-Cleveland-Engines-Performance/dp/1613250487/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1463050411&sr=1-1&keywords=Performance+351c

How to Rebuild Ford V-8 Engines Paperback – January 19, 1993

by Tom Monroe (Author)

http://www.amazon.com/How-Rebuild-Ford-V-8-Engines/dp/0895860368

forum threads

http://www.7173mustangs.com/thread-406-cleveland-shortblock--24119?pid=242388&highlight=oil+restrictors#pid242388

http://www.7173mustangs.com/thread-engine-building-advice-needed?highlight=oil+restrictors

mustang7173

 

[basstrix]

The above are very good references. There is a ton of info on the web about this...here are some terms to include in a search on 351 clevelands:

cam bearing installation

oil galley restrictors

lifter bushings

grooved main bearings

This should get you to a number of tech articles and discussions on the topic. What you do and don't need to do (with regard to oil system mods) is totally dependent on what you plan on doing with the engine.

 

[timachone]

Personally I think if you don't race the car or force it all the time you drive you do not need them absolutely. Driving your car carefully warm and then cruising and doing a few sprints here and there will not do any harm. If you will go further and speed-limit the car all the time and you have a heavy right foot then it could be worth thinking about to mod something...

 

[Omie01]

I built one engine last year, OC 4v, with no oil mods and it worked great, built a CC 4v this year with all the oil mods, including lifter bushings, works great!! The one thing I can see different is oil pressure, its higher with all the mods. Everybody has a different view on them, I based my decision on lifter bore tolerances, they were right at max limit so I went for the mods this year. At the end of the day its about what you feel safe with, as previously mentioned though Street: not necessary, Racing: may be worth the time to do. Good luck and have fun!!

 

[c9zx]

There is always debate on this matter. However, I've never heard of any problems caused by doing the common modifications (do not do the Hank the Crank mod). It is all about controlling the size of internal oil leaks to maintain the proper volume of oil on the wear surfaces. Matching the oil pump to block hole, blending the oil filter hole, proper installation of the front cam bearing, and installing cam bearing restrictors (special care required on # 1) are all cheap and easy to do. An external oil line to the rear of the block or lifter bore bushing require more effort and money. An often overlooked issue is the amount of oil supplied to the heads. Most modern replacement hydraulic lifters supply too much oil to the top of the engine and the drain back capability of the 351C can't keep up. This can cause the sump to run dry and the engine to lose oil pressure and volume under high load conditions. Chuck

 

[will e]

If you are going to do an occassional sprited run through the gears I think there is not a lot of benefit to do oil mods on a mildly modified Cleveland you should be fine. What kind of RPM's do you think you will be running and for how long?

I run mine up to the 6K mark here and there. No mods, not even a 'high volume' oil pump and it hasn't had an issue. I run the stock oil pan but did get an Canton pan which I will put on next time I yank the motor out. Extra capacity is always a good thing.