[DeTomaso] Will a 429 thunderjet motor fit?

[Daniel C Jones]

> I've got a line on a 429 thunderjet motor. What would it take to put a big
> block in the Pantera?

The 429 is a 385 Series big block Ford engine which included 370 (truck),
429 and 460 cubic inch displacement versions in FoMoCo vehicles.  Ford
Motorsport/FRPP alos sell a stroked version of 514 cubic inches and the
aftermarket offers much larger versions.  Note that pre-1972 BBF blocks
have a slightly shorter deck height than later blocks.  They all have the
same external dimensions which are taller, wider and longer than a 351C
but can be made to fit into a Pantera. I believe Precision Proformance
has the parts (bellhousing, motor mounts, headers, water tubes, etc.)
needed for the swap but their website says "in house only" so they may
not sell them direct.

The Thunderjet was a standard passenger car non performance version of
the engine with a cam that peaked at 4600 RPM at 360 HP (1971 gross
values not net) despite the high compression.  The weight is listed at
640 or 720 lbs versus 550 lbs for a cast iron 351C.  The 429 heads were
canted valve like a Cleveland but flowed less despite having larger ports
and had a bad exhaust port

> Speed parts are not easy to get.

I disagree.  The BBF is well supported by the aftermarket with a wide
variety of cylinder heads, intake manifolds, etc.  To keep the weight
reasonable, I suggest aluminum heads, intake, flywheel, mini-starter
etc.  Assuimg you are in the States, start with at least a 460 as they
are quite common.  With the big displacement will come big torque so
you may want to consider re-gearing the ZF (not cheap).

Dan Jones