I just bought my first Mav well it was free because its a little under the wind right now. I am going to swap the 200ci for a v8. Which one is the easiest that will still pack a punch. Also, are u supposed to be able to twist the drive line while its in gear with the motor off? Please help me out here.
A 302 would be the easiest to swap in. You should be able to turn the motor by hand no matter what gear it's in if it's an automatic. If it's a stick shift, turning the motor while the car is in gear will either be impossible or it will move the entire car.
The 200 drive shaft should be find. The transmission itself will still sit in the same place after the swap. You will need to get V8 frame and motor mounts, a V8 brace that runs between the frame rails underneath the car, and possibly a V8 "double hump" transmission cross member if you want to run dual exaust. It's not absolutely mandatory, but a V8 throttle cable would be a good idea to.
Ok i am a beginner to the car stuff, so what is a double hump trans. crossmember. Oh yah is the bell housing going to work also?
Here are some pics of V8 parts. The first pic has a V8 throttle cable, V8 frame mounts and V8 cross member. The second picture is of the frame brace I spoke of. I don't have any pictures handy of a 6 cylinder cross member, but if you crawl under your car you'll see the diffrence, the cross member only curves up on the passenger side and is flat on the drivers side. If you remove your cross member, you'll see that your car has a second set of holes drilled higher up on the drivers side for the double hump cross member. It just gives you more room to run dual exaust. The rubber motor mounts (not pictured) are still available new in most places. Just go to an auto parts store and tell them you need motor mounts for a 73 or so Maverick with a 302. The 200 bell housing will not work. You'll need to find a 302 bell housing and torque converter. A bell housing from a 250 6 cylinder car will also work. There has been some question as to how well a C4 that was originally behind a 200 will hold up behind a 302.
Jamie has you covered on the basics... I also agree with the 302 engine, however there are lots of things you can do to give some 'punch'. Depends on how mechanically inclined you are, tools you have access to, and how much dough you want to spend. Nothing beats cubic inches...er I mean cubic dollars. A 302 fits very easy and can make good power. A 302 stroked to 331 or 347 is even better, but spendy. A 351w or 351c fits, but is more involved because they are a tight fit. Mechanically, they are no harder than a 302, just the issue of tight spaces. If you are experienced with engines, a 351w can be stroked to 393 for about the same price as a rebuild. The issues you might run into with making more power are the strength of the rear end and tranny... Also, connect the front and rear subframes if you do a V8. Either make your own connectors or check around the board for a set of premade. Good luck! Dave
Ohh yea, the 7.5 rear on the 70's slipped my mind. I personally would upgrade to a 5 lug 8 inch rear. They came in '71-'72 V8 cars and were standard in all Mavericks and Comet's '73 and up. I'd go with front disc brakes if your going to do anything more then a stock 302. No reason to have all that power if you can't bring it to a stop or the rear blows chunks all over the road. Also, you're going to need to find either stock 302 Maverick/Comet manifolds or install some headers. Personally I think it would be a good idea to just go ahead and install headers since you got it apart anyways.
OK I found a 1991 302 EFI out of a Grand Marquis. I was just going to take the trany with it, will the drive shaft from my 200ci work. And how hard or how expensive will it be to wire up the EFI.
I don't know about the EFI, but the AOD transmission from that grand marquis ain't going to fit in your '70 trans tunnel. The motor itself should be a good roller motor though.
thanks looks like I'm going to have to get a different bell housing seperate. Will the bell housing of the AOD bolt onto the stock trany of the 70 mav.
No, I believe the bell housing on an AOD is made to the case of the transmission like the C6. I'm not positive about that, but I can about promise that you can't use it on a C4.
C4. May want to give the one that's in the car already a shot. Just bolt a 250/302 bell housing on it. I have no idea how long it would hold up though. Maybe you could sell the one that's in the car and the AOD and buy a rebuilt/stronger C4. I'm just thinking out loud here...
Stock that engine makes around 150hp and 270 ft/lbs with the aod. Unless your good at wiring and can get the entire efi setup included with the engine for free I would convert it to a 4 barrel intake + carburetor and a good set of heads.
