Hello! I have just recently signed up for these boards. I have a 1972 ford comet that i bought off an old friend. The car means a lot to me as it was one of my first cars ever. The only thing is, it spent a good 2 years in his backyard on blocks. I am not the best at cars from what I’ve learned from experience. I got the car for 400 bucks, and it was being held together by duct tap and gum almost. I drove it to work one day, which wasn't more then 10 miles. It dropped from about half a tank to near empty. I got home and looked closer at what I got. I found a long laundry list: It is a V8 302. BUT 1 spark plug was broken in half. and one wasn't even connected to the wire. The gas tank had a clog in it, which was preventing flow. The exhaust was shooting out black powder constantly. The battery was barely big enough to jump an I pod, let a lone a boat of a car. The list can go on. Anyway. I signed up here because I read over these forums over the last few months and found that everyone here seems to know a lot about these types of cars. I’ve redone most of the interior. (front bucket seats, CD player, fiber glassed, backseat, speakers, speaker box, carpet, and paint) and the exhaust system. What I’m really looking to do now is switch the 2 barrel carb. to a 4 barrel. From what I understand I will need a new engine manifold in order to do this? Any suggestions on how to do this? or where I can order parts from? I've been looking for some parts for the last 5 months, but don't know what exactly I’m looking for because I’m not the best at cars. Thanks for your time!
if you have a ford v-8 in there it is either a 302 or a 351. the 350 would be a chevy motor. if you want to change to a 4v, you need the intake manifold, gaskets, and a 4v carb. might need a different throttle cable too. not sure on that. some of these can be found on ebay. or you can go to summit or jegs online. you might even want to order a catalog from both. they're free. gives you an idea what prices are if you do buy one from ebay. welcome to the board.
Thanks Don! Any idea how much that would general run? I want to make sure I don't get ripped. Thanks for catching the engine mistake. I switched it, the 350 is another car i've been working on.
depends on how cheap you can get the parts for. if you go to ebay do a search for 302 and check out what they're selling for. or like i said go to summit.com or jegs.com and check out they're prices.
hi, if you are leaving the ...bottom end...stock a...performer 289 intake...should be good. stick a 600 holley on it and have fun... ... ...
You'll have to excuse me, i'm very well, for a lack of a better word. Dumb. when it comes to engines. I know the basics. I've found items on jegs. Anyone able to look over them and tell me if this is what i need? I'm affraid that i'm going to buy them, then notice that they don't work in my car. I have a 72 comet 5.0/302W. From what I understand in order to just get a 4B on it i need to get a 4b carb, manifold, throttle cable, and gasket. From jegs i have Carb Only Part Number # 510-O-80453 Intake Manifold 174 Powercharger Ford 289-302W Satin Finish Part Number # 510-91053 Holley 4-bbl, 4-Hole Part Number # 720-55 Throttle Cable Black Part Number # 865-2430 I was looking parts over a while ago, and most sites where saying that "this part" will not work with BOSS engines. How do I know if I have a boss engine? Sorry for being a bit inexperienced. Thanks agian for the time!
Howdy and A Boss engine is rare and expensive. If your engine is original, it is not a Boss. Even if it is not original, there's about a 99% chance that it is still not a boss engine.
You won't need a throttle cable. The worst I ever had to do was get a throttle peg for the carb. Screws right into place and the stock cable snaps right onto it. Now, about your car... You gotta get things fixed. Everything you mentioned is a pretty significant tuning issue that will leave you running terrible at best. Every plug and wire needs to be in top shape, unbroken (or even cracked), and hooked up in the proper order. The black soot means you are putting way too much gas in the engine. Not good for longevity of the engine, fuel mileage, air, or performance. I hate to say it, but unless you get some confidence with working on this stuff, and study what everything does/means, you will not improve your situation by adding new parts. They require tuning too, and will quickly slip into the same state you have now unless you know what you are doing. Either hook up with someone who knows what they are doing and can teach you (usually family or friend) or read voraciously on the subject before you touch anything. Good luck Dave
Welcome aboard. Good luck with the car. Don't forget to check ebay for the parts you are looking for. Might save you a few bucks. The parts you are after are very common for a standard 302 which is what you are going to have. The intake you located at Jegs is not what you need...try this one: http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/stor...Id=10002&productId=746531&searchItemId=456144
Here is a good combo for you. http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.asp?part=SUM%2DCEDL002KD&autoview=sku It even has the correct throttle stud. Ray is correct that you can usually track this stuff down piece by piece, in used condition, for cheaper than buying it new. However, that would add some whole new dimensions to the task that make things that much more difficult for someone who is learning. For new parts, this kit is well priced, and most likely would have the most comprehensive directions to get you through the task and learning. When you buy used, you often don't get any instruction on how to install, much less on how to rebuild or diagnose problems that would be likely. Dave
I've taken care of the major things. Looking back I failed to mention what I did manage to fix. I did the tune up no problem, including the spark plugs problem and replacing the wires. The gas tank is fixed as well. Just had everything redone on that, the tank was in bad shape. I ordered a new gas cap. The old one wasn't making an air tight seal. The battery I quickly replaced, and the black soot shooting out of my exhaust was related to "liquid led" my friend thought he had to put in to the car to keep the car running. I redid the exhaust system as well, to remove any air intake problems that would probably show up from the soot. (wish I would have put headers on it now though) So the serious problems have been long since out of the way. Thank you all for your help and input!
