v8 in my 83?

ok, so i went to my dads house this weekend to fix my engine and do some work to the rest of the truck. i was going to put new valve seals on it until we found out that you pretty much have to rip the whole front of the engine apart to do the job. screw that, it can continue to smoke until it blows up. but i got to thinking, instead of dropping a v8 in my 89 how about in my 83? i haven't seen this done on a pre 86 model, has anyone else seen it done? my dad says that he is about to pull the 9" rearend out of his race car and that i can use it. he has a 351c and a few 302's laying around, so i have an engine for sure. what do you guys think?

the 351c''s block is kinda wide but it may fit i say 302 it!!!!!!

yeah, i am thinking 302 simply because it will be more than enough power and parts are a lot cheaper than the cleveland.

Say goooodbye to your gas mileage!

if you want to see a mazda(courier) with a v8 swap, look on some of the courier websites and forums, a lot of those guys have swapped 302's in thier trucks.
-Mike

dude sell me one of those 302's cheap so i don't have to sell the mazda

draggin84, i can talk to my dad but they all have to be rebuilt. you would be cheaper just rebuilding your stock 4 cylinder. to do a v8 swap you have to upgrade cooling, get a tranny, cut and balance the driveshaft, upgrade the rear, and upgrade the brakes.

i don't care about gas mileage cause this is now going to be my strictly show truck that is driven on nice sundays. haha.

i am still going to bag the 89 but it is my daily. i can rely on its 4 banger cause i built it.

i will look into the courier site. thanks valiant