I have a hard time believing a V8 swap could be cheaper than a blow-through turbo 12A build.

 

I love all my 7's even the v8. They each have their own personality
i have two '79s. One with a streetported 13b with all se suspension that is my baby. I have another '79 stock with a 12a and 57k original miles it is real nice. I also have an 80 (i really like the simplicity of the sa body style) w/a 350hp sbc, t5 trans and ford posi rear end....she is an indestructable beast that is an undescribable adrenalin rush!!! Not for the faint of heart.
So mod your car for the personality you desire it to have and enjoy.
,

 

by the time you rebuild your motor for boost,and purchase everything required for the turbo set up. you've probably spent well over the price of the swap. for a basic kit for for a ford set up it's under $500 to buy,plus ppl sell plenty of grand marquis and such for dirt cheap with good working motors that are perfect for the swap.

so for under $1200 you could have everything pretty much in and running. more if you really want to dig in.

 

Why would you need to rebuild the motor "for boost"? Moreover, what could you even do when building a 12A to prepare it for boost, other than I guess porting the exhaust? I did my blow-through setup for less than $1000, and that includes literally everything: turbo and manifold, exhaust, carb hat and other boost-prepping stuff, jets, fuel system overhaul, gauges, BOV, various fittings, wideband, etc.

 

I bought the V8 swapped car for $500 in non running condition. A fuel pump later and it ran great. If it was just a street car I would have bled the brakes and put on new tires. The car is ugly but it flat out moves. Much faster than my 160rwhp RX-7. I would estimate the V8 motor is close to 300hp.

Since it was a race car we bought a cage for $500 and a seat and harness for $260. The rest was spent putting on new calipers, rotors, lines and tires.

Again I love the rotary but it is stupid simple to throw in a V8 and cheap power to boot.

A couple of my cars. The GSL-SE, The V8 Miata, V8 Volvo, V8 RX-7 and the Wifes DD.

 

Swap it. You know you want to...

(5.0 swap here)

 

If it's power to weight you want, find a wrecked 350Z and put an all-aluminum 300hp VQ35 V6 in there. 329lbs fully dressed, and shorter than the 302.

Reliable? 110,000 miles on mine and it's had belts and plugs once, no other repairs needed.

If you need more go than that, bolt-on superchargers are available.

 

The other nice thing about the 5.0 is they are cheap and the mount kits are cheap. I bought the last one on half price day at the junkyard. A complete with acesories 89,000 mile 5.0 HO for $199 with computer. Last mount kit I bought was used for $40 shipped.

If only working T-5's were that cheap.

 

I have roughly priced the v8 swap and I wont be able to get away without spending atleast 1,500. I'd have to do aluminum heads to keep things the same up front, rebuild the motor (the free one) for 350$ from summit, t5 (can't find cheaper than 300$) then I'd need a driveshaft. I can make my own motor mounts and such. This doesn't include the little things like a clutch/flywheel setup, rebuild kit for carb, new fuel pump ect.

For the turbo kit I already have
Wideband and blow off valve.
What will I need to complete the kit? Manifold, boost gauge, turbo/wastegate, downpipe, intercooler and piping/carb hat. manifold and turbo can be had for 100$ from tII? downpipe can be custom made for less than 50$ intercooler kit (piping included) 150$ and the carb hat can be bought at local auto parts stores for 50$ So this all comes out to 350$ ? That sounds really cheap...

 

Do the swap! I'm in the process of putting a 302 into my '85 and I'm loving the process. Rebuilding the engine bored .030 over, higher compression, upgraded cam and valve springs, I'm porting the E7 heads tomorrow, all mechanical and carbed for virtually no electronics to worry about. Mechanical fuel pump even. Should easily see 325hp and 350-375tq from this mildly built engine. Sure beats spending the same money on a less reliable turbo rotary. Don't get me wrong, I love rotary, but I want fast and reliable, which is also cheaper. So I get all 3 of the equation.

 

A turbo'd 12A could easily make 300RWHP.
Same goes for 13B.

 

Ditto. Specially the time spent.

 

The one I bought for $500 was easily cheaper. For $550 including the cost of the car I had it running. Deals are out there.

The previous owner sent me the ebay ad where he bought the motor for $680. Rebuilt .30 over with TRW pistons, Ford Racing E303 cam, Ford Racing oil pump, redone heads etc.

For a car with a good running 12A. The blow through will probably be cheaper than the entire V8 swap. If you need to rebuild or get a good used motor it might make more sense.

The other option is to buy a cheap running 5.0 with a rough body or wrecked for $800 - $1200 pull the motor and trans then part the rest.

I have both and really enjoy each. From the stock 12a in the 79 to the built 13b to the 302. They each have their charm.

 

 

do the swap but go in a different direction sell the 302 and buy a 400 block and put a 350 crank in it the engine turns out to be a 372 i think. its a odd motor but it revs super fast and high similar to a rotary but you can get more power thats what i would do if i was going v8 swap

 

GAY

 

Actually, 377. Yes, they do.
But, be better off with a 302 ford block and a 351 crank.. 347. Or hey, build a turbo 12A.
I think I like that last idea.

 

yea 377 sorry about that i like those engines but i have never had a 12a turbo just the stock 13b from fd which i will keep but if i was gonna do v8 swap thats what i would do

 

Not that I think a V8 swap is anywhere near a good idea, why would you consider anything other then an chevy LS swap? If you want light get an aluminum 5.7, 6.0 or 6.2. If you want cheap, pick up a complete 5.3 with everything for $350-$500. There are many articles out there showing 420+hp with a cam swap and an ECM flash. My RX7 will always be rotary powered but after adding up all the parts I wanted to get for my camaro to get it to the power level I wanted I realized I could just swap in a 5.3 and get more HP for less money. I love traditional SBC and BBC engines but economially they are a waste of time now that LS engines are plentiful and cheap. Even at around $1500 for a used all aluminum LS1 or 6.0 its still an awesome deal when you compare money to HP. I plan on selling off my SBC TPI engine will I can still get some cash for it (older hot rodders still love them as they look nice polished up) and getting into an LS engine.

5.0 fords are a waste of time completely. Why spend more to build a lower displacement engine when you could go with a 5.7 SBC?

 

Some people buy RX-7's to put V8's in them, I bought a V8 RX-7 to put a rotary in it

I like to think im a savior

 

that would work but what about a s2000 f20 or F22 light weight 6speed and 9k rpm+ option of boost (ps love my rotor wouldn't trade that brap brap brap up for anything)

 

I have a 5.0 swap in my 84 GSL SE and love it. I have about half of the money into it then I did into my TII swap for my 80. I kept the 5.0 fuel injected which was a bit of a pain, but as far as reliabilty goes ts great. Also as far as fuel mileage goes, hands down the V8 is better on fuel then a rotary. I say if you already have the V8 to put in it just do it, you won't regret it.