Hi everyone its been just about year since I've been able to work on the Grabber. I appreciated the help I recieved on my 4 to 5 bolt swap. Currently I am going to to try the 6 to V-8 swap. I have gone to previous threads and have gathered all the info that I could find. I have found a '73 Mav with a 302 at the local wrecking yard. I have requested the following come with the deal: engine with accessories motor mounts and frame mounts engine cross member transmission cross member kickdown rod throttle cable exaust pipe cut off after the transmission wiring harness cut at firewall stater and flexplate Can anyone think of anything else I will need for this swap? Am I doing the right thing switching it over? I wonder about this, where the '70 Grabber only came with the 250-6.Will it ruin any of its collectability. I just couldn't pass up the deal they will sell it all for 200.00 and they will pull it all. Also is there any tricks that anyone has that have done this swap before. Any info will be greatly appreciated. Thanks
In the process of doing one myself, but mine is a 74, not a Grabber but will look simular to one when I'm finished. One thing though, the wiring harness unplugs at the firewall, much better to unplug than cut the wires. I don't think you are hurting the value of the car in any way, as even a well kept original or restored Maverick is never going to be worth as much as a Mustang or simular car. $200 is a deal for an engine and the frame mounts and crossmembers, just the engine is worth that alone if it's in good shape. Even if you back out, you can resell the mounts and crossmembers and get your money back.....
all i can add is...if you have a 250 then all will hook up ...if not you will need the ...bell housing. ...frank...
Thanks for the responses. I believe the bellhousing is correct because it is the 250. Ford 84 good luck on your conversion I wish that someone would drag a nice parts car home for me! Jay what is the difference between the 6 and 8 cylinder trans.? From the stuff I've read the 250 was the same trans. I'd like to know more
Idaho Mav Maybe I was wrong . Try the 250 trans if you loose it after you install the 302 it wo'nt be that hard to change it out . thx jay
I'm willing to give the trans a try for now due to some budget restaints. The fluid in the donor engine trans was not real pretty. So I'm willing to take a chance on the 250 trans. About the radiator I switched it to a V-8 radiator last year when the old one finally died. Will need to find the shroud me thinks.
The 6 tranny is the same case as the 8 accept there are internal differences the 8 tranny has more cluches to hold the power and the T/C is smaller but should work with the V8 but will have a higher stall It will probly have about a 2500-3000 stall with the 6 T/C If you keep the motor stock you might want a 8 T/C
The transmission from the 6 cylinder will definately NOT hold the torque of the V8. Pay the core fee ($50-$75) and rebuild it as funds allow. That way when the tranny from the 6 goes bad you can swap in a good one.
As keeper of the 1970 Ford Maverick Grabber Registry......I would say NO....it will not hurt the collectability of the car. Please email me directly so I can add your car to the registry.
I wouldnt pay for a core....You have a core! All you need to do is rebuild your 6 tranny to V8 specs! The 6 and V8 trannys use the same case. The bell may be different Im not sure but the V8 tranny has more cluches in the cluch pack. You should talk to a Tranny shop and see what they say! It has been a while since I took my tranny classes in college But I know when we sent the tranny for my bosses model A with a 2.3 Vega We had a Vega powerglide built to V8 specs to hold the extra torque. (Its not your grandma's Vega!! LOL)
TurboDuck, The core transmission from the V8 package will have the right clutch drums in it so you wouldn't have to buy them to make the 6 tranny hold as many clutches. All you would need for the V8 core is a rebuild kit, intermediate band, reverse servo and the TransGo -2 kit (for the valve body). If you use the tranny from the six you will need to buy these in addition to the other parts: the forward and direct clutch drums, a convertor, the V8 governor, and a V8 servo assembly (unless they are the same- which is unlikely) and possibly an input shaft. I can get you the part numbers for everything you need but the numbers that are not Ford numbers would likely be different from your suppliers than they are from mine. The additional parts for a performance tranny would be a new high stall converter, a large cooler (30000 lb towing capacity), and an in-line tranny filter.
Thanks everyone for the info. I'm picking the engine and the transmission and all associated stuff this afternoon. There is a lot of food for thought that you all have given me. I think I'll pull the pan on the trans pan and see what I've got. I'll keep everyone up to date as things move on. Kevin
