Ford Boss 351?

[loragen]

Re: Ford Boss small blocks... First, let me apologize if this has already been covered, but I couldn't find it in a site search. I have owned a 1971 Pantera since 1979. I was originally told that it is has a 1971 Ford Boss 351 engine, either original (the first Panteras came from the factory with these) or installed in the 70's as a replacement for the stock Clevelands used in Panteras from late 1971-74. I disassembled the engine and found that it has most of the attributes of a Boss motor: huge square ports, solid lifters, 4-bolt mains, very high compression ratio (requires racing gas to avoid knock). But the combustion chamber is a wedge configuration rather than the quench chamber that I believe the Boss motors were supposed to have. It's clearly not a regular Cleveland, but the chamber suggests it's not really a Boss. I heard that Ford also made a Cobra Jet (CJ) version of the engine that was mostly a Boss but with lower compression heads. Can someone help me determine if it is a real 1971 Boss 351? Thanks much.

 

[grumpyvette]

Re: Ford Boss small blocks... First, let me apologize if this has already been covered, but I couldn't find it in a site search. I have owned a 1971 Pantera since 1979. I was originally told that it is has a 1971 Ford Boss 351 engine, either original (the first Panteras came from the factory with these) or installed in the 70's as a replacement for the stock Clevelands used in Panteras from late 1971-74. I disassembled the engine and found that it has most of the attributes of a Boss motor: huge square ports, solid lifters, 4-bolt mains, very high compression ratio (requires racing gas to avoid knock). But the combustion chamber is a wedge configuration rather than the quench chamber that I believe the Boss motors were supposed to have. It's clearly not a regular Cleveland, but the chamber suggests it's not really a Boss. I heard that Ford also made a Cobra Jet (CJ) version of the engine that was mostly a Boss but with lower compression heads. Can someone help me determine if it is a real 1971 Boss 351? Thanks much.

can you post CLEAR pictures of the cylinder heads showing the ports and casting numbers? if so I think we can find your answers