what engine

hello all
i am having a great time on my first "early" adventure. please forgive me if these question are too novice. so i figured since i have so much of my 64 8 door 170 dismantled i thought i would start to think about getting a bigger, faster more powerful engine. no idea where to start. any advice at all would be greatly appreciated. where is a good starting point to track down a solid engine? how big can i go before i need to start reinforcing the frame? once i find an engine will it bolt right in(for lack of a more knowledgeable phrase) or will i need some kind of kit to make it fit? will i need a new transmission as well? can i get a faster inline 6 or do i have to go to a V8? dont know if i want to go that big, something that fits in the existing dog house maybe? i know its alot of questions.
thanks in advance
matt

I know a feller on Vannin.com (Woodchuck) who has the 300 I-6 in his Econoline. At some point though Ford went to a bigger doghouse to house the 240 (same block as the 300), but not sure what year they did that.

cool thanks nate. i'll look into it

What it that late? Oh Ford folks..........

I recommend a 200ci. It will bolt right in and give you up to 180 HP as compared to the 110hp on the 170. You can also go with the Clifford performance 6=8 and get great milage as well as more hp than you will on a stock 170 or 200 ci. Another way to go is the Classicinlines.com aluminum head with separate aluminum intake, weber carb, 264 cam DUI distributor. A little pricy but you will be ecstatic over the outstanding performance. Clifford is in Murrietta and classicinlines is in Arizona.

I can attest to what vanishingbreed said, as I have a 250 six in my 1969 car with all the equipment he mentioned from Classicinlines and it really made a huge difference. The only things I did that he did not mention is roller rockers and a dual outlet header into 2.125 pipes. Sounds great and runs great. I am running a 4 barrel carb also.

Jim

hey guys. thanks for the suggestions. i am actually going in a different direction. i just won a 65 econoline, with a caved in front corner, on ebay. it has a mustang 289 in it and a 9" rearend. i'm going to attempt to rebuild the engine, anybody ever do this? it has alot of stuff on the 65 that i am going to be able to use. even the body is in god shape besides that front corner. picking it up friday, cant wait. i will post pictures.

I put a 347 stroker with 419 hp in my 66 Econo, Vanishing Breed. The 289 is a good motor. I hope whoever did the swap did it right. I am building a 65 Econo right now but went with the 200 ci inline six with Clifford performance headers. Close to 200 hp when it is finished and still 24-26 mpg. Your 64 will need some changes to accept that 289 like a bigger doghouse but the one in the 65 should work. You will need to swap the cross members too. Remember to put in the larger radiator too. I had a 64 8 door once. Wish I still had it.

It was in 65 that they changed to a taller doghouse to accomodate the 240 inline. Look at the 67-70 chevy doghouse lid (only) it will fit the econo doghouse and give a more user friendly surface (it's flat) I think it gives a bit of extra clearance as well.

Later,
Rip

i can use the dog house from the 65. they did do quite abit of changes to the 65 as far as supports. i dont see way i cant just switch everything over to the 8 door. any ideas where to get the replacement parts when i rebuild the engine?

Matt,
I have a freind in Coventry that has a complete Chevy van motor box. The bottom is rusted a bit but you will have to cut 1 " off the bottom anyway so your seats will fit properly. With the V-8 you'll have a lot more room to work on the engine with the Chevy box. He has a 64 Econoline and is looking for a stock motor box. He'll probably trade for it.
I'll be in Maine this week but if you are going to working on the parts truck on Saturday I can probably come up.
Fred

hey fred
come on up. give me a call
matt