1966 Mustang 331 Stroker - Let the ponies loose (UNEDITED)

[@TheGeonam]

I have a brand new 65 mustang convertible body i have been messing with for the past year. Installed TPI four link rear suspension with a nine inch rear end. Installed a mustang II front suspension I DID IT 8 way tilt steering column , and a 347 stroker motor not yet in car. I need a C4 trans next, but it is one step at a time, and I don't have a money tree. I just hope it runs as nice as your car. Thanks for the ride.

[@alertgasper]

man, haven't seen a manual choke (except my Gravely L and 1970's motorcycles) in a while. I have an electric fuel pump on my 4-4-2 to fill the carb without spinning it that long--it also acts like a kill switch and wires into the oil pressure gauge to kill the flow if oil pressure gets too low. Thanks for the ride-along, I still have my Honey Gold 1967 with interior/exterior Decor Group. Took it off the road to install a 1969 fuel tank a while back and then magically it came apart to tackle a few other things :) Originally a 289/3 speed car, a prior owner went with 1970's fuel economy tech--a 351W swap with headers and a Hurst shifted Top Loader. boy those long handled shifters help you feel the leverage between gear changes, just fingertips on the wooden hourglass handle to do the job or grab 'er and go.

[@georgejetson6230]

I plan a 331 for my project, as well, John. I have been reviewing your series over the past couple of years... great work! Thanks for the info and ideas! Much appreciated. Couldn't believe it when I recognized the road for the test drive and realized we are almost neighbors!!

[@JohnLatrobe]

Hey that’s funny! Now that I’ve finally got the brakes sorted out you might see me around.

[@iampapa318]

My god that brings back memories, Thank You !!!

[@GaryH-pw9cm]

Yes I remember driving a 65 GT convertible for 10 years as a daily driver. Served me well all those years.

[@stevefowler2112]

I have a recuring dream where I time travel back to '65 with the parts to build a 331/327 with AFR heads and modern parts to put out 500 HP in a '65 K code Fastback Mustang...i paint the aluminum parts black and have the OEM High Performance 271 H.P. sticker on the air cleaner so when i open the hood it looks like a stock 289 HiPo

[@davidsaldivar6735]

We just need a flux capacitor

[@alertgasper]

Back in the Vietnam days, folks did do stroker low deck Windsors...they pulled a truck crankshaft from a Y block Ford, and had it machined down to fit and make a 327. but you'd have to wait until 1967 for Tunnel Port heads, an over-the-counter precursor to the Boss 302. And there was a Paxton supercharger option if you weren't really worried about a stock looker. Or a Weber carb setup (think Cobra) and shift at 7,000 rpm. at least you'd have the gasoline for all that compression ratio right at any Sunoco 260 pump.

[@lowbornfabrication]

Best summary ever! 🇺🇸🏁🏴‍☠️

[@alonzowitt5931]

😂 LOL when we can time travel hit me up I will go with you! Wouldn't that be a kick in the butt! That's back when men looked like men and the ladies looked like ladies....

[@georgejetson6230]

I am actually doing just that, Steve, only using the original Hipo heads! Might not get quite to 500hp, but its sister 331 engine, with the identical ported iron heads, made 468hp at 6500rpm and 428lbft-torque from 4700-5000rpm on a 4v intake and carb! Stout little 289/331. You can read about it on the Yellow Bullet forum; search for "Street Boss 302 machine work, build and dyno." It is near the end of the thread; first post is April 3, 2024. Only three sets of these heads exist: the first set won 2nd place at the 2019 Engine Masters, I have the second set, and the ones I mention on the 331 above are the third set. Interestingly, the first set was done with standard 1965 SBF heads, not the Hipo. They flow 232 at .600 lift intake and 181 at .600 exhaust, which is outstanding for an iron head cast in the summer of 1964!

[@jeffunderdahl8605]

John, I just watched a dozen or so of your Toploader and 331 build vids. They are great. I’m building a 68 Fastback myself and appreciate the detail and video work. Keep it up. And please disregard the trolls that post here and on some of your other vids. Some people have their own ‘issues’ and posting stupid comments make them feel better. You’re doing just fine, and please keep up the good work. 👍

[@JohnLatrobe]

Jeff, thanks for the positivity. I could never understand why people enjoy being trolls. They must really be miserable inside. I’ve taken lots of videos on the new suspension install. Just need to edit them.

[@jeffunderdahl8605]

@@JohnLatrobe agree on your assessment 100%. I can’t wait to see those vids. I went the OpenTracker myself. My car should be done in the next couple months. 4.5 year project. It’s been quite a journey.

[@Donny.C.wlWilliams]

Thanks for the ride

[@vinniee1251]

Bout to build a 347. Love the drive ability of a 331. Hope mine turns out as good. Great build guy! Love it!

[@Stingrayflame]

Awesome car man, I got a 347 build for my 65 going at the moment AFR 185’s with a Lunati 218/228 536/536 HR with a built C4 with a 2800 PTC and 3.55 gears can’t wait to get her going. Should be a torque monster I hope.

[@GaryH-pw9cm]

Put a Dynamic Racing low gear set in your C4 and a B and M Hole shot 2000 stall converter. Makes all the difference off the line. You can get by with 3:25 gears so you can drive out on the highway. This is what I am using in my 427 W T bucket. Check my only You tube video to see this in action.

[@jgreen4715]

Sounds good and pulls hard!😮

[@chevroletbelair1]

nice video especcially with the extra information how the 331 stroker with this cam drive at different rpm's everyone should do this in a cam video

[@VernLeRoy1962]

I always give my 65 mustang 5 minites of Warn up or 140. my 289 with a 4 sp top loader runs 3000rpm at 80mph with a 3.25 Gear & a 245/45/17- 25.7 dia. I get around 14 mpg @ 2800 down the fwy!! to bad someone cut up your Dash where the newer Radio is. Very Nice Car!

[@Titan131-STKR2]

Thank you for sharing sir 😊

[@jonathansmith-hz7eu]

Ah the sound of a rumbling v8 backed up with the 0-60 of a Prius. I love my fastback.

[@astolt12]

Them burnout marks at 4:15…. I wonder who 🦅🦅🦅

[@lowbornfabrication]

Gorgeous pony!! 🇺🇸🏴‍☠️🏁

[@2001redz28]

Are you at all concerned that the block may crack where you drilled to install lifter retainer???? I am only asking because I have a 302 non-roller block that I am going to use to do a similiar build as yours with but I keep hearing that the block will crack in the lifter bay if I drill holes for screws.

[@JohnLatrobe]

I’m not at all concerned. COMP Cams wouldn’t sell so many kits if there was a big risk.

[@alertgasper]

there's enough roller block low deck Windsors around to be had, I'd think it's cheaper in the long run to grab one rather than do the swap. you will have to keep track of the flywheel weight since Ford changed the crankshafts in the 1980's. And youtube is full of videos saying flat tappet cams have a problem with wiping out camshaft lobes, with competition cams running into the issues with cheap (speed pro?) lifters having bad machining from the box.

[@trailerparkcryptoking5213]

What tires are you running on the rear?

[@JohnLatrobe]

I’m only running a 225/60R15 on the rear. The 235 I had before stuck out past the fender and would rub.

[@trailerparkcryptoking5213]

You can buy a really tiny funnel to keep in the shop....stick it in the front bowl vent tube of your carb and pour about half a cup of fuel in it.....pump the accelerator twice and she fires immediately.....been doing this for decades.

[@JohnLatrobe]

Great idea. I actually tried that and it works great. A while ago I bought an auxiliary flow-through electric pump that I would use just on startup but I haven’t gotten around to installing it. Probably need to upgrade my original style fuse block with only 7 glass fuses first.

[@GaryH-pw9cm]

@@JohnLatrobe I use an electric Edelbrock fuel pump in line ahead of the mechanical fuel pump on a 427 W T bucket. I just use the electric fuel pump to prime with then turn it off and start the engine and let it run on the mechanical pump. It is hard on the rings and pistons starting dry.

[@pauls7751]

Is your GoPro attached to the back glass? My 65 fastback has a 347, T5 and 355 gear. At 65 mph I'm at 1800 rpm in 5th and right at 2000 rpm at 75 mph. When I do a second gear punch at 2000 rpm I get bad wheel hop

[@JohnLatrobe]

My iPhone was strapped to the passenger seat using the wide angle lens 😆 To get those low rpm’s you must be running close to a 30” tall tire. Mine’s only 25.6”. I have Trac-loc in the rear with CalTracs traction bars; no wheel hop.

[@pauls7751]

@@JohnLatrobe my tires are 235/45 R17. They are 25.3 tall. Mine is a Tremec 5 speed.

[@JohnLatrobe]

@@pauls7751 first of all, your car is absolutely freakin’ beautiful 👍 Second, I’m not trying to call you out, but your numbers don’t add up. Using any online calculator such as spicerparts.com/calculators/transmission-ratio-rpm-calculator your speed should only be 62mph at 2000rpm with a .68 5th gear. To get close to 75mph you would need a rear gear closer to 3:1. Have you verified your speedometer with a GPS? It could be off, or possibly your gear is really a 3.08. Again, I’m not calling you out, just curious. Your wheel hop is caused by axle windup with the leaf springs. Shelby eliminated that with a traction bar mounted on top of the axle that protruded into the rear passenger compartment. The CalTracs bars are a similar concept but mount underneath the axle so they are visible from the side.

[@pauls7751]

@@JohnLatrobe it's probably my speedometer. It's the old long sweep Falcon style and jumps around + or - 5 mph so I'm kinda using the average lol. I did the posi and 5 speed upgrade about 15 years ago so I consulted my paperwork from Currie and it's indeed a .355 Detroit True Trac. I got the T5 conversion kit from Modern Drivelines and the gear ratios for my TREMEC T-5 are- 2.95, 1.94, 1.34, 1.00, .63. I just recently installed a tach for the first time and was pleasantly surprised how low the RPMs were at highway speed. I've been looking at the CalTracs for a while but am having a hard time justifying a $400 purchase for the occasional burnout. I think my pinion angle is also contributing to the wheel hop. It seems like it got worse after the T5 conversion. It's bigger and I had to shim it to the top of the tunnel to get the high speed vibration to go away. Anyway nice chatting and thanks for the Spicer calculator.

[@pauls7751]

@@JohnLatrobe I'm lucky enough to live in the North Georgia Mountains. Minutes away from some of the best driving roads around and 40 minutes from the famous Tail of the Dragon in Robbinsville NC. Far away from the gridlock traffic I left behind when I lived in Florida. I think my car likes living up here more than me. Enjoy this video on Wolf Pen Gap Rd just 15 minutes from my house. The video doesn't do justice to the G-forces and elevation changes. I need to make a new video without the sign on my dash but want to get new tires first lol.

[@Stingrayflame]

What’s the specs on the 331? Heads? Can? Just curious it sounds great

[@JohnLatrobe]

The long parts list is in the description.

[@jmc3676]

Are you still driving the mustang and if so how is it holding up

[@JohnLatrobe]

After the motor I ended up replacing the entire front suspension and brakes. Now that I’m off work for the summer I can finally get to editing the video for that install.

[@Mr572u]

Rear end is whining. Doesn’t that bug you?

[@JohnLatrobe]

Absolutely

[@stevo196two9]

I thought it was the top loader?

[@billystephens9255]

Um sure would've like too seen the car

[@pokerspades2167]

👌

[@pederbenjaminsson4853]

👌👍✌

[@PCMenten]

Lots of low rpm torque. You should be proud of that car. The engine and transmission were a mess when you started.

[@kelleyh2708]

My pops would of slapped the shit out of me for riding the clutch as much as you do

[@alertgasper]

it's amazing how many drive videos have folks riding the clutch pedal.

[@robertclymer6948]

Why bother with a 331? All those high dollar parts in there, why the not go up a 347 stroker?

[@JohnLatrobe]

When I started I really wanted to keep the same block. If I had gone with a 351W then I would have had to source a new bare block. I would have had to find new headers and lose more shock tower clearance (and probably fabricate a new exhaust). I can just barely get my hands in there now without losing another inch. I don’t know if 351’s came with a boss for my clutch z-bar or if it’s even in the same place but that’s a few less problems I had to figure out.

[@orangesharpy]

I love it! Teardrop hood is a nice touch. 331 is plenty of displacement to make good power I think. I'm a fan of 289-302 block. Can make enough power with those to have a nasty quick street car and guys are running in the 9's and even 8's with forced induction.

[@robertclymer6948]

@@JohnLatrobe I mis-spoke John. My whole take is yes, the 331 is a little monster and should give you dependability too, without the added expense of 351W parts etc. Thanks for your explaination. I was wrong, totally. Cheers John, from Motown.

[@JohnLatrobe]

Hey, no problem. The SBF was produced for nearly 40 years so there’s a lot to mix up.

[@marcchaffee7751]

sounds good but runs like a stock 289 ? Is there a pop bottle under your gas peddle ?

[@davidgentz1731]

Good way to ruin your bearings and ruin your starter the last thing you want to do is drive turn a car over my goodness you want that thing to fire up now you can run them bearings out of you need the oil

[@jeffmalone1502]

Do you not understand the oil pump starts pumping oil as soon as the engine spins over by the starter or it running? Do you think the oil pump only works when the car is running? Seriously? That is the best way to pre oil the engine before you start it.

[@stuartedwards3067]

not at all impressed.

[@JohnLatrobe]

me neither.

[@Thatguy-fl6yr]

Honda s2000 turbo is way faster but dam I want one of these instead.

[@marcchaffee7751]

Faster than what , a peddle car ?