The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk firewall clearance

I'm putting a 350 v8 in a 1965 sb step side that was previously a 6 Cyl. The engine went in, but the firewall clearance is is real tight especially with the tall valve covers. Have any of you ran into this problem and what can be done to fix it. Thanks for any input

rustynail:

The clearance of the valve covers, distributor and air cleaner is rather minimal with a V8 application. Converting to an HEI also makes the distributor rather close, but it will clear. Perhaps a set of short small block V8 valve covers in place of your tall ones will eliminate your clearance issues at the firewall. This will avoid shifting the motor mount location forward, which can be done, but is rather involved. Good luck with your '65 C10 project.

Thanks for the reply. I can't chang the valve covers due to using roller rocker arms. Are the original V8 trucks this close to the firewall?
Could I move the engine mounts and the crossmember forward about an inch without lenghting the driveline?

Some vendors sell new firewall sheet metal to address this issue.

Jim

On my 64 Suburban, I just used 67-72 factory small block engine stands. They bolted straight in, no mods, and it moved the engine about 3 inches forward.

As a matter of fact, I used all the 67-72 stuff, brackets, pulleys, driveshaft, everything. No mods needed whatsoever.