About to build or buy an engine, someone point me in the right direction

[Leafsrule16]

First off, my car is a 79 Marquis brougham. It has a very, very lazy but good running 302 that I want to upgrade. I was given an edelbrock torker intake and a holley 4 barrel carb from a buddy but they will not fit under the hood. The more I got thinking, the more I want to just swap the entire motor.

First of all, how hard is it to get a fuel injection motor running if I acquire a parts explorer? Would it be worth the time and effort to have fuel injection? Also, are there any problems I may encounter if I were to find a mid 90's explorer 302 and carb it for my application?

Or second, if I build my own motor what do I need for an HO swap? I know I will need heads (what will work? I have pcv valves and no idea how those work), a cam and a few other things but what else am I missing?

Money isn't a huge problem... I was hoping to keep it around $1000 and have a good running motor since it's just a street car. Please help steer a noob in the right direction. Thanks guys.

[nfldfordltd]

I'll probably get virtually beaten over my head for this, but here goes:
Where you have a carburetor to begin with, it's easier to keep the carburetor setup. I say this despite the fact I hate carburetors with an intense passion.
For a budget power build up, I would get a 351W, preferably one that came originally equipped with a 4 barrel carburetor. I think some early to mid-80s Ford trucks had them.
I would then do the a complete tune up from carb to base pan, change the fuel filter, add a high flowing air filter (ex. K&N), and do any other maintenance that may need to be done.
I'd check to see what rear axle gears you have, and if they are tall (ex.2.73s) then I would change those to 3.27s or 3.55s for more off the line power. Traction Lok (posi) is a good idea too if/when you have the rear end opened up.
After this work being done, I wouldn't let it outside of the garage without dual exhausts and cleaned out converters. This would also be a good time to replace those heavy, restrictive, and possibly cracked iron exhaust manifolds.
Make sure your ignition, carburetor and vacuum system is all on top shelf and you should have a strong runner for the street for many years to come.
My *2 cents*

[nfldfordltd]

I know this may seem contradictory, but early (1969-1974) 351W blocks were stronger than the later model ones. But the ones found in trucks were pretty decent regardless.

[packman]

F4TE 351W from a 96-98 F or E Series truck. Yank the E7's and put GT40's on there. Not ideal, but you'll have more cubes, roller cam, and could be done under $1k. Though, somebody who has either done this, or went down the same path can chime in.


Packman

[90ltd]

Yank the E7's and put GT40's on there. Not ideal, but you'll have more cubes, roller cam, and could be done under $1k. Though, somebody who has either done this, or went down the same path can chime in.


Packman

Those gt 40 heads can be had for $70 from j/y if you pull them yourself.

[gadget73]

EFI isn't that hard. If you don't know how to tune a carb, it may be easier to run some wiring. I'm also not a carb guy anymore. I had enough vehicles with moody ass carbs that wouldn't run correctly on any reliable basis. I've come to appreciate the fact that I can hit the key any day with any weather conditions and it just works.