I picked up an M104 off Craigslist for $75 that a guy pulled from a W210 he was parting out, so I can certainly back up your statement that nobody knows what they're good for!
Downside is that you'd want to do the head gasket prior to swapping just for insurance, and that's easily 6-10x the amount I paid for the engine just in parts. And you still have to come up with an exhaust manifold. But past those two hassles, you know where I vote! 
I don't know which years to get or not get, but a Turbocoupe parts car would be a great source of things like a transmission, engine, and rear axle. I know at least some years came with rear discs and they were five bolt cars. Probably some other bits that could be useful or sellable.
Maybe the easiest way to power this thing is get a Mustang Fox body parts car, strip it out for the drivetrain. That 1980 axle is probably the wimpy 7.5 version, non-traction lock.
Even better if the parts car had race seats and SFC's already in/on it!
good project
This is just me, and, I know I am very much so in the minority here, but why buy a "luxury" car only to strip the interior?
Not poo-pooing your build here, just generally curious. I would think that making it fast while relaxing in all the gloriousness that the 80s had to offer would be a blast. I know, I'll go back to hiding under my rock. 
In reply to Esoteric Nixon:
This came up cheap before a Mustang or Fairmont did?
Esoteric Nixon wrote: This is just me, and, I know I am very much so in the minority here, but why buy a "luxury" car only to strip the interior? Not poo-pooing your build here, just generally curious. I would think that making it fast while relaxing in all the gloriousness that the 80s had to offer would be a blast. I know, I'll go back to hiding under my rock.
The reason i bought THIS car for that task was because a coworker owned it, i knew it ran, thusly knew it was functional enough as a platform to start from, it was CHEAP, and i guess really because nobody's doing ANYTHING to them. It would be easier to start with a stang, but everyone's done that.
That, and my 'luxury' fix is kind of filled i think? My daily is an '03 trailblazer, fully sound prepped cabin, lots of love put into the selection of drivers (speakers), absurd audio processing etc. I can produce a frequency response graph like THIS and about the only real outside noise i hear in the cabin is when rain hits the windows, so that itch is kind of scratched for me. I also own an '89 300E that's being used as a parts development car, so the old luxury car box is ticked.
Agent98 wrote: Maybe the easiest way to power this thing is get a Mustang Fox body parts car, strip it out for the drivetrain. That 1980 axle is probably the wimpy 7.5 version, non-traction lock. Even better if the parts car had race seats and SFC's already in/on it! good project
Spooki wrote: 15x10's are on the way, and i'm currently searching for a suitable 5 lug parts car.
But yeah, pretty much the entire driveline is trash in this thing. No clue how many miles are on the chassis due to the 5 digit odo, but i do intend on replacing everything if even it's a junkyard pullout.
pres589 wrote: I don't know which years to get or not get, but a Turbocoupe parts car would be a great source of things like a transmission, engine, and rear axle. I know at least some years came with rear discs and they were five bolt cars. Probably some other bits that could be useful or sellable.
That was the first go-to, but i can't find anything in the area that really meets my needs, or doesn't come with a cult following tax. Rear discs are no big deal, it would be nice to have them straight away but i'm planning on putting first gen CTS-V calipers and appropriate rotors on the car before it sees any really work.
Mezzanine wrote: I picked up an M104 off Craigslist for $75 that a guy pulled from a W210 he was parting out, so I can certainly back up your statement that nobody knows what they're good for! Downside is that you'd want to do the head gasket prior to swapping just for insurance, and that's easily 6-10x the amount I paid for the engine just in parts. And you still have to come up with an exhaust manifold. But past those two hassles, you know where I vote!
Schuedule 40 stainless pipe is cheap enough, and my tig is probably up to the task. Not sure about the M104, but after extensive research i deduced that a nissan RB manifold will work on my M103 if i change the flange.
I suggest the cheap route of buy a wrecked but running V8 Ford Explorer and stuff the engine and rear end into the Fox body
Spooki wrote:pres589 wrote: I don't know which years to get or not get, but a Turbocoupe parts car would be a great source of things like a transmission, engine, and rear axle. I know at least some years came with rear discs and they were five bolt cars. Probably some other bits that could be useful or sellable.That was the first go-to, but i can't find anything in the area that really meets my needs, or doesn't come with a cult following tax. Rear discs are no big deal, it would be nice to have them straight away but i'm planning on putting first gen CTS-V calipers and appropriate rotors on the car before it sees any really work.
Yeah foxbody donors are getting more exspensive. Ive been looking for one off and on. Luckily i already have the 8.8 swapped so i can start with any pre 85 fox donor.
Alright, so now that i have the car and have driven it a bit, the choice is clear. This car needs an SBF, at least initially. Driving it around has reminded me how raw and unrefined an old american V8 is, and how much i've missed it. If my buick's 455 wasn't 650lbs i'd throw that in and call it a day. Currently waiting on correspondence with a few companies, but parts should be on the way soon. Here's what i feel is right for the engine at the time being:
Still not sure on the trans. I don't trust used manuals at ALL, and new ones are crazy. Still planning on using megasquirt for ignition control.
On another note, the car had a mid-80s vintage pioneer head unit in it. Bluetooth is a requirement for me since i'm always in skype calls, so a new head unit and probably rockford speakers are going in. Whilst measuring for new speakers, i found THIS:
One 16 ohms, one 8 ohms. Neither are stock. I guess when when new speakers are too expensive, you got for whatever you can find at the flea market.
Spooki wrote: ........If my buick's 455 wasn't 650lbs i'd throw that in and call it a day.
The 455 was one of the first "thin-wall casting" engine blocks (at GM), and because of this advance in production technology it weighs significantly less than other engines of comparable size (for example, 150 lb (68 kg) less than a Chevrolet 454 and only 25 lb (11 kg) more than a Chevrolet 350).
Earnhardt Wrangler
Parts are slowly being acquired, and I'm 100% sure I'm going g to build a mild 302 first, aiming for an easy 350hp with proven parts. (Explorer 5.0 w/ gt40p's, crane springs, tfs1, air gap, long tubes, 9.5:1 factory pistons). This post is a reminder to ALWAYS check your new parts. This brand new demon carb is incorrectly assembled, with this screw ran sideways into the large hole instead of straight into the intended hole, and would have lead to pretty big drivability issues.
Ah...I should have though of you when a cheap V8 Fairmont 4 door came across my email (from an automated CL search) Wednesday. I don't think there would have been much you needed from it though. It has already been removed from CL.
Anyway...I'm excited to see the updates! Any parts in particular you're looking for? I can keep an eye out. I'm collecting parts for my Fairmont Wagon project. Very slowly.
+1 for hide-a-way headlights.
This reminds me of a friend from back in the late 80's high school days, who had a brown 2 dr Ford Grenada with plush brown interior like a couch. We called it "The Grenade". He swapped in a 302, typical bolt on cam-carb-intake-headers and hit it with a 150 shot of nitrous. Car was a blast.
Why not swap in a motor that already has close to the power goals you want. LS something with a few mods then the engine won't have to work too hard to reach your power goals and more. M104 and 4g63 ate definitely easy to get 400hp but to do it the RIGHT way ain't any cheaper than an LS.
Now that I've gone through my logical suggestion. You should swap in a Mercedes m120...V12 and nearly 400hp stock plus they sound amazing with straight though exhaust. MS can support it and manual transmissions have been adapted to them. 
Or turbo 1uz. Or VG30DETT
In reply to ClemSparks:
Parts I need? Man, I still don't even know what I WANT haha. Right now I'm just sitting, waiting, watching for an sn95 gt parts car. You wouldn't happen to have a parts car laying around would you? I need the tripod/lever from a parking brake assembly. After months of it not working I decided to buy new cables, and when I went to install them I learned that basically I just have the pedal, that's it. I can probably make one, but it's just too chilly out to do fab work. Other than that, I'm not sure. If you have a 4bbl 302 intake laying around I'm down to scoop that up just so I can mount this demon carb and get the car running well enough to get an alignment. Otherwise, probably just gonna grab a summit stage 1.
In reply to TIGMOTORSPORTS:
Sounds great. I'm tempted to spray stock explorer blocks till they explode then rinse and repeat.
In reply to yupididit:
Well, Ms can technically support it but I'd need Ms pro to get full v12 support, which is fine, but I've been burned on Mercedes maintainence cost enough lol. The idea of the m103 comes from the fact that I already have one, and they're everywhere for cheap. I'm looking at 2k for an m120 and freight, sadly. Great idea though, but not for this car. Now, a fairly unassuming LTD could be fun. I also have a source that can get m120 cams >.>.
On the topic of the LS, an lm7 makes sense but for this year, I just wanna get it running and have some fun. It's been years since I've been able to drive a fast car, and I need my fix.
In reply to Spooki:
I have a couple of mustang parts cars. It sounds like you're talking about a parking brake pedal setup or parts though. I don't have any non-mustang parts cars that would have those, unfortunately. I don't have a 4 barrel intake I'm willing to get rid of...but I do have one that I'm not going to be using for a while. Seems funny to offer to lend an intake...but hey if you just need to run the engine for a while it might work out ok. It's just the stock intake on the '85 parts car. If I don't come across a good deal on an aftermarket dual plane one before the engine goes in the Fairmont, I'll probably use this one. But that'll be a while.
You might also check in with Floyd S. out in Brazito. He's got old Ford parts. Holler at me if you aren't familiar and I can give you details.
I'll keep my eyes peeled for an SN95 Parts car as well. I bought, stripped, and crushed one a while back...but it was a V6 car. All I have left is the K-member (let me know if that's of any use to you) and tail lights.
I sent an email (through the board "contact" link) with an ad for a local '95 5.0 engine. Might be interesting to you.
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