[Buzz]

Binggy, you are probably more used to referring to engine size in litres or cc's. The 302, 351, 427, etc. refer to the engine size or displacement in cubic inches. The 302 is 5.0 litres or 5000cc, the 351 is 5.8L or 5800cc and the 427 is about 7L or 7000cc. The "W" in 351w stands for Windsor which is the city in which the plant where these engines were assembled was located. The reason for the distinction is that there was another 351 (5.8L) engine offered by Ford known as the 351C - for Cleveland - which was a different engine altogether. The engines offered in the original Cobras were first a 260, soon replaced by the 289 in the small block leaf-spring suspension cars and the 427 in the big block, coil spring suspension Cobras. Later in production, a 428 cubic inch motor was quietly slipped in as a substitute for the more expensive and powerful 427. As far as making these engines work - they are from the old tried and proven school of thought that says: SIZE DOES MATTER! What the new, smaller, higher tech engines of today accomplish with multi-valve heads, vvt,EFI, computers and turbochargers, these magnificent monsters do with sheer cubic inch displacement. It's all about how much air and fuel you can pump through the engine and in the good old days before fuel costs and emissions were issues, an easy way to big power was a big bore and a long stroke. As a result of this approach all you need to do (basically) with these engines to get more power is to make them breathe more air and feed them more fuel. You can start with simple bolt on parts like exhaust headers and a good intake manifold and carburetor, then move on to an aftermarket ignition system and continue on from there. A high performance camshaft and a set of higher flowing cylinder heads is the next logical step. By now you are making decent power and torque and if you want to go further you need to think about more involved issues like beefing up your valve train, oiling system and bottom end (crankshaft, main bearings, etc.). It's all pretty basic but the key to making it work properly is to have well matched components. Companies like Holley and Edelbrock sell matched components in sets (or individually) for specific engines and known, tested performance gains. Check them out on the Summit Racing site.
That body in the pictures looks pretty good. Post a few more pics and some of the frame and suspension if you can. We would love to hear more details about how the cars are built and what suspension/drivetrain components they use. Keep the questions coming - there's a lot of folks here with the knowledge and desire to help you out.