Time for advice

Hey guys, I've returned. I didn't get the Cobra I wanted but I did pick up an '81 Stang for $500 so it's a great investment for me. Now here's the problem:

straight 6 automatic.

I need to know what I need to do to prepare for an engine and transmission swap. I'm not too keen on getting a 302 when I can fit a larger engine in the bay... but I wonder if it's practical to get a larger engine on such a light car. Comments, concerns, advice?? All of which is much appreciated.

-Andrew

it's done all the time. bunch of threads on this forum about it too, just search for 'engine swap' or some such. for a basic outline, you need:

motor, trans, driveshaft, rear end.
k-member for 4 or 8 cyl, springs, struts, shocks, front spindles, brakes.
exhaust
wiring
etc etc

big pain in the butt, but worth it if you do it right.

If the body is in really good condition OR if you are building a race car then i say go for it! Otherwise, just save your money and buy a car that was a 5.0 already.
Swapping all of that stuff over is very time consuming even if you have a donor 5.0L car to do the swap. Then if you decide that you want to do the swap without a donor car it gets even more expensive and time consuming because you have to track down every part, nut, and bolt.
It usually gets to the point that you've spent more money on a rusted, beat up older car (i'm not talking about your car because i've never seen it so dont take offense) that you could have gone out and just bought a late model Mustang for the same price.

If the body is in pristine condition and you are going to change most of the stock parts anyway then go for it!

There is alot of stuff that needs to be swapped.
You are going to need: engine, trans/clutch/flywheel, rear end, brakes, brake lines, k-member, shocks, struts, wiring harness, shifter, fuel pump, distributor, h-pipe/headers/catback exhaust, exhaust crossmember/trans mount, motor mounts, and the list goes on...