Hello, I am new to these engines. I have an old boat project that I have decided is just too far gone to mess with. It has a 215 hp 312ci Interceptor in it. It is a Right Hand Rotation engine.
My question is can you convert it to a left hand rotation simply with some minor crankshaft machining and swapping out the timing set and camshaft, or is the crankshaft a whole different animal?
These cranks are getting hard to find and costly. If memory serves I believe this engine has a forged rotating assembly. It would make a really cool rat-rod engine or maybe stuff it into a Ranger
or something retarded like that...lol. Any help in this area would be greatly appreciated! Thank you...

easey to change,different cam also oil pump different,. cant remember if distributor is the same, probley not ascam rotation diferent on marine c c rotation. marine carbs and intake was alwayes a isue. wher do you live,was engine fresh water cooled.

The boat engine can be re-purposed for vehicle use.  My understanding is that all that is needed is a car / truck camshaft, distributor, and application appropriate exhaust manifolds, oil pan, and front timing chain cover.  I'm unsure about the bellhousing.  The crankshaft needs no modification.  No FoMoCo 312 y-block crankshafts were forged.  All 312 cranks were cast iron. 

Myself, I would change-out the intake manifold and carburetors as well.  Some individuals have run the boat two carb intake manifold and carburetors on their street vehicles.  This is more for looks than function as the two single barrel carbs used on the 312 marine application don't provide great breathing ability to the engine for street and highway rpm operating range.

The boat specific components are regularly advertised on eBay, sometimes as a package, sometimes individually.

IF you're interested in selling what you have, where are you located?  Also, be aware that our Forum email and PM (personal message) system is presently working for some and not for others.  Consider posting contact information in this thread if you desire personal communication.

Hope this helps. 


NoShortcuts
a.k.a. Charlie Brown
near Syracuse, New York

Missouri. Yes, freshwater cooled. I have read that I will have to have the crank worked on because of directional drilling. Does this sound correct to you?

I am located in Southeast Missouri. It is currently for sale with the rare boat that it came in. The boat is more of a project than I am ready to commit to. I was thinking of building a hot rod and using that engine to power it.

Freshwater cooling is GooD as relates to the potential condition of your engine block water jacket.  The FoMoCo 272, 292, and 312 cranks used in marine applications are not drilled differently from those used in other engine applications.  Remember that the engine's oiling system is pressurized.  No crank modification is required or recommended assuming that there is already some chamfering of the crank main bearing and connecting rod throw oil supply holes.  Yes, some of the Ford y-block marine applications had engine rotation opposite from that of FoMoCo car, truck and industrial applications.

IF you want information pertaining to your engine, the Technical section your thread is in right now is perfect.  The y-block is a great engine for use in building a hot rod.  They're a tough, reliable, torquey engine that can be purpose built for many different applications.  The only down-side of the engine is it's weight.  BUT, there are ways to reduce that!  Look at John Mummert's web site at   www.ford-y-block.com/   to get an idea of what's available for tailoring purposes.    

IF you are interested in selling anything to Forum members, I'd recommend posting contact information you wish to use within a thread.  The Classified section on our Forum would be the best place to list anything for sale.  The Forum email option and the Forum PM (personal message) option are not working dependably OR for all subscribers.  We had a software upgrade for the site not-too-long-ago and it created some issues that are still being worked through.

Welcome to the site.   


NoShortcuts
a.k.a. Charlie Brown
near Syracuse, New York

The RH crankshafts for the 312 Y engines had the rear seal hash marks angling off in the opposite direction from what is seen on the LH (normal direction) engines.  The oil holes are okay as they were not altered for the reverse turning crankshafts which may explain why so many of those RH engines had connecting rod bearing issues.  Turning the seal surface in the neighborhood of 0.010” should remove those reverse direction hash marks and still have the seal diameter okay to use with the new neoprene seals that are specific to the 312 engines.  It will take a shop with a narrow stone to work on the seal area so that crankshaft oil slinger is not removed in which to do so.

Lorena, Texas (South of Waco)

Thank you for the info and warm welcome! It is a rhr engine. I have built mostly scrubrolet products but there have been exceptions such as Briggs and Stratton, air cooled VW, 2.3 ohc Fords, Harley Davidson and Kawasakis as well as probably a few others I am forgetting like Mitsubishi 1st gen 4 cylinder sohc engines. I like this old engine because of it's nostalgia factor. I know they were a hard hitter back in the heydays of racing. Everything is for sale though!...lol. I have the entire drivetrain from this old v-drive boat as well. I read that the Borg Warner in and out box for the velvet drive is a popular drag racing piece in the nostalgia crowd. I can be reached at (573)694-2657 if anyone is serious about buying. If I sell it I would like to sell as much as possible as a whole.

THANKS for coming in on this, Ted.  I didn't know about the hash mark direction being different on the RH rotation marine crank rear seal surface OR of the frequency of rod bearing problems associated with the RH drive marine y-blocks.

Still learnin' thanks to mentors like you!  


NoShortcuts
a.k.a. Charlie Brown
near Syracuse, New York

I am having this evil thought of a front engine dragster powered by this little monster. Could I retain the Interceptor timing cover if I went that route (as I wouldn't be looking to spin a water pump)?
As far as the distributor, I think if I was running locked out timing I would only need to chance the gear correct? Or even flip the advance mechanism so that it worked in the opposite direction.
Anybody on here ever run a Borg Warner Velvet Drive in and out box behind a clutch??? There are a couple of small blowers for sale locally that struck my attention, but I need to keep this on the cheap so I don't know about all that nonsense...