Anybody building/ racing a First gen Dakota??
I have an 89 Shelby Dakota that I resto-moded. Original 318 and A500. 8-1/4 sure grip 3.91. Running FiTech EFI, Performer manifold, Procomp heads, Comp roller cam, later model 2-1/8 cast iron exhaust manifolds, MSD Streetfire, 2-1/2 duals thru Magna Flow to single 3" tailpipe. Still running A/C with analog control. ECM completely removed. Motor dyno'd at 347hp/358tq. Pics on the FTO site under my member content. Would highly recommend using 91 and up for any v8 swap. 2" additional length under hood allows mechanical fans, shrouds or large elec puller fan for HP engines. The 87-90 can be done but can only handle small pusher fans (without MAJOR surgery) that are very marginal for heavy traffic/AC or HP engines.