I had the XE256 in a 9:1 350 and the XE274 in a 9.3:1 400. Short answer is the XE274 is WAY too much cam for a 350 without a big stall or 4 speed and 3.73 or deeper gears. No way it would work power brakes. Higher compression may yield more detonation than power.
The XE256 in the 350 ran pretty good. Stock converter and 3.23s would run mid-14s in a 3700lb Lemans. Street performance was solid. It wanted just a bit more gear or converter but I was happy for what it was. It did detonate out the head gaskets when I advanced the timing beyond 36 degrees with 93 octane.
The XE274 was lumpy in my 400. I can't imagine it in a engine 50 cubes smaller, as it is 3 steps larger than the XE256.
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I could explain all this to the girl at the parts store, but she'd probably call the asylum.
White '67 LeMans 407/TH350/Ford 3.89... RIP
Red '67 LeMans. 407/TH400/Ford 3.25
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