My brother wants to use a 361 FE motor out of an Edsel for his 26 rpu. He wants to go this route cause we've been told by many that the 361 is interchangeable with the 390 so parts should not be impossible to find plus we have that motor lying around from an Edsel I sold. I also have the original transmission for the 361 (it is lever not push****on), but being that he wants to beef up the motor with a bigger cam, larger flat top pistons, dual quads, etc. We were wonderin if the ****** would be able to handle it or would we be better off swapping for something else. We were thinking maybe a C6 off another FE motor and just beef up the newer ******. Will any C6 fit? What are your suggestions or what do you guys recommend? Thanks.
be aware that early FE's use a strange cam/thrust plate arrangement and getting performance stuff that fits right out of the box even for a FE isn't straightforward on the '50's units. it was a brand new design then and still had some weird kinks the later ones don't have. it'd be cool to have it working good with a dual quad intake...... do your research thoroughly when you tear into it. Kultulz will want to chime in now!
A C6 FOR an FE will fit it... They're engine (at least engine family) specific. I hate C6s, but I really don't have a legitmate reason other than they're big heavy pigs and I hate dealin' with them . I have a 4 speed Toploader behind the 402 in my Galaxie, the Toploaders are my all time favorite transmission, you could always go that route (my Model A was gettin' one too, despite the lack-of-traditionalness. When you have a tough 4 speed ****in' up shelf space, why not!).
Any FE-pattern transmission will fit it. It's fairly easy to find a C6 behind a FE in pickups...but, many of the truck C6s have odd output shafts & tailhousings. Car C6s are getting a bit harder to find nowadays, but they are out there. I hate to say this, but IMHO the 361 is probably best left to restorers or at least left in semi-stock form...as mentioned, it has a few early-version quirks so far as the internals go. Externally, FE stuff fits it, though. Keep in mind that the 361 is not identical to the later 360 FT (truck) engine...as mentioned, do your homework.
The pre-1963 FE had a cam ****on, but you can use a later cam and thrust plate with a little work. See this thread: http://www.network54.com/Forum/74182/thread/1292282839/Thrust+****on+to+thrust+plate
rQUOTE="Philip R Germain, post: 10452142, member: 250078"]Will a 1957 - 368 Lincoln Motor fit into a 1959 Ford Galaxie (meteor) that has a 361 engine?[/QUOTE] SHORT ANSWER : Well, There is the room physically, but NO, unless you take the transmission & driveshaft yoke that came with the 368 ( or started with a 1957 Mercury "Turnpike Cruiser" & took EVERYTHING, including motor mounts, driveshaft yoke, & engine/trans linkage) you'd have an easier time of it, but it'd Still be a BUNCH of WORK!! 1. Different bolt patterns on the engines(do not directly interchange) 2. Different bolt patterns on crankshaft. 3. Different motor mounts. 4. If the Galaxie is a std shift good luck finding a flywheel/clutch/bellhousing for the 368! 5. If this doesn't slow you down at least a bit : Go Ahead & have fun with it ; after all it's YOUR project, not ours!!
Like drtrcrV-8 said, nothing is the same between a Lincoln Y and an FE, except the bore spacing. It would be the same amount of work as putting a brand X motor in. Plan on changing everything, plumbing, mounts, bellhousing, exhaust, etc. Nice 5 year old thread hi-jack too there FNG...