I have a FE 352 Block 4v with 390 heads (But possibly 390 block, think measurement of stroke was off) Either way, its for sure bored 60 over. Brand new stock 390 Cam, and New stock Exhaust Manifolds. New Edlebrock Carb (Wish it was a Holley, but cant beat FREE) SO..the question is how much horsepower and torque can I expect, and how reliable and upkeep will this motor be for a daily? Thanx for all the help!
Need more info. Which heads? casting # between the center exhaust ports. What intake manifold? Is it aftermarket? Stock aluminum or what Cast iron casting # in front of the carb C-----number. If what you are saying probably less than 275 HP but could have alot of torque. One of the most important things is good exhaust manifolds-headers and a rear axle over 3.50 for seat of the pants feeling. Finally 60 over is alot for a FE block Movin/on
I'm thinkin' you got a 390 block bored .010 over. FE's are not going to hold up to a .060 overbore without some serious sonic testing first. Ford recommended a max .030 overbore. The 352 had a 4.000 bore, and the 390 had a 4.050 bore-if you've got a 4.060 bore, it's a 390 with a .010 overbore. Good news for you in the reliability rating. As for horsepower, stock 390's in 63 were rated at 300 HP with 9.6:1 compression, probably 350-380 tq. Heads, oiling, and exhaust were the weak points on this motor-the cast Ford tri-Y headers are an outstanding upgrade for this motor, as is a GOOD cam. Hope that helps-
It was done in a shop...but I believe they just looked at the 352 stamp on the block and thought thats what it was (Hence the 60 over) Cuz I know even the 390s had the 352 stamp on them...so a 390 at 0.10 makes more sense. Its the stock intake manifold, and stock exhaust manifolds. As for a tight budget right now...your saying Im in a good spot....but if I wanna get up and really move, Id need better heads ( the ones in it are brand new stock) and who sells those headers? Not understanding how to better the oiling though. AND..its in a 57' F100
Well: 57 F100 means at this point you don't want to rule the drag strip. so you are good to go. Shorty truck headers are pretty good. Either tri-Y's or Shorty F100 headers (not sure but something thru 1965 may work) Lots of brands available, but just do a search on the FE Forum. The Edel Carb is OK but I can't say much since I only work on Holley's ,early Strombergs & some sidedraft Carters. Again let us know some info on the head casting #'s and the intake casting #. Movin/on
Enough HP and torque to break the tires loose anytime you feel like it and still cruise at 75-80 if it's geared right. Do what the cruise night junkies do, put a nice sounding cam in it, get an aluminum intake, add some headers and make up a bunch of believable lies to impress the cruise night junkies. Nobody that I know is impressed with mythical numbers. If it looks good and sounds good, then it's good to go. You aren't really going to race it are you? If you are, then elapsed time numbers are the ones to care about.
That was a great post TOMMY....Well..I plan on driving it alot..pretty much whenever I can...and dont wannna be the guy who's ride sounds great but thats it. I guess I want it as solid reliability wise as possible ... but where I can have some fun (power) too. Guess right now it is solid and fun..and I can just give it more power and balls as my budget allows..then eventually race when its able. Thanx alot fellas!!
You must put headers of some kind on it. Those exhaust manifolds suck! If you put a thumpin cam in, it you will need some higher pressure valve springs, which will require stronger thick wall rocker shafts. I think the last set I got was from SpeedPro. The old ones will break eventually. The heads are all pretty good for the street but you should have hardend exhuast valve seats installed. Stay conservitive on carb size with a stock intake. I run a 600 Holley with a K&N stub stack. These mods will make a great reliable tire shredder, but you wont get past very many gas stations.
This has got me interested. The girlfriend's '59 Country Sedan has a worn out 'n' wheezy 332 FE in it, and I've been thinking about a 352 or 390 in its place. Want her to have something that goes when ya tell it to.
fe motors are good reliable motors that make a good amt of torque,and very decent horsepower with just basic mods. they can make a lot of horsepower but you need better heads ( 427, 428cj) more carb ,cam, etc. not to mention adj rocker assemblys. For a driver I would go for a stock 390 gt cam , (don't need adj rockers for it) a decent size carb, can use cast iron intake but alum. dual plane is better and much much lighter, headers would make more power but I hate dealing with them. good (decent) cj manifolds are expensive but about the same price as headers. rearend ratio meens a lot 3.25 or so about right for a driver. 66 390 gt fairlanes were rated at 335 horse and 400+torque with this basic setup minus the alum intake and headers. these were good running cars 3500lbs or so. but not dragstrip terrors.
Doug Thorley makes Tri-Y headers for them. They are a little spendy but worth the cost. With a basically stock rebuild .010 over you are probably looking at 300-325 HP. Depending on what stock parts were used. It should be as dependable as a hammer for dailey use if the rebuilder was worth his salt. If you want to go fast you should plan on throwing money at it. You can make an FE scream but it is going to burn green backs in the process. Unless you are serious about getting from point A to point B faster than anyone else on the block it is not the best platform. If you are serious and want to prove that speed costs money you have an excellent place. Anyway drive it I think you will like it and you should be able to like it for a very long time. I am planning on using a 390 hp 390 for a future project myself. Plenty of grunt and good for a lot of happy miles.
Yeah, it's always puzzled me how 99 percent of the guys that tell you their engine's "puttin' out around 550 horses" have never had it on a dyno. There must be an automotive version of the "magic 8 ball" that I've never seen.
I just walk away. I know early on that I'll never learn anything from them. The guys that do know what their engine is putting out usually won't say. They don't want it to get out.
The magic 8 Ball is used is also used for 160 mph stock 318 Mopars and the stock 307 that'll burn rubber through all the way to 60 mph.
There is a 307 that burns rubber? Is that a modification that can be made? I know where there are lots of used tires around that I could have just for hauling them off. What kind of milage and hp does can I expect from rubber V gasoline. The thing about actually putting one on a dyno is that I'm not sure I want to know that 103 HP and 77 lb ft of torque scares the hell out of me. Ok reading it over I just found something that concerns me and I want to withdraw my earlier reliability statements. If it was done in a shop and they didn't know if it was a 390 or a 352 it couldn't have been a very reliable shop. I am going to stick with my 300-325 Hp statement though. A stock 390 should make Hp in that range.
yea just got off the PM with DmaTmaSdaMda, that's like the phone only on the HAMB. Anyway I suggested to him that best bet is serial number. One should be able to tell what the engine came in what year and what engine it was. I got a 390 with 427 heads factory from a fairlane and it has 352 cast on the block. They must have cut corners at the foundry and only produced the cores necessary to change the insides of the block and not the outside.
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