identifying 360 from 390?

[Boggin]

hey guys,im going to look at a '68 ford truck tomorrow. and looking for way to tell if the motor is a 360 or 390. the owner said its one of the 2. just looking for some ideas. and i will try to get pics for you guys lol
thanks

 

[GoodOld85BlueBalls]

These engines are completely identical except for the crank and rods.
Take off a valve cover. Look on the head, and write down the number code stamped on it. Look on the engine block for a code, and write it down.
Look up the number pair in an interchange book. (I will look for one on line) This will tell you.


Sorry but most trucks were 360 due to them having more torque, the higher hp 390 was usually in cars, but it could have been swapped in.
If it is a 360 you can convert it easy to a 390. I remember my dads 360 had just a two barrel carb, where the 390's usually had a 4bbl carb.

Without taking it appart or finding a label on it to identify it you are just going to have to go to the book or tear it down.

 

[Shran]

Could very well be a 352 as well, buddy of mine had one of those in his '67 F100. I'd guess it's most likely a 360 but like GO85BB said, it's pretty hard to tell.

 

[Boggin]

Pull #1 spark plug out and have a wooden dowl with you about 8" long smll enough to go thru the spark pluh hole and not catch on the sides...Bring #1 up to TDC (Top dead Center) drop the dowl in the hole and mark it at the plug hole.... and I believe #4 at this time is down at BDC...Pull that plug and repeat with the dowl in the spark plug hole (dont rotate the engine) and mark the dowl again....as you did on #1..

3.5" will tell you it has a 360 stroke and 3 3/4" will tell you it has a 390 stroke !!

this is the only way to tell, extrernaly the are completely the same.

and why you ask? well im going to look at a '68 F100 with a 360 or 390 and stick shift. think this would be a 3spd?
thanks

 

[feellnfroggy]

When did ford use a 360? or a 352? 360 is a dodge motor and 352? ive never heard of, i thought ford was 351, 390 and 460? (289,302,329,351,390,460 for the knitpickers) with a couple specialty mustang motors?

 

[bruker]

When did ford use a 360? or a 352? 360 is a dodge motor and 352? ive never heard of, i thought ford was 351, 390 and 460? (289,302,329,351,390,460 for the knitpickers) with a couple specialty mustang motors?

The 352 & 360 are part of the FE (Ford Edsel) engine family. They range in displacement from 332 up to 428 and were used in the 50's up to the mid 70's.

 

[Mac]

Well, the FE series is long gone but had quite a history. Even the experts have to take them apart to tell the difference to be sure. The 352 & 360 shared the same stroke. The 390 & 406 & 427 all shared the same stroke. Same for the 410 & 428. Casting numbers are of no help either. The small engine was the 332. There was even a 361 in the late 50's put in Edsels. AMC also had a 360 motor.
Dave

 

[feellnfroggy]

Yeah I remember the FE's, just never looked to much into what they offered.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Oh, and for the record...the 360 doesnt make more torque then the 390.....

As far as the manual trasmission, it could be a 3sp column, or a 4sp on the floor.

later,
Dustin

 

[Boggin]

Oh, and for the record...the 360 doesnt make more torque then the 390.....

As far as the manual trasmission, it could be a 3sp column, or a 4sp on the floor.

later,
Dustin

great, he said it was floor shift so it must be 4spd, thats what i was hoping for thanks man

 

[GoodOld85BlueBalls]

Oh, and for the record...the 360 doesnt make more torque then the 390.....

As far as the manual trasmission, it could be a 3sp column, or a 4sp on the floor.

later,
Dustin

Ok for the Record. The truck engine 360 made more torque on the low end and was often found in old school busses with a forged steel crank, that crank was well sought after to put in a 460?? I think??(with some modifications and aftermarket heads, as it was bulletproof that way. The 390 made its torque on the high end.

 

[Mac]

My old '73' F-100 360 was only a three speed floor shift 4x4. A school bus most likely had the 361 but that's getting into the FT series of motors, another bag of worms. After 44 some years, who knows what the motor or trans is in there. Post up what you do find, please!
Dave

 

[gw33gp]

Ok for the Record. The truck engine 360 made more torque on the low end and was often found in old school busses with a forged steel crank, that crank was well sought after to put in a 460?? I think??(with some modifications and aftermarket heads, as it was bulletproof that way. The 390 made its torque on the high end.

The 460 is not an FE engine. I doubt very much you could put a 360 crank in it.

 

[GoodOld85BlueBalls]

The 460 is not an FE engine. I doubt very much you could put a 360 crank in it.

Sorry I ment to type 428 that they did that too. I still remember my gear head father, rest his soul, doing something crazy like that with a 360 engine, where he took the forged crank from a 428 school bus engine and put it in the 360 to make it a 410. Ring any bells? They took the block from the 360, bored it out and used the rods from some other engine, it was a sleeper engine for dirt circle track racing that he built for a racer buddie of his back in the early 70's. I wish I knew half of what he knew about tricking out fords.

 

[gwaii]

Sorry I ment to type 428 that they did that too. I still remember my gear head father, rest his soul, doing something crazy like that with a 360 engine, where he took the forged crank from a 428 school bus engine and put it in the 360 to make it a 410. Ring any bells? They took the block from the 360, bored it out and used the rods from some other engine, it was a sleeper engine for dirt circle track racing that he built for a racer buddie of his back in the early 70's. I wish I knew half of what he knew about tricking out fords.

that sounds more like it.there were a million different variants and custom mods on these engines.hell,ford built at least 8 different variations on the 427.