I'd say keep the FE if you want torque and HP up to 6000 RPM. I'd first change the cam, Have a good 4bbl and install headers (a must). If your 352 doesn't have a 4bbl manifold you can get a CI one (heavy) for about $20. Good aluminum manifolds are 50 Lb lighter and can give you serious HP improvements but most gains are above 4500 RPM but new ones are $250-300 (the Edelbrock RPM Intake currently has the best reputation for HP & torque mid to high RPM range). You can find decent used aluminum manifolds for $100-200. FE's will hold together to about 7000RPM without alot of effort. How much seat of the pants feel you want depends on your driving pattern. If you have a basic 352 , 2V, stick 3:00 rear cogs, and change to a 352 4V with a cam, headers and 3:50 you'll have alot of torque and good horsepower to 6000 rpm and probably gain easily 100 horses. Cost factors, just buy wisely. I just got a 2X4 intake for $200, a 4spd toploader for $150 and headers that would fit your truck for $40. Cam's and lifters new are available for about & $150 My caviat: almost all of my cars have FE's (5 at this time) and I'm pulling a 289 to put an FE into another. The one car that isn't getting an FE is a 1959 Isetta only because it won't fit. Movin/on
you gots to remember.. the 352 is in the truck and running.. all ya need to do it get a few parts to wake her up.. the 302 well.. ya need to rebuild the 302, then you need to find the right mounts for the 302.. then the transmission..then exhaust.. and if you have power steering you have get different brackets.. all the cash you spend on doing that to a 302 ..wel lyou can by the alumn heads,intake cam and some headers.. and have more then enough hp and torque....keep the FE man
The only real bad thing about an FE is the oiling system (it oils the cam first then the crankshaft, the 351/400C has the same problem), if you can afford it get roller rockers (they are way more expensive for an FE than a 302), and if you don't mind adjusting valves get a mechanical cam instead of a hydraulic cam, then get a cam oil galley restrictor kit (which also can be used with hyd cams if you don't want to have to adj rocker arms) which will greatly reduce the lack of oil to the crankshaft problem. A stock cast iron intake manifold wieghs in at 100 lbs, use a engine hoist to remove it, your back will thank you later.
Never said it was. FE's are still expensive to build. Sure they can "run like a top" but dollar for dollar it'll cost less to build the Windsor and you'll still make more power. I know it's hard to believe but a motor that was first designed in the 50's is considered "old technology" by today's standards. And yeah unless you really build them, FE's are pretty much junk. They're heavy truck motors that in stock form pretty much suck. Not that Windsors are exactly "new" motors but they are a better place to start. And yes I did read his first post, did you? He's got a decent running 352 or the chance to get a free 302 that needs a rebuild. He asked for suggestions and I suggest the Windsor because that 352 is a pile.
FE all the way , this is coming from an Oldsmobile guy BTW . If your gonna do it, do it with style . there aint much style to a 302 unless it's hilborn injected or has a cross ram .
Since the 302 is being given to you, take it and say 'thank you'. Drive the 352, but start to rebuild the 302 anyway. If you ever need to change the engine, you'll be ready to go. If you don't need or want to change, the 302 will be waiting for a new project. Do a quality build, not economy. Gurney-Eagle heads and intake. The works. Still streetable, but looks and runs like gangbusters. And it sure won't be sheepy!
Guess you missed all the record holding Cobrajets with an FE guess they do alright for junk. Or the Shelby a/s record holder using another junk engine FE missed that also. FEs still doing pretty good for what you is in your OPINION outdated technology.
KEEP THE FE!!! They are not junk!!! There are thousands running around in everything from cars to big trucks.The oiling system is only an issue if you plan to rev the crap out of the engine.Every type and make of engine has issues!The swap meets are full of good aluminum aftermarket manifolds,every manufacturer still sells parts for FEs.A friend tows his reace car with a 390 piwered 72F250 with an eleven foot Lance camper all over the place,been doin it for 20+ years!By the time you build the 302,change the motor mounts,change the trans you will have spent enough to build a nice FE!! Like Claymore said,look at the two top spots in national records in Stock and the second quickest in Super Stock,are FEs!! You think an FE is heavy a 429-460[385 series engine]weighs a lot more and they are huge. ROY.
a good engine builder can take care of the oiling system as well..guy who does mine is a FE genius..thats all he runs in his old cars, galaxies,fairlanes, mustangs etc.. he drills out the oil passages on every FE he does..
Before I starting rebuilding the Edsel, everybody told me FE's are expensive. I have really not found that to be the case at all. I picked up a set of fresh heads off the HAMB good and cheap and other parts are plenty easy to find. Even for a wierdo 361. The only thing that has been expensive is the multi-carb setup. That would be true for any motor. FE motors only seem to get mega high-dollar if you get original 427/428 parts, or stuff that caters to the Cobra market. Otherwise they are not really that bad.
I'm a Chevy guy from way back but when I was a kid my Dad had a real clean '65 Ranch Wagon with a 352-4V and as much as I hate to admit it that old wagon would "haul the mail" as we used to say. It was plain old white with a red interior and would be a real cool ride now. Some of the 352's actually had better flowing heads than 390's. A good friend's Dad raced dirt track and ran flatheads, Y-blocks and FE's even up into the 70's. I learned more about old Ford's hanging out there than I ever wanted to know. FE's are NOT junk in any way shape or form, if I was building an old Ford and had a good 352 I'd use it in a heartbeat. As far as being "old tech"........... this IS the HAMB isn't it? I thought we were all about "old tech", or have I been missing something? You wanna talk "old tech" try running a Studebaker but I wouldn't trade my old 289 for anything. That's a "Studebaker" 289 BTW.
Corsair, we had a 58 Bermuda wagon with the 361, 303 hp E-400 in it and it was a runner. I always wanted to stick one of those in a 56 ford or something. As far as the 352 goes, they are a good engine. I'm a Hemi guy but, if I were going to hop up that truck, I would build the engine for low and midrange torque. A 600 vac sec holley, a good stump puller cam, small tube headers and leave the 3.00 gears. A good 352 will pull a 302's guts out. The 361 Edsel engine was 400ft lbs of torque. I don't know what a 352 is stock.Think TORQUE. JMO.
Lippy, that 361 will come out of the Edsel some day. Only because it's such a pretty motor it should really be in something without a hood
FE blocks have interchangeable parts between most years,as pretty much all the 352,360,390,427,and 428 blocks were the same cast,the difference is in the internals and bore. You can take a 352 and fit a 390 crank and you have 360. You take a 390 and ad a 427 crank,and you get Mercury's evil 410. You pick up what I'm putting down? There are speed parts out there,especially on ePay.
I want to add one item to this. In regards to the intake manifold. I ran both the factory 3 deuce setup and a cobrajet single 4 unit on a drag car. The four was slightly better. The original 302's have very little low end power. That is why the 5.0 stuff was developed. The 5.0 has small ports and high port velocity. That is what made them work. I have years of exp. with fe's. I had fun with them but if this is just about dollars, I'd keep the 352 and drive it.
Hooligan63 not quite correct. If you put a 427 crank in it's the same as a 390 crank. The 410 was a 406-428 crank 3.98 stroke (not 3.78) in a 390 bore (4.05) and required special pistons to put them in the proper deck height. Like 2/10 inch taller (stroke difference) I'm currently putting a 410 together & found out the issues. Not major but good to know. Movin/on
True,I was in a hurry and tried to post the gist of it. Sorry about that,and thanks for the correction.
Well at least the OP has enough info to make him an FE expert now. I'm gunna get back to hopping up my Windsor now....
I subscribed to this post because I'm researching FE engine info. I've only worked one one and many moons ago. I get the impression you are pretty knowledgeable on the subject, so perhaps you can answer a big question. What might be the max rpm for a stock FE bottom end? I've heard everything from 6500 to 8000 rpm, but those sources are questionable.
I hate to answer a question with a question, but what stock bottom end are you refering too? A standard 352/390 2-bolt main car block is good to about 550 Hp and 6500 rpm in a bracket racer type setting. Any more than that, and the main caps like to start walking and eventually break. In a street car, you could probably get away with a little more if you maintain some throttle control. The HD truck blocks (361 and 391) were cast with thicker ribs and wall sections. These blocks are stonger than the standard car blocks and will take more power and abuse. Obviously, a 406/427 cross bolted bottom end is about the strongest block out there. These blocks have been known to go to 750 Hp and 7,500 rpms routinely. I have heard stories of guys taking short stroke FE's to over 8,000 rpm, but there is alot more that goes into making an engine last at those kind of speeds than just the bottom end. Stupid FE Trivia time: The 427's that Ford won the 24 Hours of LeMan with in the 60's would run between 6,000 and 7,500 rpm's for the duration of the race. These motors would show an increase of 15 to 50 Hp after the 24 hrs when they were removed from the car an put back onto the dyno. Not mine, but it sure is purrrty!
Thanks for answering my question. I had no idea of the difference between the car & truck blocks. Do you know where I can get casting # info that relates to the FE? re: trivia, I wonder why they made more power. Less internal friction maybe?
Casting # info on FE's is abit like looking at budget numbers from congress. Sure there are pages and pages of numbers, but more than likely there is going to be lots of errors. I don't know of any books that have ever succesfully tracked the casting numbers. Most blocks had 352 cast into them. This meant nothing as they could really be any displacement up to 428. Others had a mirrored 105 cast. The best way to identify an FE is to measure bore and stroke and look for other visual indicators such has cross bolted mains (406 and 427's), external dampners (410 and 428's), and strentghening ribs (HD Truck blocks). Overall, FE blocks changed very little between '58 and '76, and most parts are interchangable thoughout the years. Side Note #1: HD Truck blocks also came with a stronger forged crank. The snout is larger than the cars' but it is simple enough to turn it down to the same diameter as the car's Side Note #2: I believe it is the loss of internal friction as well that produced those dyno results.
A 57 F-100 with an FE is cool in my book and I like Windsors. Trust me every 60's Fairlane owner secretly dreams of owning an FE T-Bolt... The cost issue between it and a Windsor is really when you get into building something serious. To generally rebuild and upgrade a few things small things like a cam and intake-carb swap there is not a major difference between the two. When you buy brand new 4340 H-beam rods, forged cranks, pistons, roller cams, roller rockers, stud girdles, aluminum heads-blocks etc this where having something such as an FE will cost you enough to build nearly two complete Windsors. However for what you want to use it for do you really need all that? The Windsor is a great engine for a light body and cost effective to race with due to it's popularity and aftermarket support. The FE makes for a heathly street motor with mostly stock parts with a thicker torque curve you will notice in the truck. This isn't a Mustang or a Falcon here, it will take a more radical Windsor just to get that seat of pants torque feeling back. If anything I'd think about finding a larger FE to rebuild over time.
i say 352 but you got to remember to go fast with either one you will have to spend some cash. $350 for a decent rebuild is ok but you will have to buy a new tranny because they dont share the same bolt pattern, so that will cost more, driveshaft etc.... just my .02
My cousin had a 60 Starliner with a Hi Po 352, that was a tough car back in it's day. My father took a 361 Edsel and put the 427 cam and adjustable rockers. That was a rea good runner. I have the engine now. Use the FE egine, it'll surprise you. you can mix up some parts and be creative.
Stupid FE Trivia time: The 427's that Ford won the 24 Hours of LeMan with in the 60's would run between 6,000 and 7,500 rpm's for the duration of the race. These motors would show an increase of 15 to 50 Hp after the 24 hrs when they were removed from the car an put back onto the dyno. I would guess beyond being built to tight tolerances and now having less friction from break in that it was due to the valves now seating completely.
Keep the running 352 & save the $$ it would cost to convert the truck to run the 302 (good motors in a car, not quite as good as the ol' 289 though)....trucks need torque.
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