A friend of mine, while scavaging for another car on an old farm, found a '63 Galaxy with what he was told is a 428 Interceptor out of a '66 police car. This is what the old guy told him. The guy also told him the engine itself is worth $5K. Is this true?
A complete carb to pan 428 cobra jet will bring $2500-$3500 depending on condition. I sold a 428 scj short block last year for $1500 but it was standard bore. I cant see getting 5k out of it, if it really is a 428.
Not worth 5K and maybe worth 1500 if it is tight and proven to be a police interceptor. Not for the power it puts out but the braggin' rights.
I Doubt if it's a Cobrajet. They weren't released until 68'. The 66' version was call a 7 litre and was in all the big Fords. Ford did have a police interceptor version of all their V8's even back to the Y blocks.
Now if it was a Y block police interceptor I may go some bucks on it. I live in SE Kansas for awhile, the town I lived in had a town marshal that everyone called sleepy and his police car was a '57 sedan. It had the 312 police interceptor in it and it would give you a run for the money any time he wanted it to.
Farmers are pretty sharp guys even if they do wear Bib Overalls. Good for him if he can land a Fish now and then. Ever buy a small block chevy that wasn't a 4 bolt main steel crank motor until you drop the pan? There is a reason a manufactures use casting numbers and date codes. Best insurance is to learn how to use them. The Wizzard
The only thing special about a pi motor is the aluminim intake. But if its a complete carb to pan 428 with a standard bore Ide say 3k. A cj or scj same as above could go for double that or more. Fed
LOL, I saw a flatty that was a four bolt main up for sale once. Best to contact Mean Gene, I think its meangene427. He is really up on ford numbers.
It'll be really hard to chase it with just casting numbers... you can check it rather easily as a start... measure the stroke using a wooden dowel rod in one of the cylinders. Mark it at top and bottom dead center... If the stroke is almost 4" (3.98) you at least have the 428 crank... if it is about 3 3/4" (3.78) then it is more likely a 390... if it is less... a 352 or 360... Good luck!
Squatch it could actually be a 406 (I think) a 390 with a 428 crank. For me those are worth some bucks. Whats it got on it for a carb? I have actually looked at some "hot" FEs that were just 2 bbl motors.
Actually... 406 and 427s were made with just a larger bore.... same stroke as a 390... that is why FE are hard to distinguish... checking the stroke will just get him started. Kind of ruling things out...
^^^^^ Bingo. A 406 is basically 428 with a 390 crank (4.13 bore x 3.78 stroke), even though the 406 came out before the 428. A 410 is 390 with a 428 crank (4.05 bore x 3.98 stroke), used in '66 and '67 Mercury's ONLY. Since the motor is not in the original car, it is worth its weight in scrap iron until the bore and stroke can be determined. Once the size and condition of the motor is known, then its value can be determined. Casting numbers on FE's can point you in the right direction, but after 50 years of use and rebuilds, they become essentially meaningless. Good Luck
Similar story. When I lived in Northeast Indiana a friend of mine, Harlo Meeks (now there's a name for ya) bought an old cop car, a 57' Fairlane with a P I 312. Story was he beat a new (62') 409 Chevy. OK it was a really fast 312 and a really slow 409. But that's the story.
I am a Ford guy and build Ford engines . I wouldn't give $5000 for one unless it has paper work saying it's a 428 and not a 406 or 390 . PLUS if it's really a 428 with a fresh rebuild with in the last 6 months with all the machinist receipts of work done and with ALL the parts that were used to rebuild the engine and have ALL current receipts for that engine ! I also would want to hear the engine run , do a compression test and drive it . Then I might consider buying it . Other wise its just another Fe engine core for rebuilding ! You can check the block vin numbers and see what you come up with . In the end with a non running Fe engine that is 52 years old ! It's just not worth $1500 because you are going to need a complete rebuild and that is if the engine is good for a rebuild ! Personally I would just tell that old crazy man you will have to think on it and just let it go to some other person that will believe that old mans story ! For $5000 I can build your a damn nice engine ! Just my opinion ! Retro Jim
On fact I omitted, but doubt really makes much of a difference, the guy told my friend the car had been stored in a barn up until a few years ago. The barn is ready to fall down so he moved the car outside. Also, he said he up to a couple of years ago he would fire the car up once or twice a year and run it up and down the road a few miles. This I know really doesn't matter because all cars being sold were always fired up and run up until a few years ago, "ran when parked".
Color me stupid, the 410 was the one I was thinking about. I always get that backward. A friend had one in a Ranchero, he said it came that way. Maybe it did he bought it used and it probably came that way to him.
Gotta love FEs! Without tearing it down enough to measure you never know what you have. You can make an educated guess with casting numbers, but the blocks and cranks interchange so well in fe motors who knows what it was rebuilt as in the past. I know it's unheard of in this day and age but if you trust this fella take his word for it
My dad had a 56 ford 2 door sedan in high school that was an ex Indiana State Police car. It had a 312 interceptor, and factory 3 spd on the floor and bucket seats. This was back in 67-68. They ended up pulling the motor and trans and putting them in my uncles chopped and channeled 31 A. Matt
Hmm?? Ill bet that it wasn't just any *ordinary* garden-variety, 4-bolt-main flathead either....and that it was almost certainly, an ultra-rare and super-valuable "genuine Corvette" 4-bolt main flathead!!!! Mart3406 ===========
I just went thru the same mess with a 429 PI. The Ford numbers don't tell you much unless you measure everything and then use ALL the numbers. I lucked out. I confirmed mine is a 429 PI (just a like a CJ with special heads for low end torque, different intake, cam, and special exhaust manifolds). I pulled the motor to reseal, paint, and detail so getting the crank, rod, etc. numbers was easy. I could have just painted and detailed because last night I finally got a hold of the original builder. I guess the 6,000 miles shown on the odometer is correct. 6,000 miles in 18 years! I guess the 8 MPG might have had a lot to do with that! LOL
Are you out of your mind? A complete factory original carb to pan 428 Cobra Jet parts out for almost $10,000 if its 1968-1970. If you sold a real 428 cobra jet short block for $1500, you gave it away. Put me in line for the next 100 of them at that price. -Matt
The 406 in my Galaxie has C3AE-V on the lower right front of the block that tells it is a 63 406 block, the heads have C2SE-6090-B cast between the middle plugs that tells they are 406 heads up to 1/29/1962. All FE's don't have castings #'s like this that identify them? The cam even has casting marks and paint mark that ID's it as the factory 406 cam. The only thing that doesn't have a casting number is the 3x2 intake.
To put FE specs in chart form: Displ Bore Stroke 352 4.00 3.50 390 4.05 3.78 406 4.13 3.78 410 4.05 3.98 427 4.23 3.78 428 4.13 3.98
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