The Ford FE engine is a big-block V8 engine produced in multiple displacements over two generations by the Ford Motor Company and used in vehicles sold in the North American market between 1958 and 1976. The FE, derived from "Ford-Edsel", was introduced just four years after the short-lived Ford Y-block engine, which American cars and trucks were outgrowing. It was designed with room to be significantly expanded, and manufactured both as a top-oiler and side-oiler, and in displacements between and .

Versions of the FE line designed for use in medium and heavy trucks and school buses from 1964 through 1978 were known as "FT," for "Ford Truck," and differed primarily by having steel (instead of nodular iron) crankshafts, larger crank snouts, smaller ports and valves, different distributor shafts, different water pumps, and a greater use of iron for its parts.

The FE block was manufactured by using a thin-wall casting technique, where Ford engineers determined the required amount of metal and re-engineered the casting process to allow for consistent dimensional results. A Ford FE from the factory weighed with all-iron components, while similar 7-liter offerings from GM and Chrysler weighed over . With an aluminum intake and aluminum water pump, the FE could be reduced to under for racing.

The engine was produced in 406 and 427 cubic-inch competition versions and famously powered Ford GT40 MkIIs to endurance-racing domination in the 24 hours of Le Mans during the mid-1960s.

Description

The FE and FT engines are big-block designs, referred to as Y-block because the cylinder block casting extends below the crankshaft centerline, giving great rigidity and support to the crankshaft's main bearings. In these engines, the casting extends below the crankshaft centerline, which is more than an inch below the bottom of the crank journals.

Blocks were cast in two major groups: top-oiler and side-oiler. The top-oiler block sent oil to the top center first; the side-oiler block sent oil along a passage located on the lower side of the block first.

All FE and FT engines have a bore spacing of and a deck height (distance from crank center to top of block) of . The main journal (crankshaft bearing) diameter is . Within the family of Ford engines of the time, the FE was neither the largest nor smallest block.

+FE/FT engine displacements Displacement Type Bore Stroke FT FE

+Ford V8 blocks in the last half of the 20th century, classified by bore spacing Small block Big block Big blockSpacing Displacement AKA Spacing Displacement AKA Spacing Displacement AKAY-block FE MELY-block FE MELY-block FE MELY-block FE MELWindsor FE 385-seriesWindsor FE 385-seriesWindsor FE Windsor FE 335-series FT 335-series FT 335-series FT

FE engines were made in a wide variety of configurations, including:

Carbureted, including single two-barrel, single four-barrel, dual four-barrel, triple two-barrel, and quad Webers, or fuel injected With a top- or side-oiling block With low-rise, medium-rise, high-rise, tunnel-port, or SOHC intake manifolds

The low-rise intake, designed to fit under a low hoodline, was the first. The high-rise intake required a hood bubble for clearance. While the low- and medium-rise heads could be used in combination with either low- or medium-rise intakes, the high-rise head required a high-rise intake due to the increased height of the intake port. The medium-rise intake port is shorter and wider than the low-rise port. The high-rise ports are taller than either the low- or medium-rise ports. Low-rise intakes have the carburetor placed relatively low; the air-fuel mix must follow a more convoluted path to the combustion chambers. A high-rise intake places the carburetor approximately higher so the air-fuel mixture has a straighter path.

The tunnel-port and SOHC heads require their own matching intakes.

Within the major head groups, differences also existed in combustion-chamber designs - small chambers, machined ones, and large ones. The sizes and types of chambers affect the compression ratio and the overall performance characteristics of the engine.

Generations Generation 1 332 The "332" was the original FE engine, with a displacement of , the series' smallest. It had bore and a stroke, and was used in Ford-brand cars in 1958 and 1959, domestically marketed U.S.- and Canadian-built Edsel-brand cars in 1959, and in export-configured 1958 and 1959 Edsels. The two-barrel version produced ; a Holley or Autolite four-barrel version made .

332 engine configurations and applications 4V, 9.5:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1958 Ford 1958 Edsel Ranger, Pacer, Villager, Roundup. and Bermuda overseas export vehicles only 2V, 8.9:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2200 rpm 1959 Ford 1959 Edsel Corsair and Villager, standard equipment, (called "Express V8")

352

Introduced in 1958 as part of the Interceptor line of Ford V8 engines, the Ford 352 of actual displacement was the replacement for the Lincoln Y-block. It is a stroked 332 with stroke and a bore, and was rated from with a two-barrel carburetor to over on the four-barrel models. When these engines were introduced, they were called Interceptor V-8 on the base models and Interceptor Special V-8 on the four-barrel models. The 1958 H VIN-coded 352 was designated as Interceptor V-8 Thunderbird Special.1958 Ford V8 Cars and Thunderbird Service Manual pg. 483. The Interceptor was the base-performance engine in 1958. For the 1959 model year, the FE engine series was renamed the Thunderbird V-8 and the Thunderbird Special V-8. When installed in Mercury vehicles, these engines were named "Marauder". This series of engines usually weighed over . In 1960, Ford created a high-performance version of the 352 rated at ; it featured an aluminum intake manifold, Holley 4100 four-barrel carburetor, cast-iron header-style exhaust manifolds, 10.5:1 compression ratio, and solid lifters.

352 engine configurations and applications 2V 8.4:1 — at 4000 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1965–1967 Ford F-Series 8.9:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2400 rpm 1961–1963 Ford 1961–1963 Mercury (1961 Meteor and 1961–1963 Monterey, Commuter Wagon, Colony Park) 4V 10.2:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1958 Ford Interceptor 1958–1959 Ford 1958–1959 Ford Thunderbird 9.6:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1960 Ford 1960 Edsel 1960 Ford Thunderbird 10.6:1 — at 6000 rpm and at 3400 rpm 1960 Ford 8.9:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2400 rpm 1960 Ford 9.3:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1964–1966 Ford

361 Edsel

Edsel 361 engines were assembled in Cleveland, Ohio, and Dearborn, Michigan. They were standard equipment in the 1958 Edsel Ranger, Pacer, Villager, Roundup, and Bermuda. The Edsel 361 was the first FE block engine to be offered for sale in any market, having been introduced to the public in the U.S. on September 4, 1957, almost two months before any 1958 Fords were sold. The 361 CID 4V FE engine was also sold on 1959 Edsels in the U.S. and Canada, and 1958 and 1959 Ford- and Meteor-brand automobiles in Canada in place of the 352, which was not available with any Ford Motor Company of Canada brand until the 1960 model year. Edsel 361 engines were available to U.S. law enforcement agencies and state and municipal emergency services purchasing fleet Fords as the 1958 Ford "Police Power Pack".

361 Edsel engine configurations and applications 4V 10.5:1 compression ratio at 4600 rpm Torque at 2800 rpm × Bore/Stroke 4-bbl Holley or Ford (Autolite) carburetor Pushrod overhead valve Angle-wedge machined combustion chamber Firing order: 1-5-4-2-6-3-7-8 Cylinder numbering (front-to-rear): Right 1-2-3-4 Left 5-6-7-8 18 mm spark plugs, 0.034 in. gap Hydraulic lifters 1958 Edsel Ranger, Pacer, Villager, Roundup, and Bermuda, standard equipment (called "E400") 4V 9.6:1 or 10.0:1 Compression Ratio depending on source of information. at 4600 rpm Torque at 2800 rpm × Bore/Stroke 4-bbl Ford (Autolite) carburetor Pushrod overhead valve Angle-wedge cast combustion chamber Firing order: 1-5-4-2-6-3-7-8 Cylinder numbering (front-to-rear): Right 1-2-3-4 Left 5-6-7-8 18 mm spark plugs, 0.034 in. gap Hydraulic lifters 1959 Edsel Corsair, Villager, and Ranger, optional equipment (called "Super Express V8")

360 Truck The 361/360, of actual displacement, was introduced in 1968 and phased out at the end of the 1976-year run; it was used in the Ford F Series trucks and pickups. It has a bore of a 390 () and used the 352's rotating assembly. The 361s and 360s were also constructed with heavy-duty internal components for truck use. Use of a standard 352/390 cam for use in passenger cars along with carburetor and distributor adjustment allowed the 360 to give performance similar to that of the 352 and 390 car engines. Rated at at 4100 rpm and of torque at 2600 rpm (two-barrel carb, 1968). The 360 used the same block, heads, and other parts as a 390, which makes them indistinguishable from each other unless the stroke is measured.

360 Truck engine configurations and applications 2V, 8.4:1 at 4100 rpm and at 2600 rpm 1968–1971 TrucksVerified from 1971 Ford Truck Shop Manual First Print date November 1970 Volume 2 Engine pg 21-23-31 Sec. 9 Specifications General Specifications net at 4000 rpm and at 2400 rpm 1972–1976 Trucks

390

The 390 had a bore of , stroke of , and displacement of . It was the most common FE engine in later applications and was used in many Ford cars as the standard engine, including the Thunderbird, and in many trucks, as well. It was a popular high-performance engine; although not as powerful as the 427 and 428 models, it provided good performance, particularly in lighter-weight vehicles. The 2V is rated at at 4,100 rpm, while the 4V version was rated at at 4,100 rpm in certain applications. Certain 1967 and 1968 Mustangs had 390 4V engines rated at , as did some Fairlane GTs and S-code Mercury Cougars.

390 engine configurations and applications 2V 8.9:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2400 rpm 1963–1965 Mercury 9.4:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2400 rpm 1964–1965 Mercury 9.5:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2600 rpm 1966 Ford 1966 Ford Fairlane 1966 Mercury 1966 Mercury Comet 9.5:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2600 rpm 1967 Ford 1967–1968 Ford Fairlane 1967 Mercury 1967 Mercury Comet 1968 Ford Mustang 1968 Mercury Cyclone GT 1968 Mercury Cougar GT 10.5:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1968 Ford 1969 Mercury 9.5:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2600 rpm 1968 Ford Fairlane 1968 Ford Torino 1968–1970 Ford 1968–1970 Mercury 8.6:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2600 rpm 1968–1971 Trucks~~~~, Verified from 1971 Ford Truck Shop Manual First Print date November 1970 Volume 2 Engine pg 21-23-31 Sec. 9 Specifications General Specifications 9:1 — at 4400 rpm and at 2600 rpm 1971 Ford, Mercury 8.2:1 — net at 4000 rpm and at 2600 rpm 1972–1975 Trucks 4V 10.6:1 — at 6000 rpm and at 3400 rpm 1961–1962 Ford 9.6:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1961–1963 Ford 1961–1963 Ford Thunderbird 1963 Mercury 9.6:1 — at 5000 rpm and at 3200 rpm 1961–1963 Ford Police Interceptor 1963 Mercury Police Interceptor 10.1:1 — at 5000 rpm and at 3200 rpm 1964 Ford Police Interceptor 1964 Mercury Police Interceptor 11:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1964–1965 Ford 1964–1965 Mercury 1964–1965 Ford Thunderbird 10.5:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 2800 rpm 1966–1967 Ford 1966–1968 Ford Thunderbird 1968 Mercury 10.5:1 — at 4600 rpm and at 3200 rpm 1967, 1969 Ford Mustang 1967, 1969 Ford Fairlane 1967, 1969 Mercury Cyclone GT 1967, 1969 Mercury Cougar GT 1969 Ford Torino 1969 Mercury Montego 10.5:1 — at 4800 rpm and at 2800 rpm 3x2V, 10.6:1 at 6000 rpm and at 3500 rpm 1961–1962 Ford at 6000 rpm and at 3500 rpm 1962 Ford 1962–1963 Ford Thunderbird

Generation 2

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