Thread: Ford 302 Identification Help

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well broke down the motor and had some issues. saw right off the bat when striping gasket junk off the intake and noticed exposed egr ports, turns out the intake once pulled is an edelbrock 2121 performer 289. so thats going bye bye as it was designed for the earlier non-EGR heads. i also measured the heads (78' from the D80E casting) valves with a mic 1.803/1.472 which i know is slightly off from the bore measurements which were 4.040, 4.042, 4.040, its close but for a cheapo kobalt its ok, will need to borrow a more precise one before going any further. The heads have no casting numbers other than the fomoco oval and the date codes 8K27 on one and 8K28, there was a letter "R" engraved on the backside of the head?

the bores look good, nice n clean no lip. the cam is a mystery cam unless i put a dial indicator on it since the cam grind on the back is 01289 with the standard CWC casting on the front section of the cam (hydraullic) . The full block casting number is D4DE-6015-BA ______Z then below the date 6L17. pretty much got this thing figured out except the "Z" just thought id keep those who helped so far posted with an update.

Thanks for the update! What's the plan? "in-expensive" rebuild? Or, spice it up? I've got those same heads and am looking at some SVO Aluminum or E-brocks... I have a great running motor, just a bit "soft"... plus I'm looking into a Fast EFI setup..

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yeah im not sure cause there is no casting numbers on the heads. from what i read on the fords they all have the engine size stamped on the head but mine do not. they do have some odd markings though any thoughts from you "Ford" guys??

The crank is definatley a 302 crank, it's got the 2M marking on the crank. so that mystery is solved.

Was there an air tube between heads? Ford called it Thermactor for emissions. On mine, it went across the back of the motor, those large bolts threaded into the ends, does one of them pass into a passage inside? They used a special threaded insert on the front of the engine to mount the accessories so they would need that 5/8" hole. I see them on ebay once in a while.

Originally Posted by 34_40

Was there an air tube between heads? Ford called it Thermactor for emissions. On mine, it went across the back of the motor, those large bolts threaded into the ends, does one of them pass into a passage inside? They used a special threaded insert on the front of the engine to mount the accessories so they would need that 5/8" hole. I see them on ebay once in a while.

302port.jpg

This is the port that was partially exposed with the intake (edelbrock 2121 performer 289) that was mounted on the motor. the large bolts were just ones for accessories that i screwed back in until i mark each bolt, was just to keep track for my own purposes.

As far as the casting number the extra letter Z thats cast to the right of the block casting id number is a bit of a question mark for me and the vin id was stamped on the front of the motor not the back like what typically has been posted. lots of new numbers to me and figuring them out now would be helpful for in the future if im to ever pickup another small block ford.

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Originally Posted by OSK

As far as the casting number the extra letter Z thats cast to the right of the block casting id number is a bit of a question mark for me and the vin id was stamped on the front of the motor not the back like what typically has been posted. lots of new numbers to me and figuring them out now would be helpful for in the future if im to ever pickup another small block ford.

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I can't say that I've ever seen numbers like what's in the top photo! Someone was doing "theft prevention"??? The State Trooper who inspected my car told me to do almost the same thing! Stamp the numbers on various parts of the car to track it in case of theft.

The other photo, I have heard that the letter on the right, "Z" in this case was a mold identifier. I have no proof of this but, I think I read it in a manual or magazine.

That stamped number is not really a Ford 'thing' until the aluminum modulars. The engine might be a reman from way back, i.e. Jasper

The 3 X's I have read and almost every time is a marking for the HO blocks , I have a 84 from a RS Capri that is marked this way also . Another I D for 302 to 351 is the .5 inch deck height that is easy to see at water pump . No clearance to head on a 302 and .5 or so clearance on the 351 .

Originally Posted by rspears

There's a lot of folks who believe the story of higher nickle content giving a stronger block, and it applies to some 302's, too. The mark on the 302 is in the valley area between the lifter bores, and is "XXX". My engine guy swears that he has talked to people at Ford who say it is true, but as Dave says there are others who say it is simply a myth. For me, the XXX block is either stronger due to better metalurgy or is the same as all the rest so it cannot hurt to have the mark, which by the way can be seen on my 302 block

yeah i measured the wall thickness, bore thickness between cylinders, rod length and just about every thing that could possibly decifier whats been done to the motor since the cam grind number i cant find, more so since theres no makers mark on it but my buddy says in the shape its in that he just wants me to put it together and lets see what happens. i guess for a $100 may as well put er together so long as the bearings look good. we'll be checking that tomorrow. but talk about low budget, hundy in a motor and new gaskets lol (crosses fingers!)

Originally Posted by OSK

yeah i guess for a $100 may as well put er together so long as the bearings look good. we'll be checking that tomorrow. but talk about low budget, hundy in a motor and new gaskets lol (crosses fingers!)

And I'll be willing to bet it runs like a champ! Maybe consider a "69" timing chain setup to get away from the camshaft being retarded.... but I'm not sure if they did that in "74".?.? I know by "78" they did! Just a thought...

Eccentric2.jpgTiming chain - Tru Roller - for sure, but also an oil pump(standard volume) and replace that dinky pump drive shaft with a Ford Performance or ARP high strength version. I don't recall the Windsors having a retarded camshaft (385's did), but if they did, a later version will fix that problem. Check the fuel pump eccentric too. If it's the 2 piece, make sure the tab is in good shape. It's embarrassing to be towed home if it tears off (as I found out about this time last year - I screwed up with a used eccentric )

Originally Posted by IC2

Attachment 52058Timing chain - Tru Roller - for sure, but also an oil pump(standard volume) and replace that dinky pump drive shaft with a Ford Performance or ARP high strength version. I don't recall the Windsors having a retarded camshaft (385's did), but if they did, a later version will fix that problem. Check the fuel pump eccentric too. If it's the 2 piece, make sure the tab is in good shape. It's embarrassing to be towed home if it tears off (as I found out about this time last year - I screwed up with a used eccentric )

yeah thats the part i pulled pictured above, i'll check into a different shaft and double check the fuel pump, no sense finding out later the hard way when i got everything exposed now. cheaper to just do it right the first time i always say!

Originally Posted by OSK

yeah thats the part i pulled pictured above, i'll check into a different shaft and double check the fuel pump, no sense finding out later the hard way when i got everything exposed now. cheaper to just do it right the first time i always say!

Just make sure it isn't a 351W pump drive - too big.

I have a one piece eccentric in my engine now(the ONLY used piece in that engine) - Summit has them, but no drive pin. I ended up having to buy a box of the correct size dowel pins from McMaster-Carr

Here's a partial list of how you decode Ford part #'s. Decoding Ford casting part numbers When you flip your heads over and look at the combustion chamber side, you'll see a raised cast four character code for the heads in the part that overhangs the valley. Yours should start with D and the next number will be the model year with the final two designating engineering or application.