Hi All, I am from the UK and have just acquired my first US F100 stepside 1965 pickup.
I wondered how much of it is original so wanted some help with the ID plate in the door, the Warranty number matches the frame etc so I know the plate at least is the original one, here are the details;

Warranty Number - F10DR663942
W.B - 115
Colour - Blank
Model - F100
Body - 481
Trans - A
Axle - 08
Max GVW - 5000
Cert Net HP - 172
RPM - 4000
DSO - 711843

Other than checking the warranty number with the chassis rails, I also found an ID tag on the rear axel which has the following markings stamped on;

WDN - F1
3 50 5CA 301

It has a V8 for sure and it has 352 cast on the front of the block however I believe that most FE V8 engines have this regardless of size, I did find the other casting code and this is C5AE-A, and is a casting code on the manifold of C5AE9425C

Not got any codes off the gearbox yet as the truck is still getting registered, its body colour now is like a sandy brown (whats left of it) which i do think is original.

Any interesting information would be greatly appreciated !!

 

Welcome to FTE. Sounds like you have a pretty original truck. Here is the decode for your warranty plate. Your VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) decodes as F10 = F100 2 wheel drive truck. D = 352 cubic inch (that's 5.8 litres, but we Yanks didn't call it that) FE V8, 2 bbl (choke to you) downdraft carb engine. R = built in San Jose, California. 663942 = built in March, 1965. The rest of the warranty plate: 115 = wheelbase in inches. A blank Colour position is indicative that the vehicle was a Domestic Special Order vehicle, the colour being part or all of the special order. F100 = 5000 pound Gross Vehicle Weight rating half ton truck. 481 = Standard Cab truck with beige vinyl upholstery. A = 3 speed manual on the column transmission, medium duty. 08 = Ford 9 inch non-limited slip differential with 3.50 gears. 5000 pounds = Gross Vehicle Weight rating. 172@4000 = engine's NET horsepower rating and the rpms where achieved. 711843 = Domestic Special Order vehicle ordered through the Los Angeles district sales office. Your other submissions seem to confirm what the warranty plate says. There are no remaining records left to further decode the circumstances of your DSO. Hope you enjoy your new vehicle. Let us know how we can help.

 

Welcome to FTE

Blimey! Ford: Flareside, a stepside is a Chevrolet.

WDM-F1 = Ford 9" Rear Axle / 3.50-1 / No Limited Slip / 3,300 lbs. Rear Axle Capacity.

5CA = Assembled the first week (A) of March (C), 1965 (5).

301 = Assembly Plant code.

 

Hi, thanks all that's great I got a bit of paper and actually worked my way through all the data last night using other threads on here and came up with basically the same info which is great I love the fact it's possibly very original as my 11 year old son and I will be restoring it. The DSO had me stumped a bit but I now understand that since I have a 6 digit DSO it's a special order, I think only due to the colour which is a sort of beige.

My only concern was the engine block casting code C5AE-A is listed as a 390 on other sites with the -C being listed as a 352, however there are a scattering of other threads suggesting they made 352's with the -A in 1965 and also it would be a big coincidence that it was replaced with a 390 from exactly the same year if there's anyone that could shed some more certainty on this that would help, when I pick up the truck I can take out a plug and measure the stroke to try and help this as well I guess

 

Casting numbers are foundry marks, cannot be cross referenced to Ford part numbers.

Casting numbers on FE blocks are WORTHLESS for ID'ing the engine sizes or what the engines are from.

Since all FE engines were originally cast as 352's, the casting numbers only refer to this engine.

 

Hi there, looking at other threads Bill you seem to know what's what, are you saying that the sites listing all the casting marks on the passenger side of the FE blocks are academic?? Mine is a C5AE-A and I was worried it should be a C5AE-C

 

Number Dummy likes to point out that there's a lot of information in print about these trucks that is inaccurate. If you DO have a 1965 version of the 390 it came out of a car as there were none installed from the factory. FE V8s in trucks started with the 352 in '65 - '67, then moved on to the 360 or 390 starting in '68. 352 bore is 4.00 inches x 3.50 stroke. 360/390 bore is 4.05 inches. 360 stroke is same as 352. 390 stroke is 3.78 inches. Checking the stroke will tell the tale.

 

Thanks again for the info, my head tells me its the original engine as everything about this truck looks original paperwork everything, so once the paperwork is done I will ID the motor with the stroke measurement then that should help decide.
It also has gold color valve covers which i believe fits more with it being an original 352

 

1952/65 FoMoCo OHV engines: Valve covers painted specific colors, as this is how FoMoCo identified engine sizes for garages/body shops.

Problem was that trucks could have the same color valve covers as Passenger Cars, but for different sized engines.

All 1960/65 FoMoCo engines painted black.

Black engine with gold valve covers: 1963/64 Ford/Thunderbird 390, valve covers embossed: THUNDERBIRD / 1965 F100/350 352 / 1965 Ford Passenger Cars 289 2V

Beginning in 1966, all FoMoCo engines were painted Ford Corporate Blue including the valve covers.