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Ford apparently thought that the V6's good fuel mileage would be an attraction, but, it's miserable 112 hp and lackluster torque must have sold people on the 300 or 302. I've only seen 3.8's in F100 FlareSides with the small bolt pattern(GVW lower than 4750,) but, I've seen NP435's behind them.
You can also find the carburated 3.8 in 83 Mustang's, with 84 supposed to be CFI, but my 84 LX has a 2bbl....
Evan MacDonald
82 F100 FlareSide 2wd
HD 300-6 9.5:1 CR
Clifford 270H cam
Hedman Hedder
SBC valved 66 240 head
Headlight Relays - Delanty Style
NP435(6.69 low)
3.55 Geared ARB'd 9"
31x10.50/15 Cooper Discoverer LT's
[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 28-Jul-01 AT 01:17 PM (EST)[/font][p]Ford also offered a 255 V8 during I believe those same years. I personally have never seen either the 3.8 or 255 in a pickup, they must be pretty rare. Is this 3.8 V6 the same as the current 3.8 Ford uses (used?) in cars, etc?
The 255 is something along the lines of a small bore 302 with a, get this, hollow crank. The 3.8 is an older version of the current Mustang one(FWD's use a different bellhousing pattern) with different heads intake etc.
Evan MacDonald
82 F100 FlareSide 2wd
HD 300-6 9.5:1 CR
Clifford 270H cam
Hedman Hedder
SBC valved 66 240 head
Headlight Relays - Delanty Style
NP435(6.69 low)
3.55 Geared ARB'd 9"
31x10.50/15 Cooper Discoverer LT's
yup and the 3.8's are still damn lackluster and shortlived, damn sad they put the 3.8 in continentals there for awhile, fords 3.8 cant hold a candle to gm's 3.8 gen II
Yup, I'd much rather a Buick 231(turbo maybe?) than any Ford 3.8, the carbed Ford 3.8's actually are pretty reliable, but they have no power whatsoever, that's why the Mustang is getting a TT 351W :-)
Evan MacDonald
82 F100 FlareSide 2wd
HD 300-6 9.5:1 CR
Clifford 270H cam
Hedman Hedder
SBC valved 66 240 head
Headlight Relays - Delanty Style
NP435(6.69 low)
3.55 Geared ARB'd 9"
31x10.50/15 Cooper Discoverer LT's
Actually the true years for the 3.8L were 1981-1984. The 255 was used from 1980-1983. I've actually only came over one 3.8L and it was in a F-100 1982. Never seen a 255 yet.
Hey now, those old three-eights were some good engines. I hear about lots of them going to 200K before failure, regardless of whether they were carbureted or EFI. And they take some abuse! My old '88 Cougar had the EFI version, in fact. It was at 177K beaten and half-way maintained miles when I sold it. Only quirk was a slight rod knock for two seconds at cold start-up. It idled properly and had good power. Never left me stranded, although some a**hole reached through the grille and unplugged the TFI module once while I was at work. But let me tell you, this engine took some insane punishment when I had it... 24K miles of neutral drops, high-revving chases, mud, water, overheating, lack of oil, one-wheel burnouts and I could go on. So the power output leaves some to be desired, but I personally would buy another one in a heartbeat.
Although I've never seen a f-100 or otherwise w/ a 3.8 or 255 I've had/have 2 Thunderbirds with them, one was a 89 LX with 140k miles which was purchased with 30k miles and beat repeatedly for many years (I would still own this car if it wasn't for the driver seat falling through the floor due to rust) the other is a 91 T-bird with a 3.8 which is still in excellent shape (23k miles) keep in mind these are 4k lb cars and the 3.8 moved them with decent efficiency. (I should mention the 91 bird is also a 5 spd and is Supercharged=very fun to push the go pedal)