Ford 390 c.i.d. Identification
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Freshman User
Joined: Oct 2006
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Ford 390 c.i.d. Identification
Hello everyone, I bought a 1978 Ford F-250 with a 390 in it. I am wondering first off if this is stock, I do not believe that it is. I was also wondering how can I Identify if this is a 390 or WHAT it is. Please help, thanks and best regards.
Hotshot
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 11,141
Likes: 25
From: south louisiana
As far as the books say 78's never had 390's. That was the year the switch to the 351M/400's. Of course someone could have swapped a 390 in there, or swapped the front grill to make it look like a 78/79. 390's have 5 valve cover bolts and the valve covers overlap the heads and intake. The water pump doesn't bolt to the timing cover, but fits around it and bolts to the block with 4 bolts. It could also be mistaken for a 360 as well, both it and the 390 shared the same block. The 360 had a shorter stroke crank and slightly longer rods.
Needsmorecoffee.
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 3,624
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From: CT
And you can ID just about every part by the casting/part numbers. FE blocks can be the exception as most block casting numbers are generic and used on differnet bore blocks. The FAQ section has specs on how to check the stroke if it is a FE. Besides what's written there you can put the balancer on TDC and remove the #1&4 plugs and measure the stroke. You'll get what I mean when ya read it. This will put #1 at TDC and #4 at BDC. The block will have a date code and those are easy to decode. So you can timeframe the engine and compare it to the build date of your truck. Personally I have no idea if the 78's had a 390. But as Baddad said someone might have swapped one in there. Heads, intake and everything else should have a casting number and date code. This way you'll be able to tell if the engine is completely original or a mix and match rebuild.
G.
G.
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Joined: Jun 2005
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i am also wondering if a 76 f-150 would have come stock with a 390 2bbl plz, im fixin to get one in a few days and id really like to find out more about it, ty yall. ps i am also kinda curious if anyone knows the output on this engine, and any quick tips on it for more horses, its my first older ford engine, tyvm
Last edited by wyldf350fx4man; Oct 10, 2006 at 09:02 PM.
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