302 mild upgrade
Hotshot
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 11,141
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From: south louisiana
If you're motor is a 78, it's got pedestal rockers. Better to remove one valve cover and check though, you can measure the pushrods at the same time. I say this because there's always a chance the heads and block aren't original to your truck.
Senior User
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 183
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From: Southeast Iowa
Have you considered checking eBay for rebuilt E7TE heads, they can be had fairly cheap usually, check the junk yard even. Your current heads are probably in the midst of 69cc chambers and the right E7TE heads will be 60cc, good enough to bump compression around 1 point. They also flow slightly better on intake, and a little better yet on the exhaust, and there's a retarded amount of info online to port these yourself. Such as diyPorting.com.
Hotshot
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 11,141
Likes: 25
From: south louisiana
E7's have 64 cc chambers. These came on 87-97 trucks, vans (5.0 & 5.8)and the 87-95 Mustang 5.0's. Also found in the late 80's Lincoln Mark VII 5.0. If you get a set off a 5.8 (351W) you'll need head bolt step washers to use with the 5.0's smaller head bolts.
Posting Guru
Joined: Mar 2007
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If you plan on roller rockers, you may want to wait untill you reassemble the engine and check how well the stock length pushrods fit with the new rockers before replacing them. With pedestal mounts, they should work perfectly, but better safe than sorry. That said, if you wind up decking your block or shaving down a set of heads, or buy a set of heads that have been surfaced, that can change your valvetrain geometry slightly. You obviously know a little something about porting small block Ford heads, because what you said is what most people in the know say to do to them. It would be a great move to replace those heads with the E7TE's, but I thought they were around 64cc not 60cc. Baddad, are you sure all those came with E7TE's? I could see a few of them sneaking through, but the T is a truck designation. Wouldn't Lincolns have mostly E7VE's and Mustangs E7ZE's?
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Hotshot
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 11,141
Likes: 25
From: south louisiana
No, all those I listed used the E7TE heads. E7TE is the engineering number prefix, and as such, does not indicate what vehicle they're installed on at the factory. Just because it's a so called "truck" casting, doesn't mean Ford would have used it in other applications as well. From 1986 to the end of production, they only used 4 heads on the 302/351's. E6SE's, E7TE's, GT40's (on the Lightning trucks and Cobra Stang, plus Marine applications)and the GT40P heads. The E6SE's were used on the "base" 5.0 installed in the big Ford/Merc & Lincolns. A few found their way onto the truck 5.0's. E6SE indicates a T-Bird head, but more of these were used in other applications than the 'Birds. It's also possible to find "left over" E5AE heads on some trucks.
Hotshot
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 11,141
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From: south louisiana
If you want the scoop on the parts used in the 79-2001 5.0's, get this book: "The Official Ford Mustang 5.0" by Al Kirschenbaum. This book was released thru Ford Racing and is the most complete reference manual on the 79-2001 5.0's.