What transmission in 79 F350 (auto)

Can anyone tell me what transmission is likely to be in a 1979 Ford F350 with 351 modified (400) engine.

Or how to identify it.. maybe some URLS that have that kind of info where I can look it up.

Starting from scratch its not so easy to figure out where to get that kind of info.

Reply to
reader
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On Sun, 06 Apr 2008 09:18:14 -0500, reader rearranged some electrons to say:

If it's automatic, it's probably a C6.

Reply to
david

Yes, automatic as I stipulated in the subject line. Thanks Were any other transmissions used on standard production vehicles at that time? ( 1979 ).

That is, might it be something other than C6 and still be a standard production vehicle?

Reply to
reader

First off - the tranny is more than likely a C6 as the other poster indicated. To find out for certain, either take the VIN to a good Ford parts person or look for a small metal tag attached to one of the pan bolts on the tranny (unless it has been removed and lost) and take that to a good Ford parts person....

Secondly (just for your information) the "M" in the 351M does not stand for Modified, nor Minneapolis, nor Montreal. It is like the "Honorable" in front of the names of the members of the House of Representatives or the "S" in Harry S. Truman - it has no meaning.... Also, the 351M and the 400 found in those years and models of Ford trucks are two different engines. I had a

1978 F150 with a 400 and a C6 until the 429 CJ went into it....The C6 handles that motor fine BTW...

DaveD

Reply to
Dave and Trudy

On Sun, 06 Apr 2008 22:55:02 -0800, Dave and Trudy rearranged some electrons to say:

True, but they share the same block & heads. The crankshaft and pistons are different.

Reply to
david

Are you sure the vin tells what transmission is installed?

I was trying for the lazy route. But I also expected it to be C6.

Just an aside... did you find the 429 to fell more powerful? Also do you know if the 460 from that same era can be installed in place of the 400? Will the C6 handle it too?

OK, I've apparently been living on anecdotes and assumed ideas about this stuff.

I thought the 351 C (Cleveland?) which stopped production in 1974 was the precursor of the 351 M and in parts stores they call it the 351 modified. I was told it was a modified 351 Cleveland and that the modification was that it was bored to `400'

Then there is the smaller block 351W which was in lots of ford vans at one time. I was told the 351W was called W because of its manufacture in Windsor Canada. Is that also wrong?

I called the 351W `smaller block' but again just going by sight. The

351W looks kind of narrow compared to the 351 Clevland or the 351M

So I picked this stuff up from parts people and mechanics and never questioned its accuracy.

Can you point me to your source for the information you've posted. Its interesting to me.

One final aside: Those books that parts stores have for identifying the oil filter or air filter for your vehicle usually show the different engines found in a specific yr vehicles.

Do you know if one of those is available on line anywhere?

Reply to
reader

For other interested posters I googled this up:

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It runs down the sequence and history about those engines a bit.

Reply to
reader

The VIN does not directly tell you the transmission installed, but a good Ford person may be able to look it up online if they have the VIN. The door tag (vehicle certification tag) will tell you the transmission installed.

References you might want to look at:

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Ed

Reply to
C. E. White

There is at least one error (or lack of information) on that page - the early 400 engines had the small block bell housing pattern, not the big block bell housing pattern. I think that was only true for 71 and some 72 models. I've never seen anyone provide a way of telling which is which without physically looking at the vehicle.

Ed

Reply to
C. E. White

thought the 351 C (Cleveland?) which stopped production in 1974 was the precursor of the 351 M and in parts stores they call it the 351 modified. I was told it was a modified 351 Cleveland and that the modification was that it was bored to `400'

Reply to
Spdloader

Almost correct...Same block, I think, different bore/stroke, I believe and different heads. Same castings for the heads but the chambers are different, IIRC...Is a moot point anyhow... The answer is 99.99 out of 100 had a C6, if an auto tranny... Good box. Strong enuf for just about anything, except a diesel or a twin cam 427. I talked with an old schoolmate who had a Boss 9 with a C6 behind it. Said it worked fine. As I recall that was the std tranny in most of the "muscle" Fords with autos... May be just my poor memory tho... Good luck with it

Dave D

Reply to
Dave and Trudy

The VIN should indicate which tranny is in it...One of the letters or numbers should designate that. A good parts person will be able to work it off the VIN, the door plate, or the tag on the tranny case, if it is still there.

Actually the 429CJ produced quite a bit more hp than the 460. Yes the 429CJ was stronger than the 400 by several orders of magnitude. The 460 can be installed in place of the 400 with some mods. Motor mounts must be changed. Also be prepared to either lift the truck or find another oil pan for it. The 400 had a mid-pan sump while the 429 and 460 (I assume) had a front-pan sump. Ergo, after the swap, I found that there was not enuf clearance btwn the sump and the front diff. If your truck is 4wd which mine is. If not, you should be ok....

I don't believe there was enough metal in the 351C to bore it to 400. Those cylinder wall were paper thin to start with.

Negative. That is correct. the 351W was the small block design made in Windsor Ontario.

Right. The 351M and the 400 were not a small block engine.

Most of it came from experience. There is a book (old book) called "Ford Engines" IIRC...The rest comes from my eldest son who is a partsman at the local Ford dealership

I would Google Ford Engines and look for books that might be available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc.... If you have no luck, email me and I will ask my resident expert.... Send it to: snipped-for-privacy@acsalaska.net

Reply to
Dave and Trudy

The only way I know of (other than looking underneath) is the engine casting nr.... Dave D

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Reply to
Dave and Trudy

One thing I forgot to mention when dealing with the 429 vs 460 is - the 429 was internally balanced while the 460 was externally balanced. This means that you don't use the harmonic balancer on the 429 and you must use the balanced 429 fly wheel.....So, if you look at the 429 be sure to get the flywheel with it and the front pulley, if possible....

Dave D

Reply to
Dave and Trudy

It wasn't "bored" at all. It was stroked. Same bore as a 351, with a longer stroke. The "M" blocks had a higher deck height and bigger main bearings as well. I always bought into the "M=modified" story. Credible sources say it isn't so. I have no idea. The 400/351M block was always unique. The 351 "M" was a destroked 400. The 400/351M used Cleveland style heads that are interchangeable with the 351C, even if they are not identical (different valve sizes and/or combustion chamber volumes). Also, remember the 351C block was unique as well. It was "similar" to the SBF block except for some differences in water passages and the timing change cover area. It had the same bearing sizes as the 351W. And of course there were multiple 351C heads (2V,

4V, open chamber, closed chamber, etc, etc).

References I like:

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Ed

Reply to
C. E. White

On Mon, 07 Apr 2008 20:36:12 -0800, Dave and Trudy rearranged some electrons to say:

Almost correct... Same BLOCK. Same BORE. Same HEADS. 351M has different pistons.

Reply to
david

On Tue, 08 Apr 2008 08:22:58 -0400, C. E. White rearranged some electrons to say:

The 351C and the 351W don't have the same main or cam journals, although it appears the rod journals are the same. Also there is a significant differnce in the coolant flow, the 351C has a 'dry' intake, where the SB has coolant flowing through it.

Reply to
david

I am confused on the bearing sizes....

here is what I could find:

SBF (221, 260, 289, 302):

2.2486" main journals 2.311" rod journals Cam bearings - 2.081"; 2.066"; 2.051"; 2.036"; 2.021

351W:

3.00" main journals 2.311" rod journals (?)

351C:

2.749" main journals 2.311" rod journals

351M/400:

3.00" main journals 2.311" rod journals

Ed

Reply to
C. E. White

I didn't think those oil/air filter listing books would be the kind of thing one could find at Barnes and Noble... but I guess they must come from somewhere.

I can't recall without a trip to the auto parts store, who publishes those things.

Maybe a call while he's at work, to your resident expert could establish at least who published the listings for his parts store.

That sort of thing must surely be on line somewhere. It may be that access is not public though.

My email address is in the `From' field of my messages and is not munged in any way if you should want to take this private, but I suspect the publisher and possible URL for one of those oil/air filter books would be of interest generally here.

Reply to
reader

Would it be safe to assume then that since mine is 1979 that it would have come with a 351 M that has the bell housing that fits a 429 or

460?
Reply to
reader

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