The 429 is known as a 385 family due, I believe, to the bore size being 385 centimeters. Cobra Jet engines received low-riser heads with a "rough-cast" combustion chamber (2.09int.-1.66ex. The difference in displacement between the two was achieved via stroke, with the 429 checking in at 3.590 . Representation from nearly all Cobra/Daytona/GT40 manufacturers Help from all over the world for your questions Build logs for you and all members Blogs Most estimates put the 1968 Ford Cobra Jet 428s at north of 400 horsepower. A date code correct 69 428 block could be worth a decent buck. The engine was widely praised for its performance and design, and it was by far the most powerful Ford production motor available. Chrysler had the 440ci RB wedge engine, not to mention the brutal 426ci hemispherical head motor known as the Hemi. ). The A blocks were the earlier type. The largest was the 390 cid, which Ford first brought out in 1961. Each engine was from a different Ford engine family, with the 428 and 429 both being big blocks. If you want to discover which 428 Cobra Jet powered Fords were the fastest muscle cars, how the engine originated, which vehicles had it, and how the 428CJ differs from the 428SCJ, then read on. Cyclone CJ comes with four-speed stick competition handling package, wide-tread fiberglass belted WSW tires, blackout grille, hood stripe, all-vinyl cockpit, low-restriction dual pipesall standard. These had the larger 600 cfm 4100. Whenever a . A police interceptor may have an "A". Also, 1969 was the last year of production for the famous Mustang GT. The 396 was a durable and slightly detuned racing engine that ran very hard. In seventh place is the 1969 Ford Fairlane Cobra. Testing 4-2-8How Much Horsepower Does the Ford 428 Cobra Jet Really Make? Instead, "Tasca Ford"the second-largest Ford dealership in the world in the 1960sinspired the 428CJ revolution. Ford got down to business and began by beefing up the bottom of the 428 block casting, which included heavier main bearing caps. But there was one thing about the 428 CJ that left everyone puzzled. At the '68 NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, California, Ford entered a number of specially warmed-up '68 Cobra Jet Mustangs. The 335hp rating was nothing more than a ploy to distract the NHRA from the CJ's true ability, in hopes of getting more advantageous classifications in Stock and Super Stock competition. The 428 Cobra and Super Cobra Jets continued for 1970, but there was also a new 429 Cobra Jet now. Massachusetts. Ford 428 Cobra Jet Engine Block & Cylinder Heads The connecting rod journal diameter measures between 2.4380 and 2.4388 inches. That is, the performance motors were either a CJ or a SCJ. Just two years into production, Ford introduced the 429 Cobra Jet and Super Cobra Jet for compact and intermediate sized rides like Mustang, Torino, Cyclone, and Cougar. The Super Cobra Jets got forged aluminum pistons and higher performance camshafts, as well as a high-rise intake manifold. Pioneered in 1967 as a stripped-down Holman and Moody prepared drag-ready Mustang for Tasca Ford, the 428 short block with 427 heads christened the KR-8 flawlessly balanced proven race engineering with factory Ford parts. The PI ran stock 390/428 heads, an aluminum intake, the same cam as the CJ and a 600 CFM carb. I want to register an account for free right now! Because of the long throw, the 428 was more of a low rpm / torque motor were as the 427 was a high rpm race motor. 428 vs. 428CJ - 332-428 Ford FE Engine Forum This summary comparison of major 428 engine components was prepared by Bill Barr, Principal Engineer for the 428 Cobra Jet engine development program at Ford Motor Company. At the same time, a Ford dealer named Bob Tasca was also looking to get more power out of his 390-powered Mustangs. Yet, while they were considered big blocks, the first generation of the Ford FE never had displacements of larger than 400 cid. During the 1970 model year, "DETROIT LOCKER DIFFERENTIAL" appears on the invoice of vehicles that came with a factory Detroit Locker. 428 cobra jet vs. 460. i was wondering if a 428 cj or a 460 would be a better engine for a street rod. Be sure to subscribe if you like content like this! Ford execs got the word. Ford Cobra Jet Guide - History, Specs, Engines - 1968-2020 What's the difference between a 428, a 428 Cobra Jet and a 428 SCJ? Or Super Cobra Jet horn reinforcement bracket What makes the 428 Super Cobra Jet engine so super? I have a set of stamps capable of stamping SCJ or Holman Moody or anything else you like into a block. . 3) An oil cooler Although the '67 Mustang looked a lot like the original, it was, in fact, a completely new car with no interchangeable sheetmetal. Makes you wonder how many were built at the other plants. In the January 1969 issue of Popular Hot Rodding, a 69 Mach 1 CJ 428 ran a 13.69-second ET with a trap speed of 103.4 miles per hourmaking it the tenth fastest muscle car of 1969. Cobra Make, Engine: Posts: 717. As a result, the 428 was less rev-happy but it gained a low-end torque punch that was absent in the 427. 390 Vs 428 block | Vintage Mustang Forums The Ford engineers kept the KR-8 so they could break it down and discover what made it so powerful. As with most deceptions, the ruse was quickly unmasked as the NHRA factored the 428 CJ into higher classes so it couldn't bully weaker machinery. (REGISTERED USERS DO NOT SEE THIS POST/AD! Good luck. He had been involved in the Thunderbolt program back in 1964. you could be driving 15 mph and just floor it, and it would break the tires loose, you certainally didnt have to powerbreak it to spin the tires like every other car.my father had a 74 caprice with a 454 and the Tbird was far faster than the 454. difference in 428 blocks? - Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums Ford Cobra Jets came in either 351, 428, or 429 cid displacements, and there were also Super Cobra Jets, too. Ford wanted to develop a new high-performance engine to help compete against other newly introduced pony cars that had stolen market share. : For registered members this ad will NOT show. Ford 7-Liter Engines Deciphered: 427, 428, 429 | Themustangsource A common misconception seems to be that SCJs were originally equipped with forged pistons and CJs were originally equipped with cast pistons. stronger. The most iconic are probably the Ford Cobra Jet Mustangs, which won numerous drag racing championships. The SCJ had beefier rods and an oil cooler. In April of 1968, when the Cobra Jet Mustang hit the showroom floor, it sold like blueberry pancakes. Although these cars were slightly different than what would shortly be on the showroom floor, word was out that the Cobra Jet package was the way to go. In 1958, Ford introduced their first line of big block motors, known as the Ford FE engines. Untamed European elegance indeed. As we all understand, the 390 wasn't standing up to the 396, and sales reflected this. The Ford 427 became immortalized in 1966, when Ken Miles piloted it during the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans (later chronicled in Ford v. Ferrari). Lastly, Ford engineers externally balanced the SCJ engine with a counterweight behind a different harmonic balancer because they removed the center counterweight on the crank. The C blocks started to be used in mid 1967 before the CJ production started. 428 Cobra Jet History, by Bill Barr The Ford 428 Cobra Jet was the high-performance version of the 428 FE engine, quickly overtaking the low-revving 390 CID V-8 as the high-performance powerplant of choice. Ford advertised the 428 Cobra Jet's horsepower at 335 (10 less than the Thunderbird) with 440 lb-ft of torque, and whether those numbers were accurate or not they didn't push past the 390 far enough to generate more than passing interest from the Mustang crowd for its inaugural 1968 year. Oddly, however, Ford never revised the sandbagged horsepower claims. The 428CJ was available in nine Ford, Mercury, and Shelby muscle car models between 1968-1970. The Mustang now had company in the ponycar market, and the new Camaro was no slouch. Very few were ordered because of the popularity of the new Mach 1 package. There is only one high-performance damper of the latter era: The SCJ damper, which has a heavy inertia ring, much like the LeMans. Welcome to Club Cobra! The Cobra Jets had three bolt caps instead of four like the Boss, and also did not have the screw-in freeze plugs like the Boss. It may be possible to mix components if every component of the reciprocating assembly is dynamically balanced, but why bother? i am putting the motor in a FORD 1972 short bed single cab pickup. 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1 428 Super Cobra Jet Muscle Car Of The Week Video Episode #91The Mach 1 handling and appearance package made for some good looking an. With the elimination of the 428 Ford Cobra Jets after 1970, this left only the measly, low compression 351 Cobra Jet as the only one remaining for 1972-74. Introduced at the height of the high-performance wars, big-block Cobra Jets acquitted themselves well in the Mustang and in other cars. The value is markedly different (about double). Never looked at or worked on any big block other than a 390. This became a private war between the automakers. Right to the end in 1970, the 335hp rating stuck. The rest of the info is the same. stronger. 428cj vs 460 | 460 Ford Forum The 429 was not produced until 1969. Educate me! The later piston, which appears starting around December 1968, is marked "428" and "SUPER" (thanks to Randy Pollock for the picture), and differs from the earlier pistons by having additional metal in the pin boss area. The real cobra jet block had reinforced webbing as well as a higher nickel content, i.e. the 428 CJ. The 428 SCJ was first introduced during the 1969 model year. YES! However, buyers would have to order the GT package if they wanted to get their hands on one in 1968available in either a coupe or fastback body style. There was some overlap of the C and A markings on the rear block face which means many early CJ's have the A on the block while many police and pasenger 428 engines have the C marking. (The hood scoop works.) Though almost identical in displacement, Ford based the new 429 Cobra and Super Cobra Jets on the 385 series. Is a "Q-code" a Cobra Jet and an "R-code" a Super Cobra Jet? | Mustang The valves are bigger but the real improvement is the exhaust port which is both wider internally and straighter plus higher exit point in the casting. The A blocks were made until mid 1968 model year. Unless specifically noted this comparison does not include the parts that are unique to the 428 Super Cobra Jet engine. Pictures of some of these parts can be found in the component identification section of this web site. The company was aware of the new Camaro project brewing over at Chevrolet. Some original SCJ blocks were stamped "super" on the front; if present, this marking was likely there to tell the original engine assemblers to use SCJ internals when building the engine (here's an example of such a stamping courtesy of Randy Pollock). Starting in February 1969 this complete package could be ordered as the "Drag Pack" option. I bought a 72' Thunderbird yrs ago it was still pretty powerful. Get The Top 50 Fastest Muscle Cars chart. The CJ came in the GTs place, powered by a 428CJ and a Spoiler variation that appeared midyear with a standard rear wing. Sorry, here's the other page. Factory horsepower and torque ratings were the same for both CJ and SCJ engines. http://www.mercurycougar.net/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/500/ppuser/5281/perpage/12/sort/1, http://www.428cobrajet.com/facts.html#five. According to Ford themselves, independent dynos showed electric Cobra Jets making north of 1,500 wheel-horsepower. In 1968, Ford released the first versions of their now famed V8 Cobra Jet engines. p.s. The 1967 Shelby GT500 featured a new 428 cid engine that had been used in the Thunderbirds and Galaxies. YES! document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Great article, but the 68 Cougar wasnt offered as a convertible! The 428 CJ and SCJ blocks have extra main bearing webbing and thicker main caps than the normal 390 or 428. I was wondering if anyone knows the difference between a regular 428 block and a 428 Cobra Jet block. Note that there is no mention of the Detroit Locker in the 1969 description, but it's clearly listed in the 1970 description. YES! Incredibly, he too put a 428 cid block in his Mustangs, but he took it a step further than Shelby. When the buyer selected the CJ option, the GT option became mandatory. George Anderson of Gessford Machine was kind enough to point me to a page from Ford's "Muscle Parts Description and Interchange" book, a supplement to the original "Muscle Parts" catalog that was published in July 1970, that clearly states that "all 428 engines use "dished" cast aluminum pistons with two sets of eyebrows cast so they can be used in right or left bank". The birth of the Cobra Jet engine package from Ford was in response to external pressures. They were almost a direct fit, and Tasca called his new creation the KR-8 Mustang. The 429ci Cobra Jet was a different entity entirely. The name is perhaps one of Ford's most enduring performance legacies. The SCJ block is the same as a CJ. Kevin later explicitly confirmed that "Ford did not produce 69 4.30 vehicles with Detroit Lockers. 1973-1974 351 Cobra Jets had smaller valves, which resulted in a drop in horsepower on some models to 245. The SCJ timing pointer is slightly longer to clear the larger harmonic balancer. The C marking on the rear face of blocks predated the CJ era. I have the option to purchase either one of them. Difference between a 390fe and 428fe? - Club Cobra Some SCJ block had the word "super" stamped on the rear. When identifying a Super Cobra Jet, you cant do it by the VIN as it shares the same R and Q code designations as the Cobra Jet. I'm not sure about how well a 429/460 fits in '67-70's though. These were sold as part of the Drag Pack option. The stage was set, and war was waged in earnest. While the torque claim was in line with expectations, many wondered why the big 428 CJ was only 10 ponies ahead of the 325hp 390 GT four-barrel mill. Also i was wondering if you hopped them up which one would have more horsepower and which one you could rebuilbd for less money, and which one would be less maintenance? A police interceptor may have an "A". The Mustang still used small blocks in their engines, with the 289 cid being the largest available. the 428 CJ. In 2020, Ford switched from massive superchargers to an all-electric platform, but dropped jaws by making 1,500 wheel-horsepower a worthy trade-off to get rid of the internal combustion engine.The future of the Cobra Jet is unknown, and its unclear whether Ford will ditch petrol for good and switch to electric, or if that was a one year anomaly. I want to register an account for free right now! Ranging from common problems info to performance modification guides, we cover everything muscle car. When the Ford execs at their plant in Dearborn, Michigan saw Tascas KR-8 428 engine in person they were impressed. Super Cobra Jet oil cooler adapter The Cobra Jet package added $287.60 to the sticker price of a Cyclone. 428 Cobra Jet Standard was 2.09 inch intake and 1.66 inch exhaust valves. What to look for when buying the brutish Ford Torino GT Best of all, unlike the fire breathing 427 FE (which was mostly installed in fullsize 1963-1967 models), the 428 CJ was commonly available in all the popular midsize Ford-Mercury muscle models. Ford released the original 428 in 1966, and in 1968 the Cobra Jet variant was born. I spoke to Rob Celedon the other day and his SCJ car has the same stamp on the block. The difference was forged pistons, solid lifter cam and four bolt mains. However, the original Mustang platform, as popular as it was, could not accept the larger engines Ford already had in its product lineup, because the engine compartment was simply too small. Slightly smaller in bore but longer in stroke, the 428 ran smoothly in street trim, but it was still a very powerful engine, with mountains of torque. 390 and 428 are different. Technically a midyear offering, the 1968 1/2 CJ combined 427 Low Riser heads, a cast iron copy of the aluminum 390 Police Interceptor intake manifold, the 390 GT's hot hydraulic cam, a healthy 735-cfm Holley four barrel, and streamlined exhaust manifolds to fight off the 396s, 440s and 400s from the competition. The 390 big-block version of the Mustang ran fairly well--well enough to post mid-15-second times in the quarter-mile. Twenty three years later 1992 bought a 289 GT Coup but soon installed a FE with cylender head mods and solid roller cam have ran a best 1.33 60 foot and a 6.39 eighth mile. Ford Cobra Jet 429-428-427 - CarMemories.com The spirit of Bob Tasca and Carroll Shelbys original 427/428 hybrids still live on today if youre lucky enough to see one in person. However, in true Cobra Jet fashion, Ford underestimated the horsepower from the factory. In its August 1968 issue, Motor Trend Magazine reported a 13.86-second ET, traveling at 101.69 miles per hour. The block and head were both cast iron, but some models may have had aluminum intakes instead of cast iron. 22 Though some claim the 428 CJ actually made in excess of 400 hp, we observed 365.1 hp at 4,800 rpm, almost 10 percent more than advertised. Also does the cj have a lot of low end. 1969 and 1970 CJ vs. SCJ parts identification. While 1299 may seem like a lot( compared to the lightweight Galaxies, Thunderbolts, 427 Fairlanes and Boss 429's) it is a small fraction of the numbers . Two-bolt main block Between 345-360 horsepower 428 Super Cobra Jet Internal structure differences included Lemans type cap screw rods The capscrews were shorter than the 427's to clear the block Externally balanced External engine oil cooler Here is some 429 info I gleaned off the net: First was the base 429, known as the Thunder Jet (TJ). The 428 Cobra Jet returned, and all Mach 1s came standard with a rear sway bar, and the Shaker Hood was now available on all V-8s, not just the CJs. Not only is the 1968 Mercury Cougar XR7-GT the fastest factory Cobra Jet on this list, but it is also the fastest muscle car of 1968much to the chagrin of Mustang, Torino, Fairlane, Cyclone, and Montego owners everywhere. Enter Bob Tasca, a Ford dealer who had a history of experimenting with Ford big-blocks for his dealership-sponsored race cars. However, it wasn't Ford Engineers that first developed this impressive powerplant. This summary comparison of major 428 engine components was prepared by Bill Barr, Principal Engineer for the 428 Cobra Jet engine development program at Ford Motor Company. It came in special Mustangs (and 2 Cougars) in 1969-70. Sadly, Ford discontinued the 429 Cobra Jet Mustang and other CJ-powered cars halfway through 1971. The factory power rating seemed to be a typo. 1968 was the year the wild Mustangand all other Ford modelsfell prey to the untamed Cougar. The 428 CJ cylinder heads featured an un-machined chamber of 73-76cc, 2.06" intake valves and 1.66" exhaust valves. The 396 was known in Bow Tie circles as the Mark IV and was further known as the "mystery motor" because it was developed in secret for the '64 Daytona 500. 427, 428, 429!!! Would someone please explain the differences of these Cast iron exhaust manifolds. Component Identification | Mustang 428 Cobra Jet Registry YES! The front maintained a full-width grille with an updated horizontally slatted grille, and, in the rear, the Cougar now came equipped with taillight lenses that were concave instead of convex. The smaller bore of the 428 was well within normal production line capabilities. Ford countered by introducing the FE-series 390ci V-8 engine for the '67 Mustang. Ford introduced the Mach 1 Mustang in 1969, creating an instant smash hit that outsold the previously popular GT by 67,062 units shuttering the GT model at the end of the model year. Four decades after its initial release, and 34 years after it was discontinued, Ford brought back the Cobra Jet badge in 2008. When the Camaro hit the streets with a 396ci engine borrowed from the Chevelle parts bin, Ford knew it had competition. However, it wasnt Ford Engineers that first developed this impressive powerplant. If so, please consider sharing a picture. The Model T has long been considered one of the greatest manufacturing feats in modern history, and Fords flathead engine transformed V8s for the future.
