477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

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Shopboss
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477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by Shopboss »

Had a customer drop by today that is working on one. Combustion chamber is in the block like a 409 Chevy. Block is trash. They only made these a few years.
Anyone know what if anything will replace it.
Thanks
Donny
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by DCal »

You might try looking at the 462 Lincoln blocks, circa 1966. they had a 4.380 bore with a 3.830 stroke. it wouldn't take much more stroke, say 3.95 to get to 476 cid. The block height on those was 10.500 measuring like you would for a 409 Chevy. hope this helps. Dave
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by PackardV8 »

IIRC, they came in 401", 477" and 534". They were the ultimate boat anchors. Nothing good about them. You just have so much working against you on them. Excessive weight (about 1100 lbs.), very heavy reciprocating assembly (forget anything north of 4000 r.p.m.'s), and a really screwed cylinder head with small ports and valves, not to mention the combustion chamber being formed by the block deck being machined on an angle and a 'plank' head. The intake manifold is really stange on a lot of them too, partially cast in the heads.

jack vines
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by falcongeorge »

PackardV8 wrote: The intake manifold is really stange on a lot of them too, partially cast in the heads.

jack vines
Nothing strange about that...(FE owner) :lol:
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by cjperformance »

falcongeorge wrote:
PackardV8 wrote: The intake manifold is really stange on a lot of them too, partially cast in the heads.

jack vines
Nothing strange about that...(FE owner) :lol:

I think someone stuffed up the cores to cast the FE head and left out 1/3 of the head so they had to use the intake as 1/3 of the head to stop the leaks!! lol :lol:
Craig.
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by falcongeorge »

cjperformance wrote:
falcongeorge wrote:
PackardV8 wrote: The intake manifold is really stange on a lot of them too, partially cast in the heads.

jack vines
Nothing strange about that...(FE owner) :lol:

I think someone stuffed up the cores to cast the FE head and left out 1/3 of the head so they had to use the intake as 1/3 of the head to stop the leaks!! lol :lol:
I STILL think FE actually stands for "Farm Engine". I aint buyin' that "Ford/Edsel" story. [-X :lol:
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by Shopboss »

Thanks guys for all of the info. This is in a fire truck that is being used in a promotional tour for a restaurant chain.
They've spent a lot of money on the paint and a decal wrap job. (I haven't seen the thing myself) Anyway the engine is toast.
What the customer needs to know is what other engine,if there is one, that's close enough to the 477 engine family to be a trouble free swap.
The tour got started and they have a tight schedule, the engine goes kaput. #-o
Any Ideas.
Thanks
Donny
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by PackardV8 »

I'd go with a 460" BBF. That was the gas engine which followed the really-big-block.

thnx, jack vines
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by Ron Golden »

I agree with Packard. Drop a 460 in it with an automatic tranny.

Ron
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Re: 477/475 ford engine in Fire Truck. Anybody have any info?

Post by GerryP »

Shopboss wrote:...They only made these a few years. ...
I believe the "SuperDuty" gas engine was in service from the late '50s through the late '70s. Your best bet if you're looking for a direct replacement is a big truck wrecking yard. This engine was installed in the big jobs, dump trucks, fire equipment, and agricultural equipment. But unless this has to be an accurate replacement, I'd seriously consider a Lima or FE(FT) as a replacement. At least you can get parts for those and they weigh about 400lbs less.
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