302-351?

[dentside7977]

302-351?. i have a '79 f150 that i was told has a 302 in it. i didnt question it at the time. my question is, did any 302s have the oil dipstick that goes into the side of the oil pan or did all 302s have the dipstick that went through the block? I have a 302 in my fairmont and my dads '86 mustang and they both go through the block but my truck has one that goes into the side of the oil pan. i work at autozone and i was bored at work so i was researching what i could through our system. from what i could tell, only the 351 had my style of pan/dipstick combo. idk alot about windsors but arent they basically the same on the outside as a 302? thanks

[JMcTurnan]

Most went through the timing cover and into the pan, but as far as I know they did make some pans that you could put on that had it directly in the pan. I highly doubt that it is the original engine that was in there, but it may be. Most of the time when they put dip sticks directly in the pan, that means more than likely at one time that motor(or oil pan) was in a boat. As they use to do that, But yea I have seen some with it in the pan. But all of them had gotten the pan, and it wasn't their original. The 351' w the year '77 had a dip stick in the pan directly, and that is the only year I know of. But there still was a spot in the timing cover for a dipstick, but there is like a mini freeze plug in it. Qoite possibly, they did a switch of the pans, you can tell because the 302 has the hump towards the front, and the 351 has it in the middle to back.

[dentside7977]

the only reason i was thinking it might be a 351 is because i happened to look up an '85 f150 with a 351w and it had the dipstick in the pan like the one i have.

[fordman]

4x4 trucks use the dipstick in the pan trick. the way to tell which engine you have is several ways.
1 post a pic and we can tell you.
2 check the stroke of the enigne.
3 check to see if you can reach the lower thermostat botl with a socket or only a wrench. 302 you can only get a wrench on.
4 take it to the dealer and ask them to tell you.
plus there are other small way to tell such as the size of the intake manifold. the 302 is narrower than the 351. also try looking for a sticker on the valve cover under the grease. also there are 3 different 351's they are modified windsor and cleveland. the modified and cleveland will have the corners of the head showing. with either a number or a blank spot. the 302 doesnt have those corners showing. post a pic we will tell you what is it. a front shot showing the front of the intake and both heads clearly will tell us.

[FreakysFords]

There's a good 351 - 302 write up under engines in the wiki. Pretty much makes it easy.