[mbdundee]

I am new to this forum. I have a 67 and a 68 cougar. The 68 is all original, original engine, tranny, rear end, so I was told. By the looks of everything, I might agree. The engine is a 289 and is tired and smokes out the driver side exhaust. Dry compression is about 120 to 125 all the way around. I pulled the heads and sent them in for estimates. Complete rebuild needed, $600.00 for both. I can get a rebuilt block with heads for $750.00. This is a pretty plain cougar, only option is Power Steering and A/C. My question, should I try to keep it original and rebuild the existing engine? Or go for a rebuilt replacement.
Also can a power brake assembly from a 67 be put on a 68? Looks like it should work.

 

[DroptopCougr]

Numbers matching is up to the person's personal opinon and their plans for thier car. Do you plan on selling the car after a while? If so, I'd keep the engine you have and rebuild it. If you want to just drive the car, then do whatever makes you feel the best. I would definently compare the prices on rebuilding the old one with a new one, as I would think it would be cheaper to rebuild your original. That's just my guess.

If you do decide to buy a new block and build it, I would reccomend saving the original somewhere. If you ever do decide to sell the car, you could inclue it with the purchase.

Good luck and just try and make a decision that fits your needs with the car.

 

[Parker Dean]

BTW, "numbers matching" on classic Fords is something of a misnomer. The term comes from the GM guys and the Corvette camp in particular. It means that the engine has the VIN stamped on the block. For Corvettes it can mean a lot of money and therefore a lot of fraud but that's another story.

Ford did not stamp the VIN on engines back then, so the closest you can get is the casting number/dates. And that is merely "close enough" since there is no way to know just how long the delay was between the part being cast and assembly of the vehicle. As a rough idea the casting date should be 2-4 months prior to the vehicle production date.

The casting number/date codes are cast into the block just above the starter. The heads have the number on the bottom of the intake runners and IIRC the date is in between the rockers. The intake casting number is on the intake runners.

HTH

 

[Cougar Kitty]

Always keep all original parts in case you sell the car. It helps sell it faster. I'd say more people would like to keep classic cars as original as possible.

 

[gt390xr7]

Both my cougars have nonmatching engines. But I knew about it when I bought them, so it wasn't an issue...

Bruce

 

[COUGRRRMAN]

Note: Several boss 302 and 351w eliminators have been noted to have VIN stamped on the block.
I had one. From the factory. ..

 

[Royce Peterson]

It's true that in 1968 Ford was supposed to be stamping VIN numbers into blocks. From what I have seen it was only occasionally done that year. You find it stamped into the top of every transmission though.