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I almost bought a new T Bird in '66, but bought a new GTO instead. My girlfriend at the time was not real happy with that decision, because we were getting into the nightclub scene, and she thought the T Bird was a better car to make an "entrance."
Speaking of T Birds, in 1963 I was a lot boy at the local Ford Dealership, and my job was to detail the cars and wash the others. One day a pretty light yellow T Bird showed up on the lot, and had real wire wheels. It was a very nice car. Anyway, I started it up to take it to wash it, and when it fired up it sounded totally different than every other Bird on the lot, so I popped the hood. It had a totally chromed 406 Ford with TriPower on it. When I say totally chromed, every accessory under the hood was chromed, as well as most of the engine. Come to find out it was a factory showcar as part of the Ford Caravan, and it was last years model, so it was being sold on the lot.
I wanted that car in the worst way, but on a lot boys salary, it was only a dream. I wonder if that car is still out there somewhere, because I bet it is worth a fortune now.
Enjoy your T Bird.
Don
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I thought my old 308 gtbi was high maintenance!:3dSMILE:
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You can use the 390 heads and intake. The std 428's that came in the birds shared many of the same parts as the 390's. When your the heads back you'll see a casting number between the center 2 spark plugs ex: C6AE-6090-J. This number will decode the heads but they should work fine otherwise. Then you need to decide if the 428 needs to be a 66 casting or if any 428 will do. If your trying to numbers match the engine to the car this can be a painstaking process. But it can be done and you need to do your homework. If you just want a 428 it's pretty easy to find parts. Block, crank, pistons and flexplate are the basic items you'll need. You can reuse the 390 rods if you choose. They are the same as the 428's. All the rest is std rebuild items. You can even sell the 390 block,crank etc...to offset some of the costs.
G.
