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User Manual: F65E

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he 4.6L Ford has been

around for over 15

years and it’s been

used in many of Ford’s cars,

trucks, vans and sport utili-

ties, so there are well over

five million of them out there

on the road today. That’s

good news for rebuilders,

because most of them are in

vehicles that are worth fixing

when they need an engine,

but there’s some bad news,

too.

Ford has made a lot of

changes over the years, so

building the right engine can

be a challenge. In fact, if you

include the front cover with

the engine, there have been

more than 10 short blocks

and 20 long blocks used

since 1991, so there’s plenty

of room to make a mistake if

you’re not paying attention.

It’s been four years since

we sorted our way through all

the different versions of these

engines that Ford has built,

so it’s time to take another

look to see what has changed

since then. There were quite

a few different combinations

before 1999 and there have

been several more since

then, but the latest variations

all revolve around a few key

changes:

• The heads are either

“power improved” (PI) or

“not power improved” (NPI),

depending on the engine, the

year and the application.

• All of these engines

came with a heavy crank and

rods in 2002.

• Some of the Explorers

and Expeditions had an alu-

minum block.

• There have been several

different front covers used

on both the cars and trucks

since ’99.

With all that in mind, let’s

take a look at what Ford did,

year by year, from 1999

through 2004.

T

Ford moved the power steering

mount up on the head for most of

the trucks in ’04 (see charts), so the

3L3E high mount front cover was

used instead of the F65E and

1L2E/2L3E-AB truck covers that

were used through ’03.

Most of the cars used the F6AE

front cover (left) through 1999 and

the XR3E/2W7E after that. Note

the difference in the bolt pattern

and the extra mount for the idler

pulley.

The dowels for the steel-

backed chain guides were

deleted on the late XW7E

Romeo blocks and a 6.0 mm

hole was added on the passen-

ger side because these blocks

used the plastic Windsor chain

guides starting in ’01.

by Doug Anderson,

Contributing Editor

danderson@engine-builder.com

www.engine-builder.com 11 2006 FORD TECH GUIDE 1

1-9 4.6L story 12/1/06 9:01 AM Page 1

Blocks

Ford continued to build the

4.6L motors in both the Romeo

and Windsor plants through 2004,

so there were still two distinctly

different blocks in use. Most of the

4.6L engines built during these

years were manufactured in the

Romeo plant because the Windsor

plant was too busy building the

5.4L and 6.8L motors, but there

were just enough 4.6L Windsors

built to make it interesting.

ROMEO BLOCKS

1999-2000

The XW7E block that was used

from ’99 through ’00 was the same

as the original F7AE block that

first showed up in ’97. It had the

jackscrews for the main caps and a

12.0 mm hole in the valley for the

knock sensor.

2001-’04

CAST IRON BLOCK

Ford continued to use the

XW7E block through ’04, but the

front of the block was modified

because they changed the timing

set. Two of the dowel pins that had

been used to locate the steel-

backed, plastic chain guides found

on the earlier Romeos were delet-

ed when these engines started

using the Windsor-style, all plastic

chain guides beginning in ’01. Just

as a side note, the XW7E block

was modified to provide more rod

clearance for the Manley rods that

were used in the Cobra motors ’03-

’04, but it still works for all the

other car and truck applications.

2002-’04

ALUMINUM BLOCK

The aluminum Romeo block

was introduced in ’02 for the all-

new Explorer. It was used in the

Explorer from ’02 through ’04 and

it’s been seen in a few ’03-’04

Expeditions, according to some

rebuilders. It’s a 1L2E or 3L2E

casting that’s very similar to the

XW7E cast iron Romeo block, but

there are a few noticeable differ-

ences. The intake valley isn’t

quite as deep because there’s a

vent passage in the valley that

connects the front of the block

with the back of the block. There

are two raised bosses for a pair of

8.0 mm knock sensors in the val-

ley, too. And, Ford moved one of

the holes for the front cover down

about a 1/2 inch, just to see if we

were paying attention.

WINDSOR BLOCKS

1999-’04

The F75E blocks that were used

from ’99-’04 were identical to the

original F75E castings except that

they had an 8.0 mm hole for the

new knock sensor. The Windsor

motor was used in the pickups

along with the Mustang and the

Expedition in ’99, in the Mustang

in ’00, and in the F150 Supercrew,

four door pickups from ’01

through ’04.

Cranks

ROMEO AND WINDSOR

There were two cranks used in

these motors from ’99 through ’04

with a couple of variations. There’s

a light one and a heavy one,

depending on the year, and they

had six or eight bolt crank flanges,

depending on the application and

the year. The Romeos always had a

The aluminum SOHC motor used in

the Explorer and Expedition has the

2L1E-DE/2L2E-AD high mount

front cover, but it’s unique because

one of the bolt holes was moved

down about a 1/2 inch.

The bolt hole by the water pump

cover was moved down about .500˝

on the 1L2E/3L2E aluminum block.

There’s an additional vent hole in

the front of the block for an air pas-

sage that goes all the way through to

the back of the motor, too.

The shallow valley in the aluminum

block left room for the air passage

that was added for crankcase venti-

lation. These blocks had two thread-

ed bosses for the 8.0mm knock sen-

sors, too.

The back of the aluminum block has

a vent hole for the air passage that

goes all the way to the front.

Rebuilding The Ford 4.6L Engine

2 FORD TECH GUIDE 11 2006 www.engine-builder.com

1-9 4.6L story 12/1/06 9:01 AM Page 2

six-bolt flange, but the Windsors

came both ways, so check the

application charts to see when and

where they were used.

1999-’01

The F65E crank that came out in

’96 was used up through ’01. We

call it the “lightweight crank”

because it had lighter counter-

weights for the lightweight rods

that were used through ’01.

However, we have seen a F65E

crank that was balanced for the

heavy rods in a 2002 Explorer

block. All of the balance holes

were similar to the ones in the

2C5E crank and the balance was

nearly the same as the 2C5E

crank when we spun it up with the

bobweights we used for the heavy

rods. There may not be many of

them out there, but putting a F65E

“heavy crank” in a motor with

light rods will cause a problem, so

be sure to check it out before you

make a mistake and get to do it

over again.

2002-’04

The 2C5E crank showed up in

’02 when the new, heavy duty

rods were introduced. The cast-

ing number isn’t always easy to

read, but the crank is easy to

identify because it has bull-

nosed counterweights instead of

the knife-edged ones found on all

the F65E castings.

Be careful though, because all

of the cranks for the 5.4L motors

are bull-nosed, too, so be sure to

check the stroke if you can’t read

the casting number.

Connecting

Rods

There have been four different

rods used in these engines,

depending on when and where the

engine was built.

ROMEO RODS

1999-’01

The Romeo motors used a

lightweight, press-fit rod

(F1AE/F2AE) through ’01. It usu-

ally weighed around 575 grams.

2002-(BEFORE 1/2/02)

Ford put a heavy duty, press-fit

rod that weighed around 615

grams in the Romeo motors in ’02.

The big end was beefed up, so all

of the additional weight (35 to 40

grams) was rotating weight. It was

a 2L1Z-6200-AA part number.

2002-(AFTER 1/2/02)- ’04

The heavy rod was converted

from a press-fit to a bushed design

after 1/2/2002. It carried a 2C5Z-

6200-AA part number.

WINDSOR RODS

1999-’01

The Windsor motors had the

lightweight rods from ’99 through

’01, too, but they were always

bushed instead of press-fit like the

Romeos. Apparently the engineers

at the Windsor plant wanted all

the bearing surface they could get

for the wrist pins that were used in

the truck motors.

2002 (BEFORE 1/2/02)

There were very few 4.6L

Windsors built in ’02, but they did

get the heavy duty rods along with

the heavy crank, just like the

Romeos. The early ’02 Windsors

should have been press-fit, just

like the early ’02 Romeos, but we

suspect that all the heavy rods that

were used in the Windsor motors

were bushed, because the

Windsor rods were always bushed

in the past so it doesn’t seem like-

ly that they changed their piston

design to accommodate a press-fit

rod for just a few months in early

’02. In fact, some people have sug-

gested that the Romeo plant

switched over to the bushed rods

to accommodate the Windsor

plant and their requirement for a

bushed rod, but we’ll never know

for sure.

The 2C5E crank (left) with the

bull-nosed counterweights was

introduced in 2002 along with the

heavy rods. It’s easy to tell the dif-

ference because the counterweights

on the F65E castings (right) were

always knife-edged.

There were a few F65E cranks that

were balanced for the heavy rods so

they have the deep holes in the coun-

terweights, just like the 2C5E cast-

ings. You can see the difference if

you compare the 2C5E (left) with

the standard F65E (middle) and the

F65E that’s modified for the heavy

rods (right).

The late, heavy rods (left and middle)

have more meat on the big end than

the early ones (right). Both versions

came with and without pin bushings.

Rebuilding The Ford 4.6L Engine

www.engine-builder.com 11 2006 FORD TECH GUIDE 3

1-9 4.6L story 12/1/06 9:01 AM Page 3

2002

(AFTER 1/2/02)- ’04

All of the 4.6L Windsors built

after 1/2/02 had the heavy, bushed

rods, even if some of the earlier

ones didn’t…

Pistons

There have been two different

pistons used in the 4.6L motors,

one that has a shallow dish for the

engines with the NPI heads and

one that has a deeper dish for the

engines for the PI heads. Both pis-

tons came with and without pin

locks, too, depending on the appli-

cation. There’s a slight difference

in the design because the ones that

were used up through ’00 had slip-

per skirts and the ones that were

used from ’01 through ’04 were a

full-round design. There is a slight

difference in weight (20-25 grams)

between the two designs, but they

appear to be interchangeable

because Ford used them with both

the light and heavy cranks.

ROMEO PISTONS

1999-’00

NOT POWER IMPROVED

These engines had NPI heads

with the big chambers so the pis-

tons had a shallow dish and press-

fit pins.

2001-EARLY ’02

POWER IMPROVED

The Romeo motors got the PI

heads in ’01 so the pistons came

with a deeper dish because the PI

chambers were smaller than the

NPI chambers. These pistons were

full-round, but they were still

press-fit.

LATE 2002-’04

POWER IMPROVED

These Romeos motors had the

full-round, deep dish pistons, but

they had pin locks now, because

the rods were bushed for full-

floating pins.

WINDSOR PISTONS

1999

NOT POWER IMPROVED

Most of the ’99 Windsors had

NPI heads, so the pistons had the

shallow dish, but they had pin

locks because the Windsor rods

were bushed for full-floating pins.

1999-’04

POWER IMPROVED

The PI heads with the small

chambers were originally used on

the Expedition and Mustang in

’99, so the pistons had the deeper

dish. All of the Windsor pistons

had pin locks except for the early

’02 motors that were supposedly

built with the heavy, press-fit rods,

but we’re willing to bet that all the

heavy rods for the Windsors were

bushed, so all of these

pistons probably had

pin locks, too. The

early pistons had slip-

per skirts and the later

ones (’01-’04) were the

full-round design.

There have been four basic

heads used on these engines

including the Windsor NPI and PI

along with the Romeo NPI and PI.

Each version is pretty much the

same, but there are a few subtle

differences within each type that

can get you in trouble.

ROMEO HEADS

1999-’00 NOT POWER

IMPROVED

The NPI heads with the oval

ports and big chambers were used

on all the Romeos through 2000.

Look for a F5AE casting with lad-

der caps and the four 8.0x1.25

mm threaded holes on both ends

of the heads.

2001-’04

POWER IMPROVED

Ford put the 1L2E/2L2E PI

heads on the Romeo in ’01. They

have ladder caps, square ports and

The “power improved” (PI) Windsor

heads (top) had square ports that were

considerably bigger than the oval

ports found on the “not powered

improved” (NPI) heads. Note the indi-

vidual cam caps on the Windsor head.

The original pistons had a slipper skirt (right), but

the later ones were a full-round design so they’re

slightly heavier.

The pistons for the “PI” motors

(right) have a bigger dish than the

ones for the “NPI” motors (left).

Don’t mix them up.

Rebuilding The Ford 4.6L Engine

4 FORD TECH GUIDE 11 2006 www.engine-builder.com

Heads

1-9 4.6L story 12/1/06 9:01 AM Page 4

smaller chambers. They also have

the extra bolt holes for the high

mount power steering pump that

was bolted directly to the left head

using the two bolt bosses that are

right behind the front cover and

just below the rocker rail.

WINDSOR HEADS

1999 NOT POWER

IMPROVED

All the pickup trucks that were

built in ’99 had the F65E-

BB/F75E NPI casting with the

oval ports and big chambers.

These Windsor heads can be iden-

tified by the individual caps, oval

ports and the four 10.0 x 1.50 mm

bolt holes on both ends of the

heads.

1999-’01 POWER IMPROVED

The XL3E Windsor PI castings

that originally came on the ’99

Mustang and Expedition were

used up through ’01. They had

individual caps and the 10.0 mm

bolt holes on both ends along with

the smaller chambers.

2002-’04 POWER

IMPROVED

The original PI Windsor heads

were replaced by the 2L1E cast-

ings in ’02. They had two extra

bolt holes for the high-mount,

power steering pump on the dri-

ver’s side, just like the Romeo PI

heads.

Cams

Ford has used several cams for

these engines, but we have nar-

rowed it down to four basic combi-

nations:

1) Romeo NPI

2) Romeo PI

3) Windsor NPI

4) Windsor PI

The specifications for the

NPI/PI Romeo and Windsor cams

are very similar, but the cams are

different because the gears are

pressed on the Windsors and bolt-

ed on the Romeos. The cam charts

on page 44 spell it out in more

detail along with the identification

numbers, part numbers and appli-

cations. You may or may not want

to consolidate as many of the cams

as we do, so be sure to compare all

the specifications before making

your decision.

Timing

Components

ROMEO

1999-’00

The chain guides on all the

early Romeo engines had a steel

backing and a plastic wear sur-

face. They also used the thin crank

gear (1.00˝) and the thick (.200˝),

powered-metal reluctor wheel.

The reluctor wheel we took off an

early core had a F2LE-12A227-

BB engineering number on it.

2001-’04

Ford made two changes to the

timing set for Romeo in ’01. 1)

They switched to the Windsor all-

plastic chain guides that were

mounted differently, and, 2) they

used a thicker crank gear (1.180˝)

along with a thinner (0.100˝),

stamped metal, reluctor wheel.

The reluctor wheel we took off a

later core had XW1E-12A227-

AA stamped on it.

The cam gears are bolted on the

Romeo cams along a spacer, but

they’re pressed on all the Windsor

cams.

The 2001 “PI” Romeo heads have

the same square ports found on the

Windsor “PI” heads in ’99. Note the

ladder caps that were used on the

Romeo motors.

The 2L1E Windsor heads had an

extra boss that was usually drilled

and tapped for the high mount

power steering pump in ’02, but

there are some early 2L1E castings

that weren’t drilled.

In 2001, Ford starting using a thin,

stamped reluctor wheel and a thick

crank gear (left) instead of the thick

reluctor wheel along with a thin

crank gear (right). Be sure to use

them as a pair.

Rebuilding The Ford 4.6L Engine

www.engine-builder.com 11 2006 FORD TECH GUIDE 5

1-9 4.6L story 12/1/06 9:01 AM Page 5

YEAR

VIN CODE

PART NO.

BLOCK

HEADS

CRANK

FT. COVER

’91-’92

(early ’92)

W

(Romeo)

F281-1-1-L

F1AE

F1AE

(NPI)

F1AE

(6 BOLT)

F1AE/F2AE

’92

(Mid-year)

W

(Romeo)

F281-2-2-LA

F2VE/F4VE

F2AE/F4AE

(NPI)

F1AE

(6 BOLT)

F1AE/F2AE

’92-’95

(late ’92)

W

(Romeo)

F281-2-2-L

F2VE/F4VE

F2AE/F4AE

(NPI)

F1AE

(6 BOLT)

F3AE/F5AE

’96-’97

W

(Romeo)

F281-3-3-LC

F65E-CC/F6VE

F7VE

F5AE

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F6AE/F7AE

F7ZE/F8ZE

’96

6

(Windsor)

F281-4-5-LC

F65E-BB/F75E

F65E/F75E

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F6AE/F7AE

F7ZE/F8ZE

’98-’99

W

(Romeo)

F281-3A-4-LC

F7AE/ZW7E

F5AE

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F6AE/F7AE

F7ZE/F8ZE

’00

W

(Romeo)

F281-3A-4-

LC2

F7AE/XW7E

F5AE

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

XR3E

’01

W

(Romeo)

F281-8-7-LC

XW7E

(w/o dowels)

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

XR3E

’02-’04

W

(Romeo)

F281-10-7-LC

XW7E

(w/o dowels)

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

XR3E/2W7E

YEAR

VIN CODE

PART NO.

BLOCK

HEADS

CRANK

FT. COVER

’

96-

’

97

X

(Romeo)

F281-3-3-LC

F65E-CC

F6VE/F7VE

F5AE

(NPI)

(w/o temp sensor hole)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F6AE/F7AE

F7ZE/F8ZE

’

98

X

(Romeo)

F281-3A-4-LC

F7AE/XW7E

F5AE

(NPI)

(w/o temp sensor hole)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F6AE/F7AE

F7ZE/F8ZE

’

99

(Early)

X

(Windsor)

F281-7-6-LM

F65E-BB

F75E

XL3E

(PI)

F65E

(8 BOLT)

F7ZE/F8ZE

F6AE/F7AE

’

99-

’

00

(99 Late)

X

(Windsor)

F281-7-6-LC

F65E-BB

F75E

XL3E

(PI)

F65E

(8 BOLT)

XR3E/2W7E

’

01

X

(Romeo)

F281-8-7-LC

XW7E

(w/o dowels)

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

XR3E/2W7E

’

02-

’

04

X

(Romeo)

F281-10-7-LC

XW7E

(w/o dowels)

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

XR3E/2W7E

YEAR

VIN CODE

PART NO.

BLOCK

HEADS

CRANK

FT. COVER

’

97-

’

00

W

(Romeo)

F281-3A-4-LT

F7AE/XW7E

F5AE

(NPI)

F65E/F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’

97-

’

98

W/O OIL COOLER

W

(Romeo)

F281-3-4-LT

F65E-CC/F6VE

F7VE

F5AE

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’

97-

’

99

6

(Windsor)

F281-4-5-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

F65E/F75E

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’

97-

’

99

6

(Windsor)

F281-5-5-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

F65E/F75E

(NPI)

F65E

(8 BOLT)

F65E

’

01

EX SUPERCREW

W

(Romeo)

F-281-8-7-LT

XW7E

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’

01

F-150 SUPERCREW

W

(Windsor)

F281-6-6-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

XL3E

(PI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’02

F-150 SUPERCREW

W

(Windsor)

F281-13-8-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

2L1E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

2L3E-AB

’

02-

’

04

F-150 PICKUPS

(’04 HERITAGE)

EX SUPERCREW

W

(Romeo)

F281-10-7-LT1

XW7E

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

2L3E-AB

’

02-

’

04

F-150 SUPERCREW

(’04 HERITAGE)

W

(Windsor)

F281-14-8-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

2L1E

(PI)

2C5E

(8 BOLT)

2L3E-AB

’

04

F-150

NEW BODY STYLE

W

(Romeo)

F281-10-7-LT

XW7E

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

3L3E

Cars

CROWN VIC/MARQUIS/TOWN CAR

Mustangs

Trucks

Rebuilding The Ford 4.6L Engine

6 FORD TECH GUIDE 11 2006 www.engine-builder.com

1-9 4.6L story 12/1/06 9:01 AM Page 6

WINDSOR

1999-’04

The Windsor motors used an

all plastic chain guide from ’96

through ’04, so the only difference

in the Windsor timing set was the

change to the thick crank gear and

the thin reluctor wheel in ’01.

Summary

That’s the story on all the major

components, but it still doesn’t tell

which ones were used for any par-

ticular vehicle, so we have includ-

ed some charts along with this

article that do show which cast-

ings were used for each specific

application, year by year.

You may notice some surprises

when you read over them. We

were surprised to see that the

Expedition had a PI Windsor

motor in ’99, a NPI Romeo in

’00, and a PI Romeo in ’01. And

we were even more surprised to

discover that there were PI

Windsor motors in the ’01-’04

F150 Super crew pickups and

that they came with a Romeo

VIN code, especially since there

weren’t supposed to be any 4.6L

Windsors built after 2000.

YEAR

VIN CODE

PART NO.

BLOCK

HEADS

CRANK

FT. COVER

’97-’98

6

(Windsor)

F281-4-5-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

F65E/F75E

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’97-’98

6

(Windsor)

F281-5-5-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

F65E/F75E

(NPI)

F65E

(8 BOLT)

F65E

’99-’00

W

(Romeo)

F281-3A-4-LT

F7AE/XW7E

F5AE

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’01

W

(Romeo)

F-281-8-7-LT1

XW7E

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

2L3E-AB

’02-’04

W

(Romeo)

F281-10-7-LT1

XW7E

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

2L3E-AB

YEAR

VIN CODE

PART NO.

BLOCK

HEADS

CRANK

FT. COVER

’

97-

’

98

4X4

6

(Windsor)

F281-4-5-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

F65E/F75E

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’

97-

’

98

4X2 & 4X4

W

(Romeo)

F281-3A-4-LT

F7AE/XW7E

F5AE

(NPI)

F1AE/F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’

99

6

(Windsor)

F281-7-6-LT

F65E-BB/F75E

XL3E

(PI)

F65E

(8 BOLT)

F65E

’

00

W

(Romeo)

F281-3A-4-LT

XW7E

F5AE

(NPI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’

01

W

(Romeo)

F-281-8-7-LT

XW7E

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

F65E

(6 BOLT)

F65E

’

02

W

(Romeo)

F281-10-7-LT

XW7E

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

2L3E-AB

’

03-

’

05

W

(Romeo)

F281-10-7-LT

XW7E

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

3L3E

’

03-

’

05

W

(Romeo)

F281-12-7-LT

1L2E/3L2E

(ALUMINUM)

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

2L1E

2L2E

YEAR

VIN CODE

PART NO.

BLOCK

HEADS

CRANK

FT. COVER

’

02-

’

04

W

(Romeo)

F-281-12-7-LT

1L2E/3L2E

(ALUMINUM)

1L2E/2L2E

(PI)

2C5E

(6 BOLT)

2L1E

2L2E

Econolines

Expeditions

Explorers

The steel-backed, plastic chain

guides were used on the Romeo

motors through 2000, but they

switched to the all plastic, Windsor

guides in ’01.

Ford switched to a plastic tensioner

on the 4.6L motors (right) instead of

the cast iron version (left) so they’re

not rebuildable anymore.

Some of the dowel holes for the intake

manifold gaskets were on the top and

some were on the bottom, so we drill the

second set of holes on every head to make

sure the gasket always fits.

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1-9 4.6L story 12/1/06 9:01 AM Page 7

With that in mind, here’s the disclaimer:

Over the past several years, we’ve spent a lot of time

researching all the applications so we thought the

charts were pretty accurate, but over the past few

months, we have gotten some new information, so

we’ve corrected them accordingly. The charts includ-

ed with this article correct some typos and incorrect

information contained in previous versions of this arti-

cle, particularly with regard to the front covers and

crankshafts. This is the most up-to-date information

we know of, but if you have any corrections or clarifi-

cations to what is provided here, let us know.

Here are some things you need to know before you

do it wrong the first time.

RING SETS

The Romeo and Windsor motors used different ring

sets so the top ring grooves weren’t the same. Don’t

mix them up.

INTAKE GASKETS

The holes for alignment pegs for the intake gaskets

have been moved from the inside of the port to the

outside and back again on some of these engines, so

it’s hard to know which intake gasket set to send

with the long block unless you physically check

both of the heads before you ship the motor. We have

eliminated the problem by drilling both sets of holes

on the intake surface so either gasket will work.

CRANK GEARS AND

RELUCTOR WHEELS

Be sure to use the matching crank gear and reluc-

tor wheel. The engine won’t start and run if you are

using the thin crank gear along with the thin reluctor

wheel. Installing the thick crank gear with a thick

reluctor will crack the front cover when you bolt it on

and lock up the engine, too.

KNOCK SENSOR HOLES

It appears that all the motors with the PI heads used

the new style knock sensor that was held on by an 8.0

mm bolt or stud, so make sure all the PI Windsors,

starting in ’99, and all the PI Romeos, beginning in

’01, have an 8.0 mm hole or stud.

The F75E Windsor block came with both 8.0 mm

and 12.0 mm threads in the valley, so you must use a

block with the right bolt hole for the specific applica-

tion. Some rebuilders avoid the problem by drilling

and tapping all the Windsor blocks to 12.0 mm and

sending a thread insert along with each engine. If you

choose to do this, we would recommend the “Bigsert”

made by Timesert (p/n 58121) that reduces the

threads from 12.0 mm to 8.0 mm.

All of the cast iron Romeo

blocks we’ve seen have 12.0

mm threads, so you can either

send the Timesert with the

motor or include the OEM

YEAR CASTING NUMBER OEM PART NUMBER

91-92 F1AE/F2AE F1AZ-6019-A

92-95 F3AE/F5AE F5AZ-6019-A

96-99 F6AE/F7AE F8ZZ-6019-CA

F7ZE/F8ZE

00-03 XR3E XR3Z-6019-BA

2W7E 2W7Z-6019-AA

YEAR CASTING NUMBER OEM PART NUMBER

96-99 (early) F6AE/F7AE F8ZZ-6019-CA

F7ZE/F8ZE

99 (late)-04 XR3E XR3Z-6019-BA

2W7E 2W7Z-6019-AA

YEAR CASTING NUMBER OEM PART NUMBER

97-01 F65E F65Z-6019-AB

02-04 (Heritage) 1L2E/2L3E-AB 2L3Z-6019-AA

04-05 (New Body) 3L3E 3L3Z-6019-AA

YEAR CASTING NUMBER OEM PART NUMBER

97-2000 F65E F65Z-6019-AB

01-04 1L2E/2L3E-AB 2L3Z-6019-AA

YEAR CASTING NUMBER OEM PART NUMBER

97-01 F65E F65Z-6019-AB

02 1L2E/2L3E-AB 2L3Z-6019-AA

03-05 (Cast Iron Block) 3L3E 3L3Z-6019-AA

03-05 (Aluminum Block) 2L1E-DE/2L2E-AD 2L2Z-6019-AA

YEAR CASTING NUMBER OEM PART NUMBER

02-04 2L1E-DA/2L2E-AD 2L2Z-6019-AA

Cars

Mustang

Trucks

Vans

Expedition

Explorer

4.6L FRONT COVERS You can use either a

Timesert or the factory stud

to accommodate the 8.0

mm knock sensor that was

used on all the “PI” motors.

You can see that cam snout

has slipped inside the tube

because it’s galled on the O.D.

The guys at Gopher Motors

took this cam out of a motor

that bent all the valves on the

right bank.

Rebuilding The Ford 4.6L Engine

8 FORD TECH GUIDE 11 2006 www.engine-builder.com

1-9 4.6L story 12/1/06 9:01 AM Page 8

stud (p/n

W704602-S309)

that has 12.0 mm

threads on one end

and 8.0 mm

threads on the

other end.

CAMS

We’ve seen some

Romeo cams that

have had the key-

ways in an unusual

location relative to

the number one

lobe. We couldn’t

find any cam gears

with different key-

ways, so we were at

a loss until we

talked to the guys at

Gopher Motors.

They heated a cam

red hot, removed

the snout and dis-

covered that it was

galled on the out-

side because it had

spun on the inside

of the tube when

the engine locked-

up and bent all the

valves on one

bank. With that in

mind, be sure to

check the location of the keyway

relative to the number one lobe

before reusing any of these cams.

Conclusion

The two valve SOHC 4.6L has

been one of the most popular

engines in many of Ford’s cars,

trucks, vans and sport utilities

since 1996. The three valve

engine that’s used in the

Mustang, Explorer, Mountaineer

and some pickups today is doing

an exceptional job, so it’s

inevitable that it will replace the

two valve motor, probably within

the next year or two, but that

doesn’t change the fact that there

are five million two valve motors

out there, just waiting to come

see us. EB

CAM

IDENTIFICATION

OEM

PART

NUMBER

COMMENTS

F1AE-6250-AA

F2AE-6250-AA

F6AE-6250-AA

F2AZ-6250-A

F6AZ-6250-EA

F6AZ-6250-CA

RIGHT HAND ROMEO CAM

* CAM GEAR IS BOLTED ONTO THE CAM.

* FOR ROMEO WITH NPI HEADS THAT

HAVE OVAL INTAKE PORTS.

F1AE-6A274-AA

F2AE-6A274-AA

F6AE-6A274-BA

F2AZ-6250-B

F6AZ-6250-DA

LEFT HAND ROMEO CAM

* CAM GEAR IS BOLTED ONTO THECAM.

* FOR ROMEO WITH NPI HEADS

THAT HAVE OVAL INTAKE PORTS.

1L2E-6250-DA

1L2Z-6250-AA

RIGHT HAND ROMEO CAM

* CAM GEAR IS BOLTED ONTO THE CAM.

* FOR ROMEO WITH “POWER IMPROVED”

HEADS THAT HAVE SQUARE INTAKE PORTS.

1L2E-6A274-CA

1L2Z-6250-DA

LEFT HAND ROMEO CAM

* CAM GEAR IS BOLTED ONTO THE CAM.

* FOR ROMEO WITH “POWER IMPROVED”

HEADS THAT HAVE SQUARE INTAKE

PORTS.

ROMEO CAM CHART

CAM

IDENTIFICATION

OEM

PART

NUMBER

COMMENTS

F65E-6251-BA

F6AZ-6250-AA

F7TZ-6250-BA

RIGHT HAND WINDSOR CAM

* CAM GEAR IS PRESSED ONTO THE CAM

* FOR WINDSOR WITH NPI HEADS THAT

HAVE OVAL INTAKE PORTS

F65E-6C255-AA

F6AZ-6250-BA

LEFT HAND WINDSOR CAM

* CAM GEAR IS PRESSED ONTO THE CAM.

* FOR WINDSOR WITH NPI HEADS THAT HAVE

OVAL INTAKE PORTS.

XL3E-6251-A8C

XL3Z-6250-AA

RIGHT HAND WINDSOR CAM

* CAM GEAR IS PRESSED ONTO THE CAM.

* FOR WINDSOR WITH “POWER IMPROVED”

HEADS THAT HAVE SQUARE INTAKE PORTS.

XL3E-6C255-A8C

XL3Z-6250-CA

LEFT HAND WINDSOR CAM

* CAM GEAR IS PRESSED ONTO THE CAM.

* FOR WINDSOR WITH “POWER

IMPROVED” HEADS THAT HAVE SQUARE

INTAKE PORTS.

WINDSOR CAM CHART

Doug Anderson is President of

Grooms Engines, Parts,

Machining,

Inc., locat-

ed in

Nashville,

TN. He has

authored

numerous

technical articles on engine

rebuilding for Engine Builder

magazine for more than 16

years. Anderson has also

made many technical presen-

tations on engine building at

AERA and PERA conven-

tions and seminars.

Sometimes the snout slips on the bar-

rel of the cam so the keyway ends up

in the wrong place. Be sure to verify

the location of the keyway before

reusing any of these cams.

Rebuilding The Ford 4.6L Engine

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