The Ford 4.6L Modular Engine
In the past couple of years we've seen more and more people swapping the Ford 4.6L modular engine in to their Ford Rangers. For years the 5.0L was the V-8 engine of choice, but enthusiasts are always looking for something new and different. More than likely you're reading this article because you're trying to get some insight on the 4.6L before choosing to use it. This article won't tell you how to put a 4.6L in your Ranger, but it will give you some insight on the 4.6L to help you choose the right engine. The 4.6 L (281 CID) V8 has been offered in 2-valve SOHC, 3-valve SOHC, and 4-valve DOHC versions. It has also been produced with both iron and aluminum blocks. The 4.6L SOHC 2-valve engine was the fleet engine of choice for taxicabs and police cars as well as hundreds of thousands of Crown Vics, trucks, vans, and Mustangs, they're usually easy to find and cheap to buy. Romeo, Windsor, Teksid, WAP, Triton it designs and produces cylinder blocks, cylinder heads, exhaust manifolds, drive shafts, camshafts and components for automobiles and commercial vehicles. Teksid, which is specialized in casting and processing iron, has plants in France, Portugal, Poland, Brazil, Mexico and China. Since 2007, Teksid S.p.A. Teksid Aluminum S.r.l. a company specialized in casting and producing auto components from aluminium alloys. Windsor Aluminum Plant (WAP) - Not all aluminum blocks were built by Teksid. Intech - Simply refers to the engines in Lincolns. It is possible to determine if you have a Romeo or Windsor engine by looking at the 8th character in the vehicles VIN number. VIN Y for the Mustang Cobra refers to the 2003 DOHC supercharged model. VIN 3 for the Ford trucks refers to the supercharged SOHC Lightning engine. VIN 6 refers to 4.6L SOHC Windsor produced engines.
VIN W refers to 4.6L SOHC Romeo produced engines. VIN X refers to 4.6L SOHC Windsor produced Mustang engines. The Mustang can be found with the Romeo or Windsor engine. The 1996-1998 and 2001-2004 Mustang GTs used Romeo engines. The 1999 and most 2000 Mustang GTs had Windsor engines. The 1996-1999 Mustang Cobras used the aluminum Teksid blocks. What's The Difference In Blocks? There are a variety of differences between the Romeo and Windsor engine blocks. Although Romeo and Windsor Modular engines look the same on the surface, they're different inside. Windsor came on line for 1996 to build 4.6L and 5.4L SOHC engines for trucks and vans. Although Romeo is primarily a car engine plant, it has produced Modular engines for trucks. Although Windsor is primarily a truck engine plant, it produced Modular engines for the 1999-2000 Mustang GT. Although they look similar, Romeo engines employ different blocks, heads, and cranks than Windsor. Most Romeo blocks are marked with an "R" in the casting. Windsor blocks are all marked with a "W" in the casting in two places.
Romeo heads employ bolt-on cam journal girdles. Windsor heads don't have cam journal girdles, just individual journals. Because Romeo and Windsor engines have different timing cover/cam cover bolt hole sizing, it is best to use Romeo heads and blocks together and Windsor heads and blocks together. Romeo blocks have jackscrew cross-bolted main caps. Windsor blocks have dowel pin cross-bolted main caps. Romeo engines have primarily six-bolt flywheel/flexplate flanges. Windsor engines have eight-bolt flywheel/flexplate flanges. Oil filter/cooling neck types vary depending on vehicle type. Timing cover depends on vehicle type. Romeo cam sprockets are zero-fit and slip right on. Windsor cam sprockets are pressed on. Romeo cam covers have 11 bolts. Windsor cam covers have 13 bolts. Different timing covers for SOHC and DOHC. Same basic timing chain/sprocket system for both SOHC and DOHC. DOHC engines have secondary timing chains for secondary camshafts. If you're building a 4.6 SOHC engine, you need to know there are two basic Windsor block castings, and four basic Romeo block castings. It's a good idea to keep Windsor heads with Windsor blocks, and Romeo heads with Romeo blocks to eliminate any confusion in your engine build.
