The Different Modular Short Blocks

chris91

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Came across this article and figured it would be a nice addition to the 2v section. Have at it my brethren!

Romeo, Windsor, Teksid, WAP- What's In A Name?
In a nut shell, not all 4.6L engines are built the same. Start reading the multitude of forums on the internet and you'll see people referring to the 4.6L engines using names like Windsor, Romeo and Teksid. So what do the names mean?
Romeo - Romeo is an engine plant. The first 4.6L engines built were produced in Romeo Michigan beginning in 1991 which was Fords old tractor plant just outside of Detroit. Most Romeo blocks are marked with an "R" in the block.
Windsor - Windsor refers to the Windsor engine plant in Windsor, Ontario Canada. Ford added this second engine plant in 1997 to produce 4.6L and 5.4L engines. As noted above, 1997 was the first year the 4.6L showed up in the F-150. Windsor blocks are all marked with a "W" in the block in two places.
Teksid - Teksid just refers to aluminum blocks made from 1993-1999 by Teksid in Italy. The engine itself was assembled in Romeo, Michigan. The Teksid blocks are said to be capable of handling 1,200 horsepower.
Fiat owns Teksid S.p.A., the largest iron foundry group in the world with a production capacity of approximately 600,000 tons annually. The company was established in December 1978; 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. runs also 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. The Windsor Aluminum Plant began production of aluminum blocks in 1999.

Determining Engine Type By VIN:
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 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.



Here is a partial list of vehicles and the engines that came in them:

YearMake / ModelEngine (VIN Code)
1992-2003Ford Crown VictoriaRomeo SOHC (W)
1997-2003Ford ExpeditionWindsor SOHC (6)
1994-1997Ford ThunderbirdRomeo SOHC (W)
1997-2003Ford TruckRomeo SOHC (W) & Windsor (6)
1997-2003Ford VanRomeo SOHC (W)
1991-2003Lincoln Town CarRomeo SOHC (W)
1992-3003 Mercury MarquisRomeo SOHC (W)
2002-2003Mercury MountaineerWindsor SOHC (6)
1994-1997Mercury CougarRomeo SOHC (W)
1996-2003Ford MustangWindsor SOHC (X) & Romeo (W)

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.

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. Here are the basic differences in Romeo and Windsor engines:

  • Romeo was the only Modular engine plant from 1991-1995.
  • 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.
romeo_stamp.JPG



  • 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.
  • SOHC has a standard oil pump and DOHC has high volume




SOURCE: http://www.therangerstation.com/Magazine/Summer2010/Ford_4-6.htm
 
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chris91

chris91

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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. If you're going to interchange parts and castings between the two plants, you better know exactly what you're doing or expect all kinds of disappointment, wasted time, and expense.
romeo_stamp.JPG
Note the 'R' in the casting indicating that this is a Romeo block
WAP_block.JPG

If you look closely at the aluminum block above it has a diamond pattern in the casting on the top of the block. This identifies this as a Windsor Aluminum Plant (WAP) block. If the block had squares it would identify it as a Teksid block.

In the casting numbers below; V = Lincoln & 5 = Romeo truck block in 1997 F-150

1991F1AERomeo SOHC Block (Solid transmission dowels) Same bellhousing bolt pattern as small block Ford.
1992-1993F2VERomeo SOHC Block
1994F4VERomeo Block (Hollow transmission dowels used with AODE transmission)
1996+F6AZ-CBRomeo Mustang Block
1996-1998F65E-CC / F6VE / F7VERomeo SOHC block Block has a second bolt hole to mount the extended housing that moved the oil filter to the back, closer to the bell housing, to provide enough room for an oil cooler.
Block may have been used in Crown Victoria Police Interceptor package.
1997-1999F7AE / XW7ERomeo SOHC block (F7AE Probably used as the primary block in 1997-1998 pickups & Expedition.)
Block has a second bolt hole to mount the extended housing that moved the oil filter to the back, closer to the bell housing, to provide enough room for an oil cooler.
Block may have been used in Crown Victoria Police Interceptor package.
1996-1999F65E-BB / F75EWindsor SOHC block Don't confuse the F65E-BB Windsor block with the F65E-CC Romeo Block.




Source: http://www.therangerstation.com/Maga...0/Ford_4-6.htm
 

KillNThrill24

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I don't know if I'm allowed to post in here as I saw it was locked awhile ago lol but AWESOME write up for mod motor noobs Chris!

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chris91

chris91

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Its all good. Ill leave it open for a couple days just to see if someone has something to add.
 

96blak54

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Good read for all the new come'rs!!

I will add
The first '91 4.6l blocks had an old windsor 5.0l bellhousing pattern and can be found in the lincoln towncars.
Also the npi heads for the first couple of years have combustion chambers unlike any 2v modular heads. I also know the intake port lead is completely different also.
 

The Electrician

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Ford introduced 3 different castings of 4.6 aluminum blocks





Tasked 1993-1999

Main%20caps%20Teksid.JPG






WAP 2001-2004

Main%20caps%20WAP.jpg






Aluminator 2005-2009 (some call it WAP NVH)

Main%20caps%20Aluminator.JPG








4.6 Aluminum BlockCastingWeight (lb)
WAPRF-1L2E80
TaskidRF-XR3E & RF-F6LE85
AluminatorRF-3L2E95











The following photos empasize
the difference between Aluminator block on the left (which is the strongest 4.6 aluminum block manufactured By Ford) and WAP block on the right

rmvfyx.jpg



2aacapz.jpg



wvtrua.jpg







Finally, I believe this would be an interesting reading regarding engine blocks and heads castings
http://www.terminator-cobra.com/castings.htm


Enjoy
 

96blak54

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Awesome tech man!!

If I can add, the earlier teskid blocks have a few revision changes to the main bearings. Be sure to note what year the block is and what its from or youll be searching the parts house modular bearings shelf, figuring out what bearings to use.
 

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