r.barn

The Mexican blocks had a little more webbing in the lower half of the block.
supposedly they were made from a stronger alloy of metal, but I have read that is
just myth.
Mexican block is same thing they are selling now and calling the 2 bolt SVO "Sportsman" block

Mexican Block will have an "M" in the middle of the serial number

like: D5AM-6015-AA or similar

tokinGLX

i bought a dart block off of adperformance. theyve been good to me so far, its been about a month and when i talked to them earlier they said it should be finished and shipped shortly. it was a complete forged shortblock 331(dished pistons, 9.5:1 compression, will be turbod by next summer) and i paid around 4600 total

myshifter

the mexican block will have Hencho En Mexico stamped on it. The main webbing is far superior to the standard blocks and thats where they crack, in the main webbing

r.barn

same thing as these, right?

http://www.latemodelrestoration.com/...0%201&comp=LRS

myshifter

ya its just about the same, the problem is that block is 1k, its only natural to step up to a dart block which is 2k, on the flipside I would much rather use a seasoned mexican block for far less money than the sportsman. One of my members run a 306 mexican block and has gone 10.15 and will soon see 9.90's, all motor 306. Now thats something

HACKGT350

yeah i would have to say thats something crazy right there. im getting my hands on a ford 9" with 4.10s ready to bolt into my car for 100 bucks so im going to jump on that even though i dont need it right now but where am i going to come across a deal like that again

hellas85stang

no its true mex blocks have more nicle content...FACT///

myshifter

uh huh and so do the aussie clevelands right? Suprisingly, talking to the engineers at the casting plant relay no sort of truth to these myths.

gspfunk

Anyone else read the last line in the description of the sportsman block?

-Extensive dynamometer and in vehicle testing has confirmed that this block should not be used for
engines exceeding 450 HP @ 6000 RPM

Also, I bought "The Official Mustang 5.0" book and have been reading it. According to the author, the Mexican block's strength is a myth altogether. Here is what he says:

Until early 1998, Ford manufactured 5-liter truck V-8's in its Cuautitlan, Mexico facility. Although engine blocks cast in this plant's foundry have been reputed to offer advantageous structural and/or metallugical properties, such reports are inaccurate. Blocks cast in Cuautitlan once weighed more than their Cleveland counterparts, and that is where stories got started. But the extra weight was not there for added strength. Mexican blocks were heavier because while Ford updated its Cleveland plant to produce thinwall block castings (for 1980), the Cuautitlan plant continued molding "middleweights." As a result, a 125-pound 302 block made in Mexico, in 1985 for example, weighted 6-8 #'s more than a comparable thinwall Cleveland casting. Blocks made in Cuautitlan all have short tappet bosses and they can be identified by "Hecho En Mexico" cast into the lifter valley, by an unfinished extaneous boss on the front of the left bank, and by the casting numbers that include the designations C8AM-B and D1ZM-AA. These blocks were manufactured for trucks built in and used only in Mexico. Cuautitlan also manufactured 351 V-8's as well as a little-known small-bore 335 cube version of that long-stroke motor made for truck use in Mexico only.

Sorry this is so long, but it's interesting...

tuff5liter

LOL EVERYTHING here says that.....even most of the citizens :-X