by Society Staff – reprint with permission only

History of 260 and 289

The Ford Windsor engine is a 90-degree small-block V8. It was introduced in 1962, replacing the old Ford “Y-block” engine. Though not all of the engines in this family were produced at the Windsor, Ontario engine plant, in fact all Ford small blocks came from the Cleveland, Ohio plant until 1966, the nickname was applied because the Cleveland plant produced the mid-sized 335 “Cleveland” V8, that was introduced in 1970, and the Windsor plant continued to produce the older design, hence the name to differentiate the two.

The “Cleveland” used splayed valves, much like the famous Chevrolet Big Block. it was intended to replace the larger 351 Windsors, but the older design ended up outliving its replacement.

• The engine was first produced in 1962 as a 221 cubic inch engine for the Ford Fairlane mid-sized car. This engine, was light and compact, but it was not much of a performer. The 221 was dropped after the 1963 model year.
• The next iteration, introduced during the middle of the 1962 model year, was the 260 cu. in. version. The 260 was released in 3 flavors, 2-barrel low compression, 4-barrel high compression, and a rare 4-barrel solid lifter HiPo version.  Ford dropped the 260 after the 1964 model year.
• Next came the famous 289, introduced in the 1963 model year, though it was popularized when it became the engine of choice in the 1964 Mustang. The 289 was produced in 2 and 4-barrel versions; in a HiPo version, and Carroll Shelby actually offered an even more potent version in his GT350 Mustangs. 1968 was the last year of production for the 289.

Later Versions

The engine grew to 302 cu. in. and later to 351cu. in.  In 1981, the 302 was debored to deliver 255 cu. in. to meet the then stringent emissions regulations. In 1991, the Windsor engine began to be phased out and was replaced with Ford’s new 4.6 L modular V8 engine.

In 1996, Ford replaced the popular 302 (5.0 L) V8 with the 4.6 L modular in their flagship vehicle, the Ford Mustang. The 302 was used in production vehicles until 1997 in the Ford F-150 pickup and until 2001 in the Ford Explorer.  The Windsor engine, including the 351 and 302 cubic inch versions,  are still being produced by Ford, available as complete crate motors, from Ford Racing and Performance Parts.