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Who makes a good 289/302 THREADED water neck?

5K views 13 replies 11 participants last post by  Maxum96 
#1 ·
I'm in need of a new water neck/thermostat housing that has a threaded plug so I can run another water temp sending unit.

I had a Scott Drake one and it fit great, but for some reason it seems that the aftermarket threaded water necks are a little iffy? I was looking at this one from CJ's:

Mustang Thermostat Housing With Threaded Port 260/289/302/351W 1965-1973 | CJ Pony Parts

Anyone bought it before?

I had an original but the plug was seized in. I welded a bolt to the plug and it actually broke inside the water neck! Whoops.
 
#3 ·
I have that exact housing from CJ's, been on the car for two seasons and about 5,000 miles with no issues.
I don't use the threaded port, I used some sealant and a threaded plug.
 
#8 ·
A little note, just did mine for the fan setup, any parts store has em for ealy model ford, the sensor thread is straight not pipe thread, so you may end up having to purchase a NPT tap ($9), any good hardware store has it. I lost count how many times the counter guys tried to tell me it was already threaded as NPT. If you try to put the sensor fitting in without tapping first, you might split the thermostat housing if you tighten it down too far.
 
#9 ·
Our '68 289 has a really nice cast iron housing I bought at NAPA years ago.
I only found this one in their current listing. Looks like pretty thick cast aluminum.

NAPA AUTO PARTS
 
#10 ·
Okay, the one everyone has linked is actually produced by Murray.

I bought one today and installed it. It looks okay, but there are a few casting issues on it. The thermostat opening is too big and the t stat wobbles around, the coolant bypass inlet is too large, and there was a ton of casting flash on the inside of the water neck opening.

I'm hoping the threaded area at least will stay sealed!

I'll looking around for an original just incase this one isn't up to par.
 
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