Small Mills can be Big Fun…

Small Mills can be Big Fun…

A buddy and I were talking about horsepower potential of the Cadillac 331 in my Roadster, and he used the old performance saying, “There’s no replacement for displacement”. He went further to advise that it would be cheaper for me to just drop in a Caddy 390 than to start messing with cams, intakes and blowers for my smaller cubic inch motor. The conversation when nowhere from there, but it reminded me of all the lower displacement V-8 motors I’ve had over the years, and the inherent coolness of the smaller-sized mills. If performance isn’t the paramount goal, there’s some benefits to these little choices. Here’s my favorites early V8 engines well under 300 c.i., and why:

  1. Ford V8-60: Steeped with Midget racing history, and what a cool look this tiny engine has. There are still a few good speed parts by Eddie Meyer and Offenhauser available, and the compact proportions means no butchering on a T firewall.
  2. Dodge Red Ram 241 Hemi: The Hemispherical V8 engines of the early 50s help Mopar gain a reputaion for performance that would last through the early 70s. The smallest of the bunch was the Dodge 241 introduced in 1953 and rated at 140 horsepower (then 150hp the next year).
  3. Buick 264 Nailhead: The 322 gets all the early V8 credit, but the smaller bore motor came out the next year for the base ‘Special’ cars, yet putting out a very respectable 143hp/150hp in 1954 and up to 188hp the next year.
  4. Studebaker Commander V-8: Sometimes knocked for being too Cadillac-like, the Stude 232.6 motor was still a solid (and lighter) choice for many years, with performance parts helping kick this stock 120hp mill into some serious numbers.
  5. Pontiac 287: The first Poncho V8 is an excellent motor could be ordered with 200hp that first year while the Chevy version (with the same bore) only made 180. It’s 75 pounds heavier, but a nice alternative to the SBC if you have a few extra bucks for the speed parts…
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