Curious to know what would have made the best street motor for a Model A coupe, circa 1961? I'm limiting things to postwar V8s and deliberately omitting the small-block Ford. In addition to your vote, please let me know your rationale. Thanks!
It would make sense. They were sort of the SBC of the time. No longer a technological frontrunner, but well-developed, firmly rooted in the performance consciousness, and with an abundance of speed parts available. True, HRM at the time is certainly full of 283s swapped into everything under the sun, but let's bench race about second place? Pretend I'm Doane Spencer and won't consider non-Ford power.
drop a 390 in it and call it a 352. a stock 390 will make more power than all but the raciest versions of anything else on that list. more reliable, cheaper, lots of parts still available....
I'd call it an Edsel 361 probably. I've already got the valve covers. Are 390s really more powerful than a 430? Or are you making a power-to-weight statement?
yeah, I forgot about the 430. pretty sure that is making more power than a stock 390 but with the weight difference and the cost of parts I think the 390 might win in the end. can you even get rebuild parts for those from anywhere other than kantor??
My last answer was just for fun. I actually voted this time, and I cast my vote for a 8ba style flathead. They look just right, they are not too heavy, and they certainly pakage and work well. None of your choices sans the FEs ever really made tons of power in their streetable form, and in this case I would go with pretty. I have a super low opinion of Y blocks though...
Think hot rod Lincoln. In my time I haven't seen a lot of MEL/FE powered As. I have seen a few Y block powered A bones and a lot of those Lincoln motors.
in ford motors at that time you got to go with a y-block ford to many late overhead motors caddy,s nailhead,s old,s hemi,s they all made more h.p. then most hopped up flathead,and by 61 alot were running sbc,s
Around north central U.S. nobody used flatties for hot rods. I remember seeing hundreds of 'em rusting into oblivian behind old buildings and in junk yards and in ditches, even. Of course almost all of 'em had SBCs and a few caddy ohvs. Y-blocks were plentiful and cheap and horse power was getting up there. That woulda been my choice of what you offered.
Well, so far the Y-block is way out ahead. Perhaps more interestingly, the flathead (in second place) is beating the FE! No surprise that the orphaned Lincoln motors are in the bottom half, with the Rouge 337 flathead sucking the bottom.
Back then, if Ford, it was a flathead, and when it wore out, or you wanted more power, in went a sbc. Simple reason for both, they fit, they were readily available, and lots of available speed equipment. Everything else took more money and time. Most rods were primary transportation and you wanted it back and running ASAP. Very few folks chose anything but a sbc when they put an ohv in their Model A, too much of a struggle to make it work.
Dad told me a really good story about a t-bird 312 he had in 53 ford car...that was like a legend when I was a kid.
In '61, Both the Flathead and Y-block would have been Cheap, Easy, and Reliable. But for pure smoke the tires, go way to fast fun, unlimited budget, the 1958 400 HP Super Marauder (430 MEL) would be the way to go. Fun Poll and thought experiment though.
Are we talking a Model A with basically stock layout or one that can have extra wheelbase? FE and MEL are heavy and large, with extra length added in front casing. Length would make them a hard install in a Model A of stock wheelbase, and they may even be too wide to recess into the wall. Lincoln FH is also heavy and bulky and not all that powerful. Practically no one was interested in that route then. Y block is closest modernish Ford fit, but is a worse fit than the older and usually bigger displacement/more power potential Cad and Olds choices. Those engines are not bad in length and overall fit and might even leave you room to bring your feet with you when you get into car. Older versions of these were the cheap choice for modern power in '61 too, newer versions are same bulk with lots more power and displacement. Ever notice that by '55 the soup your Y articles disappear from magazines and are replaced with swap your Y for anything GM or Chrysler articles??? The hot and actually expensive choice in '61 would have been the SBC...it had been recognized as the perfect replacement for the flathead, and was still expensive because every one that hit the junkyard was IMMEDIATELY sold to a rodder...yes, 283's and even 265's were still actually scarce used in '61 because demand was practically infinite. The later and the more Vette goodies the more expensive; a good running takeout fronm a wreck was almost as expensive as a crate one from the dealer!
That is the last motor I would put in my ride today (too belly button) but although you may have said that in fun, I believe in 1961 that would have been the most popular motor of choice.
It must be a cultural artifact that if I had a '52-'53 Ford I'd want to install a Cadillac V8. That and Fordillac is fun to say. How do the dimensions on an Olds 371 or Cadillac 365 line up against the SBC?
A bit wider, only a little longer with simple front accessories. Very compact for basic designs that can go way beyond 400CI (PS...both are heavier than SBC, the Olds by the most. Good and bad...heavy but has room for massive overbores and has very strong block webbing) (Best Olds parts and interchange guide was pubished in Popular Hot Rodding, circa early 1960's)
tri power flathead tri power 390 hp tri power 312 with thunderbird valve covers cant go wrong with any of the above a ford belongs in a ford and a mopar in a mopar chevy in a chevy glad to see your pole doesnt include sbc I compare guys who put sbc's in their hot rods with yankee fans they get on the bandwagon just because everyone else is doing it doesnt mean you have to good luck keep a ford in it