Turbo Flathead

The motor doesn't care or know how you are pushing the extra air/fuel mixture into the motor, a supercharger can easily make the boost you need(see above post on Mains streamliner) As said the limiting factor...or first problem to solve is what to do with the exhaust when you add 50%(or whatever) more air into the intake when the exhaust side is already bad.
If you are thinking of Bonneville, be sure to remember that certain Vintage classes don't allow turbos, only blowers for boost.
Hans

 

iv always heard that with ford flathead and turbos, the EGTs get too high and they can crack the exhaust passage in the block.

 

supercharged on nitro. How bout that?

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How does one overcome the oiling(pressure side) of the turbos? What kind of mods to the block and oil pump would need to be made?

 

I didn't do anything special except run an oil line to the turbos and a return that dumped where I thought the oil wouldn't hit the crank. It may be well to mention that I killed several turbos.

 

Speaking of Turbo flatheads. I could tell you what I think. As others are doing. Or you could read an interview with Jimmy Stevens and get the word from somebody who knows. 309 can't be bad. Search for the Bonneville Racing News and subscribe. In some up coming issues will be an interview with the owner/builder of this super flathead with lots of stuff about flatmoters you never knew. And you get lots of other interesting Bonneville-El Mirage and other LSR coverage.

 

Heat is a huge problem with going five miles with the tubocharged flathead. After going 280 normally aspirated, setting two records in 2009 without pulling the heads - running the turbo with water injection on alcohol with water injection, the #7 piston burned; the block cracked from water jacket to exhaust ports on many cylinders.

BTW: Jimmy Stevens is currently working feverishy to get the block fixed so the Costella - Yacoucci - Pappas - Stevens 788 entry can compete at El Mirage. They will be switching to unblown gas to finish out the season at Elmo, then bring the alcohol fueled turbo back to Bonneville for the World Finals.

Check out a couple pictures of the turbo flathead, the burned piston. My visit with Jimmy repairing his block and more.


C. Stevens

 

With stock exhausts, not those super duper top end ones, I think there is a special extra engineering hurdle different even than A-B bangers...turbo people work hard to get high energy/hot exhaust in there, but on a flathead 8 with stock passages the exhaust has lost a lot of energy going through a foot of water jacketed passage by the time it finds the door. I would think you would want in such an engine to figure out a way to get heat barrier coating in there. Maybe trained mice with pinstriping brushes.
Is that a reasonable line of thought, except for the mice?? Flathead exhaust on normal engines is quite cool in comparison to an engine with only a couple of inches of port...

 

I think all the people who opinioned that a turbo Flathead Ford V8 with OEM ports would be a bad idea, were right.

 

Nothing better than a Turbo Fattie.........Coolest at the top

 

Come on get some resent pictures of that thing posted. I have seen it pretty cool looking A

 

Jim hopefully I will be ordering the new heads on mon. As soon as get it back together i will try to post some new pics. Jim

 

Any new turbo flathead pics?

 

doesn't this thing reburn it's own exhaust? It is no wonder it has heating issues. I am amazed that the block lasts as long as it does.

 

Here's a local car with a V60 and turbo. Runs nice.

 

Hey --- If I can get 300+ Hp out of a VW engine designed for 24 HP in 1936 (My next VW project will be over 400) you should be able to turbo a Flatty.

My buddy is getting almost 1000HP out of 156 ci VW and just put a full body bug into the 7's for the first time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lIFdesU2Ho&feature=player_embedded

Turbo's work --- just a small learning curve to find the right parts in the right places

 

Reburn it's own exhaust? What does that mean? It's a turbocharged flathead Ford.

 

LOL, sounds as if Buster needs to learn how turbos work.

 

Here are a few updated pics of my car. These are water cooled turbos. I have not had any problems with overheating in fact it is the exact opposite but it is winter time here. That might change this summer but so far I have been running it without the fan.

 

Idea I've been knocking around: a turbodiesel Wasserboxer. Do you think it's feasable?

Tell me about the Fiat 600 in the background. My dad had one with a smattering of Abarth bits on it in the early '60s.

I've always thought there's something French about the idea of turbocharging a Flathead. It's something Citroën might have done.

 

Green Racer , I like the set up you are using what type of turbos are they? Volvo Penta? Thanks , Rob.

 

Hey guys the Fiat is my buddys he has had it for a long time . Doesn't get it out very often but he has a lot of cars to choose from. I think turbos are saab but I am not sure.I have an aod tranny in it and if I can get to shift right I think it is going to be a lot of fun.

 

Love the mud.. How about more pictures of the Mighty Fiat? Maybe a drag race.

 

Hey Jim heard you were in town. You could of pushed it out and washed it for me. I need to catch up with you and get my taillights welded in.
Greenracer

 

Man,
that thing is wild. I love it.

 

This may be of some use - a turbo Oxyboxer. Very techy thread, by someone who certainly seems to know what they are doing.

http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=66140&page=1

 

In 1979 I bought a completely stock 1950 Mercury with 34,000 mile with a bad carb. I also had a Corvair Spyder with the turbo and carb that did not run (paid $10 for whole car and 15 changes of title). Went to the muffler shop and made the setup to mount the turbo on the flathead. We drove the car to the Street Machine Nationals in Memphis, over 1000 miles roundtrip. The only problem I had was the car started to smoke so I pulled the motor and saved it for much latter projects. Upon dissassembly we found the smoking issue was simply the rings where stuck to the pistons from lack of use by the previous owner.

 

cool.

 

Hey the tail lights turned out great looking. No one will ever see them that engine is so cool and sounds great too.

 

Holder of THREE land speed records with FLATHEAD power! (Faster than Skotz)

Phil,

I just noticed your signature and the "faster" notation.....hahaha.....but mine is just an ol street driver....hahaha....just wait until the belly tank project gets going so I can gang up on you on the white stuff.....just have to finish the Dragster "round 2" first.

Just sent you some shots of the new block a few days ago....new computer, did you get um?

We must be a bunch of Nutcases, reading all these bizarre ways to make an antique engine run fast....