1932 Ford Model B Hot Rod
Discussion
some bloke said:
<oldfordpedant>
It's only a Model B if it was a 4 cylinder originally; otherwise it's a Model 18 or plain old 32 Ford V8. Also, It's a Tudor Sedan; only a coupe would be described as a 5-window, unless it was a 3-window coupe.
</oldfordpedant>
Speaking on behalf of a team of nerds, we love a bit of pedantry It's only a Model B if it was a 4 cylinder originally; otherwise it's a Model 18 or plain old 32 Ford V8. Also, It's a Tudor Sedan; only a coupe would be described as a 5-window, unless it was a 3-window coupe.
</oldfordpedant>
Thank you for keeping us on our toes. You are completely correct and we have updated the listing accordingly.
Wildmanfromafrica12 said:
Hi there
any historical reason it would have a Chev rather than A Ford V-8?
any historical reason it would have a Chev rather than A Ford V-8?
some bloke said:
My understanding is that an SBC is easier to fit in a small engine bay than an SBF, similar dimensions but an sbf has ancillaries in inconvenient places.
What he said, SBF is also front sumped so gets in the way of crossmembers, that means you may have to push the engine back and start cutting firewalls etc.Ford had the flathead v8 from '32 and it graced their cars until 1954, never made more than 110 horsepower, the Y block that replaced it was better (130hp at launch) but it never really caught much attention. the small block chevy came out in '55 ( 265ci, 4.3 litre with 160-190hp depending on model) and was an instant hit with racers and hot rodders, by '57 it had grown to 4.8 litre (283ci) and made 283hp. Moving in to the 60s the short stroke 327 and 302 engines were very popular for racing due to their shorter stroke - the fuel injected 327 was making 375hp in '66.
The small block ford (windsor family 289 then 302) didn't appear until '63. the chevy already had a big head start with aftermarket support for performance parts. Not to say the SBF is a bad engine, the 289 from early Mustangs in particular were quite good and of course many parts appeared in the aftermarket eventually including shallow sumps for crossmember clearance.
The sheer number of SBCs out there combined with the ease of fitment made them the "easy pick" for decades, right up to today. Fords? they're around, but not as easy to find here and you may need to dig for parts a little. It is reckoned there were over 100 million SBC's made between '55 and the late 90s when it was replaced with the LS engines.
It should be said for the Ford flathead is still a very popular engine in 40s - 50s era style hot rods, many, many parts and improvements are now available but they'll never make big power and its expensive, but if you're going for that era of car its very likely you'll be building a ford car and the flathead is really the only engine that has the right look.
There werre others engines of course, the Oldsmobile rocket for example, it took the crown for being the first mass produced OHV V8 in 1949 and by the end of the 50s was making 345hp, but these were big, heavy engines - more akin to the size of a big block chevy or ford.
That's a good summary Crafty.
I find tr interesting too, that Chevrolet (as suggested by Zora Arkus-Duntov) made high performance parts available from dealers, so you could stick a set of hi-po heads and a corvette cam in the 327 in mom's wagon and wake it up a lot.
Ford seem to have more small block engine families to choose from ( Y-block, small block - 221/289/351W etc, 351 Cleveland/400/351M) which made parts swapping a bit more of a faff that Chevrolet.
I find tr interesting too, that Chevrolet (as suggested by Zora Arkus-Duntov) made high performance parts available from dealers, so you could stick a set of hi-po heads and a corvette cam in the 327 in mom's wagon and wake it up a lot.
Ford seem to have more small block engine families to choose from ( Y-block, small block - 221/289/351W etc, 351 Cleveland/400/351M) which made parts swapping a bit more of a faff that Chevrolet.
Gassing Station | PistonHeads Auction Listings | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff