Thread: Modern Flatheads

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Originally Posted by Ralph Moore

Ditto, to everything said about the flathead, but there's nothing that looks better in a Deuce coupe.

Agree entirely. The flathead is a gorgeous engine. To me, there's nothing that looks worse than a Chevrolet 350 in a beautiful Ford roadster. One guy actually built a 700 horsepower flathead by reversing the intake and exhaust ports (how that's done I'm not sure) and running racing fuel.

A few of us just had a discussion this past weekend at Billetproof about modern engines vs engines like flatheads, Studebakers, Caddys, etc. One guy said he hears from owners of those motors that they would love to attend some faraway event but they are afraid to take them that far in case something happens. The reason is that you can't easily find for example a flathead coil at Autozone, whereas you can practically rebuild a small block Chevy or Ford engine right in their parking lot and get most of the parts right off their shelves.

This is precisely my logic when I build a car. I like something that looks like it might have been built in the 50's but I am not a slave to tradition. I use modern engines, and accessories like alternators and electric fans. I want to check the oil, top off the tank, and head out for a trip with little more than a few hand tools under the seat.

We did exactly that this past weekend....4 hours each way and never once did I have to wonder if the simple little sbc powering it would get us there and back. Same with my 27. In the 7 years I owned it I had it to Daytona 3 times, drove it daily for work, and never did the sbf fail to pull into the garage under it's own power that night. So, this isn't to defame our beloved flatheads, but they are 1932 technology in a 2009 world.

Don

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

The reason is that you can't easily find for example a flathead coil at Autozone, whereas you can practically rebuild a small block Chevy or Ford engine right in their parking lot and get most of the parts right off their shelves.

This is precisely my logic when I build a car. I like something that looks like it might have been built in the 50's but I am not a slave to tradition.

Don

Don,

I see your point, and it makes sense from a budget standpoint. It's certainly more user friendly and modern small block Fords are great. What gets me is putting a Chevy engine in a classic Ford. Chevy engines aren't superior to Ford engines, and the car winds up not being a Ford or not being a Chevy. (I don't mean to offend anyone. I appreciate the product of anyone's hard work. this is just my aesthetic opinion).

Take a look at this:

http://www.hotrod.com/techarticles/e.../photo_02.html

It certainly isn't cheap, but it is a work of art. I'd take one in a '32 Ford Convertible over almost anything else for that car.