Hee, hee! It's always funny to see what comes up in one of these discussions. Seems like it's OK to put a Chevy engine in anything, but it's a travesty to put anything else in a Chevy. The only exception is a Hemi; if you have a Hemi you can put it in anything and that's OK.

Actually, the use of small-block Chevys is/was a matter of practicality. I remember when flathead Fords were everywhere. The big overhead Olds and Cadillac engines were the "holy grail" back then, but flatheads were cheap and plentiful and speed equipment was readily available... But then Ford stopped making them! And along came this little Chevy engine that produced twice the horsepower of the stock flathead, could turn 50% more RPM's without breaking anything, and was a few pounds lighter to boot. What's more, it was small enough externally to fit in place of the flathead without butchering the engine compartment, hence its instant popularity. The modern small Ford (302) is a screamer and parts are steadily becoming more available, but it's almost 4 inches longer, so they are a problem to install in some engine bays, especially '35 to '40 Fords...

Years ago I saw a custom Mustang that was really unique and probably the ultimate of not being "brand-loyal" - it was built on a Corvette chassis and had a Chrysler Hemi engine!