Roger King wrote:I had a chat, and I thought the prices were pretty good...
Values for blocks and correctly dated parts for these cars are only going to go one way now, I'm afraid. Over the years I've bought too many 'good' US V8 motors for £500 only to get them home, strip them and find they're junk.
Roger
Hi Roger, I know what you're saying, but there are engines & parts out there far cheaper. I missed a stripped shortblock 302 that had been clearanced for stroking to 347 cu in for £300. There was also a complete engine, carb to pan with all ancilliaries & with an auto box for £600.00. The going rate for a rebuildable engine is a pound per inch as a rule. If the guy can get what he's asking then good for him, but I certainly wouldn't pay the sort of money being asked, when you can get it cheaper elsewhere. I've just been offered a bare 302 block with standard bore for £275 that a guy's selling soon, so the parts are out there
Roger King wrote:I had a chat, and I thought the prices were pretty good...
Values for blocks and correctly dated parts for these cars are only going to go one way now, I'm afraid. Over the years I've bought too many 'good' US V8 motors for £500 only to get them home, strip them and find they're junk.
Roger
Hi Roger, I know what you're saying, but there are engines & parts out there far cheaper. I missed a stripped shortblock 302 that had been clearanced for stroking to 347 cu in for £300. There was also a complete engine, carb to pan with all ancilliaries & with an auto box for £600.00. The going rate for a rebuildable engine is a pound per inch as a rule. If the guy can get what he's asking then good for him, but I certainly wouldn't pay the sort of money being asked, when you can get it cheaper elsewhere. I've just been offered a bare 302 block with standard bore for £275 that a guy's selling soon, so the parts are out there
cheers..Nige
Sorry Nige, I wasn't clear - I wasn't talking about 302s, which may be more plentiful. The tricky stuff is the 289s, and they're getting harder to find now. Especially the 5-bolt block which was only made for, what, 18 months or so, 50 years ago?
As a comparison, try getting a decent std bore block for an early E-type for that kind of money, and I know which I'd rather have...
PaulB wrote:I've got a 6,000rpm limit set and it has a forged steel crank, so it should be okay......famous last words.
To be honest, it very rarely gets revved anywhere near that because I just use all the torque lower down.
Well, the elephant motor in my Interceptor never saw 4,000 in my ownership. You just don't need it with 450ci, even with nearly 2 tons. God knows what the fuel consumption would have looked like if I'd revved it routinely.
Ha! Dad was most upset a couple of years ago when talking to Jack Sears, discovering that his 6000rpm limit in the Cobra was somewhat short of the 7200 that Jack used when racing for Willlent!!!
That would have given him another 25mph and not be backing off halfway along the start/finish straight at Sliverstone!!!
nikbj68 wrote:Ha! Dad was most upset a couple of years ago when talking to Jack Sears, discovering that his 6000rpm limit in the Cobra was somewhat short of the 7200 that Jack used when racing for Willlent!!!
That would have given him another 25mph and not be backing off halfway along the start/finish straight at Sliverstone!!!
Trade secrets always come out after the event...
However, a 289 will always rev higher than an FE - short stroke, lighter bits of metal whizzing round. I think the 390s are red-lined at around 2750...