Real FE or 5.0 for my roadster?

Man, this thread really brought out the Ford guys!
Thanks Bill for the dimensions page. I figure I can take 100 pounds off the weight with aluminum heads and intake.

I'm definately gonna run tall skinny tires and a 15-16 inch steering wheel to reduce effort.

Thanks also for the Medina, Tx guy's info - I'll call him.

 

don`t over look the F.H. motor

 

I've got a 428 FE in my Model A Coupe 2x4 bbl on an old Offenhauser intake. This is the only pic that is small enough to upload.

 

Looks like a stout little ride. I like the headers - are they homemade?

 

FE = Fucking Expensive! Love them though.

 

What is more expensive about them than building anything else? The stock pieces, including the iron heads on a dirt cheap 390 are good for 400 hp. Anything gets expensive when you start throwing after market parts in. Even the SBC is starting to creep in there as more costly than they used to be. Machine work on a seasoned 390, a set of Eds heads and an RPM intake, a solid cam of 245° @ .050, 750 Holley and you have a lot of bang for your buck. You need a good oil pan, the stock ones are a little lacking, but you can run 6 qts in a stock system and wail on them. I have screwed them together for no more than anything else. Don't buy into that crap, anything you beat on gets expensive. If you want cheap, build it cheap, the rods with some ARP bolts, stock crank good pistons and correct fitting of everything makes them more than the sum of their parts. A very fun engine to work with on a shoestring budget, light, quick revving, and if you blow it up big deal build another one.

 

Im not a huge Ford engine fan, but have run a bunch of small Windsor motors. I am also into stuff with hoods, cuz DAMN that is an ugly motor!

Id say if given between the 2 Id go Fe as well. But, if it was my car Id run neither. As stated above, if you are just Ford only, a Y block is killer. Great looks and sound, and it prolly doesnt take much power to motivate a lil roadster down the road.

My ex has a 61 Ford fullsize with a built 292/4spd and 3.73 9". Shes got a bunch of money in there (in comparison to my SBC powered 55 Olds that woulda whopped it for 1/10th the $) but man that car moved! Fun to drive too. And sound? Fantastic!

 

I love that Y block sound too, its the same firing order as a flathead firing the corners first and having an X pattern on the inner ones. It is a very efficient design as to how it hits the mains and they live forever. They also stunning when you put a set of short stack injectors on because rather than run inline front to rear, they mount up and down in 4 clusters.

Here is a '58 F100 with a carbed Y-block, check out how it revs and burns out

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lh8V_WgLchE

 

Southern Automotive is a few miles from my house, I havent ever heard anything bad about them.

 

The Y block would be more period perfect for the car you have pictured. If not my choice is the FE. It's more of a challenge, but isn't that part of the objective. I'm running a cross bolt 427 in my 57 T-Bird with factory Ford tri-power port matched to the 427 heads. It was definitely a challenge but worth it.

 

FE !!!!
Also Metalman I think the roadster you are refering to belonged to Bill Burnam, Powder blue with steel wheels?

 

DROOL! Yeah what he said.

 

thought i would add our "big ford" in as well. originally 14-71 supercharged now twin prochargers.

 

FE engines ugly? What in the world would make you say something like that? Man you need to check out some recent threads with pix of Ford engines. They ain't ugly!

 

Oh Dear! That motor, my knees just went weak..........

Doc

 

Well Captain Cluless, he was asking for a choice between a FE or SBF. Pretty sure he does not care what you think is ugly, but wants some help in deciding. Perhaps a person who does not like Ford engines might be giving bad advice anyway. BTW, No Y blocks were mentioned. Maybe your local library has some reading comprehension classes. Now a SBF ( roller 5.0 ) is a great choice but the FE will grab your attention more for sure. Good Luck in your build. Thankfully it's not some crappy SBC

 

I'm a Chevy guy. But whomever said the FE was ugly needs a new pair of glasses. I agree that the factory iron intakes weigh just around 10,000 pounds.

 

Tri-power or 2x4 FE, inch and three-eighth spline top-loader gets my vote. Just make sure you brace up the seat-back frame. Good luck.

 

Go with the FE...........We race a 63 Ford Galaxie, "Texas Thunder" in NSS.........not too shabby for a 3400 pound race car.......9.63@140 ...Jerico trans and a Boninfante clutch.

Mark

 

If it was my car I would go with the Y-Block and a bunch of 97s, the sound is unbeatable, but that's just me. I also think the FE is a very nice way to go, they are not ugly! I had one in my old GTA Fairlane and basic stock 335hp would turn a respectable low 14 in the high 90s. They sound pretty good too!

 

I ran a lot of the FE motors and the Y Block and plenty of SBF motors. Since its your car it will have to be your desires to make that choice. All I have is suggestions like every one on this site. The only down side to FE's Y blocks ect is cost of parts and lack of if you have a failure on the hiway some place. The most HP SBF for the bucks is a 351 w motor.400 + hp available easy and plenty of people building them, If your a BBF fan 600 HP is available relative cheap with no availability problems. If money is no object buy a tall deck aluminum block for 422 cuin and 600 hp. The choices are unlimited so you have your work cut out for you to make that decision.
http://high-performance-engines.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=Ford
Check out these guys and here you can choose a HP you want. My thoughts

 

I would have to say FE as well. I recently grabbed a 390 for my '49 F-1. There are a million ways to build em, a ton of different looks you can get from them, and any way ya go...tons of power. After my puchase, I ran into a ton of old racers that are teachin me more about FE's than I could have imagined.

No matter what ya put in, drive it like ya stole it! At least its not a SBC!

 

Here's another vote for an FE. Thunderbird valve covers are the shit!

 

Two letters....FE

 

Yep, gotta be an FE....

.....but that is only because I'm building one too.

 

FE= Fucking Ensane.....another vote for the FE.

I do have to agree with everyone else, them damn iron intakes are heavy...The old intake of my 425 Olds was a massive hunk of iron too....the heads were lighter.

 

GO FE!!
Got 2 sitting in the shop. looking for a good home. Got the frames to put 'em in just need the time to get them all together.

 

A FE Ford engine, especially a 427, would be very cool. If you have the dough set aside to be able to buy a 427 from Southern Automotive, I'd say do it! The shop is about 20 minutes from where I live. It's owned by a fellow named Bill Parham, and he IS a go to person when it comes to Hi-Po
Fords, especially the FE's. He has some stuff in the shop that will make a hot rodder wet his pants.

Another '32 Roadster that had an FE that know one else mentioned was Tom McMullen's. Everyone is familiar with the 4-71 blown small block Chevy, but many folks forget that he later ran a 6-71 blown 427 FE that put out 850hp.

Just to wet your whistle, here's a photo lifted from the FE Ford social group here on the HAMB:



Looks pretty sweet, don't you think?

 

Every FE I've had leaked oil like a heifer peeing on a flat rock!!
Starter dragged
Pushrods bent
Rockers galled
Rockers broke
Rocker shafts broke.

Yeh, I vote FE

 

What's the word Alan?

Could be, since this is an old thread, the deal may be done.

IF NOT?!

Definitely FE.....although you'll want to have a buddy help lift the cast iron intake off. My uncle's wheelbarrow was never the same after I set mine on there (or my back for that matter).

Pretty indestructible too.

Even a 352 or 360 (especially on a light weight diet) would make that little hot rod scoot!