There was a post today on MySpace about hot rod songs that got me thinking; why doesn't hardly anyone nowadays build rods with the 337 CI Lincoln Flathead? The displacement is almost another 100 CI and 50 more HP than a stock Ford flathead, so how come these don't show up more in traditional rods? It seems like a cinch, but what are the drawbacks AND how different are the Lincoln motors to the Ford/Mercury motors? Just wondering, thanks, -ejk
I could be wrong, but i think the Lincoln mill's are 12 cylinders for starters.. plus, hard to get parts, cost more and not as avalible as bent eight's.
In 1950 the Lincoln got the big V8 and some came with GM hydro's But the down fall is speed parts are rare and expensive. Rob.
I've never even seen one, that I know of. But I'm just thinking of the difference between bone stockers; ford vs. lincoln. Are they even worth looking for?
This Lincoln in an A was at the Hunnert car Pileup last year. The EFI isn't exactly traditional, but it looks cool.
hmmm, well I don't know how accurate this article truly is (they have Ike Turner playing keyboards on Rocket 88; he famously played the distorted sounding guitar), but it says that Charlie Ryan's actual 'Hot Rod Lincoln' was a v-12 just like the song. http://www.lincoln-club.org/hot-rod-lincoln1.html Anyway, is a Lincoln 337 v-8 worth looking for at all?
its very heavy, theres a lack of transmission choice, and lack of speed parts. that why i got rid of mine.
When I read the post "Hot Rod Lincoln" I thought you were thinkin of my friend Charlie Ryan. He built and wrote and sang the song of the same. His "A" had a V12,not a 337. Think there heavy and hard to find cool parts......OLDBEET
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- The 337 flathead was used from 48 till 53, then the 337 was an overhead for a few years till it was discontiued. They weighted in at about 850# and only had about 150 hp. The overhead was slightly higher hp. The V12 flathead used up till 47 only had 125 hp and 292ci. BOTH engines are BOAT ANCHORS, and very little aftermarket preformance parts were ever designed for these two engines.
at a bar in town last nite, slagkustom and i were in the bag straining to remember all the lyrics to hot rod lincoln and write them down on a bar napkin. needless to say we failed miserably.
Song lyrics; http://www.lincoln-club.org/hot-rod-lincoln2.html story about the car; http://www.lincoln-club.org/hot-rod-lincoln1.html
the lincoln motors are big and heavy...and the extra horsepower...puts them at like 160 hp...but the power to weight ratio made them not usuable... plus..they didn't perform...if they did we would be going after them...instead of fords motor... tok
Off the top of my head they are 145 horse, 900plus lbs with tranny or something like that, and also came in F-7 and F-8 trucks too There is a place on the internet that sells Multi carb intakes I dont remember the name though also has intakes for V-12's and caddie 8's too
Charlie brought the Lincoln to Back To The Fifties a few years ago....got a neat pic of me and him in front of the car....nice guy...(him not me!)
The 337 c.i. engine was know as the "E" series. Big, heavy, mainly found in trucks - and some Lincons - and was not a popular engine for hot rodders because the power to weight ratio wasn't very good. Plus speed equipment was hard to come by. Here is a drawing of what it looked like in stock form ... http://www.vanpeltsales.com/FH_web/...s/Flathead_Engine_complete1948-51_Eseries.jpg Click on the image for a larger drawing.
Didn't they use those in the big trucks too? I kind of like seeing cars with different engine, Lincoln 12s, Caddy flatheads ect. And if we were just going for horsepower the ford flatty would be history too. Remember that back in 55 a stock 265 Chevy would often romp a full race flatty. We use them because of nostagia, not because they are the fastest thing for the money.
Here's one just getting near completion over here......this one came out of a 49 cosmo. I wired it last week & to say there's no room is an under statement!!
Yeah, the 337 is heavy but a bunch of weight gets discarded when you give it the "hot rod" treatment. The factory aircleaner, exhaust manifolds, generator, ventilation plumbing and more all get removed or replaced with lighter components. The single biggest improvement (IMO) you can do to one of these is to put an efficient gearbox behind one. A lightened flywheel and say an aluminum T-5 trans would go a long way to providing "snappy" performance in a lightweight 337 powered rod, plus there is a major weight advantage with this modern trans. This engine is all about low end torque not high winding horsepower. In fact I understand these things held their own against the new overhead Caddys and Olds in `49 when talking stock to stock performance in those heavy cars. Some cool things about the Lincoln include, nicely designed exhaust ports that curve around the end cylinders with no sharp turns like the smaller Flattys. The intake valves are 1.7" in diameter and it looks to me there is a bunch more airflow available at the hands of a porter. These things (as was mentioned before) already start at about 100 cubes more (3.5" bore X 4 3/8"stroke). It does'nt take a brain surgeon to realize that with a little work you could be staring at a 400" Flathead. But alas in reality I think in near stock form a 337 could be a real satisfying and unusual hot rod powerplant. Just think the Lincoln Cosmo that they adequatly powered weighed in at 4500lbs, a typical Model A is what like 2500lbs? That's 2000lbs difference, man you gotta be able to feel that!
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