In my earlier post about finding low-buck engines in cars from the 70s and late 60s, I made brief mention of the possibilities which exist for inline six cylinder engines. These motors were the base engines for almost every domestic automaker in the 70s, and there are lots of GM, Ford, Chrysler and AMC sixes out there still today! These are the kinds of engines that your buddies or aquaintences will often give you for FREE when they yank 'em out of their mullet rides to make room for V8 swaps! If you have to pay ANYTHING for one of these six poppers, it's usually only because you just bought a $200 four door clunker to rob the engine out of! (Of course, as I've said before...buying a running, driving "parts car" for the engine and******* makes good sense...you can test drive the engine and trans to see that they work, and you will end up robbing lots of incidental parts off of the junker before you scrap the body...saving yourself lots of time and money!) The easiest six bangers to hop up would have to be the "modern" 194, 230 and 250 cubic inch Chevys. These can be found in almost any rear wheel drive GM car and even light trucks from the mid 60s to the early 80s! The earlier ones will be more desirable for those wishing to bolt on an aftermarket intake manifold, as the later versions had the manifold cast as part of the head to solve bolt-loosening issues. The older head will bolt onto a later block, however...so it's a simple upgrade if you wish to run an aftermarket intake. Crane and a few other aftermarket cam grinders make performance camshafts for the little Chevys, and Clifford Research sells speed parts for ALL six cylinder engines! The inline six Chevs are not designed to be high rpm screamers, so picking a cam that delivers good midrange power is your best bet! A single 600cfm Holley works great on these engines, although multiple 2v manifolds are available for a more nostalgic touch and work well also. I also got excellent results by running a Holley replacement carb on a 1978 Nova with the integral head! It surprised the***** out of me that the Holley carb worked THAT much better than stock, but that little car would run with a 305 Nova all day long! (I also "lost" the catalytic converter, stripped the emissions, and tweaked the distributor, but that was it!). The Chevy sixes like to run at 180-195 degrees...and you shouldn't worry if they run a little hotter than that...up to 210 is considered normal for these engines. Most will employ a simple four blade fan with no clutch and no shroud...cooling is not a big issue with these engines...so the smallish radiators in many rods will do just fine! The age-old favorite trick is to "split" the exhaust on Chevy sixes...it develops good midrange power and sounds pretty cool to boot! Single collector headers are also available for some applications...but I really dig the sound of a split six, so I'd just HAVE to go that way! Tranny choices for the Chevy six are wide open...they accept any of the small block or big block transmissions. Anything from a Saginaw 3 speed, to a Muncie 4 speed, a T-5 manual or any auto******* is an easy fit behind these mills. Additionally, the mounting points on the block make fitting these sixes into chassis with Chevy V8 mounts a snap! These engines came equipped with points up until 1974, and then HEI distributors after that. Either system works great...the six popper won't spin enough rpm in stock form to bounce the points, so stiffer rated points aren't really a concern. Go with your personal preference...points or electronic. Moving on to Ford...performance gets a little trickier to come by with the 170, 200 and 250 sixes. They are good and solid commuter engines, but Clifford Research may be your only real outlet for performance goodies. I contacted them about hopping up a 250, and they were exceptionally helpfull...they even sent me a spec sheet outlining the modifications I should perform to get the power I was after. They suggested one of their cams, and one of their kits which allows the stock integral head/manifold design to be modified to accept three carbs. This does involve some welding, but nothing too tricky. Yo're basically installing a carb flange at the front and back to compliment the one in the middle. I am not a big fan of Ford's Duraspark electronic ignitions, so I would stick with a points style distributor for the Fords...but that's just me! The electronic units work okay, and are semi-reliable...but the big "box" makes for a clunky looking installation vs the self contained units like GM uses, in my opinion. Three speed manual*******s and C4 autos are the norm behind these Ford motors, and I like a three speed for a classic "old time" flavor in a rod anyway! You won't win many races with a warmed over little Ford six buzzer, but they ARE plentiful and fairly solid...so you can get a heap on the road for pocket change with one of these oddball engines! The 240/300 cubic inch Ford truck six banger is an extremely tough performer that enjoys a wide range of aftermarket speed parts support. They make small block torque numbers with ease and can be found in F-series pickups all the way into the 90s! (Although after 1987, they were fuel injected and called by their 4.9 litre displacement). Fitting one of these bigger sixes into a rod may be a bit trickier than if using the smaller sixes, but nothing a little cutting and welding won't solve for the determined soul! Chrysler Slant Six engines are a cult classic amongst the Six Sect! They are litterally EVERYWHERE in thousands of Mopar built cars and light trucks, and their rock-solid reliability is the stuff of legends! Their odd design makes them intantly recognizable, and you either love 'em or hate 'em! Intake manifolds are available through the factory performance catalog, along with other speed parts, and the aftermarket is well equipped to help you coax more beans outta your Leaning Tower Of Power, too! Most times, a small four barrel and a header along with a hotter cam and a dual point distributor are the favorite performance mods...but I've even seen superchargers being run on these interesting little engines! Solid lifters are a slant six trademark, and performance cams from Crane, Clifford Research and Mopar are out there and ready to wake your little mill up! Manual*******s and 904 Torqueflites are the two basic choices for backing up the slant motor, and either one works well. The 904 is plenty tough enough to handle the torque of the little sixes, and needs little more than a shift kit and possibly a slightly higher stall speed on the converter to be ready to rock! 3 and 4 speed manual*******s are also a good way to get slant six power to the axle if you dig three pedals in your rod! The AMC 232 and 258 six poppers are good little engines that can be found in Jeeps and AMC cars far and wide. It's the basic design that grew to 4.0 and became the six to beat in the little downsized Comanche pickups of the late 80s and early 90s! The solid reliability of these engines aided Chrysler in coaxing impressive power from them! The older AMC six bangers can be hopped with parts from Clifford Research, and they are torquey little*******s right from the factory! Add a better intake, bigger carb and hotter cam with a header and free flowing exhaust, and you've got a motor that pulls like a little V8 but looks cool dressed to kill! Of course there are also the old Mopar flathead sixes, and the legendary 235 and GMC sixes from General Motors for a more honest-to-goodness traditional feel, but my point is that there are LOTS of lowly sixes laying around out there with rock solid dependability just WAITING to be plucked and slipped into your cheap, home-built bucket or rod project! Don't overlook that humble inliner that's probably right under your nose! I think six cylinders have a certain old school "cool" that preceeds their V8 counterparts. They were being hopped before V8s were widely available, and there's still nothing that can raise the hairs on the back of your neck like a hot six popper snarling through a split exhaust! Yes, six in a row CAN really go!
Another cool post Hack. Here is a link to more inline inspiration : INLINE INFO And here is a pic of a Blown Slant 6. Just to get the juices flowing...
Thanks for the good overview. Take a look at my avatar image. <---- And take another look at Ryan's "HAMB" banner at the top of the page. It's a cropping from this Hot Rod cover:
I am building a 3x1 200 like the blue one pictured on the cover for my 61 falcon. With my mushy rear suspension, it won't make the car much faster, but it's different and looks cool. I am also considering using a side-draft 3x2 300 for my '32 truck project. two more photos: 1. a slingshot 6-carb 250 by Ak Miller: 2. a pict of a 6-carb 200 for sale at a CA swap meet last year. I forgot who posted this originally:
Back in '74 I sold cars for a while at a Dodge\AMC dealership. One of the cars I had for a Demo was a Gremlin X with a 258\auto. Surprised a lot of folks stoplight to stoplight with that one. Power to weight in that thing was great.
Man as an owner of a Chevy with a 216 and a Hudson with a 254 straight 8 all I can say is inline is fine! That swap meet motor looks like it is running old cycle carbs on it!!
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