How many small blocks are there?
When I decided to build a GT40, my experience with Ford engines was primarily Big Block FE’s. While there are multiple configurations of the FE, there is essentially one engine with some minor differences. Easy enough
I thought that same logic would apply to the small blocks. Boy, was I wrong! The 289/302 has entirely different front dress arrangements, not just a couple but 11 at last count. And some couldn’t even be identified by year or model – it depended what Ford may have had on the shelf when the car ran down the line.
Nothing seemed constant. Even the engine block has different configurations depending on year, model and line (Mercury’s had some differences)
I found an older Motor Trend article helping to identify the various water pumps which proved to be very helpful.
So, what did I learn out of all this? It became considerably easier when I picked a particular year and model. In my case, I am building a Boss302 block. When I concentrated on the 69/70 Boss block, things became considerably easier.
My advice: Pick a year and model and forget all the periphery unless you need something specific (ie, the Ford Explorer pump is 1-3/4″ shorter than the others. An important feature to the GT40)
So, why not a Big Block?
The first reaction is ‘why not just go with a Big Block?’ But as you dig into the details:
- The big blocks were the MkII cars. The body lines are noticeably different from the MkI’s
- The torque generated by a healthy FE requires an appropriately matched transaxle. All the matching models begin at over $20k for just the transmission.
- There are substantial frame changes made to accommodate the physically larger engine which greatly complicates the build (sorry, the smaller 427Windsor wasn’t the engine the MkII’s were built around)
- Having built two 427’s, I know they carry a price penalty.
