Cast, forged, billet? Straight-shot or cross-drilled? Experts from Eagle, Lunati and Scat offer tips and advice on selecting a crankshaft for your engine.
Engine builders are often conditioned into selecting crankshafts based solely on the expected horsepower output of the engine, or at least that often-optimistic number carries the most weight in the decision process. But savvy builders — whether assembling an honest street engine, rogue weekend warrior or a savage race-only bullet — will recognize the importance of analyzing other factors before choosing between cast iron, forged steel or billet steel.
It was a great weekend in Atlanta for Bryant Racing Crankshafts, as the winners for the Camping World Truck Series, Xfinity Series and Sprint Cup Series all use our cranks! We had a 1-2-3 finish in the Sprint Cup race with …
With such names as Fury and Barracuda and Valiant, you would expect the 1964 power plant offering for Plymouth to be some monsters, maybe even a Wedge tossed in.
But no, the Wedge 426 cid (Stock Max Wedge Stage III) was only available as a $500.00 racing option. The standard fair was the straight 6’s (170 and the 225) and the 318.
Dubbed the Valiant Six the 175 was an inline (straight) 6 cylinder iron block. It had overhead valves and a bore and stoke of 3.40 x 3.125. Fair enough compression ratio of 8.2:1 with solid lifters and four-main bearings. Top it with a Carter single barrel carb (BBS Model 3839S) and you’d squeeze 101 ponies out of it.
Valiant Six
The Barracuda had a straight 6 in it as was well. It was the 225 cid with 3.40 x 4.125 bore and stroke, same compression as the 175 (8.2:1), as well as solid lifters and overhead values. Using the same carb as the 175, you could must up to 145 hps.
But don’t think the Valiant and the ‘Cuda were left to struggle with less than 150 hps – nope there was a V-8 available as well. That engine was the 273 cid and it ran a compression ratio of 8.8:1 with it’s cast iron block, overhead valves and bored to 3.62 and stroked of 3.312. It sported 5 main bearings, solid lifters and was topped with a Carter 2 barrel carb (BBD 3767S). As outfitted it produced 180 hp.
The other V8 of standard production was the 318. Having personal experience with this engine, I can say it was (is) versatile and solid. You could do a lot with this hunk of iron. For 1964 it had overhead valves, cast iron block with standard bore and stroke of 3.906 and 3.312 inches. 9.0:1 compression ratio with five main bearings, solid lifters and 5 main bearings breathed though BBD two barrel Carter carb (Model 3682S) and produced a respectable 230 hp.
The 318
Yes…you can do that to 318!!!
As mentioned there were some competition engine available that year but you didn’t them in average street cars. There was the Super Cammando 426cid Hemi (available in early Feb ’64) for competition use only. There was the de-tuned street 426-S(street). Also available were the Commando V8 383 in 305 hp and 330 hp versions as well as Commando 426 (Street Wedge) with 426 cid and 365hp.
According to my research there were 6,359 Dodge and Plymouth cars built with the 426 engine in 1964. Of those only 271 were racing Hemi’s.
– 360,000 coupes and about 80,000 convertibles we made between 1955 and 1974.
1958 Karmann Ghia
1600 Karmann Ghia
Car News Now (CNN)
Speaking of VW, the company announced that they are developing a new brand specifically for the China market.
Ford let us know that we will soon see the Ford Focus RS here in the U.S. – that 315 hp stuffed in that little car. It will sport a six-speed manual transmission and have all-wheel drive.
What was the first model to where the name Maserati?
Thanks for reading.
Tim
*Trivia – Submit the correct answer via email, Facebook, Twitter or a comment to this post and you’ll be entered to win a monthly give away. It’s that easy!!
… Revell AG Onyx NZG NorScot Norev-FIAT Nacoral Muscle Machines Checker Cab For Sale – Compare Prices, Reviews and Buy at Nextag Checker Cab For Sale – 65 results like Checker Cab Nebulizer by Drive Medical, …
It’s a cute-as-a-bug, 1967 VW Karmann Ghia. A loyal supporter of the nonprofit’s ambitious works on behalf of homeless animals donated it, hoping the Humane Society would find a way to convert the car to dollars for services. The agency now is selling …
Und sorgte für eine Überraschung: Vor den Journalisten stand ein eleganter Zweitürer in “Gazellenbeige” mit rot lackierten Felgen und hellbrauner Innenausstattung: der Karmann Ghia. Ein Auto, das italienische Eleganz mit deutscher Technik verband.
Even at my age I still love cranking the music while I’m driving. When you have a long commute, you don’t mind it as much when your tunes are on. A couple of months ago my CD player in my 2007 C6 Vette decided to toss error message rather than belting out music. I thought perhaps the CD was bad and changed it out. Nope…still only read errors. Ejected that one and tried a third and got the same result.
Ya know, radio ain’t what it use to be, it’s sad when you can go nearly half your drive hearing only one track and the rest of the trip is listen to a couple of voices attempt to entertain you and fill the ‘dead air” with totally horrible local commercials. After programming the buttons on the receiver and about a month of actually mashing the buttons on the radio, 40 times a each way, I decided to pick up a used stereo online and swap them out. It only took a few minutes to find a used stereo (receiver and CD player) that coincidentally came from a 2007 Corvette and of course you trust that it works and this one did.
I hadn’t up to this date spend any time taking the dash apart on the C6 -unlike my 1970 Mustang and 1984 Corvette where I visited behind their dashboards a lot. So I reached out across the nation, via Google to find instructions. Needless to say there are a lot of videos out there and after the first time pulling the center dash off it’s pretty easy (yeah…I had to do that more than once).
Caution: As with most tech laden cars, be careful of all wire connections. Highly unusual for me, I avoided all those fit falls.
This is the lower part of the dash (ashtray cig lighter areas) opened up. You can clearly see the back side of the cigarette lighter (maybe we should call them – power port – whole generation out there that don’t know that this luxury item is). Additionally, there is the connection to the to a second power port and at least in most models the traction control. Just highlighting the necessity to be careful.
In short you have to remove the consul storage lid (a few hex drivers are required for that) and the unsnap the cover for the emergency brake as well as remove the shift knob. The rest pulls off easily…BUT…first disconnect the power ports.
There are a few screws for pulling out the cd player and receiver and you’ll need to disconnect the power and antenna.
You can find that all out on one of the online video or you tube and since this isn’t the subject matter of the post I’ll let you find the one you like.
Dropping in the replace stereo is just as easy….piece of cake! Just before putting all the trim pieces back in I rested the CD/Receiver units and tested it. It played for a few seconds and then “LOCKED”. Clearly a bad sign.
Stay tuned for how the options and how I handled it.
Yes you read it correct!!! What you see below is a rare sight. An extremely well preserved ProStreet/Drag AMC Matador.
Sure I’ve seen AMX as a drag car and I’ve even seen a Gremblin and a Pacer with V8 shoved between the fenders, but I’ve never seen a Matador with a drag set up. And the condition is amazing.
See for yourself.
This is the Matador X
Also referred to as Matador Series 10
Control Freak Suspension specializes in AMC suspensions (and other makes).
The Matador X was a true sub-model not just a option package.
The Matador X had only a two year run 1974 and 1975.
As best as I can tell this is a 1975 and if the 401 badge on the side is correct, the is one of four cars (two door coupes) that left the factory with those engines that year (rest of the 84 cars with that engine were 4 door…hiss….boo!!!)
I would seriously consider doing up a Matador like this!!!
Got an interesting AMC? Drop me a note, we can get it published.
I realized that the name, Tempo Matador, could be formed from the model names of two other notable cars, the Ford Tempo and the AMC Matador. Realizing this, I screamed like a banshee and flipped over the table at the soft-serve frogurt shop I steal my …
I realized that the name, Tempo Matador, could be formed from the model names of two other notable cars, the Ford Tempo and the AMC Matador. Realizing this, I screamed like a banshee and flipped over the table at the soft-serve frogurt shop I steal my …
Today, however, we’re going back in time and to Detroit — actually, to Kenosha — for a long-out-of-production AMT kit that has us cranking up the Frijid Pink and catching a buzz off the Testors fumes: this AMC Matador Coupe. Yes, the seller hopes to …
If you haven’t seen it yet, here’s the video of the Jalopnik journalist hitting the wall with a 2016 mule Camaro. Enjoy and then check below for my commentary.
Clearly the guy felt bad and a little shaken up, but the reality is, he shouldn’t have driven the car. If you just look at the beginning frame of the video or notice the position of his arms just before he hit the wall, you can tell there the skill set just isn’t there.
I auto cross my cars – my C4 when I had it and my C6 now (not to mention my drag racing stint with my Mustang). I’ve attended my SCCA Solo courses and even attended some training with Bondurant at Phoenix International Raceway with Formula 1 cars. And what I’ve learned is that you must have more than just enthusiasm over a new car, especially a powerful one. You have to have some driving skills and you must have respect for the car’s abilities and know yours.
Here is a parallel event I was part of with my corvette club. We rented a part of the Bondurant facility to have an auto cross event. It included all generations of Corvettes as well as a few other non-Corvette vehicles. One of our members just purchased a brand new C6 and was very eager to run the course. Short version of the story is – he lost it on his second run, went through the chain-linked fence at a post and got the car hung up on the concrete footing. We had to dig him out and the Bondurant crew weren’t all that happy. Clearly he wasn’t ready for the abilities/power of his C6 even though he had the enthusiasm (and for pete’s sake keep the traction control on until you are used to the car).
Don’t get me wrong, accidents happen, just watch any F1, drag or NASCAR race and you’ll see professional skilled driver hit the wall. It happens.
Now back to the Jalopnik incident. If you watch the video you can tell the journalist seems pretty excited. However his driving skills seem a bit off in a number of ways. For instance, his sitting position is off, especially for track driving (maybe he’s just super tall or the mule car is not equipped with adjustable seats) for one. You can tell by his expression in a corner, prior to his last corner and the contact with the wall, that he was at he edge of his abilities with that particular car. As he goes into the now famous turn his arms cross – I didn’t realize a human could contort himself that much!!
I also found interesting was some of his commentary leading up to the crash with words like “rolly-poely”, “composed”, “nimble” especially in light of his comments that he was there to discuss the how it handles at the track. You must have the ability to test those things to give your readers a comparison and the proper (or more familiar) terminology helps e.g., replace “rolly-polly” with “body roll”. Wouldn’t GM want that too or at least his publisher?
There was a comment in his piece where he gave full disclosure, stating that GM wanted him to drive so badly, that they flew him out and paid for food and booze. Don’t know if that’s ‘special’ or standard fare. I also didn’t understand his comment – “GM asked me to leave the track” and they had to continued the video out in the street – seems a tough way to deal with someone, you really wanted there. Hopefully, GM doesn’t want their money back for the airfare or bill him for the damage to the mule.
Now I’m not a great blogger nor the greatest driver, but I do have car guy experience (including testing new models in a small auto cross scenario) and a fair grasp of the my native language. I’m not sure what all of his credentials are, he did say he had some track time, and I did look over some of his other entries and gained my own opinions.
It suffices to say that I much prefer a “car guy turned journalist” vs. “journalist turned car guy”, especially when to reading ‘car guy’ stuff and certainly for reviews like this one.
I do feel badly for him and GM and but I’m also sure it wasn’t the first time on media day that a writer dented one of the cars. He just had his published. And thank the auto gods that he wasn’t driving a Z28!!! I would have wept opening.
The 2016 Camaro SS is powered by a Corvette Stingray-sourced 6.2-liter V8 that produces 455 horsepower and 455 pound-feet of torque. By comparison, the 2015 Camaro SS has 426 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque. No matter the engine, the …
Sam Schmidt, who has been paralyzed below the shoulders since slamming into a wall 14 years ago, always believed he’d never drive again. On Sunday, he will–in a Corvette he will control by shaking his head and gnashing his teeth.
Schmidt was a promising driver with 27 Indy Racing League starts when he went into the wall at Walt Disney World Speedway in Orlando, Florida on January 6, 2000. He knew he’d never race again, but one year later he returned to motorsports with his own team, now known as Schmidt Peterson Motorsports. He’s enjoyed a measure of success as a team owner, but driving seemed out of the question.
LONG BEACH, Calif. — Sam Schmidt took a spin around Indianapolis Motor Speedway last spring, his first time behind the wheel since being paralyzed in a racing accident in 2000. He had a tougher challenge Sunday: Navigating the twists and turns of the …
Thought I’d share this technology. I have a Stage 2 Spec in my Corvette and has served me well on the street and auto cross. Chase the link below to get all the details.
For most of us, we like our Mustangs to be well-rounded. Many of us can only afford one, so it needs to be able to do a few things other than just getting us from Point A to Point B. Fortunately, we can make a Mustang be good at a couple different types of performance without making wholesale changes. It’s pretty hard to make it great at several things at the same time, but we’re willing to make concessions in order to make it more than a one trick pony. We can take it to the drag strip, that’s easy. We can also take it road racing – which isn’t as easy – but we can still have a blast provided we have outfitted it accordingly with the right brakes. We can even take it drifting.
SPEC Clutches is a company that knows after the act of drag racing, drifting is something that comes natural to a Mustang. SPEC’s David Norton has been involved with drifting since the sport’s beginnings, and knows V8 power mixed with a tail-happy suspension, getting a Mustang to drift isn’t difficult.
… the track kicking butt and taking names. Big thanks goes out to London Chassis Dyno, Kenne Bell, Lund Racing, Revan Racing, Trucarbon, TruFiber, Viking Performance, SPEC Clutches, Jack Hart Body Shop, Bischoff Engine Service, and Bivins Racecars.
The Chrysler 413 is an interesting engine because it lived a long life in multiple roles and a very wide range of equipment. Hot rodders like to think about the hot rodded Max Wedge 413 (that gave way to the Max Wedge 426) and luxury car people like to think of the powerful and smooth Imperials and other cars that were shoved along by it, and finally truck guys will tell you that the 413 was a stalwart gas power plant offered in big trucks until 1979. That is a heck of a run for a mill that showed up on the scene in 1959 and was used in cars until 1965.
The videos below aren’t about floating Imperials or sneaky big Polaras. Nope, the videos below celebrate the most BangShifty application of the engine in the form of the 420hp Max Wedge 413 as offered in a small number of Plymouth and Dodge models in 1962. Combating the Pontiacs and Chevrolets, the “Super Stock Dodges” were quickly recognized in songs and popular culture. The Beach Boys talked about the cars in their song “Shut Down” while Jan and Dean were singing about the “Little Old Lady From Pasadena” who happened to also be driving a Max Wedge powered Chrysler. Rated at 420hp at 5,000 RPM this engine was a harbinger of things to come from Chrysler who really took the gloves off the next year when they expanded the engine to 426ci and later when the Hemi was introduced.
We wonder when the number of gear wars will stop. It’s not something manufacturers are actually seeking to do (outdo one another by having more cogs), but the number is rising – the most recent report says Ford has already patented a 11-speed automatic gearbox; this is one more gear than they publicly announced.Ford had previously officially expressed its desire to equip the 2017 F-150 Raptor (pictured as design study concept below) with a 10-speed unit, but there had been no talk of an 11-speed one until now.However, even if Ford did file a patent, it doesn’t mean the gearbox will get made. Company spokesman for powertrains ambiguously said that “as a technology leader, we submit patents on innovative ideas as a normal course of business. Patent submissions help protect our new ideas but do not necessarily indicate future business or product plans.”
Manufacturers start working on new technologies many years before we see them in production vehicles, and this patent from Ford points toward a new 11-speed transmission happening somewhere in their future. The official patent document was just …
