Flathead VS Y-Block

[@vettekid3326]

The "Y" block 239 was supposed to originally come out in 1953 in the newly redesigned Golden Jubilee cars but got delayed a year for production problems. Th Y-block also had an unusual "stacked" intake port that ironically limited what could be done to open up the ports for better breathing. I knew someone that played with those back in the late 60's and he said that was the biggest factor in why you couldn't make them run like small block Chevy's. One of the vivid things I remember about a 292 Y was in auto shop a kid was trying to get his shop project engine to fire off in the test stand but the carburetor float was stuck open dumping raw gas down the cylinders past the rings into the oil pan. When it did eventually fire it blew the valve covers off and imbedded them in the ceiling 20 feet above.

[@sorshiaemms5959]

Gee TED Eaton has gotten over 600 hp with a y block n/a as for stacked ports you should check most sohc or dohc motors have similar ports in fact ford won more stock car races in 1957 than chevy

[@kevincruz4045]

I love the sound of a stock dual straight pipe Ford Flat Head Engine. Beautiful exhaust note!

[@rcnelson]

A different-sounding exhaust note indeed. My parents Ford flathead station wagon with rusted-out mufflers made a unique sound--like a sort of bubbling of a pot on a burner.

[@IndridCool54]

Hey Steve, hope you’re doing better! We sure miss you here on the Tube!

[@Slimjim260]

Love the pics of the Paxton McCulloch supercharger Steve, nicely done!

[@randyruzicka7250]

Thank you Steve! Great video as always. You deserve an award for getting through the topic of Fords V8 without error. Almost always people make errors on anything Ford. FYI the engine on the cover of the Y-Block Magazine was built by me for a customer and part of an article I wrote about

[@samholdsworth420]

Ok boomer 😝

[@scoobyroorogers]

Very Cool.

[@tlr-nut7275]

One error was that production ended in '64, not '62 like he said. Plus they kept making them for many more years after that in Brazil.

[@Freedomquest08]

I appreciate that you do the research to get the story right, and mention of the significance of the OHV Kettering V8 that started the horsepower wars. History has all but forgotten some of the most important points in time.

[@johnh8917]

How many people have walked by those engines, not even noticed! Our man makes a whole show out of them! Your the man steve!

[@CountryBoyGasGarage]

Thanks Steve for the lesson! I have a 1948 Ford F5 short bus and it originally had a flat head but in the early 60s it was swapped out for a 1957 292 HD Y-block. Now I'm getting it back on the road! 👍

[@thedelawareranch2379]

Nothing like the sound of a good running flat head they where so smooth

[@clutchkicker392ison5]

Us poor ozzies see so much gold in the background of ur show, jus dunno were to look . Cheers mate good job always.

[@LukeARenner1]

I know nothing about cars and I’m lost most of the time, but I can’t stop watching you! The way you dump a wiki’s-worth of information is nothing short of a miracle, Steve. I watch you purely for the joy that comes from watching an ace be an ace. Keep kicking ass!

[@unclemarksdiyauto]

Keep watching Steve & you can't help it but learn something! It helps that he is showing while explaining. That makes it much easier to learn something.

[@sufferedenuf]

More people should do content the way you do. Don't waste time, direct and don't repeat. Thank you! I have a 64 y-block 292 truck and love it. Keep up the great content!

[@davidstout4158]

Dude, I am addicted to your videos! Keep them coming. My brother and I love junkyard "crawling".

[@cargo_pants6514]

There's a 57 country sedan fairlane in my garage with the original y-block 312, the thing still runs like a top!

[@vorhese]

I want a lot more Y-Block content. Steve you should do 20-30 minutes just on the y-block, it's issues, and ways to solve them.

[@donshotrodgarage1717]

Fun facts with Steve! This guy could sell me a old street sign with his passion! Excellent stuff buddy👍

[@abefroman4953]

Great video, as usual. Thanks Steve!

[@artjones2498]

steve your knowledge is unreal...i know you do lots of research but still its great....dont ever stop

[@genehunsinger3981]

You can always tell by listening to a person if they truly love their craft.

[@rustyramblings5807]

In high school in 1981 I bought a 58 Fairlane 500.The guy I bought it from said it had a 332 in it.But it had the Interceptor V-8 emblem on the glove box.But I didn’t know much at the time.Of course it was the 352 Interceptor Special.4bbl ,dual exhaust,solid lifters.It was pretty good off the line,but it really started to purr at 80+One of my Uncles said he had one with the 292,and he said it was a dog.

[@Ray56z]

I never was a fan of the 352. Owned several in beat-around cars, thought of them as capable for that but basically a truck motor. I raced high banked dirt tracks and one of my closest competitors ran a 352 interceptor in a small body and he kept me on my toes. Any slip up and he's be there to capitalize on it. I later had a competitor that ran a 428 interceptor with just some bolt-ons on a stock motor-he gave me headaches. Friend wanted to run street stock(bombers) and we built him a falcon with a 292. He got blasted by even straight sixes.

[@michaelbenardo5695]

@@Ray56z I had a 66 Ford with the 352, and mine was great.

[@michaelbenardo5695]

58 was the year they started detuning the 292. The 56 - 57 was quite good - 212 horsepower.

[@Ray56z]

@@michaelbenardo5695 Be lucky to get 190-195 hp out of a 4 bbl interceptor in '57. The supercharged only made 230 factory-likely over rated. Outside builders had to alter them so much to get 260-270 hp they weren't actually still a FOMOCO. I bought up several McCulloch centrifuge to use but decided the install investment wasn't worth the gain, just stroked slightly more and gained more.

[@Ray56z]

@@michaelbenardo5695 I had '62 and '65 Galaxies with 352 4-bbl, 78-80 in the quarter and took time to do that. I seen 289's out run the 352 with no add-on. Hella good motors in dump trucks though.

[@deltabloo]

I had a 292 in my ‘60 Ford panel truck. Headers and a four barrel intake off a truck. It ran great. A local transmission guru built me an automatic out of a 59 Mercury and it would chirp its tires shifting. The engine was totally rebuilt by Acme in West Hartford but I cannot remember what we did for a cam.

[@unclemarksdiyauto]

A great video classroom this video Steve!

[@The_R-n-I_Guy]

I'd like to have a flathead just for the simplicity and the sound. It would be nice to cruise around listening to a flathead sing it's strange song

[@daveogarf]

Excellent report! Thanks.

[@danielmarek4609]

I owned a 57 T-Bird with a 312. It was a 4bbl engine from the factory. They also made a 2-4bbl version as well.

[@MrTheHillfolk]

My grandpa had one ,robins egg blue with the dual 4s and overdrive. My pops said he rigged the switch under the gas pedal to drop it out of overdrive to also allow it to kick down a gear cause it would be up in overdrive 3rd by 45-50 or so I guess. Mash it and let it kick down in 2nd and drop overdrive and the back end would get a little loose.

[@donkeyboy585]

Good stuff Steve

[@Don14320]

That transition was monumental for Ford, I was lucky to have lived during that time and loved the Y Block to 390 conversions that we did back in the day. Mostly on 57 Ford's and early T-Birds

[@brianstough5286]

Seems traditional - 'swapping' (conversions) adequate engines into fords that did not come with them (adequate engines)

[@buzzclic6219]

Y Block magazine is still going strong and there is a growing Yblock community with aluminum heads and other performance options available they are capable of 500+hp

[@BROCKWOOD64]

62 last year? Perhaps in cars, but lasted through 64 in USA pickups. It's all relative though. See what we think of as a 56 F-100 was made in Argentina for several years starting in 57. Saved a bunch in tooling by giving it a 2nd life in another country! My 64 F-100 has a 292 w/ 312 heads & 3/4 race cam. With 3.89 : 1 rear & 3 on the tree, it feels quick & sounds racy too. In fairness, though, it was white knuckles on small streets at 50 mph. Helped me to slow down because 50 in that truck is scarier than 100 in my 70 Charger. Of note, the 70 Charger I reference goes well beyond 100 before being scary in the least. Another great vid Steve!

[@HotRod-wv4vm]

I had the honor of meeting Zora Duntov at a Corvette show in NJ long time ago.

[@ktm42080]

Years ago a friend of mine raced on a dirt oval, I was the pit crew. He was the only Olds on the field, and he ran an actual 350 Rocket motor. It was tough, around here anyway, to find junk cars with the rocket motor because everything was different about them. Good times, good times 😁

[@haroldgroff2100]

My 1964 Ford pickup had a 292 Y-block

[@joshuaemery6246]

Great information as always. Thank you!

[@stephensmith3018]

Steve, I have a stock 1963 F-100 with the original 292 Y block and a 4 speed. It is a complete dinosaur !

[@HotRod-wv4vm]

I love the look of the flathead valve cover

[@xfactorautomotive1496]

Flatheads don't have valve covers! 🙄 The valves are in the block

[@HotRod-wv4vm]

@@xfactorautomotive1496 see the link below for the valve cover

[@one_flew_over_the_cuckoos_nest]

Who Made The First Overhead Valve V 8 Engine? Leon Levavasseur, a 43-year-old Frenchman, won the invention award for the Antoinette V-8 engine he built in 1902. Since then, the V8 has become synonymous with the most reliable, efficient and efficient internal combustion engine that power automobiles and has even been used in early jet aircrafts and power boats.

[@michaelbenardo5695]

And the radical environmentalists hate it with a passion. Sadly, it looks like they will finally win in the next few years.

[@brianjuffs4662]

I'm Not a ford guy but some great info on these early engines. Keep up the good work.

[@anibalbabilonia1867]

Great video Steve! And great history lesson! Boy those flatheads engines sounds great though when properly done!

[@brewsky38c]

Awesome tips Steve thanks

[@THROTTLEPOWER]

Great vid!!! 👍👍👍

[@dumpsterchicken6287]

Great information, thank you.

[@kennethreiver985]

That's a Victoria Crestline . The Crestliner was a 1950 half year introduction specially trimmed 2 door sedan marketed to compete with the Chevy BelAir hardtop . It ran to half year 51 when Ford introduced the Victoria Hardtop .

[@Fore-Four-Dee-Too]

Get well soon Steve!!

[@coburnlowman]

I kept a 272 from a one ton dump truck. That thing would always crank on the first revolution unless the points were out. It pulled strong , plus was good on gas. It didn't take off fast but would really wind out for a heavy truck. It got so delapadated that I pulled the engine and cut the frame to save the dump bed then hauled off the dangerous cab.

[@billyfoster3223]

Great old motors , but the 260/289/302 Windsor small block really started things!😁🛠️

[@jamespetersen3933]

My 1955 Ford pickup had a Y block V8. Put in a LT1 350 Chevrolet and Muncie 4-speed. Keep on crawling!

[@mschiffel1]

Great video.

[@buellrod]

Good morning Steve thank you very much I learned a new term puke a crankshaft.lol

[@gebwv84]

Very good info ! Thanks

[@penguinsfan251]

My grandfather had a Ford F100 with a Y block. He left it sit out all winter and took the battery out. Come springtime, it would start right up. Maybe they weren't great performance engines, but for everyday use, they could be pretty solid.

[@RoadNoise29100]

Well done, Mags!

[@SteveMagnante]

Hey Tom!!!!

[@robertkeefer1552]

The Ford GAA engine that powered the Sherman tanks in WWII was an all aluminum four valve DOHC design. It was 1100 CID and put out 500 HP and 1000 lb. ft. of torque. Would be a great engine for an F350.

[@melodigrand]

A 1,500 lb, engine in an F350 would require a big upgrade in the suspension and drive train. There was a more common V8 version that was actually used in the tanks. At 3/4 the size and still over 700 cubes that would be a more reasonable option for an F350, but the hp and torque could probably be matched by just turbocharging a ford 460.

[@michaelbenardo5695]

@@melodigrand Supercharging the 460 would be better than turbocharging it.

[@oldrustycars]

There's a Y block performance supplier, their motto is "The trailing edge of technology."

[@PorscheRacer14]

Dropping the left and right water pumps was a solid move too!

[@randallhub528]

If you don't know..you need this guy!lol!

[@matthewbakker8113]

Funny I just got my flatty back from H&H last friday. Not an Arddon, but their Navaro heads.

[@Ramcharger85]

My uncle Dave had a 292 Y block in his 64 Ford F100. 😊

[@zerozed2827]

Fun fact: Here in Canada, many 1954 Fords and Meteors came with Flatheads (and kingpin suspension) as Ford used up their leftover stock. Some even had 255 Mercury Flatheads.

[@JC-zg4xe]

Same in Australia, Customlines had flatheads up until 54. Another fun fact the 58 customline used a 55 meteor grille and 56 meteor side trim.

[@gregkistner1955]

Good to know about the Mercury 4 barrels had no idea!

[@TierodMcslush]

Y block used in Fairlane 1955-60. Used in trucks up til 64

[@jamestone265]

54-62 in cars

[@mikejohnson2925]

64 you could get the 292 in a truck last year for the y block , four barrel holley

[@barryphillips7327]

Apart from not breathing that well, the exhaust gas on the flathead V8 had to go out past the cylinders which are already hot, getting more heat from hot exhaust gases going past.

[@kenschmidt6522]

I had a 1962 F100, 292 V8, 3 on the tree. The exhaust manifold dumped out the front on one side, across the front of the engine, into the front of the manifold of the other side, and out the back.

[@DougsMessyGarage]

There is a certain coolness factor to the Ford Flattie though

[@timothyharrison8953]

That was great information. Now go on to explain the Ford engine FE, and MEL. Then give a lesson on how the Mopar poly engine is related to the Hemi.

[@p1315]

And then explain how Furd copied both GM and Mopar. Oh and also talk about all the cheating Furd was involved in to win races.

[@forthwithtx5852]

Very informative.

[@royster3345]

Why am I watching this, I'm in the UK, never seen many of these cars, and the older engines were before I was born. Oh yes, I love the information and history in the videos Steve delivers. Gone are the days here when they let you crawl over the wrecks in search of parts, especially the performance parts of the more expensive models. Always left with a pocket full of spare bulbs 😀

[@SteveMagnante]

Hello Royster, great to hear these videos are being seen in Britain. I spent a semester at the University of Stirling, Scotland in 1985. It was a great time and I discovered loads of great British music like The Smiths, Echo and the Bunnymen and Siouxsie and the Banshees. I still listen to their music today. I was also suprised back then to see that many American model car kits made by MPC (Model Products Corporation) were marketed in Britain with the AIRFIX label. Thanks for watching, Steve Magnante

[@royster3345]

@@SteveMagnante You're welcome Steve, us petrol heads are spread far and wide 😁 Plus a pretty good choice of music there 👍

[@kennethbode2017]

my Uncle had a 49 Ford. He put a rebuilt motor in it every few years due to cracked blocks. Finally bought a new car in the 80s when he couldn't get parts anymore.

[@michaelbenardo5695]

To bad he didn't swap in a 59AB engine. That one seldom cracked. Did run a little hotter tho.

[@kennethbode2017]

@@michaelbenardo5695 he traded it for a 49 chevy pickup he could use on the ranch

[@brentboswell1294]

overhead valves vs direct valve actuation. Unfortunately, the compromises in combustion chamber shape for the flathead made it breathe poorly and also made it terrible for complete combustion.

[@johnh8917]

I just looked in the dictionary under paying attention....yep Steve's picture!

[@jamesblair9614]

What about those very unusual vertically stacked intake ports, rather than the common side by side arrangement.

[@michaelbenardo5695]

It was Ford's attempt to have equal-length manifold runners.

[@CrazyPetez]

Get well soon, Steve.

[@toddbob55]

Grandpa always said Fords ran stronger and Longer than any other Manufacturer.

[@CarsandCats]

Chevy got 283hp out of 283ci N/A while Ford needed a supercharger to get 300hp out of 312ci. Some things never change...

[@michaelbenardo5695]

That was the standard supercharged 312. There was a second version that made 340 horsepower.

[@jamestone265]

Yep. In those days Chevrolets looked at a lot of Ford tail lights..

[@xaiyab6892]

Yeah. Chev needs 6.2L to make 420 hp while Ford does it with 5.0L [coyote]

[@penguinsfan251]

Now, please tell us how the Chevy 427 is so superior to the Ford 427. I'm waiting.

[@michaelbenardo5695]

@@penguinsfan251 I think the Ford 427 has, if nothing else, superior lubrication.

[@RC-cc4rv]

Get well Steve!!!

[@andrefiset3569]

You can buy at the time OHV conversion kits for the 4 and 8 cylinders Ford flatheads, reproductions are available if you have deep pockets.

[@michaellorah9051]

The thing people dont know is there is another family of Y blocks that Ford made. The Lincoln Y Block had almost no similarities to the Ford variant. It was released in 1951 by Lincoln and was used primarily by Lincoln, Mercury, and Ford heavy duty trucks. The overall dimensions of Lincoln Y Blocks are bigger than their ford cousins and they are also better at bottom end power but suffer at the top end a bit. I have a 368 cubic inch lincoln Y Block from a 1957 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser which had a very desirable set of high flow heads, a high performance cam, and a very very desirable 4 barrel carb intake. The 368 was the biggest, most powerful, and most saught after of the Lincoln Y Block. The only thing more desirable is a dual 4 barrel intake off a 60s heavy duty truck or the extremely rare cragar manual transmission conversion bellhousing. Those are big money parts and incredibly hard to find.

[@penguinsfan251]

The FE series and the small block Windsor that became the 289 were great engines. Whatever the shortco.i gs of the flathead or the Y block, their successors were great engines.

[@johnkranz4004]

Very KOOL

[@hughmarloweverest1684]

Thanks

[@josephryan6593]

one of the advantages at the drag strip the techs couldn't tell the difference between the 292 0r the 312 y block and if u did a little work on the 312 it was a winner winner chicken dinner. the problem at that time was speed equipment was not that available for the fords like the chevies.

[@p1315]

BS

[@josephryan6593]

@@p1315 what does that mean P HAHAHAHAHAHA

[@p1315]

@@josephryan6593 Furd always had plenty of aftermarket parts...and still had to resort to cheating to win. FACT

[@theone861]

Couldn't you get 2 4bbl carbs. as well? Or I'm I thinking about something else?

[@jamestone265]

Yes AKA E-Code

[@pgtmr2713]

I miss seeing 32-ish projects. Not from my era, never really cared when I was younger. There was always some here or there sprinkled in with muscle car builds. Clean ones not rat rods, which are it's own awesome thing. New for 54... my first thought was the 55, 56 and 57 Chevy were going to come out, which I'd argue... look better than an E-type. Anyone can like an exotic sportscar. The Thunderbird had that same something as well as the Corvettes. Get tired of looking at em? Look away, look back and there it is again. So... Coyote swapped 32 coupes? Terminator 32's? Can't wait for some nutcase to build an Explorer sport trac out like a Model A Hotrod/Ratrod. Bed chopped down to a useless 1ft. Rectangle, bumper mounted lights and plate holders narrow swoopy grill, vestigial running boards, headers, collector side pipes. With an X underneath. What ever happened to the Ring bros.?

[@gman77gas]

👍

[@ancientheart2532]

Overhead valve is a passing fancy.

[@shawnbroyles8274]

My first truck was a 1963 f100 with 292 and 3 on the tree tough little motor I tried like hell to blow it up but never could I went to a swap meet and got a 4 barrel intake and it ran really good just never was fast

[@guitarhole]

Teach away Professor Steve .

[@johngranato2673]

great

[@blairberg1081]

Notice on that right cylinder head on the y block has the letters ECZ-G wich is the better factory heads apart from nascar ones. If those are original to that engine it could be a 1957 fairlane 292 or 312

[@bnghjtyu767]

I keep catching myself looking over your shoulder into the woods trying to see Bigfoot.

[@sorshiaemms5959]

have a y block love it

[@bluecollarred6912]

that y block manifold looks similar to the big block Chrysler HP manifolds

[@NealAmmerman]

The flatheads were known for vapor lock and overheated more easily

[@Mcculock]

I drove bunch them flat heads in mid 60s then you could buy 50 ford for hundred dollars problem with them they all over heated / still love them

[@mcqueenfanman]

Didn't the French military use Ford flat head engines through the 90s?

[@rheidtech]

Or you might....run over your 3 bearing crankshaft.... lol.

[@Ecosse57]

it's odd that there is an abundance of hi-po parts for the flathead except for the block with the french blocks getting scarce by this point. with all the nostalgic racers, boomers with deep pockets, etc... you'd think someone would invest in casting (or even aluminum) new blocks.

[@seanhraba747]

Odd that they don't, you can get Chrysler Hemi and big/small block Chevy falling out of your ears.

[@lasskinn474]

Flathead racing rules tend to need original blocks and otherwise too if you were/are tweaking them beyond the block you might just as well use entirely different engine in the first place. Channel named greg quirin has aademar and braun landspeed engine builds, one is a flathead block with heads that drop into the block(they changed the rules so they couldn't shave the block, but wanted to keep shorter stroke), overhead cams. Ofc if theres enough demand someone will probably cnc some blocks eventually

[@user-cs1ne8gx9u]

Pickups had y blocks till 64.

[@trevevns3242]

I think in 57 lincoln done a 368 y block also i own a marinised 292 y block that is going to get a 6v71 blower and tripple 2 barrell carbys

[@ldnwholesale8552]

WHY did Henry persist with the sidevalve,, near sent the company broke. Yet there was OHV as well as OHC engines around well and truly by then. In upmarket cars. They are simpler, more efficient than any sidevalve. Without the dreaded hotspots. And with Henrys economy of scale must be cheaper to produce. To a degree this is hindsight but not really. The Y block was an ok engine,, just out of date when produced as well as too heavy. The 55-58 Fords were better cars to drive than the equivilant from GM. In the 70s a lot were tossed for Clevelands

[@brentboswell1294]

Old hot rodders knew that the casting methods that Ford used on their flathead blocks were atrocious. Some of them had huge voids inside, that only manifested themselves when you pushed the engine for performance and ended up windowing the block 😅 If you wanted to build a modern high output flattie, you'd be well advised to have the block x-rayed before use to make sure that it wasn't cast with a big void inside...