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Original Message
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| RE: Found some stuff |
| By Mike McQuesten - 06/11/2001 2:33:56 AM; IP 63.50.125.52 |
Okay Shoe you got me diggin' through those old musty file cabinets out in the shop tonight. I too enjoy this thread and I'm finding it enlightening to go back on this stuff. Here's a little of what I found that "kinda" affirms my theories on the why no clutch was allowed with the brute 427 and why the 427 hydraulic never became available in anything other than the handful of Cougar GTE's that were built.
"Super Stock & Drag Illustrated", June, 1967, "Hot 427 Fairlane(The Mind Boggles)":
This is a full story where Ford racer Phil Bonner rings out a "prototype that will not be built until the '68 model year". The Fairlane is a '67 GTA. "The engine is a single-four barrel 427 wedge with hydraulic lifters, and was built in the Ford Experimental Garage with off-the-shelf Ford parts, in an effort to cut costs./ .....The cam used is the GT 390 model, non-adjustables, and C14B truck lifters./..On the lower end, there's a production cast crank with 8 shiny 406 rods./ It's got the '67 police transmission with the '66 GT/A governor and a 12 in. GT/A convertor. The rear end uses a 9" ring gear with 28 spline axles. Engineer Holbrook stated that if they hold up under abuse, the 28's will go into the production models but he thinks that 31 spline will replace the 28's for added insurance. The differential is an ordinary clutch locking unit."
There's a lot more, the Fairlane ran a best of 13.99/101.8 mph on F70x14 bias tires.
The most important support here may be the running development that Ford engineers were doing to put together a solid street performer that would eliminate some of the embarassment caused by the 390GTs lackluster performance.
"1968 Car & Driver Yearbook": From their description of the up-coming Torino GT-427: "Ford has seen fit to make it's 3-speed automatic transmission mandatory with the 427 engine, and it's a sensible decision. The automatic is capable of handling all that torque(which this magazine lists as 460 ft-lbs. at 3200 rpm)smoothly yet positively, and goes a long way towards cutting down the impact loading on the rest of the driveline."
This may be where I formed my long standing belief that FoMoCo wasn't ready to release this much torque loose in the unibody cars. I believe they were working/testing the staggered shock system, preparing the big input 4 speed tranny for production for both the Mustang/Cougar and the different tailshafted Torino/Montego. The stick also required unique (larger) throwout fork for the big input 4 speed. The C-6 was tough and ready to take the power of the 427.
"Popular Hot Rodding, April, 1968": "As we stated in our final Project Mustang article(February), the 428 Cobra Jet will definitely give the street rodder a competitive package. One question immediately comes to mind about the 428. Why bring out the Cobra Jet when the 427 high performance engine had already been announced as a performance option for '68? There are a couple of reasons for the new Cobra Jet introduction. First, the Cobra Jet will be priced about $400 less than the 427 street version, and second, the 428 is a much more streetable engine than the 427."
Personally, I can't imagine the 427 "S" as it was referred to as being too wild on the street what with the C6OZ-B cam. My opinion reaffirmed, it was too expensive - bean counters win again!
Lastly, this is the one that kinda supports my theory about the '67 UAW strike contributing to the early death of the 427 hydraulic Street engine.
"Super Stock & Drag Illustrated", February, 1968,: "Well, the engineers went at it full tilt, working on not one, but two complete power systems to fit n all of the Ford cars. Enter a gigantic labor problem. Sixty-one days of non-production, and multiple setbacks for all advance programs and regular production as well, due to a strike.......... By selecting the 428 as a base, and combining the block with already mass-produced parts from such engines as the 390GT, new tooling and casting costs were eliminated, making the finished product cheaper by hundreds of dollars and more readily available....."
So I admit nothing that totally affirms my opinions on what happened to the 427 hydraulic. Same for my opinion on why no stick option was available with the 427. I can only say that Ford and we Ford fanatics were struggling to come up with a competitive, affordable street package. Thanks to the men at Tasca Ford for switching on the light. The all set, Cobra Jet was born. |
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This thread, so far...
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