The Engine that Powered America

for car manufacturers especially in the early days engines kind of came and went it wasn't always the way it is today where companies build platforms for lots of different vehicles in hopes of maintaining their lineup for as little money as possible and for as long as they can stay relevant before reluctantly having to make something new back in the day a company would create say a new sports car engine and it would be promising and then as quickly as it showed up it would disappear because things were moving so fast what was Cutting Edge one year would be a relic of the past the next it was rare that a manufacturer would build a power plant so versatile that it could not only stick around for decades but also be used in all sorts of different applications from sports cars and race cars to boats and hot rods even as the automotive industry would undergo massive changes this is the story of the engine that powered America the Chevy small block now before I go any further I want to mention two books the first is this amazing book on the small block by Mike Mueller I've got a link in the description to that if you want to check it out and the second and somewhat unrelated one is basically a while back I made a video about the Apollo GT car and I mentioned the incredible and only book on that car by Rob northrip well Rob recently messaged me and let me know that they've actually done a reprint like you couldn't get your hands on one before so I've got a link to that reprint as well if you guys want to pick it up I highly recommend it check them out in the description ion below these brilliant writers who write on stuff in the automotive industry they make these amazing books and they do so much research and I think it's important that we support them all right let's jump into the story World War II changed the way Automotive manufacturers develop and produce their machines when you're not at War it's kind of like you know if we don't make good stuff our company will struggle or we'll make less money when you're at War it's more like if we don't make good stuff we all die the war brought about so much Innovation from manufacturers on either side and a kind of all-in spirit for taking on new engineering tasks the high demands of wartime really forced companies like Chevrolet to hone their manufacturing and really up their Precision this is why the post-war era of American Vehicles didn't just include completely new styling mechanically speaking these new cars were categorically at another level compared to what had been offered before the war by 1954 Chevy had on their hands the bestselling cars in America in the form of the Bair and the 210s but their competitors both big and small were gunning for them by producing allnew V8s meanwhile Chevy's affordable but stylish sedans were powered by reliable but somewhat dated straight sixes sometimes it's best to stay ahead of the curve instead of playing catchup so GM made the wise decision to completely revamp the Chevy lineup with an allnew modern V8 it's important to note that the small block was not Chevy's first ever V8 they actually had a V8 way back in 1917 for a few years in the form of the D engine it was a big 4. 3 L overhead valve engine which was somewhat radical for this time this engine wouldn't really share much DNA with the later small block and it was somewhat Innovative but also somewhat odd the roots of the small block really date to 1951 when GM made Ed Cole a Cadillac man through and through chief engineer of a new initiative to turn Chevrolet around Ed Cole then brought up another Cadillac engineer Henry bar to assist him and bar would head up the drivetrain development while the design of the new V8 would fall under Al kby lots of hands would be on the creation of this iconic engine and lots more would really make it what it would become but Cole is kind of the name most associated with the small block his experience creating Cadillac's first overhead valve V8 after World War II really helped when he was brought over to Chevy at this time all of GM's manufacturers designed and built their own engines but that didn't stop Cole from sometimes taking a walk through the various divisions at GM's Research Laboratories to see what the other guys were cooking up in particular he liked what Pontiac was doing with their low friction concave rocker arm design one that Chevy would play with and modify for the small block this initial team would work tirelessly for years trying to make the perfect V8 initially the team thought up a design for a 231 cubic in V8 but that one was just too much like Cadillacs it was just not really what Cole wanted they then shifted to 245 and ultimately they would land on 260 cubic in known as the 265 and with this new engine there was basically a two-part goal of good economy but also incredible torque and power while keeping the block small and compact for weight reduction the end result of their work would be an engine that weighed significantly less than the outgoing inline 6 and of course it made more power sometimes more power and less weight can only be achieved with more complication for production in manufacturing you know rare lightweight materials or specially machined Parts but the Brilliance of the small block really was its Simplicity they even created new casting techniques to have better Precision with less complicated processes and which used less material lots of Genius bits made the small block great you know the valve train gear casting was symmetrical and there was just loads of other little decisions made for just less moving Parts it really was a simple engine and unless you're Italian or German that's usually better the short stroke and specific rocker arm setup made it so that the little V8 revved Freer than anything else available at this time the 55 belir coupe would come to be known as the hot one in its class with its sub 10 second 0 to 60 which is almost as fast as my 2011 Honda Odyssey but the small block was truly a holistic project with so much forethought the result originally was 195 horsepower at 5,000 RPM and 250 ft-lbs of torque at 2,800 RPM which that's really the good stuff and coupled with this new engine Chevy decided to redesign their cars which was really a brilliant move altogether Mike Mueller's book calls Chevy's moves at this time a sort of Full Court press for the low price car market the design for the 55 Chevys would be just as iconic as the engine powering them this futuristic lineup of cars would set a new standard for American manufacturers the 55 Chevys weren't just better looking and more powerful they were completely redesigned from the 54 models the chassis weighed less but was significantly more rigid the suspension was upgraded to make a better Drving Experience this was the kind of work that would go into a new model for say the luxury Market but here was an affordable car for the masses that was just better faster more fun than anything else available in its class it was a risky move for GM to put this much work into an engine like this but it really did pay off not just in sales but also Legacy you know when I see a 55 or 56 or 57 Chevy I see Americana basically and I understand why my dad would always say that his dream car was a 57 Chevy which is also the year he was born around this time the Corvette had been introduced and it was off to a bit of a rough start in part because of its uninspiring straight 6 with its Powerglide auto transmission but it turns out the compact small block engine would be the perfect power plant for this new Roadster minimal work was needed to fit the engine in there and the Corvette was often running with a new 0 to 60 of 8. 7 seconds which is not too shabby and the rest of the car would soon catch up with more options and a sleeker design the Corvette and the small block would have a long and storied history together then in 55 Chevy updated their truck line to look more like their new cars and they made the small block V8 an option nicknaming the engine Taskmaster for its truckly duties now when you make a great engine usually it's Legacy is the way in which it influences your future engines which is obviously true of this but what's strange about this engine is that it wasn't just influential on Chevy or on the market as a whole it was here for the long haul this really was just the beginning for this little V8 at its release the small block V8 wasn't the most powerful engine in the world it was good don't get me wrong but as much as it took the lower cost sedan Market to another level in terms of reliability and performance it's what Chevy would turn the small block into that would really make it the legend it is GM really knew they had something good on their hands when in the early morning hours of September 9th 1955 a disguised Chevy car would power up the Pikes Peak run some 2 minutes faster than any American sedan had ever done it before this was the redesigned 56 belir now powered by an even better version of the small block capable of well over 200 horsepower in the Corvette it would make 225 not far off in terms of power from the insane V12 Ferrari 250 GT in these early years the three seas of performance were the key to upping the little v8's power more cam more compression and more carburation but something else was coming the fourth C and perhaps the simplest way to make an engine more powerful more capacity first there was the 283 in 57 then the 327 in 62 the 350 in 67 and then in 1970 the 400 the real sweet spot in terms of performance though was the 302 specially designed to make the Z28 Camaro the most ridiculous sports car in its class well that engine was more for racing homologation purposes and is incredibly rare but it really did help the Camaro become what it would become in these early years there was almost as many versions of the small blocks as cars in Chevy's lineup in 57 the fuel injected 283 Corvette went from 0 to 60 in 5.

7 seconds which is pretty insane numbers for that time and that car made exactly 283 horsepower so 1 horsepower per cubic inch which is really crazy for This Time by 1962 the 283 was pushing 360 horsepower and then in ' 63 the Chevy made the 327 for the 64 model Corvette known as the l84 and it pumped out a whopping 375 horsepower and really helped solidify the Corvette status as one of America's greatest sports cars but still the big carburated versions were viable and Powerful at this time the 350 being a good example the small block would power cars like the Impala and chevel and Nova and El Camino and of course the Camaro SS and its you know Pony car battle with the Mustang the 327 would actually go down as the most powerful Factory trim small block ever with the highest performance version of this engine making 383 horsepower but the small block was so much more than just a Workhorse for Chevy's production cars and trucks and it wasn't just at the Forefront of the horsepower race through the 50s and 60s it was also incredibly successful in racing and drag racing but of note was its performance in the Corvette dating all the way back to 1956 when Zora dunov known as the father of the Corvette I mean he was the guy who basically made the Corvette what it was anyways in 56 he took three hopped up race ready Corvettes out to Daytona Beach and set a new sports car flying mile of 150. 533 mph shortly after that a team of Sebring Corvettes did the 12-hour endurance race and despite a few failing to finish one would take class Victory the small block paired to to this aerodynamic car was perfect for longdistance Speed because it was so reliable from loads of class winds in lons and alms to the 24 Hours of Daytona all using variations of the small block this engine really did cement the Corvette as the legendary sports car that it is by the 70s the small block had left its mark on the automotive landscape but through the 1970s and 80s this engine continued to evolve maintaining its reputation for reliability performance and versatility but the future wouldn't be without its challenges the' 70s were a difficult decade for the automotive industry as a whole marked by significant regulatory changes and shifting Market demands the idea that an engine from the ' 50s could just stay relevant through these changes is pretty incredible the small block had to adapt to these new realities while maintaining its Performance Edge the implementation of stricter emissions regulations required automakers to reduce EX exhaust emissions and improve fuel economy for the small block this meant integrating new technologies such as catalytic converters and exhaust gas recirculation systems and unleaded gasoline compatibility some small blocks were rather lame at this time but still reliable the likes of the 305 and 307 but despite these challenges the engineers over at Chevy managed to maintain the engines performance through these Innovative times with things like the introduction of electronic ignition systems high performance versions of the small block engine continued to be popular particularly in the muscle cars like the Camaro and the Corvette the 350 cubic in small block remained a staple known for its balance and power and efficiency the 1980s were characterized by significant technological advancements with a focus on improving efficiency performance and reliability the Chevy small block engine really did benefit from these developments though and it managed to stay relevant in a r rapidly changing Automotive Market one of the most significant advancements was the transition from carburetors to fuel injection systems the tuned port injection system or TPI introduced in the mid 80s really marked a significant Leap Forward it provided better fuel atomization improved throttle response and increased overall efficiency the use of lightweight Alloys and improved casting methods enhanced the durability of the small block and its performance all of these things would lead to higher compression ratios and better heat dissipation and also we saw the integration of electronic control modules these systems allowed for precise control of fuel injection and ignition timing and other critical engine parameters also around this time a modified version of the 350 small block would be incredibly popular for marine use the small block was kind of just everywhere at this point by the mid90s the small block engine had undergone numerous iterations but the automotive landscape was once again shifting and Chevrolet needed a new approach to maintaining its Competitive Edge and this led to the development of the ls platform which would debut in the C5 Corvette in 1997 the LS engine really represented a clean sheet design but it's still technically part of the small block family retaining the basic principles of the small block but incorporating modern Technologies and modern design philosophies it featured an aluminum Block in at least some versions improved airflow dynamic DCS and a more efficient combustion process the LS1 which is the first engine in this new series was a 5.