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Little Big-Block V-8

Powerful things come in small packages

For all the excitement of driving a musclecar or street rod fitted with a thundering, 427-cubic-inch, big-block V-8, there's something you ought to know—a small-block V-8 has the lightning strike. Legendary Cobra racers such as Bob Bondurant preferred the less weighty 351-cube Ford because it provided better balance on a road course. Even Carroll Shelby admitted that the only reason he used the behemoth 427 was because the Ford brass wanted to promote it.

Commonsensical

Given those facts, while performance purists may gripe, the reality for car builders is that a small-block crate engine is a smarter choice. Not necessarily the right one, but still a better way to go from a practical standpoint. But what if you still have to have that big-block power? That's where a stroked small-block can make your decision a whole lot easier. By lengthening the stroke of the crankshaft (hence the term "stroked"), the swept volume of the cylinders, otherwise known as the engine's displacement, can be increased to big-block proportions.

As one example of this approach, we took a close look at Coast High Performance's 427 Cobra Classic crate engine. Despite the big-cube label, the engine starts out with a 351 Windsor small-block V-8 that's stroked and tweaked to produce in excess of 500 hp and 500 lb.-ft. of torque.

500-HP Package

To provide some more insider info, literally, we followed along at Coast with a buildup of this customized crate motor (base price is $9,499, well below that of a rare and pricey 437 FE engine). As shown here, each of these engines is hand-built and precision balanced, and then run on a test stand for 45 minutes. After checking for any leaks, Coast gives the valves a final adjustment and, after cool-down, the heads are re-torqued to spec. That way, when your Cobra Classic arrives, it's all coiled and ready for some lightning-quick strikes.

Resource

Coast High Performance, 310/784-2977, www.coasthigh.com