Thread: Old time racing

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In the '60s the smallblock, and later the bigblock Chevy was the standard installation for the majority of hot rods, and the reasons were many. Cost, reliability, power, and parts availability, drove this. That transfered to the drag strip. Unless you had the money, sponsorship, or ability to develop the engine yourself, then you could opt for more exotic or unusual parts.

Today being brand loyal to the body is becoming more popular, and the Chevy is frowned on by many, due to it's long term use. Maybe it has become to generic for some... but if you were building in those days, most would choose the engine that everyone else was going fast with, and doing it reliably.

Originally Posted by HOTRODPAINT

In the '60s the smallblock, and later the bigblock Chevy was the standard installation for the majority of hot rods, and the reasons were many. Cost, reliability, power, and parts availability, drove this. That transfered to the drag strip. Unless you had the money, sponsorship, or ability to develop the engine yourself, then you could opt for more exotic or unusual parts.

Today being brand loyal to the body is becoming more popular, and the Chevy is frowned on by many, due to it's long term use. Maybe it has become to generic for some... but if you were building in those days, most would choose the engine that everyone else was going fast with, and doing it reliably.

I remember hearing about those 302 Chevy setups. Seemed to be a real hot engine. Not sure why it didn't take off more. Was it a stroked down 350? I guess between the 327 configuration and the 350 Chevy really didn't need much more in the small block size range. Not to mention the 283!

Originally Posted by stovens

I remember hearing about those 302 Chevy setups. Seemed to be a real hot engine. Not sure why it didn't take off more. Was it a stroked down 350? I guess between the 327 configuration and the 350 Chevy really didn't need much more in the small block size range. Not to mention the 283!

327/350 block with a 283 crank.

Right! The chat was that Chevrolet was impressed with the hot rodder's performance version of the 283, which was punched .125 to the bore of a 327, and resulted in 301 inches.

They needed about a 300 inch motor for trans Am racing, but didn't want to copy the rodders, so for the 302 they fudged a couple thousandths on the bore and the stroke to make it a different number.

The 307 was the opposite...a 327 stroke and a 283 bore.