That was another thought. Going with something like a readily accessible Buick V6 or Chevy 4.3L V6 would be a way to keep a stock length frame and skip the firewall recess. There is enough speed hardware out there to make them perform well enough for anything I'm likely to do with it. Lets face it 250-300 HP is more than enough to push a lightweight street rod down the road at better than legal speeds, and it isn't a cookie cutter small block. There are also a ton of them around in junkyards.