Gee I'd love to mess with an 8BA flathead, I might know what I was doing with that instead of the SBC I am building. However as I recall the flatheads were HEAVIER than the modern SBC, in the range of over 600 pounds. Surely that is close to TWICE the weight of the Fiat engine? Beyond beefing up springs, what about understeer on a short wheelbase going into a corner "heavy". Still with finned aluminum heads that could really be a show car with new paint and top, but on the street it might be a beast (but one that I could enjoy cruisin in). Seriously an aluminum Buick/Pontiac/Oldsmobile 215 might work but the flathead is a tad heavy for that size car? Why not buy a Speedway or TPI T-frame and adapt the Fiat body after you put in the engine; only a few years work!

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder