460 vs 454
 

I know that this was probably done before but what the he!!. I was wondering overall which big-block has the most potential all around. I know the 454 has 4 bolt mains. My friends father runs a sick 460 in his tubbed 69 mustang. He does ok at drags. Is it just the setup of everything like suspension, tires. Driver also right? He has to be pushing at least 500 hp. I was surprised to see so many fords at the drags. Saddly surprised. The fastest car there was a cobra drag car. That thing ripped!! Dont know what it was running. I was getting looks from everyone because when the fords were up I was yelling and getting crazy. I guess the reason for my post is why dont people use 460's more in drag racing. Or do they? Why arent there more Old fords in nastolgia racing? Kurt Neighbor is my hero!!

If you are just talking about racing, I would bet on the 454. A lot more development work has been done on Chevy Big Blocks, and a lot more parts are available.

"Why don't people use 460's in racing?"


I would say simply is the cost. So fewer people use them that the parts cost more.

500hp is nothing for the 460. I believe the 460 is more capable in terms of power, but there seems to be much more aftermarket for the GM.

if you know what your doing you can build up a 460 with a combination of 454 parts and the limited parts available for the 460. i think it was last year when petersons 4 wheel & off-road did a 460 build up this way.

Stick Chevy parts in a Ford engine?????
...I don't think so...

it should be illegal, but if you want some power/strength i guess it must be done. technically you could call them just aftermarket parts instead of chevy parts, lol.

Nawww...You should go check out the offroad forum. There are a couple guys over there with 460 that have absolutely no GM parts in them, pushing some serious numbers...the 460 itself is much more capable then the 454.

What about the 460 makes it much more capable than a 454? Just curious.

You can get 806 ci out of a 460 but not the 454.

i might have to check that out.
is that the only reason the 460 is more capable? i would tend to think of the 454 as the more capable one considering its aftermarket size compared to the 460. heck, the engines are probably about identicle anyways aren they?

There's a lot of pro's con's to each.......Off the shelf, factory produced, they're pretty close. I've owned both at the same time and the Ford seemed more durable for me....but of course you'll get many GM owners telling you the opposite.

People will whine about the 454's rod ratio, the 460's oiling system, the 454's port layout, the 460's lack of head bolts, the rarity of 4 bolt mains on the BBFords, Chevy's cracking exhaust manifolds..................... and on and on and on.

But unfortunately, unlike the smallblocks where Ford has really closed the gap as far as affordable aftermarket parts, the BBchevy is waaaay cheaper to make go faster.

Just check out the Marine industry as an example.

That doesn't mean the BBFord can't compete...........IHRA mountain motors are an example where Fords are dominating........but on a HP per $$$, the BBC has the upper hand.

The 460 was known for more of a work horse engine not a racing motor the 429 was more of Fords BB hotrod.

The reason why the marine industry uses Chevy is the engines are lighter look at Ford they use heavy blocks etc a 460 is quite abit heavier than the 454. Another reason is Chevy engines were plentyfull and cheap also chevy was more open to sell their engines for other uses.

The new marine engine is the 496-502 gets better fuel economy more power and lasts longer compared to the 454.

The real reason the marine industry uses mostly Chevy engines is because the 3.0L 4 cylinder, 4.3L V-6, 5.0L, 5.7L, 7.4L, and 8.2L V-8's all had the same bell housing bolt pattern. A 460 and a 454 weigh about the same.

Anyway, the 454, 496 and 502 are all basically the same motor.

Interchangability has a lot to do with it, i agree, Joe.........but the fact remains; a BBC is cheaper and easier to make go faster than a BBF.