Ford did lot's of interesting stuff in the '60's...they had their Total Performance philosophy and program back then.

They also ran the Monte Carlo Rally in '63 and '64 (memory) and ran Falcon Sprint V8's and later ran Mustangs...all suitably modified for high performance European rallies.

The engine they used was the 260-289 for a lot of these automotive adventures..usually the hi-po 289/271 hp...which in many instances was further tweaked to run hp figures well into the 300's.

I was a young kid back in those days and to me and many others the hi-po 289 Ford V8 was one of the top engines. This was pretty good for a small block...as in the '60's the big block V8's from the different makers pretty well dominated high performance.

I would say, IMO...back then...the two top perf. small block V8's had to be the 289/271 K Code Ford V8 and...sorry about this...but also the L-79 Chevy 350 hp/ 327 cube V8.

Later on both Ford and Chevy had their respective 302's ...but in the mid -60's (+/- a year or two) the 271/289 and the 327/350 were magnificent.

One car that has stuck in my mind over the years was the '65 Mustang fastback...289/ 271 Hp...4 speed that my Mother's co-worker's boyfriend had. He was never reluctant to run that hi-po Mustang through the gears at full revs....my parent's thought he was a menace the way he drove ...but I would of done anything at the time for a ride in that car.

Some may say that I live a bit in the past...but when a good chunk of my past was during the golden era of Detroit hi performance in the '50's and '60's...it's hard to avoid.

 

That's neat Less. No doubt the 289 was a solid motor (obviously from your videos). I would think if they did some "testing" like that today that a lot of people would love to see that and more willing to buy the product. I agree about the 65 with a 289 being one of the nicest to see. That little small block could make some ponies.

 

That`s bring back more memories for me and that`s a good thing Les!
I`ve got a stack of old car magazines with these types of articles but too lazy to dig them up and read up on this.

 

Morris, you and I were quite fortunate to have lived in the '50's and '60's (not to mention the other decades ) and it really was the golden era of Detroit...healthy V8's everywhere you looked (and heard). All varieties of them too//it was great.

Prairie Lariat...the 289 was a fine V8...in addition to powering Mustangs and Falcon Sprints...a lot of them also found their way under the hoods (bonnets) of British Sports cars like the A.C. (Cobra) and the Sunbeam Tiger amongst others.

Les

 

I beleive that a form of the 289 found it`s way into an Indy car as well.

 

I think your right Morris.

As an aside I saw an interesting scene today in the Peg. I was waiting at a stoplight and I saw a young fellow (about 19-20) in a older Ford Taurus SHO. He must of been a car buff and I'm assuming this old SHO was the most performance per dollar that his budget would afford.

He came out of the corner under throttle (seemed to know what to do) and accelerated down the street. The SHO's hi perf. V6 made a nice engine sound and I think he was enjoying listening the high winding V6 as he had his driver's window down in 2 above weather...lol

I guess it takes a car buff to spot one...even if they are only about 1/3 my age...

 

AFAIK, the first two years of Sunbeam Tigers used 260's...and if you ever look under the hood of one of these cars, you will see that the firewall is dished inwards so the engine would fit.

The distance between the firewall and the valve covers is about 2" which means....the engine has to be pulled to change the valve cover gaskets!

When Chrysler acquired The Rootes Group, which included Sunbeam, they had to initially cover the warranty of the Ford V8.

I'm not 100% sure, but I think the last Sunbeam Tigers had Plymouth 273 cid V8's installed.

1963/64 Falcon Sprints were also 260's with either Borg Warner T-10's or two speed Ford-O-Matics.

The 289 and C4 were not available in Falcons till 1965. 1965 was not only the last year for the Falcon Sprint, but for two door hardtops and convertibles.

1965 Mustangs made before 8/23/64 also came with 260's (and 289's).

The AC Cobra is considered an American car.

Carroll Shelby purchased AC Ace/Aceca bodies & chassis in the UK, had them shipped to El Segundo, CA where he not only installed 289's, but 427's as well.

I was born in 1944, my family owned an Olds dealership for decades, so I've been a car buff practically all my life.

I have owned over 325 cars/trucks and was a Ford partsman for 35 years.

 

Good stuff, Number Dummy. I know this is a little of the usual topic discussed on this website, but did your family's Olds dealership ever bring any out of the ordinary Old's performance cars like the '50's J-2..think they had 3 X 2 carbs, etc. ?

What are your favourite Oldsmobiles from the past ?

Also having owned 325 cars in the past...what are your favourites from that massive list ?

 

J-2 engines: 1957/58 Oldsmobiles.

My dad sponsored some local races when many of the cars driven were 1949/51 Olds 88 Club Coupe's, which my dad called the "businessman's hotrod."

The Olds 88 with its new OHV 303 V8 (introduced 1949), was one of the fastest cars at that time. Besides the engine, the bodies were the same ones as Chevrolet used.

Olds 88's dominated NASCAR until the 1952 Hudson's were introduced with Twin-H-Power. From 1952 thru 1954, Hudson absolutely ruled NASCAR, winning more races than any other car.

My dad sold Olds' for many years to the CHP, until they switched to Buicks around 1956.

Favorite Oldsmobiles: 1950 88: Club Coupe, Sedanet (fastback) and Station Wagon / 1955 88 & 98 HT's and ragtops.

Favorite Packards: 1912-1956 Packards. Pick a year, I like them all. Have owned over 60, and currently own two:

Mostly original 1934 V12 Convertible Victoria, and an all original (right down to the moth eaten broadcloth upholstery, faded chrome and nitrocellulose lacquer paint) 57,000 mile 1939 Packard Super 8 sedan.

Favorite Fords: 1963 Galaxies, 1970/72 F100 Ranger XLT's. Bought a 1971 new...wish I still had it.

In the 1960's, early 1970's one could buy nice original local CA 1940/50's cars cheap, usually for less than 300 bucks. I specialized in HT's, Ragtops, Woody Station Wagons from Ford, GM and Packard.

I bought dozens upon dozens, detailed them, tuned them, made sure the brakes & steering were OK, then sold them, usually at local swap meets, making several hundred bucks profit on each.

The profits from selling these old rolling piles of misery enabled me to buy out over 300 Ford dealer stocks of obsolete parts, and new Ford pickups to haul them. I also cleaned out over 30 former Packard dealers stocks of obsolete parts.

I then sold these obsolete parts at swap meets and thru ads in Hemmings.

Back then, just like today......Ford partsmen were not into old cars/trucks. Most hated the piles, thought I was nuts!

I knew exactly one other partsguy out of 100's, that loved these old piles of misery.

For the past 20 years, this fellow has owned a well known Mustang/Shelby resto shop in North Hollywood CA.

 

Visiting that resto shop must be like heaven for enthusiasts.

 

Now that would be living my dream life, a Mustang/Shelby/Ford restoration in frost free zone like Ca.!

 

Your past with vehicles is really interesting Bill.