Primary reason for building a six?

[jamyers]

To be different-
Pop the hood at a car show and heads turn!
And of course to be able to "hang out" on this great forum!!!
Thanks for asking!

Amen to both points. Last year I was at the major annual Cruise Night for around here, lots of high-dollar and rare cars (like a hemi Superbird with 7K miles). The Ranchero was parked next to a really nice and clean 'Cuda with a 6-pack and all the goodies, but guess which one got more attention and comments? Heh.

And this place rocks as well. 8)

 

[66shelby]

I bought both my daughters 6's intentionally to keep them under 100 mph.
Then I figured out I could maintain the engine while standing, change oil, swap starter, etc.
Now the convertible is mine.
I was inspired by BMW to go the turbo route and keep the six "to be different".
Then I found Ford Six and saw I wasn't alone.
I have a V8 Fastback that gets 13 mpg and a 250 Convertible that gets 20 mpg.
They both rate very high on the spg (Smiles per gallon) !!!!

 

[ludwig]

Why a six? Well, why does one guy like liver jerky and another guy like lima bean custard? As a great man once said: "It just bees that way." I forgot who it was, but it was in the 60s.

Me? I like it because I can fix it myself and nobody who has a lick of sense would steal it.

 

[Mustangaroo]

To Be Different
I have had such great comments about my Mustang and it's Supercharged Inline Six. As far a crate motors, I'd make a mild 120-150 HP and one 200-250 HP

 

[bazza102]

bought a 71 nz falcon as a gt replica that i thought i could enhance. but paying the money on the sound of the 351 clivo exhaust note and assesing body in rain and at night was not a good idea. eventually swopped all v8 parts into sound body and was left with a recently recond 6. fixed replica body, repaint, 2v head,triplle oers, cam, toyota 4 speed etc. now used for towing race car. the amount of interest when you lift bonnet, the brain power that required to come up with new ideas for motor is way more fun. not following like a lemming has its own satisfaction.

whilst i voted for other it was only because i couldnt vote for performance and other together, because in my book they are equal

 

[66 Fastback]

Other: Because it was there.

If it had a 4 cyl or a straight 8, I would have kept / rebuilt whatever came in the vehicle.
Doug

 

[woodbutcher]

They are fun and different.
Leo

 

[Billr57]

I DARE to be Different.

"That's awesome! Nice engine.
You have balls to show a 'stang without a V8, too."

The swap to a V8 has been done to death, anyone can do the V8 thing. But to do a Inline it takes some serious thinking and planing, you can go to places like Jegs and Summit and order anything you want for a V8, Just try to do that with a Inline.

Bill "The Guy Who Built A Six"

 

[xctasy]

I'll never own a V8 Ford, they are crap.

Down here, the I6 is the easiest Ford engine to get, easiest Ford engine to repair...even if you can blow it up, you can still rebuild it in one weekend.

All my mates with thin wall small block 289's, 302W's, 351w's 351C's were practically broke after building there Falcons and Cortinas, and those engines are fundamentally flawed due to either poor head or block castings, or detonation issues on modern gas.

Servicing the small blocks with good ignition and fuel systems was a nightmare, and any hop-up gear was expensive. The power figures (my mate Blairs had 375 hp, did 12-18 US miles per gallon) created axle and drivetrain problems, and the cost of really good manual gearboxes was huge.

I had to work to a budget, and over here I6 Falcons and Cortinas come with reasonable stock axles which can take 250 foot pounds without going exothermic, there are plenty of alternative ratios, any number of good manual gearboxes, and there is so much fun picking up a junked Ford I6, and rebuilding the engine into something wild.


My mate Richie taught me a lot, a shoestring budget, and a 165 hp EFI 4.1 Cortina 5-speed, and he had a 351 Falcon Ute before he saw the light.

 

[shmoozo]

Which few crate engines to develop and build? I'm guessing you're talking small sixes here, so I'd say the following general builds might be something like what the market would go for.

The Stage 1 build ("the upscale daily driver"):

* Classic Inlines Head
* Classic Inlines 4 barrel intake with either a large 2 barrel carb or a small to medium 4 barrel carb (whatever actually works best)
* A mild performance cam which will give smooth idle, good fuel economy, and "significantly better-than-stock" performance when combined with the rest of the build
* hypereutectic pistons which produce a compression ratio that is perhaps slightly higher than stock, but which will still let the engine run on regular unleaded
* An electronic ignition of some sort
* Shorty headers or (if you can develop it in time) a "header-like" cast iron exhaust manifold which is either a dual 3-into-1 design something like the big six's EFI exhaust manifolds, or a really swoopy 6-into-one design
* compatible with both manual or automatic transmissions, but might require a torque converter with slighter higher stall speed than stock if used with an automatic

The Stage 1.5 build ("the upscale daily driver with a brain"):

* similar to the stage 1 build, but switch to an EFI induction comprised of a Classic Inlines 4 barrel intake with a fuel rail, injectors, sensors, a simple, low-cost, OEM throttle body of appropriate size (from a large displacement factory EFI 6 of some sort perhaps?), wiring harness and some sort of pre-programmed EFI controller (The idea here is to have it be as close to a bolt-in EFI set up as possible.)

The Stage 2 build ("the weekend cruiser"):

* Classic Inlines Head
* Classic Inlines 4 barrel intake with an appropriately sized 4 barrel carb
* A mid-range performance cam which will produce an idle with no more than a slight bit of lope, give reasonable fuel economy, and even better performance
* hypereutectic pistons which produce a compression ratio that will generally require a grade gasoline better than regular unleaded, but not necessarily premium
* A better electronic ignition, but not necessarily a DUI
* Long-tube headers or shorty headers as dictated by what can fit into the engine bay into which it will be dropped
* manual transmission recommended, but could perhaps work with an automatic if used with a torque converter with a higher stall speed than stock

The Stage 2.5 build ("the weekend cruiser with a brain"):

* similar to the stage 2 build, but switch to an EFI induction comprised of a Classic Inlines 4 barrel intake with a fuel rail, injectors, sensors, a simple, low-cost, OEM throttle body of appropriate size (from a stock small block V8 of some sort perhaps?), wiring harness and some sort of pre-programmed EFI controller (The idea here is again to have it be as close to a bolt-in EFI set up as possible.)

The Stage 3 build ("the weekend warrior"):

* A CNC ported and polished Classic Inlines Head
* Classic Inlines 4 barrel intake with an appropriately sized 4 barrel carb
* A "street-strip" performance cam which will likely idle with more lope than stage 2 and yield even better performance
* hypereutectic (or forged?) pistons which produce a compression ratio that will require premium grade gasoline
* An upscale electronic ignition like a DUI or something comparable
* Long-tube headers or shorty headers as dictated by what can fit into the engine bay into which it will be dropped
* manual transmission required

The Stage 3.5 build ("the weekend warrior with a brain"):

* similar to the stage 3 build, but switch to triple two-throat, side draft, throttle body injection units on a Classic Inlines intake manifold of some sort, and all the other goodies required for a screaming EFI system

The Stage 4 build ("the rocket"):

* Two words: Forced induction. (I'll leave it to you to work out the rest.)

You've probably noticed that I've left out all the boring details on these engines like fasteners, timing chain sets, connecting rods, fuel pumps, gaskets, bearings, and seals, but I'm sure you could work out which bits and pieces to use on these things.

Frankly, I tend to think you would sell mostly stage 1 and stage 2 engines, a smaller number of stage 1.5, stage 2.5 and stage 3 engines, an even smaller number of stage 3.5 engines and perhaps a handful of stage 4 engines.

If I had to narrow it down to just 3 of them for you to add to your offerings, I'd say the stage 1, stage 2 and either the stage 3 engine or perhaps either the stage 1.5 or 2.5 engine would be the ones to work on first. They shouldn't be too difficult to develop, and I would expect them to be the ones that are most likely to sell well enough to help fund the development of the more potent engines.

If I had to narrow it down to just 2 of them for you to add to your offerings, I'd say either the stage 1 and the stage 2 engines or the stage 2 and stage 3 engines would be the obvious ones to work on first. They shouldn't be too difficult to develop, and I would expect them to be the ones that are most likely to sell well enough to help fund the development of the more potent engines.

If you only wanted to begin with one, I'd probably begin with the stage 2 engine as the first offering. I really think it is the one that would be the best balance of attracting attention to your overall crate engine project while also being a model that would actually sell well enough to give you the funds to get the other models of the crate engine line developed. After that, either the stage 1 engine or the stage 3 engine would probably be a good choice.

By the time you get the first two offerings available I think you'd have a better idea of what people were looking for in these crate engines so you'd get a better handle on what direction you really ought to go next with them.

 

[l3n]

To Be Different
I have had such great comments about my Mustang and it's Supercharged Inline Six. As far a crate motors, I'd make a mild 120-150 HP and one 200-250 HP

This is just my opinion here, but I think that's the right idea. There are basically two schools of thought on the i6: Performance or Economy.Yeah, there's "being different" and other reasons, but they don't describe the performance level of a motor.

I think building a version based on getting as much performance as you can while maintaining economy (for example, no less than 25 mpg) would be one good build, and another based on pushing the envelope (high hp/torque). Each can also have optional upgrades to tweak the performance further according to customer's goals, but I think those two models would provide a baseline so most folks could reach their end goals without a lot of extra effort.

I think one of your biggest questions is the price point. On the performance side it doesn't matter as much (no one expects a racer to be cheap) but if you can come up with an economical way for all those folks with aged iron to make their cars into reliable daily drivers again, I think you'd have pretty strong interest.

 

[Funky Cricket]

"other" for me.
my first capri had a 6 and I fell in love it.
I have loved i6's of all sorts ever since.

can't explain it. I just like 'em.

 

[Anonymous]

I like the hopped up 6 (especially with the aluminum head/intake/4bbl carb) because it draws attention and I like to be the center of attention.....

Originally though it was because it came with a 6 cylinder.

As far as my trucks are concerned, I've always ran the 300 6 in them because my Dad always told me it was the best engine Ford ever made and after owning 2 of them I tend to agree with him!

later,

Doug

 

[Straight Six]

To Be Different
I have had such great comments about my Mustang and it's Supercharged Inline Six. As far a crate motors, I'd make a mild 120-150 HP and one 200-250 HP

This is just my opinion here, but I think that's the right idea. There are basically two schools of thought on the i6: Performance or Economy.Yeah, there's "being different" and other reasons, but they don't describe the performance level of a motor.

I think building a version based on getting as much performance as you can while maintaining economy (for example, no less than 25 mpg) would be one good build, and another based on pushing the envelope (high hp/torque). Each can also have optional upgrades to tweak the performance further according to customer's goals, but I think those two models would provide a baseline so most folks could reach their end goals without a lot of extra effort.

I think one of your biggest questions is the price point. On the performance side it doesn't matter as much (no one expects a racer to be cheap) but if you can come up with an economical way for all those folks with aged iron to make their cars into reliable daily drivers again, I think you'd have pretty strong interest.

I agree--where do i buy?????"

" getting as much performance as you can while maintaining economy (for example, no less than 25 mpg) economical way for all those folks with aged iron to make their cars into reliable daily drivers again"

 

[Russ]

simple, inexpensive, reliable engine

 

[Anonymous]

I've been lurking around this board for a while since I bought my first Mustang to restore and just had to chime in. I originally got the six because I had a set amount of money I wanted to spend on getting a Mustang and that typically did not include a V8.

Now that I have my car, I'm really enjoying spending time getting to know the complete restoration process of the whole car instead of just dinking around with the engine. Once I found this forum, I realized how much room there is to make a pretty interesting engine. I'm already starting to plan out my engine rebuild to include the Classic Inlines head and intake manifolds.

Now if there was a crate engine available, I would jump on it in a heart beat. I don't have the know-how to do everything I would like to my engine, so after all the parts and labor, I can't imagine a crate engine would be that much more expensive.

What would I like out of it? A good daily driver with some get up and go. A real sleeper that has an interesting alternative to all the cookie cutter V8 Mustangs out there.

I will definitely be watching this forum and the classicinlines site for any info on those crates!

 

[250coupe]

torque junky. i wanted to vote for perfomance and being different but i couldnt move my mouse fast enough

while doing reserch and looking for perfomance parts for my 250 i found out that torque is what really matters on the street and not big HP numbers. I want to have great honda killing torque and be different at the same time. I6's are like transformers "More Than Meets The Eye"

 

[250coupe]

(this was the expression on my face when i saw all the goodies i could get for my I6)

 

[CobraSix]

I can't believe I missed this historic thread.

Why did I stay with the six?

Well, to be completely honest I almost didn't. My original plan for the 6 cylinder was to rip it out and drop a V-8 into the convertible. The best laid plans.

What really convinced me to stay six was one day, after I had owned the car for about 2 months I went to a local show and shine. At the time, my engine bay looked like this:

Nothing fancy. In fact, I was kind of ashamed. So when I pulled into the parking lot, I kept the hood closed. Then people started asking what I had under the hood and I kept answering "Just a Six". Out of the 40 cars there, I was the only car with less then 8 cylinders. Finally, a few of them really wanted to see it and convinced me to pop the hood up. I had more people coming to check out my 200 then any of the other engine bays there...and that's with it looking like crap. That's when I realized that maybe people were tired of see V-8s.

Also, about that time is when I finally found fordsix.com. I had been hanging out on VMF and in fact my first post was how to go about pulling the 6 out and putting in an 8.

So finally I was convinced to stay six. It was only compounded when I installed and showed my Offy set up.

I went to another local show and shine and popped my hood and the crowd that gathered made my engine the envy of all the V-8 owners. Everyone was checking out my little tri-power six and ignoring the run of the mill V-8s and even the built ones.

Then I met a friend who owned a 68 GT500 at another local show and shine. We parked beside each other so we could BS and keep an eye on his car at the same time, thinking mine would be skipped sitting beside a GOURGEOUS 68 GT500. I mean, this car was beautiful. Then amazingly, people walked by his car...would pear into my engine back and then do a head snap at mine engine bay and just stop and stare. My friend said that had never happened to him before with that car.

It's a great conversation piece.

"Oh, what do you have in there"

"Just a six"

"You should put a V-8 in there"

"Nah...too plain"

Then I show them why I stay six.

Recently talking to a new mechanic I found who helped me with my rear end problems. I asked what I had done to the car, which at this point is to make everything a V-8 except the actual engine. He asked why I didn't have a V-8 in there...and I just shrugged. He laughed because he said "You've done all the hard work of the V-8 swap, why stop now?" Then I took him for a ride and he understood.

So when I finished all my work this winter I did have to take a step back and laugh at myself. When I originally wanted to put a V-8 in, the one thing that stopped me was all the other work I was going to have to do to make it done right. Rear end, Transmission, front end, steering, brakes. Now, 6 years later I've done all of the required V-8 upgrades...except for the V-8 part. I could literally do an engine swap and my car would be perfectly ready for it in a day. Everything is done...

Yet somehow I've stayed six and intend to stay inline (at least on this car). I'm so into the six's that I fully intend to buy a 6 cylinder fastback or a cheap V-8 coupe (which will be swapped to a 6) and go a little crazier on the engine then I am comfortable with in the convertible.

 

[CoupeBoy]

I'm equal opportunity. My first car was has a 283, my second car originally had a 200 but it was missing, my third car has a 230, the '65 F100 had a 240 that somebody swapped to a bent8, my '54 however originally came with a 239 (y block) but when I bought it there was a 223 (stuck) installed, I have another 239 (truck block with the dipstick on the correct side, I also have another 223) only time will tell whether that one stays or goes. My main goal is to work with what it has and improve it for reliablity, the only performance upgrade I've ever done was the cam/intake/carb swap on my 289. My mustang that had a 200 will get a 250, it had a 302 in it for about a year but I never drove it becuase it's missing fenders and a hood, my Dad came home one day with a '75 250 and my younger brother asked if I wanted to sell the 302 and that was it, no more bent8 for that car. For me it's just about being able to play with my toys, this is my hobby and I enjoy it any way that I can, and I'm a firm believer in recycling and I have a horrible habit of not throwing away anything, so even if I were to (gasp) pull a i6 eventually it would make it back into something, either of mine or I'd find somebody who needs it.

For Crate motors I think you'd have to offer 4 at the minimum
Stock appearing
Mostly stock with alum head
High HP (all motor)
blueprinted low CR (boost ready)

-ron