Rear engine/transmission mount.

Habusailor

Habusailor

Senior Member
I am dropping a 60hp flathead v8 into a 28 A chassis. What do I need to support the back of the engine and transmission? Should I get the cross member from a 32 or newer or is there one that fits the A?


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Not an expert here, but make sure it is strong enough to prevent what I have seen way back in the day, namely the feared "torque twist"
 
The two most common rear engine cross member mods are the 1932 K-member and the F1 pickup cross member. Most of these were for full size V8 engine installations. The little V8-60 is similar but definitely smaller and also has different front mounts. The model A engine, at 200 cubic inches, has more potential for horse power than the little V8. At 138 cubic inches, it developed 60-HP at 3500 rpm. The torque was only 94 Ft/Lbs at 2500 rpm. Torque and horse power are very low at low rpm. It all came in at high rpm. This made them perfect for the midget class but not worth a crap for a regular automobile. They had to use very low rear axle gearing and special transmissions to make them work at all.

Modern testing on the model A engine gave 83 Ft/Lbs at 2250 rpm on stock compression engine. Horse power was lower than what Henry claimed at 35.6. With modifications, some pretty simple, the engine starts to wake up. Here is an interesting link. http://www.rarecarrelics.com/tests-the-ford-model-a-ford-engine.php

The V8-60 was raced back in the day but it was mostly in midget race cars and they are pretty small. It didn't take much HP to get the midgets to go fast. They did well enough but they were in a class all their own. Parts for the 60 are getting harder to find every year.
 
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A stock V8-60 developed less torque (97 lbs-ft) than the Model "A" 4-cylinder engine (128 lbs-ft).

Flathead_enginecurves_1937-40_60hp.jpg
 
Bob Bidonde said:
A stock V8-60 developed less torque (97 lbs-ft) than the Model "A" 4-cylinder engine (128 lbs-ft).

Flathead_enginecurves_1937-40_60hp.jpg
Click to expand...

As Bob said and noted in the chart you are going to be disappointed in the 60 Hp engine. It doesn’t have enough power to get out of its own way. Every A I’ve driven over the years powered by 60’s was slow and disappointing to the owners.
I would stick with a stock A and do some head upgrades etc if you want a little more, or go the 85 or 100 route. That defiantly has its complexities.

Wouldn’t even be a choice of power plants even if free.
Larry
 
Thanks for all the encouragement about the 60. We will see. I am not looking for a speed demon, I want something to tool around my lake country in Minn. 7 miles to town, 3 miles to my shop 30mph with a slow start will be just fine


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