| A fun story
I just thought I'd share this story.
About three years ago I hit my mid-life crisis and started tinkering with Ford FE engines and kit cars, (replicas if you like) and decided to start researching a kit car project. Along the way I figured I would realize a life long dream of preparing a 427 SOHC and use it in my kit car. Over a year or two I kept rummaging around on eBay to get bits & pieces for the engine. One day I noticed a 427 block (I have a good one, but you can always use another; right) and the bidding was not where it should be. I wrote the seller and asked him why he was selling it and his published response in the Q&A was something like "it is a perfectly good block that was in a car, we just decided to change it." I do not think that helped the the seller; in most peoples mind "no one changes a 427 out for another engine." So thinking the block looked good I placed a max bid of about 65% of the usual going rate for a 427 block, and went away for the weekend. When I came home I had very mixed emotions when I checked email and found I won the block.
The next day I called the seller and asked a little about the history of the block I just won, and he replied "Have you ever heard of the Collier's Collection" and I said "no." The fellow then told me a little about the history of the collection and that it was one of the most exciting private museums of cars in the world and that they had a GT40 MKII. At some point someone pointed out to the team that manages the collection that the the engine in the MKII (perfectly good, only used in parades) had an incorrectly date-coded block and the later ribs in the side, so when they sent the car out for some work, they changed the block to a more correct one and my new block was the one left over.
So, the block was boxed up (In an amazingly sturdy box of plywood) and sent to me with a reciept from Collier's, and in my basement is a 427 block (one of the later 427 service blocks "with the ribs") that sat in what I think is the 1046 car for a number of years.
I had the block shipped to my machinist to get cleaned up and he called me whan it arrived and said it's so fresh he would not even hone it. It must have only seen a couple parades over the time it was in service.
I have not verified what MKII Collier's has, but I did see a blurb somewhere on the web that indicated it was the only MKII to win LeMans, so that's why I think it may be 1046.
Also, I do not think it makes the block (since it is what it is) something rare or extremely valuable, it is just a fun story, and that corner of my closet in the basement glows a little at night with the excitement of a future GT40 project I hope to take on.
If anyone could verify which MKII Collier's owns I would appreciate it.
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