Aluminium windsor block ?

Can't find my weight chart but I'm sure my alloy block was a lot more than 14 kilo's lighter than the alternative.
Think I posted that chart here somewhere...
Mine is not a world block though.

Tim.
 
I've found the Ford Motorsport 8.2 alloy block weight I measured - 46 kilo's.

I think the iron block was something like 74 kilo's.

Hope this is relevant Chris.

Tim.
 
Last edited:
I thought the 302 block was ~127lbs w/o caps. roughly 137-140 with bolts and caps.

Don't let me stop you but I'd make sure you're not wasting that weight loss, make the most of it and ensure the rest of the car is equally lightweight.
 
Why would you want an ally block engine ?
My engine builder says they should be for race cars where the drivers weigh nothing the cars and the engines even less.
Iron blocks are cheaper and stronger for the non racer.
To loose weight on the car I could go on a diet, but that wont happen either
 
An early 302 iron block weighs 134 lbs @ 30 over or 140 lbs @STD
Later ones are about 5lbs less
The World alloy block weighs 108 lbs
The Dart alloy block weighs 85 lbs

In Keiths case just take the loose change out of you're pockets and there you have it!

Mike
 
How did you know I have a lot of loose change in my pocket Mike.
Us Billionaires have got to stick together you know
 

flatchat(Chris)

Supporter
I'll happily accept your loose change for the investment then:uneasy:

The SG of cast Iron is 7.2 and for Al. is 2.64 -- so obviously there is a lot of added stuff in an Al. block to get strength etc.

I just fancied an all Al. 289 ci hotty --mainly cause it'd look good fully polished:laugh:

Mostly after peoples experiences--pros ,cons etc
 
Chris, go with it - great idea. A high revving 289/302 with alloy block would be really special. I've been having dreams of the same thing.

Was thinking about making my dream engine (or at least something different) starting with the same alloy block, adding good valve gear and relatively short stroke for a good rev'r, flat crank, twin plugs, 11.5 CR, carillo rods.....
 
Whats with the twin plug need Cliff, a good accountant should be pruning unnecessary costs from his special engine build:)
 
I'll happily accept your loose change for the investment then:uneasy:

The SG of cast Iron is 7.2 and for Al. is 2.64 -- so obviously there is a lot of added stuff in an Al. block to get strength etc.

I just fancied an all Al. 289 ci hotty --mainly cause it'd look good fully polished:laugh:

Mostly after peoples experiences--pros ,cons etc

Re the SG - The average SG would be a bit higher than just the SG for Al because of the sleeves - I included them in my measurement.

Fairly sure my measurement for the alloy block was with bolts and caps but it was a while ago now...
The 74 kilo's for iron came from a block I weighed previously - but it is from memory...

You are correct about added "stuff". There were minor dimensional differences with mine that meant that some things didn't quite fit - easy enough to fix though.


Tim.
 
Last edited:
Whats with the twin plug need Cliff, a good accountant should be pruning unnecessary costs from his special engine build:)

Yeah, you're right!

I guess the twin plug idea just comes from looking at a bunch of Alfa GTAs and porsche 911s....maybe it doesn't add much (half a point of CR??) but it does look pretty cool. Not sure where I'd find a dizzy cap with 16 take offs though....
 

flatchat(Chris)

Supporter
That's it cliff, "A dream motor" --theres something about blowing the doors off BB and stroker puller powered cars with a little sbf 289.
If Jim Richards can do it with his 289 powered Falcon sprint against 351 Mustangs etc-- so can we:stunned:
Clive, Coon Chrome crossed my mind too But Cr is 6.8 SG --so more weight and a heat retention barrier
 
'I guess the twin plug idea just comes from looking at a bunch of Alfa GTAs and porsche 911s....maybe it doesn't add much (half a point of CR??) but it does look pretty cool. Not sure where I'd find a dizzy cap with 16 take offs though.... '


Twin plug heads only make sense with hemi combustion chambers and associated heavily domed pistons, where shrouding is a problem.
Wedge chambers and flat top pistons - a waste. Sorry
 

Mike Pass

Supporter
A high revving 289/302 would be nice but maybe not on the road in a line of traffic. I still have the inlet manifold from the engine that was in Pete Thompson's ally one off car.
It had an iron block and Yates heads and a one off injection manifold set up. It did 525hp and ran very high rpms on Kenny Coleman's dyno some years ago with everyone stood well back! I have some pics somewhere - I'll see if I can find them. It went very well in the 850Kg one off ally chassis that Pete runs a 428ci stroker in now.
Cheers
Mike
 
I would like to bring this thread back to life

Previous Quote

Why would you want an alloy block engine ?
My engine builder says they should be for race cars where the drivers weigh nothing the cars and the engines even less.
Iron blocks are cheaper and stronger for the non racer.
To loose weight on the car I could go on a diet, but that wont happen either

The benifit of alloy blocks is weight and less weight means better performance
As a novice in these matters, I see the alloy block has cast iron liners which take most of the brunt of all the wear and tear from the pistons
So why should the cast iron block be stronger and more reliable
Has there been failures with the alloy blocks?
I am looking for an increase in performance in my Gt40 as I need to beat a number of compeditive Cobras
A new engine Cast Iron or Alloy?????
 

Doug S.

The protoplasm may be 72, but the spirit is 32!
Lifetime Supporter
There is a machine shop near where I live that handles Man-o-War products. I spoke to them once about one of the blocks and they said there is an incredible amount of machine work necessary to make the blocks usable....they don't do all that at the factory. Expensive to buy and expensive to prepare before you ever get to start the build.

IIRC the Man-o-War block is the one that has an extra head bolt hole for each cylinder....for use with their special heads, but can be used with standard heads. If you use the Man-o-War heads, I think you need one of their intake manifolds.

The Man-o-War products do well in the PHR "Engine Masters" competition, but that's a no-holds-barred competition with no economic limits.

IMHO, you ought to use a Dart or Dove block (have been hearing better things about the Dart blocks than the Dove).

Cheers!

Doug
 
Back
Top