FE Power Forums
FE Power Forums => FE Technical Forum => Topic started by: fryedaddy on January 07, 2018, 11:51:04 AM
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i was talking to a man the other day and he told me something that kinda worried me.he said almost all fe guys are older men and that the fe after market support would dry up in a few years when us older guys die out.that hit me pretty hard because after i got to thinking about it,i could not think of any fe guys younger than me and im about to turn 55 next month.how about some input on this subject,what do you guys think?
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Ask the flathead guys about this.
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They’re not going anywhere.
As long as there are Cobra replicas, Mustangs, Fairlanes, Cougars, Galaxies, etc, there will be FE engines.
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Unfortunately I have to agree with him. Unless it's installed in a rare vehicle.
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To be fair though, that's all they're installed in now. Ordinary, run of the mill cars just don't have FE's in them.....they are rare muscle cars.
Barry was right, there's always going to be niche engines out there.
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Yeah, tell that to the Model A and Model T guys! ;)
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I just turned 39.
I own two vehicles.
Both have FE's.
There are more like me.......
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Go to the Facebook Flathead forum and take a look. Guys all around the world are still
looking for them and building them. They are always looking for parts and buildable blocks.
I'm with Brent and Barry on this. As long as these old cars exist there will be people looking
to build engines for them.
G503 is a military vehicle forum and I was amazed at the world wide demand for old military vehicles
and parts.
There may come a day when the FE dies but probably not in my lifetime.
garyv
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Depends - at a higher level, the entire hobby is in danger. The kids my grandson (17) hang with drive pickups or cars and the pickups are about bumpers, lifts and tires because this is west Texas. There is not mass trasit here because it's 60 miles between towns and pretty much you need a vehicle to get anywhere. However, a lot of them just don't care and fore sure nobody wants some old car. Grandkid took a year to complete the paperwork for a license because it wasn't a big deal. Plenty of people to ride with. Most of us were at the door before the DPS Office opened - not like that any more. Big city - lots of driver's age people don't care to even have a car. Especially if they have a student loan - some car payment will just kill them. Our 2014 Fusion for example - we'd save over $3000 a year driving the F150 because of payment, insurance, warranty, etc.
The Friday crowd at the drag strip - for every car with some mod, there are 10 with nothing. Or they are factory hotrods owned by people in the AF with that kind of cash. And again - a lot of diesel pickups.
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Not just FE...Hot rods, muscle cars, race cars and hot boats in general. The younger generation is not following in their fathers or grand fathers foot steps. Seems they are more interested in I-phones, drones, computers and whatever the latest electronic gadget that comes out. Every year that I go to the drag races it seems it is more "greybeards" and fewer young people than the previous year. With the cost involved in owning a car, any car, most can only afford one. That one car has to be basic transportation, commuter car, insurable and get as good of fuel mileage as possible. Add the fact that most have nowhere to work on a car eliminates those few that would like to have a second "hobby" car. Most, if not all high schools no longer has any type of shop class so the average kid doesn't know a 9/16" box wrench from a dead blow hammer and doesn't care. Lord forbid they should get their hands dirty. Old cars [80s and earlier] are no longer affordable, parts are getting hard to find and with the "Barret/Jackson" buy & flip mentality everyone who has one of these old cars thinks it is a world class classic and is priced accordingly. Lets not forget that in most states the car has to pass smog and/or safety inspection, another road block. As I see it we are a dying breed.
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And one more "site ban-able" blasphemy LOL - the FE doesn't really have the "panache" of the flat head. Neither does the 351C. Only thing close is SBF, SBC, LS. Those and the Flathead should live on a long while. FE and 351C have good support but also have a pretty high "barrier to entry" if you are picking project motors, unless your project comes with a rebuildable model. Used to see a lot of FEs in the scrap yard - last time I was out in the big old yard, not so much. 351C - none, not a single one in 200 acres of cars.
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No panache for the FE? That's ridiculous, IMO. NASCAR winner, LeMans winner, NHRA and SCCA champion, and no panache?? I think the historical significance of the FE far outweighs the flatty, especially when it comes to high performance and racing. The FE will be around for long time to come...
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It's kind'a sad, but the car "thing" has its days numbered.
Here in California, legislation is being considered that will ban gas powered cars to be sold by 2040.
20 years ago, I had lots of local pals with hot rods. In January I'd print-up a paper that would say what car shows and drag meets myself and Mrs.-T would be attending and that we'd love to have others come along. I'd mail them out to my pals.
Sadly, we have been going to cars events by ourselves for several years now because even our "gray beard" pals have dropped out. I'd say the whole car culture is in a free-fall. I'll keep doing it because that is what I do...but I certainly don't expect old car stuff to get bigger.
Enjoy it while you can. One more thing for you FE parts hoarder guys. Better get to building that "some day" motor and put it in a real car. Some day is here.
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My daughter is into horses. Similar fate awaits the car hobby. Fewer participants but still plenty of enthusiasts. Similar venue - take your critter, put it in a trailer, and go to an event.
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I have to agree with Barry, after hearing Bob Lutz talk about the future of the automobile and it's role in transport. Autonomous cars Artificial intelligence are coming. I saw a Volvo test vehicle come through the security gate, stop and pick and empty bay and back up to the dock, all with no driver. The cars GM and Ford are planning have no steering wheel or other controls. You climb into your pod and say we're your destination is, and you are wisked away. Lutz predicted that in less than 20 years, driver control cars would be banned from urban areas and highways. When Lutz was asked about the old car hobby, he said he envisioned there would be driving clubs with facilities were you could garage your classic and be able to drive it over a short course. It will as Lutz pointed out be a revolution in transport similar to the stage of the automobile replacing the horse.
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No panache for the FE? That's ridiculous, IMO. NASCAR winner, LeMans winner, NHRA and SCCA champion, and no panache?? I think the historical significance of the FE far outweighs the flatty, especially when it comes to high performance and racing. The FE will be around for long time to come...
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I agree with Jay 100%.
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Well if any of you guys wanna give up on the FE then I'll be glad to take some of your stuff off a your hands for you..
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Interesting topic. I’m 42 and still feel like one of the youngest when I attend FE events. However, show up the Fords Carlisle and there are plenty of younger guys, all driving late model Mustangs of course. Plenty are being modified as well, it’s more bolt on oriented but guys are still rebuilding engines and such. Look at the aftermarket and I don’t think the hobby as a whole is in any trouble
I think the Flathead was more ubiquitous, the FE is much more a niche engine and following and I think it’ll wane a bit but that’s still a ways off. There is a trend towards “different” combos so I think they FE will survive
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Scary thought about driverless cars.The one
who controlls the cars (the goverment atleast
in Sweden) controll where you are allowed to go
A dream senario for a mad dictator
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I'll keep running my old rusty junk.....
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I'm 28, and have a full unused basement, so anybody that needs a safe place to send their parts when the FE is dead.....
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It is good to know that some of you are as young as 28. I was on a team that ran a tough old 64 galaxie stock car. When the mid 70's came along the move was to the 350- 351 engines with a 358 limit. I had to reduce inventory of Fe parts. I basically gave away intakes, steel cranks, heads. The 427 block still was valuable then probably got $300 for them. At that time nobody was using them around here. There was one local guy that was buying, but like $25 for a sidewinder intake. I remember I sold him a pretty much new 427 medium riser 2-4bbl manifold for $30. About 10 years later I stopped to see George and he still had about 15 complete 427's, plus high riser heads, manifolds, the intakes I had sold him 10 years earlier still on the shelves in his shop. He later got in trouble with the IRS and banks and everything was gone. Somebody got that load of parts.
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I'm 28, and have a full unused basement, so anybody that needs a safe place to send their parts when the FE is dead.....
Unused basement!? That's where I stash all the Cobra Jet parts I've been hoarding.
I'm 36, but this hobby is expensive and when you can get a four Cylinder 300 hp Mustang at 0% down I do understand why most people don't care about our obsession for 50 year old + rusted parts. I love 'em, but my wife was not happy helping put a C6 under there tonight.
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Likewise, if anybody wants to give up their stuff, I'm also 36, and I plan to be around for a while. I will say the cost scares a bunch of people away. Personal example: I need to get a new transmission console for the Cyclone (which shares with the Fairlane). Never re-popped, and they go for ~1k. 1k for a piece of molded 1960's plastic. I haven't ran into anyone who doesn't think I'm crazy paying that price.
Joe
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25 yrs ago I thought all my hot rods would be worth something in the future. Not like I could retire after selling off, but worth at least something. Now, not so much. I've even had thoughts of selling off at least one, then slowing drop out of the racing scene. Just downsizing and playing with something easier to move around.
The one who dies with the most toys..........still dies. :-\
20 yrs ago, I never would have even considered it. Middle age seems to make you think differently.
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I have to agree with Battlestar after the last engine failure I lost alot of interest. I have been screwing around with this car for 45 yrs. Maybe its time for a new hobby. I doubt I will be at the FE reunion this year unless I get a jolt of motivation.
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The one who dies with the most toys..........still dies.
Ya but he had the most fun. I am 49 and I never owned an Fe powered car until 3 years ago and currently have 2. There is still a lot on interest in old muscle cars. I know a 24 year old kid that already has three 60`s cougars. Probably the biggest challenge on the ford end is having available parts for motors and mid size fords like cyclones and torinos and fairlanes.
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No panache for the FE? That's ridiculous, IMO. NASCAR winner, LeMans winner, NHRA and SCCA champion, and no panache?? I think the historical significance of the FE far outweighs the flatty, especially when it comes to high performance and racing. The FE will be around for long time to come...
LOL - Not trashing the motor by any means. But walk through a field of "hot rods" or Street Rodder type cars and bet the FEs could be counted on one hand. If it's not a SBC or a Nailhead it's probably a flatty. Yes the FE has a great history, but it wasn't here first - flatty was and that's what stuck. 21 yeas of production vs 18 for the FE so similar, but hod rod still = flatty. If you look at where most of the FE is used in cars, it's pretty much 64~70 would be most of the bell curve. As long as there is an interest in those years of production the FE will have a primo place. If not - poof. 351C has it harder in the US being made for only 5 years and it would likely already be a museum piece if not for the longer production run and performance work done in Australia.
Also - note that the SBF (Windsor platform) has been out of production for 17 YEARS. So cores are getting a lot harder to find. But there is still a glut of parts available being the the engine platform was produced for 39 years.
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If you look at where most of the FE is used in cars, it's pretty much 64~70 would be most of the bell curve. As long as there is an interest in those years of production the FE will have a primo place.
You need to extend that range of vehicles a good bit. The starting off point is probably closer to 1957 since so many of those were or get upgraded to the "new back then" FE platform - and more importantly you really need to include the F series trucks through 1976. I would say that over 30% of my business is trucks - they are incredibly popular and they probably made more of those than they did FE Mustangs and Galaxies over the years. The Cobra kit and Dynacorn phenomenon is also unique in that "new" cars are getting built and put into service on an annual basis - something that is only comparable to the 1932-34 Ford street rods in terms of unit volume.
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I think the historical significance of the FE far outweighs the flatty, especially when it comes to high performance and racing.
I'd seriously have to disagree with that statement. Until the SBC arrived, the flathead was THE performance engine for over 20 years. It set nearly every record in every venue of racing. It was in every car in every performance or custom magazine. It also had a huge aftermarket support system when no other engine had anything available. The flathead was "IT" when it came to performance. That's also why it has enjoyed a huge resurgence over the last 10-15 years or so, and continues to do so, because of the cool history that surrounds them. The flat head is the most iconic performance engine every made, in my opinion. It started everything. The FE was just more visible to the public, in its racing forms, compared to the flathead. Racing was still considered a "dirty" sport, or something that trouble makers got into, when the flathead was dominating everything.
I still like the FE better, but I'd put the flathead a close second.
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my dad had a junkyard back in the 60s -80s,well he was one of those guys who hauled cars to the crusher.back in the late 80s he quit and he got rid of all his old cars.i was in my late teens early twenties at the time.he made me get rid of most of my stuff too.he liked cars out of the 50s and 40s but i liked the muscle cars.i had 4 comets and 2 fairlanes all 66-67.i told my dad and uncle i thought the muscle cars would be big someday,because at the time they weren't producing muscle cars.so after getting rid of his stuff and my stuff about 10-15 years later he buys 2 66 fairlane show cars.i remind him every now and then about him making me get rid of everything and wishing we had them back.as long as people like muscle cars and trucks,i think the fe will last.
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The one who dies with the most toys..........still dies.
Ya but he had the most fun. I am 49 and I never owned an Fe powered car until 3 years ago
I've had them for 30 yrs now. Never the fastest or baddest, but always out there having fun. It's just the fact that I don't get too excited when I realize I have to crawl under one of them. Throw in the Mack where the tools got a WHOLE lot bigger to hold onto and the parts are MUCH heavier to move. Ugh.
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There is currently a war on internal combustion engines. Some states would like to ban them by 2040 if we have the technology to replace them or not.
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Maybe if some of the manufacturers and "sellers" would bring the prices back down to earth for some of this stuff it would be more realistic and practical for the average guy to build an FE but I see more and more greed, plain and simple, and that's pushing the cost of building a decent FE, for the sake of an FE, right out the roof for most. Most of these parts aren't that rare. They were made by the thousands. They're just being horded. Power per dollar is not there with the FE and if all it's ever going to be is a niche, collector engine then yes, it'll basically die. I see way more popularity with this engine now than I did almost 20 yrs ago when I was building Cobras because the aftermarket sorta started to come up with some decent stuff for it, but it's limited and very expensive. If the hobbyist/older Ford enthusiast (not collector) is going to support this engine platform and the industry behind it, it's going to have to be far more cost competitive. The prices on some of the older Ford stuff I see lately is just absurd.
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Likewise, if anybody wants to give up their stuff, I'm also 36, and I plan to be around for a while. I will say the cost scares a bunch of people away. Personal example: I need to get a new transmission console for the Cyclone (which shares with the Fairlane). Never re-popped, and they go for ~1k. 1k for a piece of molded 1960's plastic. I haven't ran into anyone who doesn't think I'm crazy paying that price.
Joe
I paid 500.00 for a '65 Falcon grille...because they don't re-pop them. Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do...
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Some people will still have style. They won't be interested in travelling in the autonomous Uber shapeless box on wheels.
I think if more young people had a chance to drive or own an old car they may catch on again.
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43 with an FE daily driver.
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As a percentage of people involved in all hot rodding there is likely a decrease. The "Boomer" is the "Hot Rod" generation. That said, I think there will always be people active and interested in cars with internal combustion engines. I do a little rifle shooting and notice that at most sportman's clubs and shooting ranges black powder rifle shoots and groups are some the most active. Humans are an inquisitive species and are interested in history as well as the future. I think hot rodding, and as we all know Ford FE engines power the best hot rods, there will be an active hobby for a long, long time.
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One of these days, you guys are going to get in your "smart car" and tell it to go to Starbucks for a grande latte'. Instead it will drop you off at the work camp or maybe the hotdog plant. I'm not exaggerating for effect. It's just a matter of when.
JMO,
paulie
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Im completly agree with you there Paulie.Here they talk about banning
Driver operated car for our safety.And if you mention safety you cant
criticise it..... How can you be against saaaaaafety your out of your mind
Fact is more People In Sweden die of suicide,smoking,sportrelated accidents
Each year.....its a plot to take away our last freedom... When you have no car
Theres no cash just cards ,the govnermet have controll over farming and
Drinkingwater we are slaves. but we have our safety.:...:.like a monkey
In a cage hurray for the comunistic utopia.....Rant over but thats what i see
In the future
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Come on guys...there are millions of cars that are out there LONG before any "smart" car. What's that got to do with the FE? No one is expecting the FE to ever become main stream again. I don't get the comparison. Banning driver operated cars isn't ever going to happen...least not in many generations to come. Can you imagine what would happen...with all the driver required vehicles on the road today? I don't think simply parking them is a viable option. Lot of hurdles to cross before that ever even becomes worth consideration.
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Us old guys love this stuff now, because it's what we grew up with and we've spent our lives in the hobby. Thats' not true for most of todays youts.
But once you're dead, does it matter if anyone likes FE's, or if they are melted down and made into a Toyota? You won't know or care.
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Im completly agree with you there Paulie.Here they talk about banning
Driver operated car for our safety.And if you mention safety you cant
criticise it..... How can you be against saaaaaafety your out of your mind
Fact is more People In Sweden die of suicide,smoking,sportrelated accidents
Each year.....its a plot to take away our last freedom... When you have no car
Theres no cash just cards ,the govnermet have controll over farming and
Drinkingwater we are slaves. but we have our safety.:...:.like a monkey
In a cage hurray for the comunistic utopia.....Rant over but thats what i see
In the future
Yes sir. It will be for our "safety". I think all the people using their "smart phones" and other electronic devices while driving will be the last nail in the coffin. I think that will be the rationale; that people can't drive safely because they can't drive without being distracted. There will be studies proving it and commericals showing kids killed by distracted drivers. Most of the new generation seems to be fine with giving up freedoms. When they realize what they gave up, it will likely be too late, in my opinion.
Anyhoo, that is not directly related to the FE or the original post. Sorry!
paulie
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Paulie, I agree pretty much. Likely nothing I will have to worry about in the next 20 yrs or so. It is sad that when I was 16 and driving and couldn't wait. Now, with traffic like it is, I just want to stay home and say screw it.
All new cars are built for "our safety". Ya, they are built for idiots that can't seem to drive for themselves without crashing/killing others. It is a whole new mentality. I just cringe when I see a new car commercial when they show a young teen driver that needs "collision avoidance" on their car to keep from rear ending the car in front of them. WTF? How about just paying attention to your surroundings? Oh, that's too much to ask when there are SO many other more important things to consider when driving. Like who's tweeting what, what important post on FB that is "trending". Ugh. :-[
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PTC, collision avoidance system for trains, could have saved how many lives recently when an Amtrak train tried to take a 30mph curve at 80mph?
Railroads have been fighting implementation of PTC for decades, stalling and dragging their feet using similar 'logic'.
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I received a letter from Ford asking if I would be interested in an autonomous vehicle and also a short survey of my opinion. One question was what would you be doing while riding in the vehicle? Some choices were, texting, watching a movie, work on laptop, sleep. I answered that the first few times I'd be watching were I was going! I do kind of hope I get to test one. After watching a Volvo tractor back a trailer up to the loading dock, like nothing to it.
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I have to say in all honesty, at 72 years old, I really do enjoy driving my 5 speed mustang, but for everyday usage, I would rather just climb into my Tundra with 6 speed automatic, and have it do everything super, even heated seats on these cold mornings, and still get 21.5 mpg on the road. I am passing on my joy of driving these older vehicles to my sons, just have to wait and see how long they keep them. Joe-JDC
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I'm 36 and have Cam2 pulsing through my veins like the rest of crazy guys. You can't have my FE until pry it from my cold, dead hands. If they ban internal combustion engines and try to force me into a driverless car situation, I'm moving to Mexico or Costa Rica and taking all my dinosaur shit with me. Driving is therapy to me, give me a sunny day, curvy coastline lonely highway and the rumble of V8 FE violence under the hood any day over Prozac any day...
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I have to say in all honesty, at 72 years old, I really do enjoy driving my 5 speed mustang, but for everyday usage, I would rather just climb into my Tundra with 6 speed automatic, and have it do everything super, even heated seats on these cold mornings, and still get 21.5 mpg on the road. I am passing on my joy of driving these older vehicles to my sons, just have to wait and see how long they keep them. Joe-JDC
At 62, I drive my '14 F150 during the winter, in very poor weather and use it on trips (best riding car I ever had). During the summer I drive my '69 F100 daily and break out the Galaxie at least twice a week. I'm a bit laid up at the moment, so my son is coming over today to roof rake some snow off my pole barn where I keep the "old" stuff, said something about protecting his inheritance ;D. He's 34 and will be soldiering on FE style well into the future 8).
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PTC, collision avoidance system for trains, could have saved how many lives recently when an Amtrak train tried to take a 30mph curve at 80mph?
Railroads have been fighting implementation of PTC for decades, stalling and dragging their feet using similar 'logic'.
The thing is, a train could be pulling 15 passenger cars full of people and crash and kill 200+ people in an instant. When a car crashes, it is typically 1-2 people. Just like plane safety equipment, it needs to be bigger and better because there is such a larger loss of life when something does go wrong.
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I had this whole thing explained to me from a psychologist friend a while back, from a psychologists point of view, for some reason we got on this very same topic and he said something that made a lot of sense....
He said he thinks the muscle car hobby is similar to people with their swiss watches. You can buy a digital watches now that talk to satellites and they tell you perfect time and all sorts of other information like elevation, barometric pressure, how to find your way back home, where you left your car, etc etc. People will always still buy Swiss watches however, comparatively they don't even keep that good of time, and once a month you have to roll them around because they have the date wrong. It's because of the intrigue in the movement. If anything, they'll become more valuable rather than less.
I'm personally not putting any stock in this stuff going away.
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The fact that rat rods, rust patina, 4 door, bumper sandwich & some FWD cars have become popular, shows the hobby is expanding. Nostalgia will always sell. Rock & roll is here to stay.
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I know this is not technical stuff for FE, but I agree I just enjoy driving an old car. I have a 1940 sedan, flathead and all. It brings me back to a different time. The sounds, the way it drives, and I remember them as a youngster. The FE is something from those earlier years as well. To be honest I had basically gone like a lot of Ford guys to the Fox body and small block Ford in the late 80's. A co worker who does the car show at the FE Reunion, told me about the meet at Beaver Springs , and I went the following year, and got hooked on the idea of an FE again. For me it brings back a nostalgic time, when we raced the FE 390's, 428, 427. I remember a guy named Ed Bloss who took the local track championship in a 55 Ford powered by a 352. I enjoy watching the old FE's run at the FE reunion. It is always interesting to see what people are doing with them.
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I just turned 39.
I own two vehicles.
Both have FE's.
There are more like me.......
Well you have a lot of nerve lecturing me on how to tune my engine. Whippersnappers!
Actually, two things I see will help - old engines are simple compared to the skills hobbiests have. Compared to playing with a small displacement turbo the old dinosaur is pretty manageable. Second is younger guys are interested in the old school. Guy who helped me build mine is in his early 30's and a heavy diesel mechanic by trade. He had built a 521 out of a 460 but was fascinated by the old FE.
It has romance, like the flatty. I want a flatty in an 34 some day.
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My dad was a Ford dealership mechanic and amateur drag racer back in the '60-'70s. When I was getting interested in cars I asked him what the best Ford engine was and without hesitation he said the FE.
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I'm 37 and currently own two FEs. A 1967 Galaxie convertible with a 390 and a 1972 F-100 with a 428. As stated earlier by Barry, there are still a lot of old pickups out there with FEs. I live in Montana and a lot of those old pickups still survive. I have four young kids and at this point, they get a big kick out of taking the older vehicles out for a spin. I believe as long as the older car interest is still out there, the FE will be fine.
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Jay, dont be mad,i didn't mean to open up a big can of worms with this topic
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No problem, its interesting to see everyone's take on this topic.
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I will be 68 at the end of this month and have been fooling with hot rods and motorcycles my whole life.I taught people to repair HD motorcycle engines for 40 years and the students ranged in age from 16 to older than I was. I dont think the FE will ever be plentiful again but I dont think it will completely die out either.
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I am 47 and have a fe in a 1972 ford f250. I have had ford fe`s since I was 16, my first one in a 1963 T-Bird princess Grace Monaco edition, they only made 2000, with car #1 going to the princess I believe. The one I currently am running is a 482 Bear Block Motors block, it is fuel injected and set up for towing, I tow a 12,000 lb fifth wheel camper with it. Went to Branson Mo and Sandusky Ohio last year with it and didnt burn any oil. It tows great by the way. Barry Rabotnick and his sidekick Willie built the motor for me, they did a great job. Hopefully there will continue to be enough interest in the fe that parts are still available, but parts availabilty is way better than it was 20 years ago.
Matt
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I attend a couple Cars & Coffee events each season. The event draws 125-250 cars. The only FE will be in 1 or 2 replica Cobras, but the owners of those 2 Cobras also each own a Ford hot rod, and both hot rods have a Chevy engine. They probably drive the hot rods more often than the Cobras.
When I attend a Cruise Night, the attendance will be 60-100 cars. There will be 1 FE there, mine. Once in a while a Galaxie or Mustang with an FE may show up.
If the car event isn't an all Ford get-together, an FE sighting isn't common in my neck of the woods.
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Shrink in popularity... yes... die... no...
My 17 year old is considering starting a project that will be flat-head based. I'd bet that 100 years from now there will be gearhead kids out there that see a video of an old thunderbolt on a tear and say to themselves "I've gotta get me some of that... "
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There is now where I can pick up a catalog and order a block, heads, or intake I want at a reasonable price and receive it in a reasonable amount of time. So how many years will it take to put my dream engine together for my 67 GT500 clone ??? We will never know...
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An Egge rep told me that there 3.5" stroke cast piston mold cost $10,000. At a 1.825" pin height it does not look like they used there resources wisely. If that approach is applied engineering other FE products I can see different companies dropping a line of parts that do not move fast. That would keep cost up but does not seem like enough to kill it.
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I'm 39 and am not going anywhere. Popularity of anything goes up and down, but it seems like there is an automotive fan base for everything. Bottom line, FE engines as an interest group is not going anywhere.
it would be nice if the cast iron headers became less popular so the prices can come down. Lol!
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What the FE needs for the next stage of it's resurgence is a moderately priced, always available, good quality aftermarket iron 427 block. NOTHING ELSE will have as much impact. The block is the keystone of a build, and a 4.23+" bore in a strong block is what people need to make powerful and competitive engines.
Edelbrock lit the first stage with their aluminum FE heads a couple of decades ago. A good, reasonably priced, aftermarket iron block, would blast the FE into the stratosphere and keep it going for a long time to come. I'm not sure what reasonably priced means. It will still cost significantly more than SBC and SBF aftermarket blocks. Maybe $3200-$3400 and consistently available? Made in the USA is a plus, too.
I know Jay and you guys outlined how hard it might be to make that come true in terms of initial investment and total sales. I can't do it. But hell, there are aftermarket Buick and Oldsmobile blocks for heavens sakes! There's got to be somebody that can do it with the FE?
JMO,
paulie
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Imagine a CGI 427 FE block. ;)
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Imagine a CGI 427 FE block. ;)
I, and I think most FE enthusiasts, just want a plain old iron 427 block, available all the time, at a decent price. CGI is computer generated images, right? :)
JMO,
paulie
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CGI
compacted graphite iron
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I think the hobby has been hurt by the search for perfection among other things. Years ago a backyard paintjob was great and nobody saw or paid much attention to the defects. Now you will be criticized for less than an $8-15K paint job.
Similar criteria applies to drive trains etc. Things got SO GOOD (and expensive) that anything less is considered a failure: what fun is that. A large part of the hobby that has lost intrigue for me personally is the creativity: If there is only one definition of paintjob, drivetrain, upholstery etc that is deemed acceptable, there is not much opportunity for personal expression except to write the checks.
Same criteria applies to performance standards. It used to be fun to mix a bunch of used parts and come up with a combination that could challenge new cars costing 4X as much. Now there are new cars running 12's, and guys on line saying an 8 second street car is normal. I have no interest in driving an 8 second street car protected by 1960's sheet metal and crumple zones. But anything less than such heroic accomplishments is considered failure.
Another thing hurting the hobby is the overabundance of information, entertainment and generally "choices" available electronically these days. Nobody has anywhere near as much passion for anything they personally own, as was the case decades ago, because it is so overshadowed by all else.