Ford Crossflow Guys- I need help: Classic Cars forum: Classic Motorsports

Forums » Classic Cars » Ford Crossflow Guys- I need help

April 13, 2008 8:34 p.m. Snakedriver None

Hi,

I just got a 1966 Morgan 4/4 Comp. about a month ago. I do belive that the car needs a little more "Go Power" under the hood. Can I get some recomendations?

Im looking to get a 1600 or 1700cc crossflow engine for my car. I cant seem to find anybody looking to sell and engine for less than $5000.

Thanks, Leo
April 14, 2008 9:48 a.m. s2europa None

You have two options. Build your own or buy one already build. That said, have you looked at how much it costs to build an engine these days? I just had a crossflow block cleaned, crack tested, bored, rods re-sized, balancing, etc. and the bill was over $1000. Add in the cost of bearings, pistons, cam, lifters, gaskets, etc. and you closely approaching the already built territory...and this assumes you do your own assembly. Keep that in mind when you're looking. I'm curious as to where you've been looking for engines?
April 14, 2008 11:18 a.m. Dr. Hess None

4AGE 20 valve and a T50?
April 15, 2008 9:07 a.m. wcelliot None

Ford Kent crossflows were very common with the SCCA and vintage crowds... I never had any issue sourcing performance parts for my former Fiesta racer... haven't gone shopping for any in a few years though.

But unless you're a purist, you might find an OHC Ford 2L to provide a bit more motivation. Huge support for these "Pinto" motors out of the UK...

Bill
April 15, 2008 11:09 a.m. TED_FIESTA None
I assume it's a front engine / rear drive, so you don't want a fiesta engine. The crank, and the front / rear covers are diffrent. The block is the same and much cheaper.

Look for formula ford parts, www.apexspeed.com for stock parts
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Pegasus sells a book on building a formula ford engine which is handy, but about half of it is just for following the FF rules.
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BAT british american transfer also has parts, they sell a 11 to 1 cast piston, but the valve pockets don't allow much cam lift. Might be OK for a tuned street engine. These pistons can be used with a cortina chambered head, would then have plenty of valve clearance, but only 10 to 1 ratio.
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BURTON power sells lots of stuff.  Cams and valve springs available from several british sources.  NEWMAN, CAT cams, PIPER.

 It's a simple engine that can be tuned to make more power, but not as common as it used to be.  You might find a lighter more common engine.
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April 18, 2008 6:41 p.m. Dwight Varnes None

The 1.6 Kent crossflow in rear drive configuration can be found in very early Pintos (71-73) and the occasional German Capri. There are still some in junkyards if you look hard enough. The Fiesta engines internally used a pretty decent camshaft in stock form. They had a flat cylinder head and dished pistons, whereas the rwd applications used a head with a bowl and flat top pistons. The Fiesta intake also has very short runners and an EGR system. I'd look for a rwd version. They are extremely durable and even a junkyard donor shouldn't be in bad shape. They are farily compact and should fit under your bonnet no problem, whereas I'm not sure you would have clearance for a 2.0 or 2.3 sohc engine(?).
April 21, 2008 12:23 p.m. Snakedriver None

The Morgan 4/4s from 1962(I may be off a year or 2)had Ford pre-cross flow engines untill that unit was replaced by the Cross flow unit.

Morgan didnt use the OHC engine to the best of my knowledge.

My problem was just finding a complete unit at a resonable price.

Thanks Leo
April 23, 2008 11:06 a.m. TED_FIESTA None

Fiesta engines are cheap, when you can find them. They do use a diffrent crankshaft, the fiesta one is a little shorter on each end, and the block end covers are also diffrent. The cortina chambered heads are cheap, most people don't want them, no longer used in formula ford. The real problem, this engine just isn't very commonly found or used other than formula ford. The rear dirve version was used in some early pinto's, but those are now hard to find. Once you find a engine assembly, parts are available.