We are all familar with the 426 Hemi but what is little known is this;
Road and track racingEdit
In 1963, the 427 Galaxies dominated NASCAR. Tiny Lund won the first and biggest race of the year, the Daytona 500, with 427s finishing first through fifth. Ford won 23 races to Plymouth's 19. The Plymouths earned all their victories on the short tracks while Ford dominated the super speedways, Chevrolet finished with eight wins and Pontiac had four.
In 1964, Ford had their best season ever, with 30 wins. Dodge was second with 14, while Plymouth had 12. Adding the five wins that Mercury had, the 427 had a total of 35 NASCAR Grand National wins for the 1964 season. Fred Lorenzen won the Atlanta 500 and proceeded to beat Dodges and Plymouths, which were using 426 Hemi engines, contrary to stated NASCAR rules, in six of the next seven races. Ford was using the high-riser intake and matching heads, which were allowed by NASCAR for one season (1964).
In 1965, NASCAR banned Ford's high-riser engines claiming they did not actually fit under "stock" hoods, allowing Chrysler to continue racing its 426 Hemi, which had never been installed in a production vehicle until that year.[4] Also in 1965, Ford developed its own version of a hemi-chambered engine. The 427 "Cammer" used a pair of overhead cams to operate the valves in its hemi. NASCAR banned the engine. Then Ford developed the medium-riser intake and head, which did fit under stock hoods, and was accepted by NASCAR. During that same year, Chrysler installed its first 426 Hemis in production cars, and the race was on. Ned Jarrett, driving for Ford, was the 1965 Grand National champion and Ford won the NASCAR crown.
Also in 1965, Ford, in conjunction with Carroll Shelby, began production of a new and improved Cobra, meant for racing. This version utilized a 427 cubic inch side-oiler version of the FE in place of the original's 289 cubic inch smallblock. A new chassis was built using 4" main chassis tubes (up from 3") and coil spring suspension all around. The new car also had wide fenders and a larger radiator opening. It was powered by the "side oiler" Ford 427 engine (7.0 L) rated at 425 bhp (317 kW), which provided a top speed of 164 mph (262 km/h) in the standard model and 485 bhp (362 kW) with a top speed of 185 mph (298 km/h) in the competition model. Cobra Mark III production began on 1 January 1965, and it was used for racing continuously into the 1970s. A street-legal version was sold by Ford, called S/C for semi-competition, an original example can currently sell for 1.5 million USD, making it one of the most valuable Cobra variants.[5]
In 1966, the 427 cubic inch GT40 Mk II dominated the 24 Hours of Le Mans race, with a one-two-three result.
In 1967, Parnelli Jones, in a Holman-Moody prepped Fairlane, won the season-opening Riverside 500 road race. Then,Mario Andretti captured the Daytona 500 in a Fairlane, with Fred Lorenzen a close second in his Holman-Moody Ford. The FE again powered the 24 Hours of Le Mans winner. In 1968, the rules of the race were changed, limiting displacement to 302 cubic inches under certain circumstances. Ford won the following two years using its smallblockin the GT40.
Ford's racing partner, privately owned Holman-Moody, also developed a version of the FE for the Can-Am racing series. This version of the FE used factory supplied tunnel port heads, a mechanical fuel injection system mounted on a crossram intake manifold, and a revised dry sump oiling system. Only limited success was achieved in this series.
Road and track racingEdit
In 1963, the 427 Galaxies dominated NASCAR. Tiny Lund won the first and biggest race of the year, the Daytona 500, with 427s finishing first through fifth. Ford won 23 races to Plymouth's 19. The Plymouths earned all their victories on the short tracks while Ford dominated the super speedways, Chevrolet finished with eight wins and Pontiac had four.
In 1964, Ford had their best season ever, with 30 wins. Dodge was second with 14, while Plymouth had 12. Adding the five wins that Mercury had, the 427 had a total of 35 NASCAR Grand National wins for the 1964 season. Fred Lorenzen won the Atlanta 500 and proceeded to beat Dodges and Plymouths, which were using 426 Hemi engines, contrary to stated NASCAR rules, in six of the next seven races. Ford was using the high-riser intake and matching heads, which were allowed by NASCAR for one season (1964).
In 1965, NASCAR banned Ford's high-riser engines claiming they did not actually fit under "stock" hoods, allowing Chrysler to continue racing its 426 Hemi, which had never been installed in a production vehicle until that year.[4] Also in 1965, Ford developed its own version of a hemi-chambered engine. The 427 "Cammer" used a pair of overhead cams to operate the valves in its hemi. NASCAR banned the engine. Then Ford developed the medium-riser intake and head, which did fit under stock hoods, and was accepted by NASCAR. During that same year, Chrysler installed its first 426 Hemis in production cars, and the race was on. Ned Jarrett, driving for Ford, was the 1965 Grand National champion and Ford won the NASCAR crown.
Also in 1965, Ford, in conjunction with Carroll Shelby, began production of a new and improved Cobra, meant for racing. This version utilized a 427 cubic inch side-oiler version of the FE in place of the original's 289 cubic inch smallblock. A new chassis was built using 4" main chassis tubes (up from 3") and coil spring suspension all around. The new car also had wide fenders and a larger radiator opening. It was powered by the "side oiler" Ford 427 engine (7.0 L) rated at 425 bhp (317 kW), which provided a top speed of 164 mph (262 km/h) in the standard model and 485 bhp (362 kW) with a top speed of 185 mph (298 km/h) in the competition model. Cobra Mark III production began on 1 January 1965, and it was used for racing continuously into the 1970s. A street-legal version was sold by Ford, called S/C for semi-competition, an original example can currently sell for 1.5 million USD, making it one of the most valuable Cobra variants.[5]
In 1966, the 427 cubic inch GT40 Mk II dominated the 24 Hours of Le Mans race, with a one-two-three result.
In 1967, Parnelli Jones, in a Holman-Moody prepped Fairlane, won the season-opening Riverside 500 road race. Then,Mario Andretti captured the Daytona 500 in a Fairlane, with Fred Lorenzen a close second in his Holman-Moody Ford. The FE again powered the 24 Hours of Le Mans winner. In 1968, the rules of the race were changed, limiting displacement to 302 cubic inches under certain circumstances. Ford won the following two years using its smallblockin the GT40.
Ford's racing partner, privately owned Holman-Moody, also developed a version of the FE for the Can-Am racing series. This version of the FE used factory supplied tunnel port heads, a mechanical fuel injection system mounted on a crossram intake manifold, and a revised dry sump oiling system. Only limited success was achieved in this series.
