Inliners International Forums General Discussion Engines i like them inline engines

I have several vehicles and most are , or will be, inline powered. My '40 Chevy sedan has a "new" 261 in it. I'm putting together a 1941 Pontiac sedan for my son and his wife and sons that will be powered by a Chevy 250 six. My '56 F100 currently has a 500 ci Caddy. I'm thinking about switching it to a 240 or 300 Ford six. Now, I need some help... I would like to put a six in my '55 Studebaker truck but the original six was a short little engine and I don't think I could put a Chevy six in without butchering the firewall. I really don't want a little flathead six back in it. What would be a good , short , American made six for it. How about some measurements on available sixes, please?

You could use one of the bigger 4 cylinder engines or maybe one of the modern 5 cylinder engines from a Colorado or Canyon

A STOCK Quad 4 engine makes in the area of 190 to 210 HP and a turbo would REALLY jazz it up!! CNC Dude put me onto those Quad 4s and I've been looking seriously at one for another project a little further down the road

I would consider an inline four, but I prefer something with a carb and will not use a computer. If all else fails I might go with a 4.3 V6. But I'm going to try and find dimensions on all the practical choices in inline sixes , like AMCs, GMs, Fords, and Chryslers. There are websites that give dimensions on most v8s but I have nor found much info on inline sixes.

I know I'm out numbered here but I'm a bit fond of Studebakers. There is more than one six. There are a few flatheads and a later overhead. Cathcart makes speed equipment for the flatheads. All Stude engines had forged Cranks and tough blocks. Anyway I'd research Studebaker sixes and build one maybe with a McCulloch supercharger and have something a little cooler than another brad engine.

Hello, I agree with Beater on the Stude six they had a six in 55 that was 245 cubic inch lots of torque and tuff as nails. I bet you could make a strong and unique engine with one of these. Just my two cents.

Ya' know?? I'd forgotten about those old '50s 'Baker engines!! I have a buddy that has (or had) an original Studebaker V8 out of a pickup!! If you aren't dead set on an inliner, it might just drop in!!

If you want, I'll check and see if he still has it.

I am with Beater and Stude58, not to mention I am a big fan of hopping up what was there in the first place.

But I was under the impression that the Commander 6 ceased production after '50 when the Vthings entered the picture . . . btw we don't recommend those gizmos around here.

Based on the figures over at CarNut-StudeSpecs-50s it would be a Champion 6 (185ci). There are speed parts to be had:


Here's a vid of '48 Starlight with the older 169ci version:
Youtube '48 Stude
looks like a pretty spirited engine to me.

Yeah, I have piles of Stude V-Things but reluctant to mention them here. They made some big sixes too. I have read that Studebaker was the only company to win the Indy 500 with engines built from production engines. You can see in the third link here that the 245 flat six made more HP per cylinder than the 232 V8. Having a fun six has a lot to do with the right gearing.
Here's a start.
Link

Cathcart

Another

I have realized that I will not be limited by the length of the engine as much as I thought. I do not have the original radiator for the truck , so I will be using a new , or newer, radiator. I can mount the radiator several inches farther forward than the original location. I can probably use an engine as long as 34-35 inches overall. The 261 in my '40 sedan , with a short pump adapted,is 33 inches long, bellhousing to fan blade. How does that compare with other sixes? I will need an engine with a rear sump oil pan though.The cab and bed are mounted on a 1987 Dodge Dakota chassis. The small block Chevy that is sitting in the truck now clears the crossmember with a stock pan. I am going to start shopping for an interesting inline six and trans combo with ruler in hand.Thanks.

Here's what I have. Note my Stovebolt is shorter than yours so my data might not include the fan. Mixture of stuff from books, web, and my own measurements. Not guaranteed but a good start.
31.2 Chev 235-261
33.0 GMC 302 etc
32.5 Chev 194-292
34.1 Ford 215-223
33.6 Ford 240-300
31.0 Ford 144-250 seems a bit long?
26.8 Triumph gt6/tr5-6 good luck finding one
23.5 Ford 4cyl 2000-2300, real screamers when built, 7500rpm stock blocks

If you can really go 34-35" you could fit almost anything. For a tighter fit the Chev 250-292 and Ford 200-250 are plentiful & fairly easy to build power if needed. No measurements on the Slant 6 I need to find those, and the flatheads.

A couple more, BLOCK length from Weertman's book, I just guessed 4" more overall:
30.1 Slant Six 170-225
31.1 Chry/Desoto flathead
28.8 Plymouth 218-230 flathead

Ive never built one but from all the data Ive seen & Gonkulated the strongest vintage 6 is likely the 300 Ford, if it will fit. The 292 Chev is close but has that Siamese stuff going on. Given that its #NationalFeralCatDay I'm all for Siamese but its for cats, not so much for engines.

Since they're all old sixes, you can just paint the engine to match your "make" of car and nobody will know. Slap a "high torque 292" decal on your 300 Ford, paint it orange, everybody will think its a Chevy, etc. LOL.