Most of the original 265 cid v-things in '55 passenger cars have been supplanted by some later version. For those who are attempting a high-dollar "numbers matching" restoration of a '55, a genuine 265 cid engine and powerslip may be worth $700 or more. The auction market (including ebay) has driven the prices of everything connected with '55-'57 Chevrolets far beyond any true value, either aesthetic or practical. Yet, as my father used to say, "it's worth what one will give and the other will take." As long as someone will give it, there will be those who will take it.
Many people assume that the small-block Chevrolet V8 immediately made all the hot inlines obsolete. This is far from the case. A "powerpack" 265 produced a claimed 180 hp from the factory, and it was and is no match for a well-prepared 261 or GMC 270 or 302. A 283 with fuel injection or dual four-barrels and a "Duntov" cam could more nearly hold its own, and those who ran inline sixes had to work to keep up. It was the 327 and the "big block" 348-409 that made the Chevrolet v-thing dominant. Yet just as not every hot rod before 1955 was powered by a flathead Ford, even so not every hot rod after 1955 was powered by a Chevrolet V8. There have always been those who swam against the tide, and we have not yet drowned.
God's Peace to you.
d
