I had a '63 American a couple of years ago. The 196 engine can be described as lethargic, at best. It did get fair fuel mileage, but was buzzy at highway speeds without an OD. My crankshaft pulley/harmonic balancer came apart and it was next to impossible to find another one. I ended up paying $200 for a used one. The water pump went bad and I got one from junk yard, which wasn't much better. NAPA, and the other parts store in town never did find me a rebuilt one. Disgusted, I sold the car, before I thought about getting a 232, or 258 engine for it. A 5-speed transmission with a nice one of the newer engines would have made a really nice car out of that sucker.
