1961-1965 Chevrolet 409 V8 - The Ultimate Budget High Performance V8
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- čas přidán 16. 12. 2017
- For 1961 Chevrolet debuted one of its most legendary V8 engines, the 409 cubic-inch V8. It's lifespan may have been short but its impact continues to this day. The 1961-1965 409 V8 is not only one of the most legendary V8s ever produced but back in in its day it provided true high performance to even those buyers on a very tight budget.
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I actually bought a wrecked 59 Chevy , with a 348 and 2 speed cast iron slushglide . Put the engine in a 70 gmc pickup , 1 whole day building the exhaust
In 1961, I was 14, the 409 came on the scene and with the 406 and 413, the horsepower and Super Stock race was on and it was an amazing time to be a teenager...
Great presentation. Man that '61 bubble top Impala was sweet. The lines on that car just flowed...
Very well-done video. Thank you. I'm a Baby Boomer, born in 60, my dad bought a new 63 Impala when I was Two years old and drove it 14 years then handed it to me after it was run into the ground when I was a sophomore in high school, it was a SS with a 283-3 on the tree. My auto shop teacher was also a drag racer and helped me completely machine and rebuild that mouse into a street sleeper, knowing the secret to making a 283 screamer. So much so that it tore up that 3 speed, I replaced it with a Borg Warner super T-10 out of a Corvette, then it tore up rear ends, twice, then u joints and drive shafts.........the secrete to the 283 is RPMs!!!!! if you balance a 283 well, and do the head work, he taught me run them up to 7500 before you shift!!!! Best auto shop teacher ever!!!! We leaned and did it all in house at school!!!!! Villa Park High School Orange Unified School District , Orange California class of 1979. Thank you Mr. Haysom
Also born in '60, graduated in '79 in L.A. . . . but ended up gravitating toward mopars.
I owned a 409 while in college back in the 60's. What an awesome navy blue Chevy. Because of the 411 rear end it was fast off the line. When you jumped on it in 1st, the front end would come up as it shot you forward. Definitely a rocket ride. Hated to see it go, but I blew the engine. Those were the days my friend!
DRB, there lies the problem. It blew up.
I've also heard stories about nova's with 409's lifting the front end off the ground on the launch
nj JJ mjkJ,@@sergeantmasson3669xx plh DJ k😮
The front end was twisting up because of that ridiculous x frame
Dream car of mine, thank you for sharing
The early 60's was a wild time and things were busting loose with the big three. Pontiac had the Super Duty mills , along with the Chevrolet 409 , and the big Ford and Chrysler engines were all fighting in NHRA and NASCAR. It was an awesome time.
The 421 was hot at the drags until the 409 ,the 409 was hot till the 66 - 426 hemi
Being a Ford man from the fifties I had to admit that 409 425HP engine was beautiful with chromed finned valve covers ! It looked like jewelry .There was no mistaking that motor for any other . All were twelve second cars !
james guidry, "All were 12 second cars"? FALSE.
My dad passed away 2 years ago and I found 3 complete 409s last week in the back shed, im just researching them now ,
Back in 1965, one my Dad's car stereo shop customers had a '65 Impala, 409, 4-speed. I got a ride in that car. Lord, what a torque monster that engine was. Unforgettable!
The 4speed made it seem faster than it was. Of course a teenage punk wouldn't even know what torque was!
I was looking for a 64-65 Malibu SS 327, after returning from Vietnam, and stumbled onto a 64 Impala SS 409, for $700. I LOVED that car and the engine was a beast. You could go through 4 gears as fast as you could shift them and hit top speed in a hurry. Sadly, you could watch the speedo needle and gas guage needles, swinging toward each other, one going UP and one going DOWN. Wicked cool car and I wish I had held onto it, or my 68 RS Camaro, or 59 Chevy Wagon, or 48 Chevy Coupe with split manifold on a 292 six, lowered and given a stance of a performance car, instead of a truck, which seems what the chassis was built for.
Truth Be Tellin! and Swagg O licious! ®™©℠
I had a 63 Biscayne 409 425 HP when I was eighteen years old. It was tuxedo black with gold interior. I worked on it more than I drove it. kept bending pushrods and and breaking valve springs I guess because I overrevved it. It was a monster.
What s great time to live through. The ‘60s were the best. I was 15 in ‘63. My friends Dad bought a SS Impala convertible. 409 4 speed. We all just sat around and gawked at it
My cuz bought a 61 impala ss 409 4 speed in those days . Used to cruz on sat nite boulevards it was a badass riide and cool time😎👍
16 in '63, the kid down the street bought a '56 Chevy hardtop. Came up with a 409/409 who knows where and a weekend later instant hotrod. Used the '56 3 speed. LOL. Those were the days for sure, never to be duplicated again.
I was 16, 1980, got my drivers license, bought a 50 ford coupe from my friends dad, needed an engine, his dad had a 409 with two 4's on it sitting in the garage. We put that dual quad 409 in my 50 ford coupe, now that was fun, I sold the car when I joined the Marines, gave the engine back to my friends dad... Wish I had that 409 now..😃
and new u joints and rear ends every week?
I remain amazed by the resurgence of 409 auction prices in the last few years. When 409s were new they were noted for two things: They would outperform the Fords at the time and they wouldn't stay together long enough to get through a 12,000 mile warranty if they were run hard. They were almost as notorious for throwing rods as the 406 Fords later became.
The first really durable dominant NASCAR engine was the 427 Ford. That lasted for one year until the 426 Hemi arrived.
My brother-in-law bought in 1963 a "58 Chevrolet Biscayne (cheapest version full size Chevrolet) 2 door black sedan that had the 348 c.i. engine replaces by a 1962 model 409 that was previously used in a race car. Nobody noticed the "Plain-Jane" car until I would take off from standstill in first gear or pass another car in high gear. What a ride!
I was just talking to a friend about the 409 I love that motor!!!!!
My neighbor had a 64 409 Impala and probably does still if he is still living. It was and is to this day the best sounding thing I've heard on the planet. I think he had glasspacks on it cause it was way way loud but the sound was so deep it was enjoyable. Made my 350 74 Nova sound so cheap and weak. Miss that sound.
AH yes , that sound ! Back in the day we had Smittys - Hollywoods -Continental Walkers - or just plain ole glass packs !
Being mostly a Ford man since the 1960s, I've got to say that the 409 is a sweet piece of engineering that started one of the greatest periods in automotive history. I'm glad that I was alive to witness and to participate in the insanity.
Great cars, great music, great TV shows... It was all just happening around us. We didn't realize how great it was until it was gone.
I had a lot of fun rebuilding 2 of these 409s of the ‘63 and ‘64 Chevy Impala SSs at my high school auto shop class back in 1970. It’s a beast of a machine!
We've heard the old truck motor theory since way back when. Desperate for a big block to compete with Fords and others Chevrolet grabbed the 348 "truck motor" and put it in cars. That has been debunked several times over the years. No truck specific engine would have such a drastic over square displacement. Torque is the object of a truck engine and a smaller bore - longer stroke would be the design for that. Those old W motors were just a special breed. ++Excellent video I think.++.
You are probably the one who is correct.
I bought a 1963, 409 in the Biscayne body, 425 H.P., 456 rear end, with the 4 speed. If I remember correctly, I paid $2750 for the car. I was 19 at the time and we had ball with that car. I pulled the engine and replaced the pistons with Jahn, 12 to 1 compression pistons and a crower race cam, and spent a lot of money on the car. It did not run that great on the street, but was a bear at the track. Those were the days.
JN
Wish I had that much money in 1963. I was 18, fresh out of high school and on my way to Fort Ord.
You were fortunate,Joe. The 348-409 design with the combustion chamber in the cylinder instead of the head were known for bending rods when you got on them hard. Back when I raced NHRA, Bill Jenkins from Malverne ,Pa. (Grumpy) raced 409's and secretly hated them,but, it was the only big block until the rat motor came along.
I love Jahns. My 1926 Ford Model T has a set of 1950s Jahns performance .040 over aluminum pistons for the original engine. The top of the pistons are also raised .040 taller for a slight compression increase.
@Laim BagelleBeing a Mopar "expert", I don't remember about the valve configuration of the various Ford engines,but the cleveland motor had angle plug heads,the other 351 did not.
wow that must have been intense on the highway
so many gorgeous American cars in those days!
When i was a kid there was this guy who had a 64 Impala who come up the street and would ripped it! That car car was menacing ! We encourage him to hit the throttle. We would say here comes 409!
An excellent documentary on the 409. Thanks for all of your hard work. I really appreciate it. Without the 409 we would not have muscle cars as we know them today. Thank you, Chevrolet!!!!!
John Behneman, that's FALSE. First muscle cars were in 1957 BEFORE the 409 even existed. Chevy "W" engines were not all that great. After 1963, NASCAR's Junior Johnson switched to Ford for 1964 because the Chevy "W" engines kept failing. Drag racing star Dyno Don Nicholson also switched to Ford for the same reason.
The first muscle car was the 55 Chrysler 300. But it was so expensive that very few were sold. They did dominate NASCAR for a couple of years.
Another comprehensive car story. You continue to be the best old school car history stories. A big thanks!!
You have an absolutely amazing audio/video depiction of a truly missed bygone era. Those "were the days". Many thanks for the enjoyment I received seeing this.
In 1964 a friend of mine (Sonny Lytton) in Rockville Md bought a brand new Chevy Bel Air. He told me that the only options he ordered were the 409/425 engine, a 4 speed transmission with a "posi-traction" rear and an AM radio. I went for a ride a couple of times and it was a real hoot! Sonny was killed in Viet Nam about 1968 with Special Forces (Distinguished Service Cross). I never did find out what happened to the Chevy. It was one heck of a ride!
This is a good SOURCE video, which explained dimensions, combustion chamber, and valve design. For example, it answered a few of the questions I've always had about the curious head design and why it was easily distinguished by the curious "wing" shape, among others I've always had about the rather unique 409. Thanks for posting.
Probably the most uniquely beautiful muscle car engine made.
I just got done restoring a 425 hp 409 intake and carbs . I wish I would of gotten the original carbs with it but it came out very sweet I am very happy with it . I got it with Edelbrocks but it is the factory date coded intake 1962.
I had a 1963 Impala SS 409 2-4s . Would pass everything but a gas station or tire shop. But couldn't keep a driver's license as long as I had her so sold it in 1977. After sitting in the garage for years. See it at the back to the 50's car show still in great shape.
I owned many of these motors in my time. Loved them!!! One of them I had, I had .250 milled off the mains of a 454 crank shaft and had the 409 bored .030 and if I remember correctly, it made 488 cubic inches. Wow was that a running machine!!! 2 fours, roller cam, headers and a four speed trans. My 63 SS baby blue Impala. Memories....
Bingo can't beat Chevrolet's interchange............Blood runs Chevrolet engine orange..........
When you die, I'm taking your memories
Hey Danny Wilshire, What did you do about the center support bearing in the two piece driveshaft? The 1963 Impala,Bel Air and Biscayne had an X-frame so a one piece shaft was impossible.
Don't remember if there was a factory 3 deuces set up but I do remember some that were. Always a good way to have a fire. They looked good but nobody ever got em tuned correctly. A friend's decided to catch on fire in front of my house. Have water hose and shirt, will use it.
@@charliechristie2949 I just saw this comment. It was way back in the late 70's when I did all this so I really don't recall anything about the driveshaft. But you are correct about the two piece driveshaft. It had a carrier bearing just past the x-frame if I recall.
A couple of corrections. Chevrolet actually had a V-8 briefly in 1917, then didn't have another one until 1955. Also, In 1961, the 409 came only in the Impala SS, before being made available for all big Chevys in 1962.
And one more point.....the '61 "409" was a midyear option....the early '61 SS cars had the older brother "348" engines. I had a "348" in my '61 SS and then a "409"
in my "62 Impala SS. Just saying.......
A buddy in college ordered a '65 Impala SS with the 409 engine but when it was delivered it had a 396 engine. It turned out that it was the 11th 396 made. I have no idea what happened to that car so many years ago but at the time I thought it was one of the coolest cars I'd even seen.
Back in my late teens, I purchased a 409 from a bone yard, to replace my blown 327, in a 1964 Impala. I did a total rebuild, adding a 750 cfm Holly double pumper, headers, a Mallory Dual Points distributor, and a mild solid lifter cam. Very soon after getting the engine running, my father offered to co-sign a new car loan. I sold the 409 and the Impala separately to get the down payment money and never found out what that 409 could have done.
The 348 was also available with tri-power in the '58 Impala. A neighbor had one of these in 1962. Very impressive on a young lad of 16.
Differnt bore and stroke
Chevy may have been late to the v8 party but they did it really right. Love the BOP cars too.
Iconic engine. Really wanted one back in the day. Prices accelerated away from my income. For a long time there was no after market to speak of. Now there are new parts for full aluminum of you want it - and hav the cash of course. Glad I at least have enough mk4 engines and spares to support my immediate needs.
I remember back in 1972,my Dad worked at TriCity Chevrolet Dealership and also had a( secret) garrage in the back yard he would take,"work" home with him and also teach us boy's ,me and my brothers how to fix cars , but the one thing I remember moastly is that 409. Because it looked so strange his "customers" were always so nice to us kids and told us "the 409" was the fastest engine EVER built , and the Beach Boys song prove it but, that's the way I remember moastly back then 😎 THANKS.
In 1961 I was stationed in Germany. A friend in Dallas wrote to tell me about the 409 coming out. He was already driving a 1961 Impala with the 348 engine, which I believe was rated at 335 hp. He wished he had known that the 409 was coming before he bought the 348. Regardless, he eventually wound up running a successful stable of funny cars, first with 427 Chevy engines and later with Chrysler hemi race engines.
Ok and 396 375hp
Made our own Z11 back in 64. Bought the crank, rods and power slot pistons, Isky cam. The 425 HP 409's came with 2 head gaskets installed to lower the Compression ratio. Which meant the heads were the first thing off a new car. Being a long stroke engine the max RPM's were rather low. 5800 was red line. 5801 those 2.125 intake valves were floating! Bent push rods were the result if you were lucky. Hit the 12's a few times but that engine was real tough on tires and Muncie four speeds. At highway speeds (60's) if you were a bit too aggressive on the throttle, the tires would break loose. It's been 50 years plus and in reading about the Z11's being ordered without heaters to cut weight. That's not how I remember it. The cowl induction that was offered used the same cowl ducts as the heater assembly. Couldn't have both just one or another. Never believe that cowl induction was anything other than a gimmick as it's value would only be realized at high speeds if at all. And, in any race situation the first thing to come off was the air cleaner, followed by the exhaust cutouts. Good old days!
Just think what that monster could do now with the advancements in Tire Tech. and Suspensions.
409's very SHORT stroke...
Thanks for sharing the good old days with us. I love hearing about this kind of history!
Wow, that's cool. How do you feel about the LS small blocks?
Not a long stroke at all. Big bore short stroke.
The RPM limiter was how heavy the piston and wrist pin were. The piston weighs almost 75% more than a 454 or 427 piston, and the wrist pin weighs 50% more.
With a modern light weight piston and pin, a 409 will rev extremely high.
My first car was a 3 yr. old 1963 Impala SS with a single carb 409 and a Powerglide . Bought it 2 weeks before HS graduation by working full time in a textile factory 5 nights a week. Blew my savings on the down payment and it took all I could do to keep a little gas in it and still court my future wife (Going on 54 yrs. now). Sitting right beside it on the Chevy dealer OK used car lot was a '63 Impala SS with the 4-speed and dual carb setup, I've often second-guessed myself about the one I picked.
I knew a guy who had a 65 Impala with a 409. He put it into a '68 Camaro and I put the 327 from the Camaro into my '68 Chevelle with a 4 speed manual.
That Camaro was one fast car and the improvement in my Chevelle from the beat up 307 was great. I miss that car, wish I still had it.
I had a model car, I think it was a 65 Impala that had a supercharged 409 with 4 two barrel carbs sticking out of the sides. They called it a "Porcupine 409" but I don't know if it was ever a real thing.
When I was growing up in Oregon about 14 yrs old our next door neighbor had an Impala with a 409. He was the coolest guy in school.
The first V-8 engine was built around 1905 by Leon Levavasseur in France. The engine was based on his 1902 patent for a light gasoline V-8 engine. The engine was named "Antoinette" after the daughter of his banker.
I had a friend years ago who had a 1979 Chevelle that he had installed a 409 in. That car was a monster all on it's own. It was not a punched out 396 but a true 1964 409 without the dual carter carburetors. It had a very different sound to the other big blocks that guys had in other cars around town and it just looked right under the hood of that car.
In 68 when I was a junior in high school, I bought a 61 Chevrolet SS body style ragtop metallic smoke gray with a red and white interior. It had the small block 283 two barrel with the cast iron Powerglide slush bucket two-speed tranny. Being it was a convertible it had the beefed up x-frame. The guy that sold it to me for $600 said that it had overheated once but still ran pretty good. I told him I was going to the State School of Science for auto Mech in the fall of 69 and was planning on overhauling the engine and putting in a high performance clutch and Muncie 4 speed and changing the 265 rear end to 318. When I tore it apart I was surprised it still ran it had a lot of broken compression rings and the ends of the push rods were crystallized , and cracked . When I took them out they fell to pieces the cylinders were in pretty good shape and the Rings hadn't messed up the Pistons so I knurled them, and the valve guides. I installed anti-float springs on the valves with seals to keep down the oil consumption and installed a 327 four and a quarter horse cam. With new hydraulic lifters, push rods, and rocker arms. I wanted a cruiser more than a Powerhouse so I left the two barrel carburetor on it. Had to advance the idle timing to 15° at 1,000 RPMs, otherwise it would rock itself off the motor mounts. The speedometer never worked from the time I bought it so I installed a tack. Clocked it on the highway and it did between 82 and 85 miles an hour at 4200 RPMs. Wished I would have kept it but I married my best friend that I met at SSS in the fall of 71 and by 72 and 3 we had two children. A convertible is not conducive for travel with them in North Dakota.
Loved that 409,,62 impala,fastest ride I ever owned..
"She's real fine, my 409".
They didn't make a song about it for nothing lol
"...buy a brand new 409" there should have been a Corvette with the 409ci
My 4 speed, dual quad, posi traction 409!
@@williamwells8341
You got that right!!!
Giddy up my 409!!!
Giddy up 409
I had a ‘63 409 and I beat a lot of 340’s, 5.0’s and surprised guys who didn’t know what a 409 was.
That red Impala is a beautiful car!
They are all beautiful cars... Which is why all the top car makers are reverting back to the looks of that era. The c8 corvette is now offered in a split back window. I'm a youngster and still find these cars, although heavy, amazing cars and trucks.
I'm glad you finally mentioned them being put in trucks. Several of the publications at the time , said it was a dump truck engine. Lots of torque at low rpms
lotta people dont know that duntov designed v8 ardun overhead valve hemi heads for flathead v8 powered british garbage trucks. Thats what ardun stood forAR kus DUNtov
Not installed in trucks until late 58. 4 months after cars received the W.
As a former owner of a 400HP 409ci, I had more fun with this engine and the car I put it in, a 1961 2dr Chev Biscayne.
Wildest cam ever in a street machine. Great memories.
?????I went to high school with a guy that did that exact same thing. What an engine. Kick a** ride.
We had that Beach Boys single when i was a kid. Loved it. My best friend's 1st car was a '62 Impala with a 283 p/g in '70. Gorgeous ride. To have that car today in white with red interior plus a 409 4 speed set up would be like a dream come true. Thank You for these great videos !!!
I love this guys channel its like watching a bunch of documenterys
You deserve way more subs! Your content is always amazing ans I wait patiently for each upload!!! Thank you and happy new yr!
Beautiful engine, beautiful cars.
I did not know about the 427 W block engine. It's always great to learn something new. Thanks for sharing.
Hat's off to Chevy for the 409! the forerunner of 60's muscle cars.They did have a reputation for blowing up as my friends 62 did with those thin cylinder walls.
As someone has mentioned - Cadillac produced a V8 car in 1914 - but few know that Chevrolet had produced their first V8, valve-in-head engine, for their cars in 1918 but discontinued it by the end of the model year
I had a 60 Impala with a 348! Loved that car, drove great and had an abundance of power for that big a car!
Those high compression engines were legit and leaded high test smelled great.
At 7:35 I never knew these engines came with 13 to 1 ratio.
To me, it looks like the ultimate sleeper car. Unless someone puts some high-profile tires and wheels on these machines, they look rather modest. I've seen my share of grandma's drive these vehicles to the supermarket and I just shake my head thinking if they only knew the monster under the hood!
The 1965 Chevrolet impala was the finest car made. The 409 engine was the engine I had in my '65 impala super sport.
I had a '65 SS with a 396...nice car.
Fantastic video man. Tks eh..
I don’t know who did the research for this but Chevrolet WAS the first to build and make available to the public an overhead valve V8 engine in the year 1925. Decent video regardless,always liked the W head big blocks ever since I learned that my cousin was doing headwork and driving for Lamar Walden and his Bubbletop Impala which went on to become the world’s quickest and fastest 409. Great info here on the 409. 👍
Very well presented. Thank you!
another awesome motor video, great one again! Keep it up, your videos are amazing! Very much like a video version of Hemmings Muscle Machines magazine!
Pretty cool flashback...back in the sixties I built a few of these engines. What I liked was the engineers decided t alternate intake and exhaust valve placement as compared to the small block motors, which paired center exhausts in the center creating a potential hot spot. While they put out gobs of torque, they were heavy motors, not too good for backyard swaps.
My mom had a co-worker whose husband drove a '60 Impala 4-dr hardtop with a 348, a 4-speed, and Positraction. It was probably the fastest family car in the West San Fernando Valley and Simi Valley at the time. The only child of the family which lived next door had an all-black '60 Impala HT coupe with the same power combo. It was one of the best looking cars in the WSFV. I thought the '62 Impala "bubbletop" coupe was a work of art and would have been great with a 409. I actually tried to buy a 1YO '64 Impala HT coupe with a 425 h.p. 409 but my dad wouldn't have it. There was a horsepower arms race in the early to mid-sixties and the 409 quickly fell out of the top tier. It had one feature, however, which no other engine could match, a unique sound. Hard to describe but once heard a 348 or 409 can be recognized by its sound. One of the hot-rod mags did an analysis of the source of the sound and concluded that it must have been due to the unusual scalloped heads. The Z-11 with essentially the same block and different heads did not sound the same. BTW, what average Chevy buyer ever went to a dealership and ordered a car with a Z-11? I believe the answer is zero. The Z-11 was a factory special racing engine and it was banned by NASCAR precisely because Chevy did not even try to satisfy the homologation requirement for the '64 racing season. By '65 GM management had banned engines over 400 c.i. so they had a legit production based "396" in '65.
The Chevrolet Series D is an American automobile produced by Chevrolet between 1917 and 1918. Over 4,000 Series D cars were manufactured in the 1918 model year, and it was the first Chevrolet V8 car made
Yes I was only 7 in 1962 but I will always remember those immortal lines in 409 quoted here I can probably recall the whole song this is a great video overall thanks
Love this channel
Great cars and a great presentation. Thank you.
My first car was a 65 impala convertible 4 speed, I put a dual quad 409 in it !!! Built in auto shop!! Remember auto shop!!??😀😀
Easy way to tell a 348 from a 409 is the dipstick. 409 is on the pass side, 348 the drivers side.
southernfriedhippie -you are absolutely right!!
The dipshit was always on the left, as there were no UK or Aussie versions-LOL!
Bruce Carney -so you was always on the left dipshit!
Thank you 'southernfriedhippie' & 'Robert LaPointe' for that unbeknownst-to-me heads-up info.!
southernfriedhippie was
Pontiac's dual carb 421 Super Duty was available during that period, that was an out and out engine in it's own right. Forged crank, rods and pistons, 4 bolt main block, factory heavy-duty high-pressure oil pump and eight-quart sump, 11.5 compression, big round ports and over sized valves, McKeller solid lifter camshaft, hi-rise (tunnel Ram) style intake and twin 4V carbs, header style exhaust.
The 421 Super Duty was an extremely rare engine. It might as well be non existent.
@@phlodel afaik the 421sd was only available in the ventura 2-door with the 8-lug wheels, and only with a 4-speed manual. the 409 was a regular production motor and could be ordered in any full-sized chevy as an option.
trucking604 My grandpa had a '65 Catalina 2+2 with the 421 & 4 speed that he used to deliver loads of moonshine. To be as big as it was, the car was a monster.
That 421 SD was a beast. I believe the carbs were Rochester 4GC's on that motor.
Charlie Christie That was what my grandpa's Catalina 2+2, 421 SD had on it.
I'm so hooked on these videos. Keep em comin!
Another great video, thank you.
I’ve got 3-1962 impales and 1-1963, hope I live long enough to get the 62- 409 restored
In 1917 Chevrolet designed and produced an overhead valve V8 engine. It was ahead of its time but when Chevrolet became part of General Motors in 1919, they discontinued the V8 because they wanted Chevy to be a less expensive car for the GM brand.
Was a great engine for it's time, my dad used to race one in the mid 30's and had many trophys to show for it.
Not many people know this. OHV was way ahead of it's time. The Cadillac V8 was a flathead. They did have oiling problems with the engine. Think that's main reason they dropped it.
My dad worked for Chevrolet Atlanta (Lakewood) and he showed up one day (a surprise to my mom) with a 1958 Impala with the 348 engine. It was the car that I first was allowed to drive around the neighborhood. The thing was a beast. I seem to remember that the block was first intended to be a diesel engine but not quite strong enough for diesel use and redesigned for the truck division as a gas engine.
I'm not an authority on 409s, but my late father-in-law was a GM master Truck mechanic, and he said although the 409 was fine truck engine, was not all that good for "hot-roding" because it's relatively long piston stroke, compared to the 348, made it tended to wear out early if run at high RPMs for extended periods. I don't know if that was the case, but an older kid who lived across the street from us when I was in high school bought a new 1962 Chevy with a 409, and he did a lot of street racing. Within a year or so it was smoking out the exhaust, and after it was only two years old he got rid of it. As I remember it was a post type two door with fleet white paint, so besides for the engine, it was just a run of the mill Chevy coupe.
It didn't have a long stroke, but it did have heavy pistons. OK for a "regular" engine, but delicate when turned into a race engine.
Chevrolet actually offered its first V-8 in 1917. This engine was installed in top of the line luxury models and was dropped after 1918 because of poor sales. There is a 1918 Chevy with this engine in the GM Heritage Collection.
corky coker pulled a 1917 chevy v8 out of a barn in his video
Bubble top '61 SS is one of the most attractive Impalas. I did not know the 409 made it to 1965. Good Info.
It was produced until January of 1965 and was replaced with the 396.
yup both 409 s and 396 s offered in 1965
The 348 and the 409 were also available in Canadian Pontiacs, and the 409 was the only big engine available in the entire year of 65, the 396 wasn't available until 1966
yup
yup 409 and 396 were available for part of 1965
In 1972 a jr. in high school..I bought a 63 impala SS..with the 425 hp.4 speed duel quads..for 200 bucks...my god that car was fast.
I had an impala, two door super sport, 409 engine, powerglide transmission. I loved this and wish I had it again!!!!!!!!
how did that pg do behind the 409? ive always been curious.
had a 348in my 1960 belair great engine
Well, I saved my pennies and I save my dimes.
For I knew there would be a time.
When I would buy a brand new 4-0-9.
@paul austin Jan and Dean ?
I had one of those in a 1965 Impala SS with a 4-speed my opinion it was a boat anchor I got beat by a 318 Mopar
@@tomriggle3217 I know just what you are talking about. I had a couple of friends, one hat an Impala 65 like yours and another had a 62 with a 348 tri. power. I used to chew both of them up with my little 65 Mustang. Stock 289, not K code, with just a 650 Holly. Those motors were boat anchors.
Tom Riggle the 327 ran better
tcorris
Giddy up giddy up 40999999
So the 409 was born the same year as me! Maybe that is why I like it so much.
Nothing compares to the sound of a well tuned 409 and I am still able to pick them out from a distance at car shows !!! Only downside was RPM limited to about 7200 ,and today I wouldn't risk blowing up any of these magnificent engines!!!! 2021
The 409 had some good power and torque for its displacement.
weird combustion chambers, though
Should of had the forged steel crank like the pontiac, instead of cast iron crank like ford and olds and chevys.
My favorite full size Chevy is a 66 L72 427 4 speed Biscayne. Love the sleeper look
bisquick
Another great video - thanks!
Interesting video and love seeing the old Impala SS's. Also learned a tidbit of information, never knew the bore spacing were the same on the later big block Chevy which was thought to be a clean sheet of paper design. The technology was quite advanced on the 348/409 engine for its time, using a staggered valve layout and the ultra high compression. What a great era in automotive technology.
" Gitty up gitty up gitty up 409 "
Chevrolet's first V8 came in 1918 in the Model D. Chevrolet stuck with 6 cylinder power until 1955 when the SECOND Chevrolet V8 was marketed.
It's nice to see someone that know the facts on Chevrolet unlike the people that put together this video.
The '61 SS Impala is my dream car. Born 1yr after I was! The '61 409 motors were rare and not all that great being an overbored 348 block. They beefed things up for the next few years. So while I would love a '61 Impala, I'd have to put a modern 572 Rat in! Tremec 6spd, Art Morrison chassis, etc.
Your vid is one of the best informative vids on CZcams. Excellent job buddy.
58 Mercs and Lincolns and a few T birds had the MEL with a similar flat top head design and 400 HP version as well. 3X2 equipped from the factory.
368 ci lincolns won mexican road race..talk about some vintage racing tin!!