Demise of 348 Engine?

[Stan E.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Ford had a 300hp , 312cu in engine in 57 and outsold chevy

[Chuck S.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Yup, they had valve covers, although the pushrods ran through them - couple more photos below.

Ah...Wow, more interesting details. It appears the "intake manifold" is just a simple crossover pipe with an updraft carb mounted underneath...incredibly, the intake "runners" appear to be built into the heads!

Do you know the function of that tube that comes into the very top of the crossover pipe?

[John H.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Do you know the function of that tube that comes into the very top of the crossover pipe?

Nope - probably for the nitrous system.

Note the location of the starter - that location was never seen again until the Cadillac Northstar V-8 (except on the Northstar it's buried underneath the intake manifold, sealed inside the "vee"); probably why the Northstar has a Denso starter instead of a Delco starter.

[Clem Z.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Nope - probably for the nitrous system.

Note the location of the starter - that location was never seen again until the Cadillac Northstar V-8 (except on the Northstar it's buried underneath the intake manifold, sealed inside the "vee"); probably why the Northstar has a Denso starter instead of a Delco starter.

merc marine engines have the starter mounted in that position. i would guess for 2 reasons,(1) to keep it out of the water in the bilge and (2) to make it easier to service.

[Clem Z.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Ford had a 300hp , 312cu in engine in 57 and outsold chevy

the 300 HP ford was a paxton supercharged engine. in 1958 we took a 56 corvette with that 300 HP super charged ford engine to run the flying mile on daytona beach BUT it kept loosing blower belts before it got thru the flying mile. the owner was a ford nut but he thought the corvette was better aero wise. the owners name was alvin tesmer.

[Chuck S.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Nope - probably for the nitrous system.

Note the location of the starter - that location was never seen again until the Cadillac Northstar V-8 (except on the Northstar it's buried underneath the intake manifold, sealed inside the "vee"); probably why the Northstar has a Denso starter instead of a Delco starter.

HaHaHa... Cool...I didn't notice the starter; wouldn't want to get your neck tie to close to that setup.

Let's see, who was the guy that that invented the "self starter"?...Famous GM engineer that ended up as CEO...(Consulting Google ) Kettering!!!...For a Caddy in 1912! No doubt that idea put him on the Fast Track. This is a very early version of Kettering's self starter...Cool.

[Stuart F.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Hey! Great discussion fellows. I read them all with much enthusiasm. To think I lived through it all. Many of my friends had the 348's and 409's, and I wrenched for a several of them on the midwest drag racing circuits. I was also the lucky benefactor of a cheap 58 Fuelie V8 engine from a Corvette owning friend because he wanted more muscle. He put in a 59 Pontiac tri-power 389 ci, and had to add a hood scoop just to clear small aftermarket air cleaners. Thing kept tearing out the bearings. Guess it just revved up to freely in the lighter Vette. I first installed that Fuelie V8 in a 50 Chevy club coupe, believe it or not, in 1959! Had a blast whisling around town with the small open 57 air cleaner on it. I mounted the script lettering "Fuel Injection" just below the trunk lid. When asked; "you got a V8 in there?" I'd reply; "Ya, a Ford flat head", then proceed to lay down a block long patch of rubber as I ran away and hid from them.

[Tom S.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

My dad had a 1917 Olds with a v/8, it was a flathead and had an intake similar to this one.It also had primer cups on each cylinder that you would open to start it. Add a little gas to each cup and crank, when it fired close the cups! I had a 389 that would not stay together either, it was a 66 GTO. I built it twice then put in a 400 and swapped it on a 427 ford!

[Dick W.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Here is the NASCAR version of the'63 with the mystery engine. Last race run in 1963 this car had seven cylinder sleeves due to the unavailability of blocks

[Cecil L.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

edelbrock has released aluminum cylinder heads,2 X 4 intake and rocker arm covers for the 348/409 engines so these engine must still be in demand. to keep these posts in the corvette theme a friend had a 57 corvette with a 409/425 HP "W" engine back in the early 60s

Still in demand is an understatement. Edelbrock wouldn't be tooling up these parts without a market. They aren't the first though as Bob Walla of Bob Walla Raciing has aluminum heads already in production and has two prototype aluminum blocks undergoing machining and testing.The prices on 409 and hi perf 348's has increased exponentially in the last few years. Complete 425 hp 409 engines are in the $10,000 range. Good for sellers, but not so good for those buying...much like the Corvette experience.
These engines and cars are my second love after Corvettes . In high school (1961) I had a 58 Delray 2 dr sedan with the 280 hp 348 with 3x2's. Great fun car for the time. My buddy got a new 62 340 hp Corvette after graduation so between the two of us we had the bases covered.
In addition to my Corvettes and parts I have 2 409's, one of which is a 61 block (which is almost as rare as an L-88 or ZL-1) and 6 348's. The unique look of the engine is a big wow factor for many who have never seen anything other than a small block or big block chevy. Looks neat in a 33 Chev with 3x2's.
For the best source of info check out this website:
348-409.com Info Exchange - Powered by vBulletin

[Joe L.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Still in demand is an understatement. Edelbrock wouldn't be tooling up these parts without a market. They aren't the first though as Bob Walla of Bob Walla Raciing has aluminum heads already in production and has two prototype aluminum blocks undergoing machining and testing.The prices on 409 and hi perf 348's has increased exponentially in the last few years. Complete 425 hp 409 engines are in the $10,000 range. Good for sellers, but not so good for those buying...much like the Corvette experience.
These engines and cars are my second love after Corvettes . In high school (1961) I had a 58 Delray 2 dr sedan with the 280 hp 348 with 3x2's. Great fun car for the time. My buddy got a new 62 340 hp Corvette after graduation so between the two of us we had the bases covered.
In addition to my Corvettes and parts I have 2 409's, one of which is a 61 block (which is almost as rare as an L-88 or ZL-1) and 6 348's. The unique look of the engine is a big wow factor for many who have never seen anything other than a small block or big block chevy. Looks neat in a 33 Chev with 3x2's.
For the best source of info check out this website:
348-409.com Info Exchange - Powered by vBulletin

Cecil-----


I totally agree with your assessment of the "interestingness" of the 348-409. They are one of the more unique-appearing engines ever released by Chevrolet or, even, GM. They fall into the same category as the original Chrysler Hemi, Ford Boss 429, and Ford DOHC 427. From a performance standpoint, though, they're pretty obsolete. A standard 350 cid small block has way more performance potential than a 348 and it's lighter. Getting a small block out to 409+ cid is not too much of a problem these days and, for larger cubes, a Mark IV, V, or VI big block offers a lot more potential (that's why the Mark IV replaced the 348-409 in the first place).

But, from an "interestingness" point of view, the 348-409 is, without a doubt, the champ among Chevrolet PRODUCTION engines.

One piece of trivia: the 409 shared the largest bore size of any GM PRODUCTION engine ever used in a passenger car or Corvette with one other GM engine. That engine was the 1963-66 Buick 425. The 409 was a big bore, short stroke engine.

[Chuck S.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

...In high school (1961) I had a 58 Delray 2 dr sedan with the 280 hp 348 with 3x2's. Great fun car for the time...

You guys must have been loaded to swap a 348 into a three year old base model car...the 348 engine, especially with tripower, was the exclusive turf of the newly introduced Impala, which was only available in two door sport coupe and convertible. The only way a 58 Delray ever saw a 348 was if someone swapped one in.

[Michael M.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

[quote=Chuck Sangerhausen (20817);339398]Joe, Ford actually beat Chevrolet to an OHV V8 by first introducing the Y block in 1954 in a 239 cu in version (same displacement as Ford's predecessor flat head design). We had a 54 Fairlane sedan with one...I learned to drive in that car; not exactly a hot performer. I seem to vaguely remember the 272 cu in, but that engine eventually became their workhorse 289 cu in.
Chuck, The 272 became 292 then 312 all Y blocks. I beleive the first in the 289 series was 221 then 260 then 289 then 302. I use to be on the dark side!

[Cecil L.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

You guys must have been loaded to swap a 348 into a three year old base model car...the 348 engine, especially with tripower, was the exclusive turf of the newly introduced Impala, which was only available in two door sport coupe and convertible. The only way a 58 Delray ever saw a 348 was if someone swapped one in.

Chuck,
I don't know where you got your information but I respectfully disagree. I have personally owned a 58 Del ray , Bel Air, and Nomad wagon all with the original factory installed 348 engines. Attached are pages from the 58 New Product Info specs and also a page from the Parts and Accessories Catalog listing the various 348 engines with suffix codes and model availability.

[Michael H.]

Re: Demise of 348 Engine?

Chuck,
I don't know where you got your information but I respectfully disagree. I have personally owned a 58 Del ray , Bel Air, and Nomad wagon all with the original factory installed 348 engines. Attached are pages from the 58 New Product Info specs and also a page from the Parts and Accessories Catalog listing the various 348 engines with suffix codes and model availability.

Yup, I owned a 58 BelAir HT in 1962 that had a 250 HP 348. Was incredibly slow till I made a 280 HP 3X2 out of it. Then it was even slower.
I traded the car for a 60 Rochester fuel injection unit.