At the end of the day, I think all of us would rather have either of these powering our car/truck over the electric junk being pushed on all of us these days.
I would rather have a ford fiesta 1.1 from the 80s than any electric junk "car" or even polski fiat 126, lada niva, citroën 2cv. Those are way, more reliable, cheaper and lightyears better than anything electric
Very stable valve train. High oil pressure. More expensive to build than a 454 or 460. And get RIGHT. I own quite a few 460'S / 385 series engines... In various states of performance levels. Very reliable. Especially when machined and assembled properly. Nothing wrong with a 454 based Chevy either.
The Ford 427 is the only American big block to ever win Le Mans. No other big block ever even tried. The Ford 302 small block is the only 60s era small block to win Le Mans outright. In fact, Ford is the only American manufacturer to EVER win Le Mans, so until someone else steps up and hands Europe its ass, this is academic.
@nojunkwork5735 no, but it took Ferrari nearly 60 years to win Le Mans again. And that first win would be backed up with three more in 67, 68, and 69. And, Ford is still the ONLY American manufacturer to ever win Le Mans outright. Not the only one to try, just the only one to succeed. And they did it with a modified 427 FE.
@will7its but my point is that GM is a bigger worldwide company, and the STILL haven't won Le Mans. Also, at the time, Ferrari was a racing team that sold a few road cars to finance its racing ambitions, as opposed to being a car company trying to race. That's why Enzo went broke, why Ford tried to buy him out, why Enzo sold to Fiat instead, and why Ford tried so hard to beat him at his own game. And they did it. Sure, the cost was a drop in a bucket for Ford. But it would've been a drop in a bucket for GM or Chrysler at the time, and they never won it.
Both are awesome motors but i love the ford 427 in the Cobra and thunderbolt which set several records it was wicked but like i said both are Bada** and yes the chevy 427 with the canted valve heads will breath better just look what the small block Cleveland did in Nascar and pro stock with the canted valve heads that were soon banned in nascar because of their superrior breathing capabilities. Bill elliott ran off and hid from Earnhardt and everyone else when they were using the cleveland with canted valve heads.
Okay! Ford guy here! This is a bit of a conundrum here. How many iterations of the 427 Chev have? Loads! L88, ZL1’s…etc. The list goes on. Cammers shouldn’t get a mention here.
I’m a Ford guy but the BBC was newer technology with the canted valves than the FE Fords that were designed in the late 50’s. Just as Ford was starting to develop their canted valve big and small blocks the EPA threw a turd in the punch bowl. Just imagine where the big blocks would have gone without gov intervention and high gas prices. Competition was good.
@@jesse75 you’re picking nits lol. Literally everyone back in the day referred to windsors and Clevelands as small blocks and FE’s and 385 series as big blocks. Been a Ford guy building and racing them longer than you’ve been alive probably.
@@MaverickWelding The FE ruled NASCAR and GM quit. The BBC wouldn’t last in NASCAR and as the 50s FE evolved they outright beat on the BBC GM engines. Why?
I’m a 427 Chevy guy but I’m also a huge FE fan. If you’re gong to run it stock stroke or close, the Ford is the winner with shaft rockers, better oiling and a lot of NASCAR wins under its belt. They stayed together while the valve train on the Chevys fell apart, even with stud girdles
@@VernonSherrod-m2t That’s right! The 50s inline value version not the SOHC. The garbage truck engines. And Ken Sutherland took the same garbage truck engine to the road races and whooped the Vette there. Go figgier?
The Ford gets it for a few reasons: #1, looks. It just looks like a race engine. Not just the dual quads but the valve covers look cool, the exhausts look amazing. #2. The Ford is lighter. #3. The Ford 427 would outrev Chevy at the time. I also like the Ford because of all the options. 390 with 42CJ heads being one of my favorite. I also like the distributor up front. Just easier to time, change points, etc. The Chevy looks like a truck engine. The distributor in the back is one of those 'who thought this would be good idea?' things. The only advantage I see with the Chevy is that it easily outlived the Ford. FE parts are hard to come by and the development in the aftermarket is weak. The Chevy? I think you can buy cams at the 7/11. Which is probably why it lasts till today. :-) BTW, put them on a dyno. I'll bet the Ford out-torques the Chevy but I'll bet the Chevy out HPs the Ford.... until you rev it out to 7K. And there I think the Ford would pull ahead just because it keeps going.
You ford guys need the dizzy up front because you have to tune it every 3 days. Wiring is neater at the back too. The ford looks like it came out of a dump truck and they always sound like they have an exhaust leak. 427, 428, 429....make up your mind. Can I refill your coolaid??? 😸 I'm going to go now, I have to order two 502 ci for my boat......Peace
The 427/425hp was the high riser. The med riser was 410hp and I think the low riser was rated at 390 or 405hp. I don't know that the 427 TP or SOHC was ever rated by Ford.
Well to remove the obvious bias.....the Ford actually won championships in NASCAR . Chevy had to use the bbc just to compete against the 351 Cleveland in nhra pro stock. For the record the Ford had to run more weight.
I beg to differ. The BBC was a sound design, reliability was not a problem. BBC failed in Nascar because of the aluminum Muncie transmission. In 1972, the BBC dominated short tracks in Nascar because of their better torque. BUT, by then the Chevys were running Holman Moody frames, Ford's top loader four speed transmissions, and a Ford's nine inch rear ends. The only thing on the Chevys that was Chevy, was the sheet metal and the engine!
You know there's going to be complaints about the engines, specifically the cylinder heads. An optional dealer parts department order option could get somebody a set of 427 tunnel port heads, which flowed equal to a Chrysler hemi. Not a SOHC, but the tunnel port would have been the equal of the Chevy big port heads.
There's an aspect of the exhaust that needs to be considered, thermodynamics. The Ford exhaust port and cast iron manifolds, while heavy, were great at keeping the exhaust gas temperature up, aiding in speed of exit, which assists with scavenging. Thin tube headers actually bleed heat out of the exhaust stream.
In Australia here, I'm a Ford guy and own a 1968 Mercury Marquis, okay a Mercury guy. I would think the Chevy is a more modern design and a great test would be the two engines run on a dyno, complete with factory manifolds, to see what power they really produce. Having said that, you Yanks were lucky to have made both, not forgetting Mopar, Pontiac, Buick, Olds and anyone else I have left out. Thankyou for your service to the Auto Industry.😉👍
Yes, something definitely with that 1/4 mile time. I'm a Ford guy through & Through. But honestly, the 352 was the lowest powered FE ever built, and no comparison for 427 Chevy.
This is where I have to roll my eyes at magazine tests. I had a '66 Caprice 396-325, Turbo 400, 2.73 open rear, first time out on 8.25 x 14 Hercules whitewalls, it ran 15.34. With Thrush mufflers and G70 Polyglas, it ran 14.96 at an NHRA track. I won a lot of street races with "Mom's car".
I used to only like Chevy when I was growing up but after being a mechanic for the last 25 years I am open to just about anything muscle from Ford, Chevy or Dodge. Even Toyota/Honda have a couple cars that I wouldnt mind owning for a minute.
I t depended on when you made the Comparison, In 1964 The 427 High Riser would kick the 427 Chevy's Butt. If you look at the engines today. the chevy has seen Constant Development Ford was discontinued in 1968 for a Better more modern Design. But when the 427 was dropped by Ford it was King of the hill as a 427 Tunnel port it Won Le-man and dominated NASCAR.
I can say, I have owned both a 427 Cheby and a 427 FE. The Cheby was in a one ton Cheby van, the FE lived in a 64 Fairlane. The FE was magnificent with a 2:80 rear end. Its behavior on the interstate was freakin delightful, low RPM cruising at 75-80 MPH. The van was a 3:08 rear end with similar traits. No complaints on either. I thoroughly enjoyed the balance of Torque and Horsie Powah! Back then, the torque was measured in Ft/Lbs. According to my factory service manuals and Motor Manuals. Pound Feet my ass... There was far too many split hairs when comparing specs... Nitpicking is nitpicking. The comparison does conveniently leave out gearing information both in transmissions and differentials, not to mention torque converter specs. All of these are game changers... Ford had 2V and 4V heads on many applications.
Both engines were underrated due to insurance restrictions. If they were both set up the same ie. manifolds, carburetors etc. I remember an article in Hot Rod magazine that they dynoed all the sixty’s big blocks put in muscle cars. The Ford 427 had much more horsepower than advertised as did the GM 427.
They're both legends of their time, for sure. The 429/460 Ford engines had huge bore/short stroke, and canted valves like the Chevy big blocks. Those FE 427s were an older design, but they sure won a lot of races. I'll take a 66 Fairlane woth the 427 shoe horned in there. I'll also take a 68 Camaro with a 427 stuffed in there. 4 speeds for both please!
Chev vs Ford aside I'd pick the Ford simply because of the heritage racing history rarity etc, I can open almost any buy sell site find Chev 427 can't with the Ford its a coveted piece.
I read in a book many years ago, can't remember who was doing the head work but they took tunnel port heads and tried "rifling" the intake runners like grooves In a rifle barrel. . to swirl the incoming air/fuel mixture to get it in faster and compact more in the cylinder. That was 35 years ago and can't remember who and how it turned out. Doing that it would take out any dead zones where the incoming mixture could hide and lose velocity
I've driven cars with both i believe the ford pulled harder at lower rpm and sounded awesome but the power in the chevy midrange and up felt stronger. But that's probably because the ford was a 4 speed and the chevy was a automatic. But for the sound ford is the clear winner..JS
I agree. Without a dyno run for each it is just a conversation. One thing that will most likely never change is that building a similar Chevy will always be cheaper. Speed cost money, how fast can you afford to go.
I very interesting comparison. The shaft mounted rocker system on the ford would certainly favour long term high rpm duty. I would also imagine that headers on the Chevy would certainly make more of difference considering the claimed better exhaust flow from the Chevy head. I was surprised that a 427 corvette was only 13.4 in the quarter. Cars of today do everything better with one huge exception - stirring the soul with a lumpy cam and that visceral feel.
Those magazine tests were never very reliable. They almost never tested like for like cars. One would be an oddjoematic while the other was a hand shaker. Or they had different rear gears.
Im currently building a .060 over 427 Chevy that'll make 750+hp NA and its simple as it gets. Single 1150 Dominator. Big heads, big cam, big intake, high compression and a bulletproof bottom end. Take a hell of an FE engine to match it. Gonna make an all steel C-10 Chevy run in the 9s NA on 28x10.5x15 slicks.
Sounds like an awesome engine. I know of several FE engines that have reached 1000hp n/a so although getting any engine to that level isnt easy it is very obtainable with an FE. Good luck with your build and thanks for watching!!
Do a side-by-side comparison of the 2 engines exactly like they were produced 60years ago. 427 Mystery Motor vs. 427 High Riser side oiler. Using the same heads, compression ratios, intake and exhaust manifolds, valvetrain, vacuum secondary carbs, and point style ignitions.
Chevy never raced in LeMans until 2000, they have won it 9 times since, but I guess technically the 427 Chevy above ever raced in it. The 427 LeMans special engine ford developed had dry sump and a single four barrel, but I was still based off the above FE engine.
The 427 your talking about is not the same 427 he showed. The 427 your talking about is the cammer single overhead cam. While the one he is showing you I believe it's a FE. They are totally different
GM also had 3x2 on the corvette. Gm had different versions of the the 427. L88, Zl1 all aluminu🎉m. L88 was a monster compared to the Ford. 69 ZL1 were in the Camaro.
@@chevyrc3623the 427 cammer was outlawed in nascar(never even ran) and the 427 in the gt40s at lemans were side oiler 427s. Same as the big block cobra. The cammer did run in nhra and was a beast but kept splitting the blocks
Why don't you just put those two engines you're standing next to on the dyno. Results would decide the clear winner. I don't think anyone can say there's no clear winner when what I just mentioned above is pretty easy to do.
Parts are no longer available anymore to make the engines exactly as they were back in 1966 so a dyno test of these two engines as they are now would be meaningless. Thanks for watching
A friend of mine raced both engines back in the 60s/70s and said they made similar power but the Ford was much more durable due to the cross-bolt main caps.
A motor is an air pump, It doesn't matter who made them. All these old motors were similar - simple and easy to work on. Power is going to be dependent on head flow. Aftermarket stuff will make them both equal. You will probably spend more money on anything that isn't Chevy.
The flow of the Chevy had two port lengths, short and long. Unequal flow to every other cylinder. Fords runners were all equal. Canted valves do breath better, but on which port, the short or long. Loner port runners produce more torque.shorter runners made power in a higher rom range. I’ll take the ford.and there were tunnel port heads available for the ford. Who needs canted valves? And he also forgot to include Mopars 426 Max Wedge. The Hemi mops the floor with everything but the Ford SOHC engine.
When Ford pulled out of NASCAR, and the Boss 429 was out, NASCAR told the guys who fell back to 427s they could run without restrictor plates, because their engines were obsolete. It only took a few races to decide they had to use the restrictors; 427s were still very competitive.
I don't know the answer, but the Ford had the most potential. And in NASCAR the Ford held up very well and won a lot. I think on the street the Ford was a little more finnicky.
As i was told years ago! It all depends on the driver. BUT one thing is for SURE the CAR INSURACE AGENCIES were also looking at those POPULAR NUMBERS SO i was explained by and engineer and Machinist that worked for Ford Motor Company the HORSEPOWER numbers were PURPOSELY lowered . and (i was told) ESPECIALLY ONCE the cubic inches touched 400cid THAT WAS IT! Insurance rates increased! So that is why we see the Dodge Hemi 392, Ford 390, chevy 396, Oldsmobile 394
@@Hotrodclassicthat’s irrelevant. He used the basic 427 FE motor. Superior to ANY bow tie. Everyone I’ve ever known who owned a big block Chevy, had countless issues with them and just as many excuses. I’ll stick with Ford as I’ve never had problems with any of them.
@@kingfishstevens2087 Funny how most ford power lovers ‘’ALL HAD COUNTLESS FRIENDS WITH BIG BLOCK CHEVROLETS THAT WERE ALWAYS BROKEN DOWN ! Yet to this day the BBC completely dominates the engine of choice at the AMERICAN DRAG STRIP , and it’s not even close….! So you like ford ..good for you…!
Those published times are pretty laughable. Can’t speak to the Chevy but that Ford dual quad 427 in a Merc Marauder was Low 13’s at 110 mph with massive traction issues. Easy 12’s with some slicks. The top end charge was really something . 160 mph in 1964 was near unbeatable
Yes, definitely under rated horsepower numbers. It's the engine that forced Chrysler to produce their own race engine with the 426 hemi, oddly enough, with their cross ram intake and 2, 4 barrel carbs, also rated at 425 horses. The Chevy may have been somewhat under rated but I'm sure the Ford and Chrysler were most definitely under rated substantially.
I grew up in a home branded by Chevrolet. In particular the 427 BBC. My father’s first new car was a 1966 Impala SS with a 390hp/427. He raced that car from day one. He worked it too much. What was more fun was our neighbor a block away. He was a Ford man. He didn’t race but traded around very nice Ford street rods. In the 80s the popularity of racing fell off around my home town. Hardly anyone spent the time or money to. I grew up in the automotive machine shop trades. It kept us. 35 plus years in it. About the first thing I learned was that all engines paid the same to work on. Some took more knowledge to work with than others but that comes with the territory. I fully understood why Ford guys stayed in their lane and Chevrolet guys stayed in theirs. You could get into trouble implementing details from one brand of engine to the next. I learned to respect Ford engines. Particularly when it came to port work then digitizing the port work. That symmetrical port made sense compared to a left and right intake port. One shorter than the other. Two completely different ports. Don’t know what took Chevrolet so long??? Those FE engines are still a popular platform. The only reason I don’t care to work on them is the parts prices. I have no control over that much, but I’ll say that there is definitely a “Ford Tax” and I don’t like that there is. It’s always been cheaper to work on a Chevrolet. Anyone says otherwise is re-ringing engines for a living and assembling them. I’ve always had empathy for Ford customers in the shop over the years. I’d go out of my way to help them and it proved a benefit beyond what I would have imagined in the long run. In the current the facts are that an apples to apples comparison between these two engines would be next to impossible. The BBC has been done to death cams have been developed in great detail for every imaginable combination. The FE engine is still going to cost more to build stock than a modded BBC. It’s just not something that can be done with all things considered. I liken it to good bbq. It’s a flavor preference. Nothing else. These Ford Engines are respectable for sure. So are the BBC engines. One is just used more than the other by far and that’s all there is to it.
When you advertise a engine shootout how about a real dyno test.Most gearheads know the slight differences,or can look them up.A waste of time.Nothing solved.
I’m died in wool blue oval guy and own an original 427 s/o but I love both engines as well as some of the cars they came in…yes, little unfair with Cobra BUT both drag (NHRA and AHRA) and road racing (SCCA) sanctioning bodies recognized the 427 Cobra as a production vehicle. Since I count the Cobra, let’s then also; however, count the 67 L88 Sting Rays as well as 427 transplant Camaros put out by Dana, Nickey, Yenko, etc….and then the three 67 Shelby GT500s fit with 427s by Shelby at LAX!
A 427 battle ? They are both 426's ! ( all of them are 428,429 included) And Where is the 427 CAMMER and 426 Hemi....... Put them all on the bench, all are 7-litres...... Cobra jet, side oiler, shotgun, L88, cammer......( they are just the ones I think you missed)
I think the 427 Fords were a race engine built for NASCAR/NHRA. The 427 Chevy could be bought at any Chevy dealership and street driven as a daily driver.
@@timmebruer5205 You could have the 427 in many different cars Chevrolet offered, Chevrolet Biscayne 1966-1969 (L72) Chevy Caprice 1966-1969 (L72) Chevrolet Impala 1966-1969 (L72) Chevy Corvette 1966-1969 (L36, L68, L72, L88, L89) Chevrolet Camaro 1968-1969 (L72, ZL-1)
I've had both. The Ford sounds better and pulls like a beast. Yet a stock Ford 390 comes in a distant second to the 396. Go figure. The 428 CJ on the other hand . . . .
The front mounted distributor advantage of the Ford is enough to swing the vote. If you ever owned a 427 BBC like I did, and had to change, or set the points in that rear distributor, especially a dual point like mine, you would agree.
until you drive through a deep puddle and water splashes up from the fan which gets onto the distributor and the engines dies while you're in the middle of a busy intersection
@@craigg4246 Yeah no shit sherlock. If you haven't paid attention it's 2025 now lol. Unless you're restoring the car to be all original and keep it in the garage all the time.Why wouldn't you just put electronic ignition system in it?? They literally make electronic modules You can put underneath the original distributor cap. Petronixs I believe its called.
Eventually Ford gave up and let cheverlete have the push rods. just take it, you can have it, f*** it we'll build something else. Ford went to overhead cam
Good comparison I think both are great engines and knowledge of how to build them makes a big difference. Look at class racer on u-tube video of a 67 427 Fairlane stock eliminator and a 1969 Camaro 427 going at it, for comparison check it out
At the end of the day, I think all of us would rather have either of these powering our car/truck over the electric junk being pushed on all of us these days.
💯
I'm Ford all the way, but I'd take that Chevy in a Heartbeat.
Looks like you’re incredibly jealous of electric vehicles that can walk all over you! Pour thing! Junk is a person who is not educated!
There both monsters of there time but my heart❤ stays with the chevy Rat ❤
I would rather have a ford fiesta 1.1 from the 80s than any electric junk "car" or even polski fiat 126, lada niva, citroën 2cv. Those are way, more reliable, cheaper and lightyears better than anything electric
Both GREAT Engines!!!
Ill take the 427Ford .
Side oiler with 100 psi priority main oiling system.
Both great engines.. personally, I'd do a 454 or 460 before I'd do a 427...
The side oliers were also run in big boats , has to be pretty stout to be used in offshore boats
Very stable valve train.
High oil pressure.
More expensive to build than a 454 or 460.
And get RIGHT.
I own quite a few 460'S / 385 series engines...
In various states of performance levels.
Very reliable. Especially when machined and assembled properly.
Nothing wrong with a 454 based Chevy either.
The Ford 427 is the only American big block to ever win Le Mans. No other big block ever even tried.
The Ford 302 small block is the only 60s era small block to win Le Mans outright. In fact, Ford is the only American manufacturer to EVER win Le Mans, so until someone else steps up and hands Europe its ass, this is academic.
Yawn......
The 1966 Le Mans cost Ford over 25 million dollars in today's money to win that race. Not a very good investment.
@nojunkwork5735 no, but it took Ferrari nearly 60 years to win Le Mans again. And that first win would be backed up with three more in 67, 68, and 69. And, Ford is still the ONLY American manufacturer to ever win Le Mans outright. Not the only one to try, just the only one to succeed. And they did it with a modified 427 FE.
@@moseshughes2670 Ford is a huge worldwide corporation. Ferrari is a tiny specialty company in Italy. Of course they could do it.
@will7its but my point is that GM is a bigger worldwide company, and the STILL haven't won Le Mans.
Also, at the time, Ferrari was a racing team that sold a few road cars to finance its racing ambitions, as opposed to being a car company trying to race. That's why Enzo went broke, why Ford tried to buy him out, why Enzo sold to Fiat instead, and why Ford tried so hard to beat him at his own game. And they did it. Sure, the cost was a drop in a bucket for Ford. But it would've been a drop in a bucket for GM or Chrysler at the time, and they never won it.
Both are awesome motors but i love the ford 427 in the Cobra and thunderbolt which set several records it was wicked but like i said both are Bada** and yes the chevy 427 with the canted valve heads will breath better just look what the small block Cleveland did in Nascar and pro stock with the canted valve heads that were soon banned in nascar because of their superrior breathing capabilities. Bill elliott ran off and hid from Earnhardt and everyone else when they were using the cleveland with canted valve heads.
The real winners are the people who owned them.
Okay! Ford guy here! This is a bit of a conundrum here. How many iterations of the 427 Chev have?
Loads! L88, ZL1’s…etc. The list goes on.
Cammers shouldn’t get a mention here.
I’m a Ford guy but the BBC was newer technology with the canted valves than the FE Fords that were designed in the late 50’s. Just as Ford was starting to develop their canted valve big and small blocks the EPA threw a turd in the punch bowl. Just imagine where the big blocks would have gone without gov intervention and high gas prices. Competition was good.
If you're a Ford guy, you should know Ford never had small and big blocks.
@@jesse75 you’re picking nits lol. Literally everyone back in the day referred to windsors and Clevelands as small blocks and FE’s and 385 series as big blocks. Been a Ford guy building and racing them longer than you’ve been alive probably.
@@MaverickWelding The FE ruled NASCAR and GM quit. The BBC wouldn’t last in NASCAR and as the 50s FE evolved they outright beat on the BBC GM engines. Why?
I’m a 427 Chevy guy but I’m also a huge FE fan. If you’re gong to run it stock stroke or close, the Ford is the winner with shaft rockers, better oiling and a lot of NASCAR wins under its belt. They stayed together while the valve train on the Chevys fell apart, even with stud girdles
You forgot to mention weight, and how the Ford FE is lighter by 20-50 lbs CONSISTENTLY across FE versions to Chevy BB versions
Well to this day the only American engine to beat Ferrari is the 427 Ford GT 40. Go watch the movie Ford vs Ferrari.
@@VernonSherrod-m2t That’s right! The 50s inline value version not the SOHC. The garbage truck engines. And Ken Sutherland took the same garbage truck engine to the road races and whooped the Vette there. Go figgier?
The Ford gets it for a few reasons: #1, looks. It just looks like a race engine. Not just the dual quads but the valve covers look cool, the exhausts look amazing. #2. The Ford is lighter. #3. The Ford 427 would outrev Chevy at the time. I also like the Ford because of all the options. 390 with 42CJ heads being one of my favorite. I also like the distributor up front. Just easier to time, change points, etc. The Chevy looks like a truck engine. The distributor in the back is one of those 'who thought this would be good idea?' things. The only advantage I see with the Chevy is that it easily outlived the Ford. FE parts are hard to come by and the development in the aftermarket is weak. The Chevy? I think you can buy cams at the 7/11. Which is probably why it lasts till today. :-) BTW, put them on a dyno. I'll bet the Ford out-torques the Chevy but I'll bet the Chevy out HPs the Ford.... until you rev it out to 7K. And there I think the Ford would pull ahead just because it keeps going.
You ford guys need the dizzy up front because you have to tune it every 3 days. Wiring is neater at the back too. The ford looks like it came out of a dump truck and they always sound like they have an exhaust leak. 427, 428, 429....make up your mind. Can I refill your coolaid??? 😸 I'm going to go now, I have to order two 502 ci
for my boat......Peace
Which Ford 427 ? Low Riser , Medium Riser , High Riser , Tunnel Port or SOHC ? 😮
The 427/425hp was the high riser. The med riser was 410hp and I think the low riser was rated at 390 or 405hp. I don't know that the 427 TP or SOHC was ever rated by Ford.
The fact that people still make a 7.0L Chevy, that's the clear winner! And I'm a Ford guy! 😮
I like all of them.. the really notable engine of that era was the Ford 427 SOHC
Well you did throw in the corvette against the big ford. So the AC Cobra is fair!
Well to remove the obvious bias.....the Ford actually won championships in NASCAR .
Chevy had to use the bbc just to compete against the 351 Cleveland in nhra pro stock.
For the record the Ford had to run more weight.
Engine Masters Challenge clearly showed the Ford FE as the superior engine. That was their last Dyno challenge.
NASCAR went to the small block engines to make Chevrolet competitive. The Chevy bb didn’t hold up to500 mile races.
I beg to differ. The BBC was a sound design, reliability was not a problem. BBC failed in Nascar because of the aluminum Muncie transmission. In 1972, the BBC dominated short tracks in Nascar because of their better torque. BUT, by then the Chevys were running Holman Moody frames, Ford's top loader four speed transmissions, and a Ford's nine inch rear ends. The only thing on the Chevys that was Chevy, was the sheet metal and the engine!
I remember in the 60's and 70's watching the fords blow up spewing oil all over the tracks and thats when I became a chevy guy. Motor went away.....🤠
You know there's going to be complaints about the engines, specifically the cylinder heads. An optional dealer parts department order option could get somebody a set of 427 tunnel port heads, which flowed equal to a Chrysler hemi. Not a SOHC, but the tunnel port would have been the equal of the Chevy big port heads.
Keep in mind those test runs in the 60s included wheel spin through most of all 1st gear.
There's an aspect of the exhaust that needs to be considered, thermodynamics. The Ford exhaust port and cast iron manifolds, while heavy, were great at keeping the exhaust gas temperature up, aiding in speed of exit, which assists with scavenging. Thin tube headers actually bleed heat out of the exhaust stream.
In Australia here, I'm a Ford guy and own a 1968
Mercury Marquis, okay a Mercury guy.
I would think the Chevy is a more modern design and a
great test would be the two engines run on a dyno,
complete with factory manifolds, to see what power
they really produce.
Having said that, you Yanks were lucky to have made both,
not forgetting Mopar, Pontiac, Buick, Olds and anyone else
I have left out.
Thankyou for your service to the Auto Industry.😉👍
The caprice's slow ¼ mile time had to be traction limited. My 352 galaxie ran faster than 16.3 at 88mph 😂
Something was wrong. I think both cars should be fairly even
Yes, something definitely with that 1/4 mile time. I'm a Ford guy through & Through. But honestly, the 352 was the lowest powered FE ever built, and no comparison for 427 Chevy.
I thought we were gonna see some dyno pulls
This is where I have to roll my eyes at magazine tests. I had a '66 Caprice 396-325, Turbo 400, 2.73 open rear, first time out on 8.25 x 14 Hercules whitewalls, it ran 15.34. With Thrush mufflers and G70 Polyglas, it ran 14.96 at an NHRA track. I won a lot of street races with "Mom's car".
Lucky the man having both in his garage . Cheers .
I used to only like Chevy when I was growing up but after being a mechanic for the last 25 years I am open to just about anything muscle from Ford, Chevy or Dodge. Even Toyota/Honda have a couple cars that I wouldnt mind owning for a minute.
The ford 427,lower riser, medium riser,high riser, side oiler,SOHC …
You forgot the bad boy Tunnel Port. The side oiler was a block type not a head type.
the 426 street hemi beats them both
Not
You're right. The Hemi was the shut-down king on the streets, at least when we're talking stock-for-stock
Too heavy
I was hoping they were going a dyno and we can see the power curve
I t depended on when you made the Comparison, In 1964 The 427 High Riser would kick the 427 Chevy's Butt. If you look at the engines today. the chevy has seen Constant Development Ford was discontinued in 1968 for a Better more modern Design. But when the 427 was dropped by Ford it was King of the hill as a 427 Tunnel port
it Won Le-man and dominated NASCAR.
Rear end ratios have to be considered in the qtr mile times.
True ! but the Ford was the Best thats why it was Band from Racing .........
Just look at the recorded history... Fords 4 2:05 27 was kicking everybody's ass
The Ford is far beyond the Orange junk pile. 24 hours at 7000 rpm at leMans proved that.
I’m a ford guy but I think the chevy is better in many aspects but i’d still take the ford side oiler over the chevy.
I can say, I have owned both a 427 Cheby and a 427 FE. The Cheby was in a one ton Cheby van, the FE lived in a 64 Fairlane. The FE was magnificent with a 2:80 rear end. Its behavior on the interstate was freakin delightful, low RPM cruising at 75-80 MPH. The van was a 3:08 rear end with similar traits. No complaints on either. I thoroughly enjoyed the balance of Torque and Horsie Powah! Back then, the torque was measured in Ft/Lbs. According to my factory service manuals and Motor Manuals. Pound Feet my ass...
There was far too many split hairs when comparing specs... Nitpicking is nitpicking.
The comparison does conveniently leave out gearing information both in transmissions and differentials, not to mention torque converter specs. All of these are game changers...
Ford had 2V and 4V heads on many applications.
Both engines were underrated due to insurance restrictions. If they were both set up the same ie. manifolds, carburetors etc. I remember an article in Hot Rod magazine that they dynoed all the sixty’s big blocks put in muscle cars. The Ford 427 had much more horsepower than advertised as did the GM 427.
I grew with Chevy but I became a Ford guy 😊
I did the exact opposite.
I'm sorry......🙆
@@gregtaylor3961 Me too , Ford in the 70-90s, Chevy from 2000 up.
They're both legends of their time, for sure. The 429/460 Ford engines had huge bore/short stroke, and canted valves like the Chevy big blocks. Those FE 427s were an older design, but they sure won a lot of races. I'll take a 66 Fairlane woth the 427 shoe horned in there. I'll also take a 68 Camaro with a 427 stuffed in there. 4 speeds for both please!
Put both engines on the same dynameter on the same day. Make three pulls each and let us know who wins. Otherwise, you are just wasting our time.
The Ford 427 side oiler did will the 24 hours of Le Mans a few times so there’s that.
It was the 289ci Windsor ( 255ci quad cam ) that won in the GT40.
Chev vs Ford aside I'd pick the Ford simply because of the heritage racing history rarity etc, I can open almost any buy sell site find Chev 427 can't with the Ford its a coveted piece.
I'll go with the Ford also, the 427 they ran in the thunder bolt was 500 HP....
@@alonzowitt5931 was over 600
I read in a book many years ago, can't remember who was doing the head work but they took tunnel port heads and tried "rifling" the intake runners like grooves In a rifle barrel. . to swirl the incoming air/fuel mixture to get it in faster and compact more in the cylinder. That was 35 years ago and can't remember who and how it turned out. Doing that it would take out any dead zones where the incoming mixture could hide and lose velocity
Ford 427 was the Best thats why it was Band from Racing and NASCAR ......
Wrong. The engine that was banned, was the overhead cam design because that’s just not American.
@@2648498Ford was making ohc v8 back in ww1 era in tanks. Ford has alwaus been ahead in technology and has always been american.
Undeniable race history with the Blue 427…. Both great engines. What a time to be alive back then. I could only imagine…
I've driven cars with both i believe the ford pulled harder at lower rpm and sounded awesome but the power in the chevy midrange and up felt stronger. But that's probably because the ford was a 4 speed and the chevy was a automatic. But for the sound ford is the clear winner..JS
Thought you would have put on dyno
I agree. Without a dyno run for each it is just a conversation. One thing that will most likely never change is that building a similar Chevy will always be cheaper. Speed cost money, how fast can you afford to go.
I very interesting comparison. The shaft mounted rocker system on the ford would certainly favour long term high rpm duty. I would also imagine that headers on the Chevy would certainly make more of difference considering the claimed better exhaust flow from the Chevy head. I was surprised that a 427 corvette was only 13.4 in the quarter. Cars of today do everything better with one huge exception - stirring the soul with a lumpy cam and that visceral feel.
Actually, 13.4 is a very good time for back then considering the tire technology. Not many cars would perform that well.
Those magazine tests were never very reliable. They almost never tested like for like cars. One would be an oddjoematic while the other was a hand shaker. Or they had different rear gears.
Yeah the Impala had 2.78 gears....lol
Im currently building a .060 over 427 Chevy that'll make 750+hp NA and its simple as it gets. Single 1150 Dominator. Big heads, big cam, big intake, high compression and a bulletproof bottom end. Take a hell of an FE engine to match it. Gonna make an all steel C-10 Chevy run in the 9s NA on 28x10.5x15 slicks.
Sounds like an awesome engine. I know of several FE engines that have reached 1000hp n/a so although getting any engine to that level isnt easy it is very obtainable with an FE. Good luck with your build and thanks for watching!!
Where's the shootout
we all know its the ford
Do a side-by-side comparison of the 2 engines exactly like they were produced 60years ago. 427 Mystery Motor vs. 427 High Riser side oiler. Using the same heads, compression ratios, intake and exhaust manifolds, valvetrain, vacuum secondary carbs, and point style ignitions.
That's what you just watched! Side by side comparison.... They should have inserted the Mopar 426 Himi to compare
I take the ford over gay chevy anyday.
I like both, variety is the spice of life. That being said, I'm a bigger fan of the 429/460 than the FE.
Ford's won the LeMans, Chevy never has....
Chevy never raced in LeMans until 2000, they have won it 9 times since, but I guess technically the 427 Chevy above ever raced in it. The 427 LeMans special engine ford developed had dry sump and a single four barrel, but I was still based off the above FE engine.
Thats in France, nobody cares....🤠
03:40 Not sure why Ford has the edge when it needs Dual carbs when Chevy matches it with just 1 carb.
That test on the Fairlane is a joke my 67 Mustang w/ a 390 in stock trim ran 14.14 at a flat 100 mph
I think maybe a couple things that weren't covered in the comparison was how the oil and firing systems worked...
The best one is the one you like, Have Fun either way..
L88 427 Chev every day, all day.
I was looking for dyno results.
Ford 427 Tunnel Port
I would take the Ford because I am a ford guy but I think both engines are awesome in their own ways both are made in the America 👍
It depends solely who builds the engine. But the fact Ford won Lemans was impressive. Especially that i am a chevy guy.
The LeMans cars had the cammer 427 I had thought ?
@@skxj nope
I ll take the Ford. They won LeMans, and they ran NASCAR and the historic championship went to Ken Sutherland at the Corvette Club Championship Race.
The 427 your talking about is not the same 427 he showed. The 427 your talking about is the cammer single overhead cam. While the one he is showing you I believe it's a FE. They are totally different
GM also had 3x2 on the corvette. Gm had different versions of the the 427. L88, Zl1 all aluminu🎉m. L88 was a monster compared to the Ford. 69 ZL1 were in the Camaro.
@@chevyrc3623the 427 cammer was outlawed in nascar(never even ran) and the 427 in the gt40s at lemans were side oiler 427s. Same as the big block cobra. The cammer did run in nhra and was a beast but kept splitting the blocks
@@chevyrc3623 Sorry but you are mistaken. LeMans was won by Ford in 66 and 67 with overhead valve side oilers, medium riser in 66, tunnel port in 67.
@@chevyrc3623 same block. Still considered an FE.
Ford was first, Ford was (and is) best.
Chevy had a V8 in 1916 and were ohv from the start. No flatheads ever......
@@will7its Chevy did not have a 427 in 1916. Ford 427 - 1963, chevy 427 - 1966, not counting mystery motor, but that wasn't available as production
Forgot to mention that the ford is well over a 100lbs lighter
Why don't you just put those two engines you're standing next to on the dyno. Results would decide the clear winner. I don't think anyone can say there's no clear winner when what I just mentioned above is pretty easy to do.
Parts are no longer available anymore to make the engines exactly as they were back in 1966 so a dyno test of these two engines as they are now would be meaningless. Thanks for watching
@@mydirtygarage funny
I’ll take the 427 cammer
A friend of mine raced both engines back in the 60s/70s and said they made similar power but the Ford was much more durable due to the cross-bolt main caps.
20 years ago I was always a Chevy fan and still am. Nowadays anything that has a blue oval a bow tie for a Mopar Love All American V8 engine
A motor is an air pump, It doesn't matter who made them. All these old motors were similar - simple and easy to work on. Power is going to be dependent on head flow. Aftermarket stuff will make them both equal. You will probably spend more money on anything that isn't Chevy.
I agree and Bob Glidden said it best after winning a championship with a Chrysler, "The valve covers don't know what's underneath."
I had full blown street car 67ss chevelle 130 in quater mile i would run either one any day
66 Chevelle SS ,built small block 327 /600hp , 5.5 sec in 1/8 mile , pulls both front tires off the ground and screams to the moon at 11,000rpm
The flow of the Chevy had two port lengths, short and long. Unequal flow to every other cylinder. Fords runners were all equal. Canted valves do breath better, but on which port, the short or long. Loner port runners produce more torque.shorter runners made power in a higher rom range. I’ll take the ford.and there were tunnel port heads available for the ford. Who needs canted valves? And he also forgot to include Mopars 426 Max Wedge. The Hemi mops the floor with everything but the Ford SOHC engine.
Buick 455.......checkmate👻
When Ford pulled out of NASCAR, and the Boss 429 was out, NASCAR told the guys who fell back to 427s they could run without restrictor plates, because their engines were obsolete. It only took a few races to decide they had to use the restrictors; 427s were still very competitive.
I don't know the answer, but the Ford had the most potential. And in NASCAR the Ford held up very well and won a lot. I think on the street the Ford was a little more finnicky.
Those 2 Holleys on the Ford were actually rated at 715cfm. I have a pair from a 64 427 FE I built about 30yrs ago for a customer.
No the BC/BD carbs were 710 cfm. Your probably thinking of the 715 cfm Lemans style carb used on the 289 hipos in Shelby Mustangs
As i was told years ago! It all depends on the driver. BUT one thing is for SURE the CAR INSURACE AGENCIES were also looking at those POPULAR NUMBERS SO i was explained by and engineer and Machinist that worked for Ford Motor Company the HORSEPOWER numbers were PURPOSELY lowered . and (i was told) ESPECIALLY ONCE the cubic inches touched 400cid THAT WAS IT! Insurance rates increased! So that is why we see the Dodge Hemi 392, Ford 390, chevy 396, Oldsmobile 394
Ford is better. Cobra wins. Case closed
LoL … LOVE Cobras but ford dint build them.. a dude named carrol did..😂
@@Hotrodclassicthat’s irrelevant. He used the basic 427 FE motor. Superior to ANY bow tie. Everyone I’ve ever known who owned a big block Chevy, had countless issues with them and just as many excuses. I’ll stick with Ford as I’ve never had problems with any of them.
@@kingfishstevens2087 Funny how most ford power lovers ‘’ALL HAD COUNTLESS FRIENDS WITH BIG BLOCK CHEVROLETS THAT WERE ALWAYS BROKEN DOWN ! Yet to this day the BBC completely dominates the engine of choice at the AMERICAN DRAG STRIP , and it’s not even close….! So you like ford ..good for you…!
@@Hotrodclassic The 4v 4.6 destroys chevy. Chevy fans hate the 4v 4.6 😆
Those published times are pretty laughable. Can’t speak to the Chevy but that Ford dual quad 427 in a Merc Marauder was Low 13’s at 110 mph with massive traction issues. Easy 12’s with some slicks. The top end charge was really something . 160 mph in 1964 was near unbeatable
Yes, definitely under rated horsepower numbers. It's the engine that forced Chrysler to produce their own race engine with the 426 hemi, oddly enough, with their cross ram intake and 2, 4 barrel carbs, also rated at 425 horses. The Chevy may have been somewhat under rated but I'm sure the Ford and Chrysler were most definitely under rated substantially.
Great comparison. For me, 427 Ford all the way.
Thanks for watching!
Shootout? Mostly click bait and talk.
Completely different head too
I grew up in a home branded by Chevrolet. In particular the 427 BBC. My father’s first new car was a 1966 Impala SS with a 390hp/427. He raced that car from day one. He worked it too much.
What was more fun was our neighbor a block away. He was a Ford man. He didn’t race but traded around very nice Ford street rods.
In the 80s the popularity of racing fell off around my home town. Hardly anyone spent the time or money to.
I grew up in the automotive machine shop trades. It kept us. 35 plus years in it.
About the first thing I learned was that all engines paid the same to work on. Some took more knowledge to work with than others but that comes with the territory. I fully understood why Ford guys stayed in their lane and Chevrolet guys stayed in theirs. You could get into trouble implementing details from one brand of engine to the next.
I learned to respect Ford engines. Particularly when it came to port work then digitizing the port work. That symmetrical port made sense compared to a left and right intake port. One shorter than the other. Two completely different ports. Don’t know what took Chevrolet so long???
Those FE engines are still a popular platform. The only reason I don’t care to work on them is the parts prices. I have no control over that much, but I’ll say that there is definitely a “Ford Tax” and I don’t like that there is. It’s always been cheaper to work on a Chevrolet. Anyone says otherwise is re-ringing engines for a living and assembling them.
I’ve always had empathy for Ford customers in the shop over the years. I’d go out of my way to help them and it proved a benefit beyond what I would have imagined in the long run.
In the current the facts are that an apples to apples comparison between these two engines would be next to impossible. The BBC has been done to death cams have been developed in great detail for every imaginable combination. The FE engine is still going to cost more to build stock than a modded BBC. It’s just not something that can be done with all things considered.
I liken it to good bbq. It’s a flavor preference. Nothing else.
These Ford Engines are respectable for sure. So are the BBC engines. One is just used more than the other by far and that’s all there is to it.
When you advertise a engine shootout how about a real dyno test.Most gearheads know the slight differences,or can look them up.A waste of time.Nothing solved.
Ford engines.. especially the fei s much better than a Chevrolet
if that is is true why is the chevy 350 small block the most race winningest engine of all time
I’m died in wool blue oval guy and own an original 427 s/o but I love both engines as well as some of the cars they came in…yes, little unfair with Cobra BUT both drag (NHRA and AHRA) and road racing (SCCA) sanctioning bodies recognized the 427 Cobra as a production vehicle. Since I count the Cobra, let’s then also; however, count the 67 L88 Sting Rays as well as 427 transplant Camaros put out by Dana, Nickey, Yenko, etc….and then the three 67 Shelby GT500s fit with 427s by Shelby at LAX!
A 427 battle ?
They are both 426's !
( all of them are 428,429 included)
And
Where is the 427 CAMMER and 426 Hemi.......
Put them all on the bench,
all are 7-litres......
Cobra jet, side oiler, shotgun, L88, cammer......( they are just the ones I think you missed)
Ford
The BBC engine looks so bad azz in a restored condition. I remember dreaming about the BBC as a 16 yr old. Those were the days.
how about the ford 427 tunnel port ??!!!
I think the 427 Fords were a race engine built for NASCAR/NHRA. The 427 Chevy could be bought at any Chevy dealership and street driven as a daily driver.
Only in an impala
The 427 ford was available in 1966 fairlanes
@@timmebruer5205 You could have the 427 in many different cars Chevrolet offered,
Chevrolet Biscayne 1966-1969 (L72)
Chevy Caprice 1966-1969 (L72)
Chevrolet Impala 1966-1969 (L72)
Chevy Corvette 1966-1969 (L36, L68, L72, L88, L89)
Chevrolet Camaro 1968-1969 (L72, ZL-1)
I've had both. The Ford sounds better and pulls like a beast. Yet a stock Ford 390 comes in a distant second to the 396. Go figure. The 428 CJ on the other hand . . . .
I had a 390 that people was a 427. The 3 deuces and nasty solid cam may have had something to do with that. 3 Holley 500 cfm 2 barrels...
The front mounted distributor advantage of the Ford is enough to swing the vote. If you ever owned a 427 BBC like I did, and had to change, or set the points in that rear distributor, especially a dual point like mine, you would agree.
Why in the hell would you mess with points when there are electronic ignitions Available??
Yea points are the first thing in the trash. I would rather have the ugly distributor out of sight anyway, even if maintenance is a little harder.
until you drive through a deep puddle and water splashes up from the fan which gets onto the distributor and the engines dies while you're in the middle of a busy intersection
@ you just gave away your age. There were no electronic ignitions yet in 1969
@@craigg4246 Yeah no shit sherlock. If you haven't paid attention it's 2025 now lol. Unless you're restoring the car to be all original and keep it in the garage all the time.Why wouldn't you just put electronic ignition system in it?? They literally make electronic modules You can put underneath the original distributor cap. Petronixs I believe its called.
427 Chevy= school bus engine.
That school bus engine dominated the CAN AM series.
Ford 427, Freakin old rebuilt Dodge= Dump truck engine with an exhaust leak😸
But a very mean & great School Bus engine! LSX for me.
Eventually Ford gave up and let cheverlete have the push rods. just take it, you can have it, f*** it we'll build something else. Ford went to overhead cam
Ford Seen their Mistake and built a real engine in the Godzilla. Your dinky toy engines may be ok in a lite car but in a Truck you need a real engine.
The 4.6 2v is amazing.
@@III1IlIIlIllIlThe 3 valve was better, but the 5.0 Coyote engine is probably the best. It's a lot more complicated though
Aww I been waiting for this answer for decades. Like sitting through Monty pythons holy grail for the anti climax 😂
How about including the tourqe specs?
I love them both and Mopars also.
Good comparison I think both are great engines and knowledge of how to build them makes a big difference.
Look at class racer on u-tube video of a 67 427 Fairlane stock eliminator and a 1969 Camaro 427 going at it, for comparison check it out