page_title: Ford FE engine
section_title: 427 SOHC "Cammer"
hierarchical_section_title: Ford FE engine / Generation 2 / 427 SOHC "Cammer"
caption_attribution_description: English: A 427 "Cammer" SOHC V8 engine (engine no. 003) coupled to a Ford "Top-Loader" four-speed manual transmission. At the Bonhams Auction attached to the 2019 Greenwich Concours d'Elegance, where it sold for $32,575. Possibly built on 1 December 1966, but lots of mystery around this absolute unit.
context_page_description: The Ford FE engine is a Ford V8 engine used in vehicles sold in the North American market between 1958 and 1976. The FE was introduced to replace the short-lived Ford Y-block engine, which American cars and trucks were outgrowing. It was designed with room to be significantly expanded, and manufactured both as a top-oiler and side-oiler, and in displacements between 332 cu in and 428 cu in.
  "FE" derives from 'Ford-Edsel.' Versions of the FE line designed for use in medium and heavy trucks and school buses from 1964 through 1978 were known as "FT," for 'Ford-Truck,' and differed primarily by having steel crankshafts, larger crank snouts, smaller ports and valves, different distributor shafts, different water pumps and a greater use of iron for its parts.
context_section_description: The Ford single overhead cam (SOHC) 427 V8 engine, familiarly known as the "Cammer", was released in 1964 in an effort to maintain NASCAR dominance by seeking to counter the enormously large block Chrysler 426 Hemi "elephant" engine. The Ford 427 block was closer dimensionally to the smaller 392 cu. in. first generation Chrysler FirePower Hemi; the Ford FE's bore spacing was 4.63 in (117.6 mm) compared to the Chrysler 392's 4.5625 in (115.9 mm). The Ford FE's deck height of 10.17 in (258.3 mm) was lower than that of the Chrysler 392 at 10.87 in (276.1 mm). For comparison, the 426 Hemi has a deck height of 10.72 in (272.3 mm) and bore spacing of 4.8 in (121.9 mm); both Chrysler Hemis have decks more than 0.5 in (12.7 mm) taller than the FE.
  The engine was based on the high performance 427 side-oiler block, providing race-proven durability. The block and associated parts were largely unchanged, but an idler shaft replaced the camshaft in the block, which necessitated plugging the remaining camshaft bearing oiling holes.
  The cast-iron heads were designed with hemispherical combustion chambers and a single overhead camshaft over each head, operating shaft-mounted roller rocker arms. The valvetrain consisted of valves larger than those on Ford wedge head engines, made out of stainless steel and with sodium-filled exhaust valves to prevent the valve heads from burning, and dual valve springs. This design allowed for high volumetric efficiency at high engine speed.
  The idler shaft in the block in place of the camshaft was driven by the timing chain and drove the distributor and oil pump in conventional fashion.  An additional sprocket on this shaft drove a second "serpentine" timing chain, 6 ft (1.8 m) long, which drove both overhead camshafts. The length of this chain made precision timing of the camshafts an issue at high rpms.
  The engine also had a dual-point distributor with a transistorized ignition amplifier system, running 12 amps of current through a high-output ignition coil.
  The engines were essentially hand-built for racing, with combustion chambers fully machined to reduce variability. Nevertheless, Ford recommended blueprinting before use in racing applications. With a single four-barrel carburetor they weighed 680 lb (308 kg) and were rated at 616 horsepower (459 kW) at 7,000 rpm & 515 lb⋅ft (698 N⋅m) of torque @ 3,800 rpm, with dual four-barrel carburetors 657 horsepower (490 kW) at 7,500 rpm & 575 lb⋅ft (780 N⋅m) of torque @ 4,200 rpm. Ford sold them via the parts counter, the single four-barrel model as part C6AE-6007-363S, the dual carburetor model as part C6AE-6007-359J for $2350.00 (as of October, 1968).
  Ford's hopes to counter Chrysler were, however, cut short. Although enough 427 SOHCs were sold to have the design homologated, Chrysler protests succeeded in getting NASCAR to effectively legislate the engine out of competition. This was due to the motor NOT being available in a factory production motor vehicle. It was not the only engine ever banned from NASCAR, the 1963 Chev 427 ‘mystery motor’, the 1965 426 ‘Race Hemi’ and the Chrysler A-925 DOHC Hemi were also was banned during the 1960s for the same reason - not available in a factory production car. This scuttled the awaited 1965 SOHC versus Hemi competition at the Daytona 500 season opener.
  Nevertheless, the SOHC 427 found its niche in non-stock drag racing, powering many altered-wheelbase A/FX Mustangs, and becoming the basis for a handful of supercharged Top Fuel dragsters, including those of Connie Kalitta, Pete Robinson, and Lou Baney (driven by Don "the Snake" Prudhomme). In 1967 Connie Kalitta's SOHC-powered "Bounty Hunter" slingshot dragster won Top Fuel honors at AHRA, NHRA and NASCAR winter meets, becoming the only "triple crown" winner in drag racing history.  It was also used in numerous nitro funny cars including those of Jack Chrisman, "Dyno" Don Nicholson, Eddie Schartman, Kenz & Leslie, and in numerous injected gasoline drag racing vehicles.
caption: A 427 Cammer once used by Ford's "X-Garage" skunkworks
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