[Mike V.]

Cool!

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

There are two Plymouth-Westlake 327 Indy engine from 1969 at the Museum of American Speed in Nebraska. It was an iron block and started life as an LA 318.

According to that website, Art Pollard drove the Plymouth-Westlake and won 200-mile Indy car race at Dover, Delaware on August 24, 1969. This would turn out to be the only victory for Plymouth in the history of Indy car racing.

See link below for freaking cool engine pics!!!

http://www.museumofamericanspeed.com/Weslake-327-CID-Plymouth-Indy-Car,9232.html

The same museum has the 1969 #57 STP Gerhardt Plymouth Indy Car sitting next to the display engine on the stand. According to the website the car was built in 1969 by Fred Gerhardt copying a Lotus chassis, then sold to Andy Granatelli's STP team.

Carl Williams qualified the STP turbocharged Offy-powered car at Indy that year, but did not finish. Art Pollard drove it the next week at Milwaukee to record his first Indy Car win.

In August, Pollard drove this car, re-engined with a naturally aspirated 318-c.i. Plymouth, to victory in the first Indy Car race at the new Dover Downs Speedway. To date, this is the only Plymouth-powered win in an Indy Car race.

Greg Weld also drove this car, with turbo-Offy power, in several races including Trenton, NJ, in July 1969 and the 1970 Indianapolis 500.

We found the car!!! At least it is safe in a museum and still has the Plymouth-Westlake engine!!!

Click link for pics of the car:

http://www.museumofamericanspeed.com/No-57-1969-STP-Gerhardt-Plymouth-Indy-Car,7110.html

So yes, that museum had two Plymouth-Westlake Indy engines on display with a third one installed in the original car that won at Dover.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

From the Trans Am thread...............


OK, I need to be enlightened here as I never was too deep into these series at that time. Would F1-Formula 5000 be using the same basic engine package as IRL was using? i.e., the 318 based motor that are pictured in Mike's link?

My assumption would be yes, given Gurney's had a relationship with Westlake and it was the "factory backed" package.

Norm?

Mike

Cool engine pictures indeed!

They don't look anything like the 318s I've owned .

Great find, Mike. Genuine Mopar legacy.

I love the corporate blue Plymouth logos on the red car. Super cool!!!

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Actually with the new engine regulations for F1 coming in 2014... F1 will be running turbocharged V6 engines.

It will be interesting to see how similar the new Honda F1 engine in 2015 will be to its IRL cousin.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

The original Honda V-6 IRL motor back in the 90s bore some resemblance to their stock block V-6s, if I'm remembering correctly. I'm not that well informed about current IRL motor specs. What's the current c.i. limit? Any relationship to street/production motors?

1.6L for the new F1 V6. No idea on relationship since the Honda won't debut until 2015.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

The Indy 2014 homologation update cycle will be for 2.2-liter, direct-injected V6 engines supplied by Chevrolet and Honda.

I would expect Alfa branding of engines if Indy was in the picture for Chrysler

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Yeah, 2.2L is a little small. I don't think the "Pentastar" V-6 family can be downsized that much and still keep it's stock heritage.



Pursue "Brand C" in a stock bodied racing series????!!!! As far as I'm concerned, Bring It On...........the sooner the better :thumbsup: .

I would love to see a factory backed Challenger running in the Continental Tire Series

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

They appear to be Westlake heads, could be that development continued into 70-71 but then the program was killed and this is the fruit of that labor.

There is little history on this program. I would love to know the history of that engine.

Westlake was a vendor, if others wanted the heads they could have got them. Cool stuff.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Likewise, Mike. I keep looking at the historical articles posted by the long-retired Chrysler engineers on the site's main page, but so far, nobody has even mentioned this program.

Yeah, it's one of those "so the story goes" situations. The claim by the museum is that the 1969 Petty Plymouth cash was used to find the program while Petty was at Ford. Then in 1970 he came back, the funding wasn't there, and the engine didn't make enough power specifically for Indy.

Also I noticed the ports are the same, look at the different pictures on the museum site. Also all the logos, Plymouth or Dodge, appear to be painted or stickers... Not machined into the valve covers.

The engine is seriously cool. I would love to have it to put in an A body project car like a '69 Barracuda notch back or a '70 Duster.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

If they didn't have any to install???

Seems to me the three known engines are in private hands.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Only 3 ever built and somebody is selling it for (only) $45,000. HMMMmmmmm.

Sellers address is in Troy, Michigan so maybe some connection to Chrysler somewhere in the past????

Just wonderin'......

I never said "only three were built"

I said the only three known engines that exist are in private hands.

There could be 64 of them in a barn somewhere, but we at Allpar only know of three total.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Another reason we need to hear from somebody that actually worked on the program. Meanwhile, we all need to keep searching for that barn .

Agreed!

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Rumor has it that the Plymouth/Westlake Engine that was recent for sale on RacingJunk Dot Com was purchased by a friend of a friend of mine.

As soon as my friend gets back from Bonneville I will be trying to arrange a meeting to see the engine. It is my understanding that the engine is supposed to go in a 69 Barracuda.

Will let y'all know.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Great picture from the Moparts board. This explains why the engine on Racing Junk said "Dodge" on it instead of Plymouth.

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee239/acrcpe45/E849C3C9-C4E8-4767-8CD4-CDC3DF8CAECB.jpg

http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Number=6506699

Well I don't know if it worked. I can see the pic in preview but when I post it gives me a red X. I am hosting the pic myself.

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Thank you Dave!

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Looks like we might have found that barn!

Just a quick note, the friend of the friend has one of the few remaining LMP engines, not the Westlake setup but still unique and rare.

It is good to know that there may be more of these super cool Westlake head setups out there. Now I just need to find a pair!

Mike

 

[Mike V.]

Makes me wonder if the Gurney shop might have a couple laying around....

Email sir.

Mike