V8 Fords a Very Special V8 Engine

V8 Fords have a very special place in automobile history, as Ford was the first American auto manufacturer to introduce a car with a V8 engine. In 1932, Ford released the Model B, which was a vast upgrade over the original Ford Model A. Along with the Model B, Ford also released an identical car featuring its brand new flathead V8 engine. This car was referred to by Ford as the Model 18, although most people simply know it as the Model V8.  The V8 Ford flathead engine was the first 8 cylinder engine to be mass produced, and has been rated as one of the ten best engines of all time by many different individuals and publications. It was produced for 21 years and is still one of the favorite engines for many classic car collectors and enthusiasts. This engine was standard for many Ford cars and almost all Ford trucks produced between 1932 and 1953.

Following on the heels of the success of the first V8 Fords, came the Ford Y Block engine which was a collection of different sized V8 engines which were used on medium and large cars as well as all Ford trucks, except heavy duty trucks. The Y Block was eventually replaced by three different and very successful lines of V8 Ford engines- the Ford 335 Cleveland, Ford FE V8, and the Ford Windsor line of V8s. The FE line was the first to die out, although even this line stayed in production for almost twenty years. The 335 Cleveland soon followed after the FE line and production stopped. The Windsor smallblock line was one of Fords most successful lines of V8 engines ever produced and it continued to be produced from its introduction in 1962 until its production was finally stopped in 2001. This Windsor family of V8 Fords is what you will find in many of the classic Fords from the 60s and even Ford trucks and cars from the 1990s. This line features 351 different engines, with a huge range of sizes and horsepower, however the one thing that they all have in common is that they are built Ford tough. V8 Ford engines have been used in hundreds of different models of cars and trucks, including the extremely popular Ford Mustang series of sports cars. Overall, Ford V8 engines are known as some of the most powerful, toughest, and longest lasting engines on the market.