4-30-20 day for the 430 CanAm aluminum big block Chevy

[TimG]

Attend a Can Am reunion at Road America and watch these cars hit 180 on the straight parts of the track. It's really fun and they have 20 or so running.

[big gear head]

I have found that the dyno has a lot to do with peak numbers. I took my 427 to Dale Mears Racing and used his dyno. It would have shown another 75 HP if I had taken it to Tommy's Auto Machine and another 100 HP if I had taken it to the dyno in Evansville. Apparently there is another dyno close that would have shown about 150 more.

[big gear head]

I know a guy who has one of these Can Am engines. The block is damaged, but it might be worth looking into. I didn't know that they has a special crank in them. I need to look him up and see if I can buy it.

[JoeC]

here is something I found online ...... quote

Doug Meyer Shadow team engine builder
I was an engine builder for the UOP Shadow Team from 72 through 75 and built these engines almost exclusively. Engines I assembled were driven by Jackie Oliver, George Follmer, Vic Elford, James Hunt and Peter Revson. I was trained on them by Lee Muir who came to Shadow directly from McLaren. I've got loads of photos and, if I dig deep enough I can probably dig up my track/tuning notes.

In the early Can Am years only three teams had the Reynolds Aluminum blocks. McLAren, Shadow, and Chapparral. Later they became more common, but most of the teams didn't use the all-aluminum 390 blocks, but iron sleeved castings. All were Lucas injected.
McLAren did their own porting, as did we. The usual well known California head guys did most of the rest.

We rarely built 510's, almost always 495's. Race trim hp was about 735 with flat tappets. We bult some roller tappet that did about 775 hp. In '73 we built a 1200 hp turbo 495 (I could change those head gaskets in my sleep!) to compete with the 917K. We were faster at Laguna Seca but ran out of brakes. Vic Elford was driving- Donohue came over to Lee and I after the race and told us he'd NEVER seen anything accelerate up the hill like that beast. THe tires on that car were 24 inches wide and it would leave giant blackies all the way up the hill. I've built lots of engines but those are still my favorite. Nothing in motorsports sounds like 20 of those things at the green. I'll never forget it.


We got our parts directly from GM racing. The sleeveless blocks were all Reynolds since Reynolds was the developer of the high Silicon 390 alloy/iron plated piston technology. Could be that the sleeved blocks they got were Alcoa castings.


GM #'s
3992038..Block, 4.44 bore AL W/Liners

3993803..C/Shaft, 3.47 stroke

3963642..Rod, connecting 6.405 C/C

3992042..Sleeve, cyl liner (for 430 AL)

[EZ Nova]

Joe, thanks for bring this info out. I see around the internet you have been doing that for a while now.

Do you know if any of the alum YENKO crested blocks we siamesed and 4.440 bore? I think they were all standard style wet blocks.

[JoeC]

Originally Posted by EZ Nova

Joe, thanks for bring this info out. I see around the internet you have been doing that for a while now.

Do you know if any of the alum YENKO crested blocks we siamesed and 4.440 bore? I think they were all standard style wet blocks.

I don't know if the YENKO crested blocks were the CanAm blocks

I have seen a few different Yenko blocks , some have the Yenko crest cast in, some have the letters "YENKO" cast in , some were hand stamped

[Carleen]

Mike Fons had 430 Can Am Engine
Cars Magazine March 1970