Since I grew up in that era, I got to work on a bunch of the 348's in the family shop. The 409 was pretty scarce, even back when they were new, and the 427 built on the same block was really hard to find. There's quite a history behind that engine and how it found itself installed in cars for the 1958 model year. In 57, the supercharged Ford 312 started running away from Chevy pretty regularly at the drag strips, so Chevy engineers grabbed the new 348 engine they had ready to install in their medium-duty truck line, fitted it with a 3-2 BBL. intake and a solid lifter cam, and made it the factory drag race engine for 1958. They made it an option for street cars with a single 4-BBL. and a hydraulic cam to meet FIA homologation rules.
Just one little problem- - - -the hotrodders were accustomed to 265 and 283 engines with a 3" stroke that would wind to 8,000 RPM with enough carburetor and valve spring work, and the 348 started swallowing valves at just under 6K. It had massive amounts of torque, but it simply hand grenaded itself at high RPM. By the time the 409 came around in 1961, the racers had learned to shift at lower RPM's and let torque do the work. They're real attention-getters at a car show with those oddball-shaped valve covers, and the Beach Boys' song helped the 409's popularity a lot!
Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
