Vintage Engines: Chevrolet's "W" Motor

Easy-to-get and affordable exhausts are the close-fitting shorties like these from Sanderson Headers. Paint 'em VHT white for the period look.

Chevy trucks need love, too. Here's a beautifully detailed-with-paint example of a breathed-on 409 that looks "real fine."

If you're doing over a '60s Impala, the W motors are just as good a candidate for thinking "outside the crate" as a trad rod. This is the 348 in Rich Zavarella's '60 Imp. Check the beautiful Moon finned valve covers.

If more is good, too much is just enough for some! By sight and by sound, a blower really adds to any engine, but they are rare today on W motors. Note the firewall clearances made for the blower and the engine itself in this Deuce, since the wide blower drive up front means the engine must be set farther back.

Edelbrock's Performer RPM dual-quad large-port manifold (PN 5408) in its as-cast presentation also comes in an EnduraShine finish.

Edelbrock has also come out with Performer RPM (PN 60819) heads for the 409 that will work with stock or aftermarket intakes.

Classic Series 409 valve covers (PN 4140, 41403) come in black powdercoat finish (shown) and as-cast.

Edelbrock also has air cleaners in both single and dual-four configuration; the Classic Series dual-quad air cleaner (PN 41193; PN 4119 polished) is shown here in its black powdercoat finish.

A good variety of ignitions is out there for the W motors, including real magnetos from Joe Hunt. These examples are the look-alike versions with powerful HEI electronics crammed inside a regular Hunt mag case. The foreground example is a SBC, just to illustrate the shorter length of the 348-409 models (rear in photo).

This is a Victor Series billet mechancial aluminum fuel pump (PN 17000) you may have seen on your small-block Chevy, but it will also work on a 409.