Del
South East
Posts: 1,448
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Nov 20, 2019 21:40:27 GMT
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One of my favourite songs is Steve Earle's 'Copperhead Road'.
For those that don't know it, it's about a guy whose father and grandfather were moonshiners.
Anyway, the narrator says:
'Now Daddy ran the whiskey in a big block Dodge
Bought it at an auction at the Mason's Lodge
Johnson County Sheriff painted on the side'
It's therefore an ex-police cruiser, with a big block (but I don't know exactly what constitutes a 'big block' engine).
The narrator volunteers for the army after his Dad is killed in an accident (but we don't know exactly when) and does two tours in Vietnam, so the car must be from the 60s?
So, what Dodge model would it likely be?
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,712
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Nov 20, 2019 21:50:55 GMT
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It probably means an RB (raised block) series. Which means any 1959-on 383ci or larger engine. They could be specced in pretty much any MOPAR vehicle from a truck or school bus to a ‘sports’ model, so there a huge range of models and capacities it could be. The engine had literally hundreds of variations over the years in carburetion, exhausts and transmissions, so although the song insinuates it’s it’s going to be a performance vehicle, that’s a bit of a misnomer.
Realistically, if it’s an ex police car it’s going to be a Low-spec 4 door sedan but with the larger motor, so a dart or Polara.
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Last Edit: Nov 20, 2019 21:53:26 GMT by Dez
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Nov 20, 2019 21:55:25 GMT
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i always thought it was "big black dodge"! shows what i know...
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'80 s1 924 turbo..hibernating
'80 golf gli cabriolet...doing impression of a skip
'97 pug 106 commuter...continuing cheapness making me smile!
firm believer in the k.i.s.s and f.i.s.h principles.
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SamV8
South West
Posts: 90
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Nov 20, 2019 22:05:32 GMT
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big blocks are usually v8 5.7l and bigger, nothing to do with an actual model of car, just explains the engine size vaguely
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Last Edit: Nov 20, 2019 22:06:04 GMT by SamV8
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Nov 20, 2019 22:23:53 GMT
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Going by the Chevrolet V8, the world-famous small block Chevy (SBC) is 350 cu in., which is 5.7 litres. The mighty big blocks were usually 7+ litres or so.
Dodge/Chrysler hemis in late '60s, early '70s Chargers, Challengers, Plymouth Satellites, etc. were often 440 cu in. (7.2 litres).
In the likes of the AC Cobra, Ford V8s were installed, of either 289 cu in. (4.7 litre) or 427 cu in. (7 litre).
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SamV8
South West
Posts: 90
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Nov 20, 2019 22:52:17 GMT
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Going by the Chevrolet V8, the world-famous small block Chevy (SBC) is 350 cu in., which is 5.7 litres. The mighty big blocks were usually 7+ litres or so. Dodge/Chrysler hemis in late '60s, early '70s Chargers, Challengers, Plymouth Satellites, etc. were often 440 cu in. (7.2 litres). In the likes of the AC Cobra, Ford V8s were installed, of either 289 cu in. (4.7 litre) or 427 cu in. (7 litre). There's some overlap with small & big block sizes, the small blocks (chevy) start at 4.3l 262cu and go up to 6.6l 400cu and big block chevys start at 5.7l 348cu and go up to 10.4l |
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Nov 20, 2019 23:25:44 GMT
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Indeed, which is quite confusing at times! With the good old Austin A-series engine, you knew where you were, with small blocks (803cc-1098cc) and big blocks (1275cc).
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This thread needs pics.   😁 |
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One of my all time favourite songs that.
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This didn’t Dodge the big block.....🤣  |
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Nov 21, 2019 12:00:20 GMT
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One of my all time favourite songs that. Agreed, brilliant song with great lyrics Although I have heard ‘big black dodge’ as well as ‘big block dodge’ depending on which radio I'm listening to at the time😀 |
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Nov 21, 2019 12:25:10 GMT
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Going by the Chevrolet V8, the world-famous small block Chevy (SBC) is 350 cu in., which is 5.7 litres. The mighty big blocks were usually 7+ litres or so. Dodge/Chrysler hemis in late '60s, early '70s Chargers, Challengers, Plymouth Satellites, etc. were often 440 cu in. (7.2 litres). In the likes of the AC Cobra, Ford V8s were installed, of either 289 cu in. (4.7 litre) or 427 cu in. (7 litre). There's some overlap with small & big block sizes, the small blocks (chevy) start at 4.3l 262cu and go up to 6.6l 400cu and big block chevys start at 5.7l 348cu and go up to 10.4l That's because the distinction, which started with Chevy, was originally the bore spacing. The Small Block Chevy has a bore spacing of 4.4" (measured center to center) and was produced in sizes from 263 all the way to 400 cubic inches, the Big Block Chevy has a bore spacing of 4.84" and was produced in sizes from 396 to 454. The modern LS engines also have a bore spacing of 4.4" and are therefore "small blocks." The small block and big block terms became popularly applied to other manufacturer's engines, usually based on the same distinction (bore spacing) when applicable, but often just because it sounds good.  I'll spare you the dissertation on the various manufacturer engine families, Wikipedia has most of it right. |
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PHUQ
Part of things
Posts: 859
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Nov 21, 2019 12:26:28 GMT
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i always thought it was "big black dodge"! shows what i know... Me too! As Dez said though in terms of what you'd generally consider as a big block Mopar. Incidentally (since Hemi has been mentioned elsewhere in the thread) the two "famous" Mopar engines of the 60's, the 440 and the Hemi, are different engines. The Hemi was a 426cu lump (although there was also a "normal" wedge headed 426 big block) and is waaaay less common than a 440. |
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Nov 21, 2019 12:50:20 GMT
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Never heard of the song so looked it up on youtube - the dodge features pretty prominently in the video:
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If at first you don't succeed........
....Don't try skydiving!
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rodharris83
Club Retro Rides Member
Day Dreamer...
Posts: 760
Club RR Member Number: 4
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Nov 21, 2019 13:11:07 GMT
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vanpeebles
Part of things
I am eastbound in pursuit of a white Lamborghini, this is not a recording.
Posts: 978
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Nov 21, 2019 13:13:43 GMT
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four-fifty-four  |
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Del
South East
Posts: 1,448
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Nov 21, 2019 15:41:27 GMT
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Thank you all, the knowledge in this place never ceases to amaze me. I'd heard of big block motors, and always assumed that they were quite a specialised thing, like a special order. Would police cruisers at that time have a 'cop package', like Elwood describes in The Blues Brothers? 'It's got a cop motor, a 440-cubic-inch plant. It's got cop tires, cop suspension, cop shocks' Looking at tonycocacola's pics, I guess the second one is a Monaco, a la the Bluesmobile. Is the top one a Dart or Polara, as Dez suggested? |
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Del
South East
Posts: 1,448
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Nov 21, 2019 16:50:54 GMT
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I found this while surfing about. Looks like a strong candidate:  |
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Nov 21, 2019 18:15:06 GMT
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Thank you all, the knowledge in this place never ceases to amaze me. I'd heard of big block motors, and always assumed that they were quite a specialised thing, like a special order. Would police cruisers at that time have a 'cop package', like Elwood describes in The Blues Brothers? 'It's got a cop motor, a 440-cubic-inch plant. It's got cop tires, cop suspension, cop shocks' Looking at tonycocacola's pics, I guess the second one is a Monaco, a la the Bluesmobile. Is the top one a Dart or Polara, as Dez suggested? Quite possibly. I know they have things like tuned engines, beefier suspension, etc.; my brother has an ex-plod unmarked motorway patrol Jaguar S-type V8 that has been 'breathed on' and goes rather well. |
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Nov 21, 2019 19:22:18 GMT
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del Both pics that I posted came up in a search for Dodge Polara police car. 😃
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