1. 409 V-8 – The forerunner of the famous Chevy big-block engine family, the 409, debuted in the mid-1961 Chevrolet lineup and quickly found favor with racers for its strong torque and high ...

Greg L., Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. A: Greg, in 1963 the Chevy Mystery 427 NASCAR engine and the drag strip 427 Z-11 were introduced. However, these engines were completely different.

While its history among other big-block American engines was brief, the Chevrolet 409 V8 had tons of innovative design features that bolstered its power.

Additionally, one complete 427 Chevy Mystery engine was made available to the Holman-Moody Ford team, a gesture of “proof” that a minimum 50 engines were available according to NASCAR.

Check out this 409 Chevy Engine get restored with a Isky solid roller cam and a Melling oil pump, Featured in the 2008 February issue of Car Craft Magazine or at carcraft.com.