Just wondering why did they stop building the straight 8

[pedal2themetal]

HI,
I remember the straight 8 being very fast in its day at the oval tracks.. and just saw (on FB) an old straight 8 Packard with a blower set up and it made me wonder why did they stop building them.
I would like to hear some thought on it and maybe the why??

Thanks an as all ways
Take care be safe
tim

 

[toolmanmike]

HI,
I remember the straight 8 being very fast in its day at the oval tracks.. and just saw (on FB) an old straight 8 Packard with a blower set up and it made me wonder why did they stop building them.
I would like to hear some thought on it and maybe the why??

Thanks an as all ways
Take care be safe
tim

It takes a good sized car to hold one. Look at the long hoods back in the 30's and 40's.

 

[33 IMP]

As a straight eight owner....
Length of the block was a problem. Crankshaft whip limited rpm, block really needs nine main bearings for durability, making it even longer and heavier, large bore size would make the engine excessively long, machining such long parts took special machinery, the small bores/long strokes necessary made for good torque but limited overall displacement.
Saw this one at a local show in AZ. Homemade 8 into 2 header, homemade intake for the 4/71 blower, and homemade blower drive, on a Packard eight, in an International pickup.

 

[33 IMP]

One more. Overhead valve str-8s are very tall and long, hard to package in the lower cars and hood lines of 50s cars. One of the reasons there is such a thing as a SLANT six.

 

[Photon440]

As 33 IMP points out, the length was a factor. Not only the long crankshaft, but also the long camshaft were RPM limiters. Those long blocks were fine in the days of separate fenders and long hoods, and they were also ideal for some WWI era aircraft engine designs where their narrow dimensions helped with streamlining. But as cars morphed to more modern shapes, and casting techniques advanced to make V8 casting less expensive (early V8 engines like the 1915 Cadillac used complex multi-piece block castings) and horsepower became more of a selling point, then the shorter V8 took over. Chrysler dropped the straight 8 in 1951 when they introduced their new Hemi V8.

 

[Bighouse]

The V8 probably uses 2/3rds the material.

 

[Pikser]

She said it was too long….