I've worked on a lot of non-ford engines, but I know those three pretty well. The 298 small block was a fire cracker in a Falcon. It also had a coffee can (seriously) that I never figured out the purpose for. It obviously served some function, no clue. My 200 was in my '70 Maverick and I could tear apart just about any part of the engine and put it back together on the street outside my apartment building. I changed the water pump in 15 minutes start to finish. It would take me 2 hours just to GET to the water pump on the Sable. I've mostly given up on doing my own maintenance except in emergency situations.
My Pontiac has a 3.4 and the Sable has a 3.6, but both of them are impossible to work on because they packed so much shit into such a tiny cavity. The hood on a 60/70 US car provided ample room for tools and body parts. Hell, the 91 Escort I bought new was basically a Mazda 323 engine with US bolts. It's got over 300K on it now and I sold it ten years ago with 150K on it. The transmission was the downfall (as it is with all Mazda transmissions). The engine just won't quit. Ford uses Mazda for R&D and then makes real cars out of the experiment models. Cool strategy.
Personally, I think the straight engines are better than the V engines, but you need a hell of a lot of room to cram 8, 10, or 12 cylinders into a straight block. That's where Jaguar comes in. My 200 straight in the Maverick could easily outrun most Cameros and all of the rice burners. The Galaxie put all of those to shame more easily. I just don't drive like that anymore, but I do occasionally knock out a go-cart in the mini van just for fun (and then act like I didn't notice them). I know, I'm a dickhead.
= new reply since forum marked as read
