Driving a muscle car in Europe requires love and commitment. If you hate filling up your thirsty weekend warrior at $2.50 USD per gallon, try paying UK prices: the equivalent of $1.50 per quart! This 1971 American Motors Javelin SST in Manchester, United Kingdom comes to market before losing its hiding place… a barn that’s slated to be razed. The listing here on UK eBay Classifieds proves that inept photography and the inexplicable use of ALL CAPS are, in fact, international phenomena. The car’s apparent use of a 1968 Ford FE engine makes it even more interesting. Pony up the asking price of £7,995 ($10,298) and the mystery will be yours to solve.
The seller refers to the head casting C8AE-H as a block code, claiming it “could be” from a 427 side-oiler, and that’s true. Those heads topped a number of less interesting motors as well. Thanks to mercurycougar.net for some details. At any rate this pre-smog FE engine should produce satisfying thrust, and deserves the same scrutiny as any other barn-find motor. Necessity breeds invention, but installing another manufacturer’s motor typically alienates fans of both marques.
What looks like factory leather seats would have been a rare option. The automatic gearbox makes this transplant recipient somewhat less interesting, but those fuzzy dice have to be worth at least 10 HP. If the front wheels are pointed straight ahead, someone’s mounted that steering wheel upside down.
The ’71 Javelin’s uniquely bulging fenders swell above the fender and hood lines, suggest monster tires and broadcast sporting intentions for all to see. AMC’s sales brochure called it “styling so hairy we even risked turning some people off,” which sums up the company’s guiding principle. When you’re the little guy, middle-of-the-road doesn’t cut it; you have to shake things up! What do our European (or any) readers think of this Ford-powered Javelin?
Evidently having too much crap in your garage is an international phenomenon too!
Apparently so, along with taking crappy pictures in the garage instead of outside where more can be revealed.
No leather wasn’t a rare option. Corduroy seats were more rare but not extremely. Looks like being in the UK he couldn’t source an AMC V8. Don’t know about the UK but it seems like a fair price if it runs right.
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Bullocks…Those damn yank tanks from the US military show up every where 😎😆
So grab a spot of tea and a biscuit or head to the local pub throw some darts 🎯 spend quite a bit of quid and have a car that runs like bloody hell… be sure to keep it out of London low emissions zone though or the bobbies will knock your block off 😏
Cheers and all 😉 Just having a lil fun folks…as a military bratt lived in Alconbury for four years and was a Manchester fan too
That’s Bollocks! Hahahaha. (From Sowerby Bridge).
With those gas prices, i bet a few transplanted slant sixes are there across the pond. Odd thing about that 6 is where the distributor is – down & low & cramped on the passenger side.
c8ae-h head 390 and 428 except cj & pi
I have a friend in the Andover, Hants, area of southern England, he has a 1965 Lincoln 4-door convertible with the big 430 V8. Costs him around $100 in fuel to go to car shows! But his wife’s ’55 Cadillac does get better fuel mileage, averaging around 16mpg.
If I can dust the mold out of my memory, AMC used ford FE blocks (i.e., 390) for their big block applications. I think they used another, or their own, heads and manifolds. The radiator in photo looks like Ford’s radiator in big block applications as well. I’m doubtful it’s a 427, more likely, if anything, a 390 or possibly a 428.
HUH ?
AMC had a 390 of their own and never used a Ford engine. The 225 “Dauntless” motor from the late ’60’s Jeeps was originally a Buick motor, and for a time some Jeeps were available with a TH400 from The General, the Torque-Flite 727 was also offered on various models through the years. . . Parts sourced from a variety of manufacturers.
But all of the AMC cars came with AMC motors.
In my opinion this only makes this car cooler that it was!! A 427 side oiler if it’s true would make this car pass just about everything but the gas station!!!
I would sell the 427 to someone doing a Cobra replica and find a proper AMC drivetrain.
New Zealand petrol price is now averaging $2.40 a litre.(1 US quart)
They better have stay in your car/full serve only gas stations!, like in Jersey, & free air for tires like at Wawa & Quick Chek. lol