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I bought a '71 E-type 2+2 with a bad motor (but it ran) in 1980. Pulled the bonnet (took three grown men & a mule to move it). Pulled the engine/trans (we're going to need a bigger hoist) & completely disassembled. The short block was about as complex as a Ford inline six-cylinder. The Borg Warner transmission could be rebuilt with a Ford kit, three speed auto as I recall.
But the cylinder head, wow, what a piece. Out of the merk and crud came this beautiful aluminum casting, DOHC. Took forever to dial in the valve clearances with individual buttons. Fortunately a nearby dealer would allow me to trade buttons back & forth from their stock until I had the clearances spot on. I must have had those cams in & out 20 times before I had it.
I still remember getting it all back together & hitting the key for the first time. It blew a ton of white smoke from assembly lube, I set the dwell & the timing, and it settled down and ran like a Swiss watch.
Like the G body 911's of the same era, it was just a hoot to drive and very reliable once you worked out all the bugs (and said a little prayer to the Prince of Darkness every time you turned the key to started it). A real automobile.
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