Chevrolet's famous small block V8 stands as one of the workhorse engines in American auto history, with its variants going into vehicles from hot rods to pickup trucks. But do you know that you can fully disassemble and completely restore one of these mills in just under four minutes? Well, as long as there's some assistance from time-lapse photography, that is.

Hagerty created this short clip showing a dirt-covered small block turning from a frog into a prince. Thankfully, the time-lapse doesn't speed the process up too much, and it's still easy to see how all of the principal parts fit together. With all sorts of sensors and software helping to drive the modern automobile, viewing the internal combustion engine in its purely mechanical form is still fascinating.

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265 Turbo-Fire V-8

It's not unreasonable to say the Chevrolet small-block V-8 changed the face of automotive engine history. Innovative and technologically advanced when it debuted in 1955, it greatly influenced future V-8 engine designs, both inside General Motors and among the competition. Enthusiasts embraced it and an entire performance aftermarket sprang up around it. Over the years, variations of the small-block V-8 have been used in race cars, off-road trucks, boats, and even custom motorcycles. It can also be found under the hood of everything from classic Ford hot rods to radical Jeep conversions."The small-block Chevy is unquestionably the dominant domestic engine both in terms of sheer numbers and also in terms of longevity," said Jeff Smith, senior technical editor for Car Craft Magazine. He cites the engine's interchangeability as one of the biggest reasons for its popularity. "It's possible to swap a set of heads from a 1990 Vortec truck engine onto the original '55 265. I doubt there's an engine ever built (perhaps the VW) that you could swap parts from engines 45 years apart."The aftermarket loves engines like the SBC because they knew that if they invested in a decent design like a good flowing cylinder head or a well-designed performance camshaft, that the design would have a decade or more worth of longevity," Smith added.Bill Tichenor, director of marketing for Holley Performance Products, echoes Smith's sentiments. "It is not unreasonable to say Holley has sold more speed parts for small-block Chevys than all other engines combined. There are great engines from Ford, Chrysler, and others, but the proliferation of cores and affordability of making power with a small-block Chevy made it rise to the top. They certainly have been the engine of choice for street rodding, Chevy musclecars and trucks, circle track racing, and a lot of drag car, too."Interestingly, the small-block Chevy was not the first V-8 in the brand's history. From 1917-19, some 3000 cars were equipped with the little-known Chevy Series D V-8. The 288-cubic-inch (4.7-liter) V-8 had a 4.75:1 compression ratio and produced 55 horsepower at 2700 rpm. The Series D was the first overhead valve V-8 and featured an exposed valvetrain, nickel-plated valve covers, and an aluminum water-cooled intake manifold.Three and a half decades after that initial effort, the small-block Chevy was born. Developed as a replacement for Chevrolet's stove-bolt six-cylinder engine, the 265-cubic-inch (4.3-liter) "Turbo-Fire" engine arrived in 1955 as an option for the Bel Air and Corvette. Its compact, lightweight design featured 4.4-inch bore spacing and a thin wall casting to reduce weight. An internal oiling system, and the potential to bore and stroke it far beyond the factory limit of 400 cubic inches (Gen I engines), contributed to its long-term success.In celebration of Chevy's 100th anniversary, we've put together the following list of 10 of the most impressive small-block Chevy V-8s in the brand's history. Enjoy the V-8 power trip.265 Turbo-Fire V-8
The 265 arrived on the scene with a 3.75-inch bore and 3.00-inch stroke (95.2 - 76.2 mm). It made 162 horsepower and 257 lb-ft in base form with a two-barrel carburetor. An optional Power Pack added a four-barrel carburetor (and other modifications) taking power up to 180 horsepower and an even 260 lb-ft of torque. When fitted to the Corvette, the 265 made 195 horsepower through a dual exhaust system. Later in the year Chevrolet added a Super Power Pack option to the Bel Air, taking it to Corvette power levels.In 1956, the 265 in the Corvette was available in three more powerful flavors: 210 horsepower with a single four-barrel carburetor, 225 horsepower with "dual quads," and 240 horsepower with the dual four-barrel carburetors and a high-lift camshaft. Its compact size was made possible by consolidating accessories. According to GM, it used a one-piece intake manifold that combined the water outlet, exhaust heat riser, distributor mounting, oil filler, and valley cover into a single casting.
283 Turbo-Fire V-8
The small-block Chevy was blessed with more displacement in its third year (the 162 horsepower 265 was still the base engine). A larger 3.875-inch bore brought the "Mighty Mouse" up to 283 cubic inches (4.6 liters). Early 283s used 265 block castings, but thin cylinder walls contributed to overheating. The issue was caught early on and subsequent 283 engine blocks were specifically cast to prevent the problem.The 283, dubbed Super Turbo-Fire, came with a choice of a carburetion or mechanical fuel injection. It made 185 horsepower with an 8.5:1 compression ratio and two-barrel carburetor; 220 horsepower with 9.5:1 compression and four-barrel carburetor; and 245 or 270 horsepower when fitted with dual four-barrel carburetors and the higher compression ratio.Models equipped with the Rochester Ram-Jet fuel injection system made 250 horsepower. The most powerful engine of the lot was the 283-hp fuel-injected Super Ram-Jet with its 10.5:1 compression ratio, helping it achieve the coveted one horsepower per cubic inch status. In Motor Trend testing at the time, a 1957 Corvette fitted with the Super Ram-Jet reached a top speed of 132 mph at the General Motors Proving Grounds outside of Milford, Michigan.
327
By 1962, a 170-horsepower version of the 283 became Chevy's base V-8, but optional small-block V-8s received a full 4.00-inch bore and a longer stroke at 3.25 inches for a total displacement of 327 cubic inches. The optional 327 was available with 250, 300, or 340 horsepower, depending on the four-barrel carburetor and compression ratio. The Corvette was still available with mechanical fuel injection, which pumped out 360 horsepower with an 11.25:1 compression ratio.
The 327-cubic-inch small-block reached its peak power rating in 1965: 365 horsepower with a four-barrel Holley carburetor or 375 (1.15 hp/cu-in) with the Rochester Ram-Jet fuel injection system. By mid-1965, the 327 played second fiddle to the 396-cubic-inch big block that debuted in the Corvette. It soldiered on as the base engine with a choice of 300 or 350 horsepower. It remained as a step up from the base 283s (and later 307s) in passenger cars and the base engine in the Corvette until the 350 (first seen in the 1967 Camaro) was introduced into America's sports car in 1969.