Building a Chevy 292 Inline Straight-Six - Engine Power S7, E1

We build a hot rod 292 Chevy straight-six that puts power to the pavement for Truck Tech’s 1965 C10.

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PARTS USED IN THIS EPISODE

ARP
High Strength Rod Bolts

Dupli-Color
Engine Enamel with Ceramic®

Permatex
Ultra Slick™ Engine Assembly Lube

Sunnen Products Company
SUNNEN Rod Honing machine with gauge and cap grinder

Sunnen Products Company
SV-15 Cylinder Honing Machine

Comp Cams
Camshaft & Lifters

Valve Cover

Matco Tools
MATCO Tools are the Official Tool Supplier to PowerNation

Shacklett Automotive Machine
Machine Shop

The Industrial Depot
Tools, Hardware, Shop Supplies

[alansmith]

I too did a 292 build in the early '80's to put in my 64 Chevy van that I had converted to 4 wheel drive. I started with an industrial engine I sourced from a wrecking yard that had been used to drive an agricultural water pump, because they were built much more stout than the automotive equivalent, they were built to run nonstop all day and night. It was bored .30 over and balanced and line honed and the block and head were flattened out. The head was fitted with big valves to make it like a 194 fueler head on a V8, it had an Offenhauser manifold and a Carter 4barrel carb and dual exhaust headers. It had a comp cam and high volume oil pump and I found an HEI distributor out of a later model 6. Sadly my van was hit while parked by a drunk driver and looked like a Banana. It found new life in a '69 Chevelle for a while until I put it into a '68 Grumman Olsen Curbside step van. If you were in Huntington Beach in '85 - '86 then you saw it parked on PCH North of the pier almost every morning as it was my Surf mobile! In those days I lived to surf!
As for power I never got to Dyno it, but in that van, which had a 5 ton gvrw, and 5.88 rear end gears with a top loader granny low 4 speed I easily pulled the grapevine going North from Bakersfield at 90mph and could have gone faster, but I was afraid of getting pulled over by the Chippies.
It still lives today mated to a 700R4 automatic in a '67 Nova and she still is a runner!

[lukewatson]

Funny how something “out of the ordinary” came in 90% of these trucks when they were new lol. Straight 6 engines are awesome

[A.Gentlemen]

OK, I Built a 60 over 292 first one ever in my life of Hot-Rods !!!! . headwork, ported, intakes lumps 194/164 SB VALVES w/ SB/Rollers, SmIth mad up push rods (5/16) coating all internal bearings, Balanced asm. Roos forged, floating pins 100th off head and block, Schneider cam only went, I think I could have gone more lift 505/525 but 245@ 50, 108 separation 106 intake (stick car) tuned long tube hedders with 30 inch collectors, Holley 450 dual quads on a Clifford and tons of other top shelf parts ! Not a dime spared .Lots of dyno time 383 HP 418 .7 TQ !! I had you shop set up and resources.. I had to take 425th off the rocker stud surface to get the 175 rollers to get the proper lift and I put screw in studs with guides, push rods by Smith Bros.

[carlbutcher]

I wonder why Straight 6's don't get more love on these kinda shows? I think this setup is just amazing !!

[stephanginther]

My dad was a mechanic in the 70's and he says that the straight six is by far his favorite engine. He says *1.* It never dies because you can pretty much just keep replacing parts until you have a 'ship of Theseus' situation. *2.* He said you can practically fix anything on the thing from above, just the hood up while wearing a tuxedo and not get it dirty. I've talked to a few other older mechanics and told him what my dad said, one simply said, 'sounds about right' and the second said, 'the straight six is a beautiful thing.'

[jackflash]

My first vehicle. 1959 Chevy truck with the 292 six, granny low 4 speed.
It was at least 4 different colors.
Paid $50 for the truck and $50 for a new battery.
Lived on the farm so that truck worked hard. Hauling hay, pulling a trailer and much more.

[davidalcaraz]

I would like to see more old school inline 6 builds.

[hugieflhr]

The Pontiac overhead cam straight 6 would be an interesting engine under boost!

[francissobotka]

My dad had a 78 nova with a straight six, I learned to drive in that car (but no air conditioning) it never got stuck In the snow .straight sixes are underappreciated works of art .

[LuckyChow]

This engine was in school buses back in the 60's and was tough as nails. It was really a bullet proof engine. Drove one for thousands of miles. After some wear, they ran much better by advancing the timing till just before causing a starting problem. These engines had the dog poop run out of them in a school bus.

[mountainhopper]

Wow it reminds me of building my 292 .030 over back in the early 80s with a iski cam, offehauser man, 4 barrel Holley, and Headers. Nice job!!

[MLFranklin]

I really liked how the machinist showed what was happening and why it was being done as he worked through the machining steps. Awesome video!

[jamese.morris]

My uncle [ R.I.P.] used to haul in scrap metal for extra $. In the late 80's he had an old Chevy pick up with a 292 strait six 3 on the tree. Many a time the guy paying out at the recycle center told him that he was the heaviest load of the day.Which is saying something when there was dually Dodges and commercial trucks in and out of there. We live in the mountains and have to cross a few of them to get there but that old thing never missed a beat. Stout little beast.

[clydebailliff]

That’s what my Papaw’s truck was, a 1965 Chevy step side with the inline Six, and three on the tree. He passed it down to my Dad and we teenaged boys drove it in high school. Everything was simple, affordable, and tough in those days. 🎉

[russkester]

This takes me back. In the early 70s I drag/street raced a 62 Nova with a 292 C.I. Had a Holley 500 - solid lifter cam - header - 4:11 gears.

[HeWhoDrivesATruck]

I have always loved these old school six builds. They just don't make inline sixes that are this utilitarian and strong anymore. I always wondered why all of the old 40s and 50s heavy duty trucks had an old large displacement inline six, but they're made to last and be strong, so they're known to last for hundreds of thousands of miles before they need a rebuild. Still, you rarely ever hear of anyone building one to make good power. I also really enjoyed when the guy from Trucks said, "it sounds like a Skyline motor (a RB26DETT)." That made my day.

[benjaminsmith]

I love inline 6 builds. I have a 4.0 with an aluminum edelbrock head, 24 pound injectors, comp cam and many more supporting mods. And my bayliner is having a 250 inline six built for it. Tough motors.

[apismellifera]

Six bangers will make a lot of power and its good seeing inline six builds. Although I love V8's but I love seeing those straight 6 builds. I loved the Chrysler 225 slant 6 and the EFI turbo Ford 300 straight 6 build

[wakjob]

Love the inline 6...V8 builds get boring after a while.
Gonna dyno it with the turbo? PLEASE!!!

[magapickle]

Its not out of the ordinary . Theres lots of us out there that play with those straight 6 s . I love the sounds with split exhaust manifolds and many diffrent intake combinations .