Front and Mid-engine Plate information

Jegs, and Summit would be good starting places. They sell them, and should have the answers you are looking for. Good luck.

I'm guessing here, but using front and mid engine plates would put less stress on the engine.. Figure traditional motor mount setup, the engine torque puts a lot of stress on those 2 hunks cast into the block.

That aside, make sure you strengthen the front unibody or do a tube chassis. Ever see a front windshield explode 'cause the car can't handle the twist?

Stupid Vega. Stupid 327....

"Ever see a front windshield explode 'cause the car can't handle the twist?

Stupid Vega. Stupid 327...."

Early Pro Stock corkscrew syndrome.

In my experience with plates they were mounted at front; from frame to water pump flanges, at rear; same as an adapter plate between engine and trans but extended to frame.

Thats the idea with engine plates to reduce the stress on the engine, but I'm trying to find a way to quantify it. Any idea? I was thinking about setting up strain gages on the side, front and back of the block, then compare the difference in them from engine mounts to engine plates. Any other ideas?

I don't know how you'd prove it. Maybe... Once you have mock-up A (factory mounts) try jacking a hunk of 2x4 under the starter (twisting the engine in it's mounts) and measure the amount of deflection before the frame starts to move. Then do the same thing with the plates. Simply because the plates have no rubber/poly dampening, and they're held to the engine by 15 or something bolts, there should be zero torsional movement before the frame twists.

As a side note... Have you ever been in a car with mounting plates? It's fun for about 3 minutes.

Or solid motor mounts. How right you are.

Up until 1958, all small block Chevys used 2 mounts outboard of the timing chain cover, and 2 bellhousing mounts. After that, that design lived on in trucks over the 30 series, and on some of the under 30 series engine / transmission combinations.

If you think some hired driver with a C50 truck with 5 tons of crap in the bed, and 6.67 to 1 gears was going to put more strain on the drive train than you, you have not seen some of the truck drivers I have. Good luck.