Since it was to be a high-output engine, provisions for large valves were included, along with free-breathing ports. Again, cast iron and water were eliminated wherever possible to make the head light, compact and inexpensive. The sketches deviated from conventional designs that were basically rectangular in cross-section. McPherson prepared numerous cylinder head sketches based on what his group thought the head should have. Al Kolbe's assistant, Don McPherson (now general manager of Buick) was the cylinder head group leader in the drafting room, and as any racer will tell you, the cylinder head is the key to the performance of any engine. There's more to the story, though, than minimal block dimensions and casting techniques. Barr transferred to Chevrolet in '52, at Cole's request, as assistant chief engineer to help with the design of a new V8. In 1946, Cole was chief engineer at Cadillac, where he and Harry Barr were the driving forces behind the design of the 1949 Cadillac OHV V8. '' However, Cole had surrounded himself with a group of brilliant engineers to do the job. In the early '70s, Ed Cole supposedly said, "If you wanted to take the same sort of risks that I proposed at Chevrolet, today you'd promptly be fired. Of course there's always an element of risk involved in trying new engineering concepts. Many see that attitude as a key to Cole's success-he eventually became president of General Motors. He was always pushing his people beyond the limits at which they felt comfortable, extending the existing technology.
Cole was a dynamic, flamboyant individual who wouldn't take "no" for an answer. We've already mentioned the late Ed Cole.
To understand why the small-block Chevy V8 emerged as a technological revolution in engine design, a little must be known about the people who were responsible for the philosophies and concepts behind the engine. What followed became one of the greatest automotive success stories of all time: the small-block Chevrolet V8. At the time of his appointment, Cole was given a mandate by GM-upgrade Chevrolet's image from that of a stodgy old six-cylinder manufacturer who made cars for the lower-priced market segment, to that of a contemporary manufacturer offering exciting products to the American motoring public/His first effort was to upgrade Chevrolet's image from the standpoint of performance. It was the spring of '52 when Ed Cole was named chief engineer at Chevrolet. On the horizon, the Dodge Hemi was to appear in '53, Ford and Mercury would get their versions of the OHV V8 in '54, and Pontiac, Plymouth and Chevrolet V8s were scheduled for introduction in '55. New overhead-valve V8 engines were being developed by various manufacturers: Oldsmobile and Cadillac had debuted their new engines in '49, the Chrysler Hemi had appeared in '51, and Lincoln had introduced their new OHV V8 for the '52 model year. 1952 It was an exciting point in American automotive history.