In the late 50s, Ford sold (from the factory!) a 534ci twin-turbo marine V8. Such a thing has some pretty impressive numbers: over 1300lbs fully equipped, 440hp and 660lbf-ft of torque at a mere 3300rpm…ok, maybe one impressive number and two kinda not so impressive numbers. Aside from its size, the 534 SeaMaster sports an impressive intake arrangement: A pull-through carburetor system that feeds mixed air/fuel through twin turbochargers into a water-cooled intake plenum.
But let’s take a step back: I stumbled on this sweet ’57 Mercury Wagon with a claimed 368ci V8, an engine I’d never heard of. Turns out it’s the top dog of the Lincoln (not Ford) Y-Block family, good for up to 300hp and 400ish lb-ft of torque. Ford phased out the Y-Blocks in the late 50s in favor of the Windsor, FE, MEL and Super Duty engine families. Super Duty…? Turns out Ford applied the name to a line of giant-block truck engines long before it became synonymous with Brodozers. These were industrial engines, meant to make big torque at low speeds for hundreds of thousands of miles, which explains the relatively lousy HP/lb stats they post. Like many industrial engines, they found their way into boats, but because boats (typically) have no transmission, they tend to need more high-end power than many-geared over-the road trucks. Thus: twin turbos on the 534!
Once you go searching for 534s, you’ll find this guy who pulled (and unfortunately recycled) two from a ’69 ChrisCraft he’s redoing, this sweet thread on the H.A.M.B. with ex-truckers and Ford mechanics speaking highly of the motor, and finally this great thread on a ChrisCraft forum with the original brochures, from which we pulled a selection.