Godzilla, Ford's 7.3-Liter Monster Motor King?
Aptly nicknamed Godzilla, Ford’s massive new 7.3-liter V8 pushrod engine that debuted last year in the 2020 F-250 is now available in crate engine form from Ford Performance Parts.
Originally a mythical Jurassic creature that evolved from a sea reptile into a terrestrial monster, Godzilla was awakened by mankind’s nuclear weapons tests in the inaugural film. Over time, as the franchise evolved, Godzilla and other creatures in the films have become metaphors for social commentary on the real world. Godzilla and his fellow monsters embodied the emotions and social problems of the times.
With 430 horsepower and 475 lb-ft of torque, the 7.3-liter V8 features an overhead valve architecture, cam-in-block design, variable-displacement oil pump, extra-large main bearings, a forged steel crankshaft for durability, and piston-cooling jets to help manage temperatures under heavy load. Godzilla has a displacement of 445 cubic inches or 7.3 liters. It’s more compact as a pushrod engine than an overhead cam modular motor like the Coyote, which should allow it to fit into a wider range of vehicles without having to remove shock towers or alter the front suspension.
Is the 7.3-liter Ford engine a worthy challenger to General Motors’ LS engines, which also utilize a smaller package size and a simpler valvetrain? A lighter engine is cheaper to build and modify, which are the reasons why the LS engine is so popular in so many different types of vehicles, from drift cars to overlanders. What we don’t know yet is how much power can Ford’s new 7.3-liter V8 produce when it’s allowed to run wild.
Godzilla lists at $8,150, and what you get is a dressed long block with 10.5:1 compression, aluminum cylinder heads, a throttle body, exhaust manifolds, ignition coils, and a production flex plate. What you end up installing it in, and the resultant trouble you get into is entirely up to you. As Blue Oyster Cult once wrote, “History shows again and again, how nature points up the folly of man, Godzilla!”
[Images: Ford Performance Parts, Ford]
With a father who owned a dealership, I literally grew up in the business. After college, I worked for GM, Nissan and Mazda, writing articles for automotive enthusiast magazines as a side gig. I discovered you could make a living selling ad space at Four Wheeler magazine, before I moved on to selling TV for the National Hot Rod Association. After that, I started Roadhouse, a marketing, advertising and PR firm dedicated to the automotive, outdoor/apparel, and entertainment industries. Through the years, I continued writing, shooting, and editing. It keep things interesting.
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So I'm guessing they reengineered the oil pickup and the pan design? When the 7.3 came out it was said that the engine wouldn't be suited for passenger cars because the oil pan was too deep, so couldn't sit low in a chassis. They also made it sound like it wasn't something that could be easily overcome.
"A few weeks ago, Evan and Wolfe proved the 7.3-liter can be shoehorned into a Fox-Body Mustang without issue. What's more, in another breakdown, they show that it's a whole 4.5-inches narrower than a Coyote. This means the pushrod lump not only has the benefit of modern engine construction, but it's also compact enough to stick in project cars and trucks of all sorts." https://www.thedrive.com/news/32064/fords-new-7-3-l-gas-v-8-can-be-tuned-to-600hp-and-fit-in-a-fox-body-mustang