Fuel injection for our flat head sixes?

[austinsailor]

I've got the idea I'd like to put fuel injection on one of our flatheads. I realize that to have multiport injection you'd need 6 ports, and I might use one of my 30" big truck sixes with 12 ports to get there.

 

I've been searching the web to understand what it takes and most of what I see involves sensors on the exhaust, crankshaft  position sensors, pressure sensors in the manifold and more,  engine control computers and a lot of programming. They had fuel injection long before they had engine control computers, and I don't think it is reasonable to expect to develop all the new programs for this motor.

 

I haven't located any info on simpler systems that might be practical for something like this, but I know it's done on other motors, and in another post, Earl Edgerton's fuel injected 6 is mentioned.

 

So, my questions would be:

 

1. Does anyone know of info on the web that I could get a beginning knowledge of what it takes? 

2. Better yet, a simple outline of what it takes so I even know what to look for?

3. Are there setups sold aftermarket that would work on our motors?

 

Basically, it needs something to open and close the injector. Somewhere it has to get the timing information to know when, and width information to know how long. How did they do this before all the complicated electronics, or did they even have anything comparable back then?

 

Gene 

[Dave72dt]

There were any number of companies that did fuel injection.. Diesels have run them for years with mechanical pumps, GM has had them on a number of cars since the early 60's at least, Enderle and Hilborn for race apps

[chopt50wgn]

I think it would be much easier to just put on one of the fuel injected system out there now like FAST, MSD, Holley, or Edelbrock. I don't know much about flatties but your idea is very good but I think you may run into lots of time in development not to mention the money.

[glasspacks]

Some time ago I read an article about someone fitting fuel injection to his sland 6.  I am sure it's still on the web.  Another alternative might be throttle body injection, less fabrication and works well enough.

Cheers,

Bob.

[41/53dodges]

Here's a guy with TBI on a flathead, I'm going to take that route once I accumulate the parts! that would be so helpful with my turbo.

http://schaners.com/fargo/brakesinjection.htm

[48Dodger]

Engine load is the biggest factor. And to do that you need to run a program with the displacement and cam profile. Basically you need to let your sensors know what you are looking for under different load conditions. ALL load conditions. There are different program types as well that use different sensors as the "dominant" sensor.....again, based on what you want or need from your motor. So pick a program type...program the system...and then start working on the fuel management program.

 

I wouldn't go with vintage direct injection or pump injection.....not made for daily drivers. I would stick to the present, get your laptop up and running and start inputting data. 

 

48D

[Dave72dt]

Engine load is the biggest factor. And to do that you need to run a program with the displacement and cam profile. Basically you need to let your sensors know what you are looking for under different load conditions. ALL load conditions. There are different program types as well that use different sensors as the "dominant" sensor.....again, based on what you want or need from your motor. So pick a program type...program the system...and then start working on the fuel management program.

 

I wouldn't go with vintage direct injection or pump injection.....not made for daily drivers. I would stick to the present, get your laptop up and running and start inputting data. 

 

48D

You wouldn't have a list of programs available for fuel management, by chance, would you?  I suspect some engine dyno time would be required to be accurate with  input data.

[Frank Elder]

Mega squirt build/program it yourself injection....?

[41/53dodges]

Also depends on how the system is set up. They will always have their defaults, but if lne brings o2 sensors and all that stuff the ecu can learn on its own and calculate what to do. Mecanical however...

[bskaga]

Good afternoon.
This applies to your subject and may become interesting to you as a story.
The USSR bought in the late 1930s a license for the production of engines a flat head with a volume of 218 cubic inches. Here is a video showing the engine GAZ-11 (GAZ-11), released in June 1942 during World War II. It is well preserved, due to the fact that it lay deep in the swamp, where there was no oxygen access for its oxidation.
https://youtu.be/i0_qq_5PZE8
It was also well restored. In the United States, the engine was put mainly on cars, but the leadership of the Soviet plant initially saw it as a good engine for low-capacity trucks, since it had good torque at low engine speeds. Therefore, during the war, it was installed on light tanks and even aircraft. In the USSR, the engine underwent modernization during mass production at the plant.
The main difference from the American engine was that the chain drive of the gas distribution mechanism was replaced with one textolite gear. The plant considered that this would make this unit more reliable in operation and lead to a simpler production process.
After the Second World War, the engine began to be installed on a gas-51 truck. There was also a change in the location of the holes for spark plugs, a change in the order of the windows of the inlet and outlet openings of the manifolds.
In the 1960s, the truck GAZ-51 underwent modernization and became the truck GAZ-52. Basically, the changes affected the installation of a more comfortable cabin and also a small modernization of the engine.
Also at this time, the engine was GAZ-51 put on front loaders. The engine was manufactured and mass-installed on trucks until the mid-1990s.
This video presents a quick-start conversion of the engine to an injection power system from a Russian car with upgraded firmware for six-cylinder engines.
https://youtu.be/lpkbbPi8Rsk
If interesting, I can give some questions in more detail.

 

Edited April 11, 2021 by bskaga

[bskaga]

For simplicity, drills have been made on the crankshaft. According to them, the electronic control unit determines the marks 60-2 using an induction sensor.