STEPPIN’ UP TO A LIFTED TUNDRA
March 15, 2024
THE AUTO BUILDER
Featured
Slippery Sedan
Greg Harris has been a car enthusiast for years and has built a number of muscle machines and classic trucks. He has had loads of fun with late-model cars, but he couldn’t shake the fact that he really had the yearning to build a street rod some day. His friends knew about his longtime goal, so when one of them found a partially completed early sedan for sale, he told Harris about the car. Harris went to take a look, and as it turned out, the car was a half-finished all-steel ’33 Ford two-door sedan powered by a 427 Chevy engine. He immediately knew he had to buy the sedan—it was just what he was looking for. He made a deal with Clark and Bridgett Short, the folks who started the project, and brought the ’33 home.
Pyramid Optimized Design: The Builder’s Secret Weapon
When a build needs to go from “cool idea” to “everyone’s talking about this,” the pros call Pyramid Optimized Design. They’re the team behind some of the most talked-about show cars on the planet — using custom automotive design services to transform raw ideas into fully engineered, show-winning, road-ready components. Pyramid doesn’t just make parts. They bring visions to life, concept to completion.
Bland to BAM!
In early 2005, a funny thing happened to David “Stroke Daddy” Taylor from Ewa Beach, Hawaii. One morning, Taylor went out to buy a new pair of work shoes. He returned home, however, driving a brand-new ’05 Ford Mustang instead. we’ll let Him tell the rest of the story.
Spotlighter
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: ARP’s Head Stud Kit for 1927–31 Ford Model A 4-Cylinder Engines
ARP Brings Modern Engineering to Vintage Ford Engines
Author
The Auto Builder Staff
Photos Courtesy of ARP
In a world obsessed with the latest engines and newest technology, ARP (Automotive Racing Products) just proved something important—progress doesn’t only move forward. It also means going back and applying everything we’ve learned since.
This time, that focus lands on one of the most iconic engines ever built: the 1927–31 Ford Model A four-cylinder.
100 Years of Progress Later
The Ford Model A engine was engineered in a time when simplicity and durability mattered above all else. It wasn’t overbuilt, and it didn’t need to be. It was designed to work—and nearly a century later, the fact that these engines are still running says everything about how right Ford got it.
What’s changed isn’t the engine—it’s everything around it.
A hundred years of advancements in metallurgy, machining, and engine engineering have redefined what’s possible in strength, consistency, and long-term durability. Today, we understand how materials behave under heat, load, and time in ways that simply didn’t exist when the Model A engine first rolled off the line.
That doesn’t change what made the design great—it just means we can now back it up with better materials and smarter engineering.
Modern Engineering Steps In
The ARP head stud kit for the Model A is a direct reflection of that progress. Manufactured entirely in-house at ARP’s California facilities, each stud is produced from premium-grade 8740 chrome moly steel with a nominal tensile strength around 190,000 psi—making it significantly stronger than the original Model A hardware these engines relied on.
These aren’t just material upgrades—they’re process-driven improvements. Threads are rolled after heat treatment, a critical step that increases fatigue strength up to 20 times compared to conventional methods. It’s the same level of engineering ARP applies in professional motorsports and high-performance engine builds, now brought back to a vintage Ford platform.
Every component—from the studs themselves to the hardened washers and polished stainless acorn nuts—is designed to deliver consistent clamping force and repeatable installation. It’s not about changing what makes the Model A great—it’s about making proven, reliable technology even better with everything we’ve learned since.
ARP’s Model A Head Stud Kit
For 1927–31 Ford Model A 4-cylinder
Part Number: #151-4002
MATERIAL & CONSTRUCTION
• 8740 chrome moly steel
• Manufactured in-house
• Threads rolled after heat treatment
KIT INCLUDES
• Complete stud set
• Hardened washers
• Polished Stainless steel acorn nuts
KEY BENEFITS
• Increased strength over OEM hardware
• Improved head gasket sealing
• Maintains torque through heat cycles
• Enhanced long-term durability
ADDITIONAL APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE
• Ford flathead V-8 (1936–53)
• Ford inline 6-cylinder (1965–96), 240 & 300 c.i.d.
Why Builders Will Notice the Difference
Anyone who has worked on a Model A engine knows the value of doing things right the first time. Clean surfaces, proper torque, and careful assembly all matter—but the consistency of the hardware plays a bigger role than most realize.
What ARP fasteners bring to the table is control.
More consistent torque retention. Improved head gasket sealing. Hardware that holds through heat cycles instead of slowly relaxing over time. It’s the kind of upgrade that doesn’t change how the engine looks—but absolutely changes how it performs and survives.
Built for the Way Cars Are Driven Today
Model A engines aren’t just sitting in collections—they’re being driven, modified, and pushed in ways their original engineers never had to consider. Longer trips, higher sustained speeds, and modern traffic all demand more from the platform.
Upgrading to ARP head studs isn’t about chasing performance numbers—it’s about ensuring the engine stays together and performs consistently, mile after mile, without compromise.
The Bottom Line
The Ford Model A helped lay the foundation for everything hot rodding would become. That hasn’t changed.
What has changed is what we’re capable of doing with it.
The ARP Model A head stud kit doesn’t rewrite history—it builds on it—using a century of progress to make a great engine even better.
Ready To Upgrade?
Don’t settle for stock hardware. Give your Model A the ARP advantage—stronger, tighter, built to last.
