This piece originally ran in the February 2021 issue of EAA Sport Aviation magazine.
This Oldsmobile F-85 engine was the first automobile powerplant used in Steve Wittman’s W-10 Tailwind, N37SW, from 1974 through 1978. Mounted inverted and backward, with the propeller shaft on the flywheel end, it has a modified lubrication system and a custom-built shaft extension and support housing. This type of engine, produced from 1961 to 1963, was chosen for modification because it uses aluminum for both the block and the heads, making it relatively light.