Probably was the fact that they HAD to be different, and somehow got lucky.... I like Fords, there are some real PITA'ses with them, but then again, they made some great power. (some) They made so many different styles of motors, you cant lump them all in one category. The FE is my favorite, other than long pushrods, and cranks not shedding oil at high RPM, they were great motors, last forever treated right.