The Taurus Series Engine – Learning to Harness Ponies (1956-1967)
Though enlarging the Orion allowed the Master Six to move, it still wasn’t enough for demanding upscale customers. They didn’t have to wait long for an answer to their gripes; the Ardent Master Eight debuted in 1956, sporting the company’s first-ever V8.
Exclusivity – 1956-1961
Engineers working on the project, dubbed “Taurus”, were able to create a 339 cubic inch that put out 229 horsepower and a tire-blistering 321 ft-lb of torque, all while keeping its road manners intact. Fuel and air mixed in a traditional 4-barrel carburetor, simplifying the design somewhat compared to the Master’s base twin-carb six. Early design flaws caused unusual amounts of vibration in the TA8-A. This was a bit of an embarrassment, as the heavy iron mill was really only suited to a single model in the lineup. Corrections made over the next couple years mostly resolved this issue.
Ardent Motors never intended the Taurus series to be installed in anything other than their executive cars and light-duty pickups. But in late 1960, an Ardent engineer by the name of James Anderson shoehorned the TA8-A from a wrecked Master Eight into his 1957 Ardent Spark. The resulting car was a completely changed beast. Its handling was quite adversely affected by the extra weight in the front, and Anderson’s initial gearing selection was less than ideal, but it proved a point inside Ardent: V8 power could be adapted to other models.
Unfortunately for Anderson, the Vice President of Product Development (who originally designed the Master series) didn’t like Anderson’s little stunt. It spelled the end of his career, and delayed the replacement of the outdated Special Six by six months.
The first production V8 by Ardent Motors: 1956 TA8-A
- 1956 TA8-A 339ci.jpg (279.7 KiB) Viewed 6867 times
Putting a Beast on a Diet - 1962-1967
The loss of Anderson was not the only factor contributing to delays inside Ardent Motors between 1960 and 1962. Both the CEO and President disapproved of their VP’s handling of the incident, as well as his narrow vision. They wanted a man in charge who would embrace change and explore new options, not shun them out of hand. The VP was fired, as were several of his senior project managers who were seen to be “yes men”. It took months for the dust to settle and for the executives to find a management team more in line with their ideals. Anderson was offered and apology as well as his old position, but by then had moved on to work for a competitor.
Furthermore, the entire lineup at Ardent Motors was going through a generational change. The familiar model names dating back to 1948 were dropped in favor of a more modern naming convention.
Ardent’s executives had hoped that they could expand deployment of new Taurus V8 models across their lineup a little quicker, and had devoted extra resources to hasten development (at the cost of the Orion’s development, at least for one more year), but only one new V8 option was ready for 1962, and only on one model.
Branded an “Economy” model by marketing, the all-new 264 ci TE8-B was lean; it was over a hundred pounds lighter than its larger platform mate, though it shared the same 4-barrel carb configuration and a similar long stroke. Power was rated at 175 horses, and it took the place of the 6-cylinder “Big” Orion as the base motivator in Ardent Motor’s flagship car.
The Master series, which had just been rebranded as the “Angeles” after some modifications to the rear suspension, moved quite well with this new entry engine, at least when it was paired to a 4-speed manual transmission. A special 2-speed automatic was available with a TA8-B equipped model for additional luxury, and still performed reasonably well.
Speaking of the TA8-B, gradual improvements in design brought Ardent’s largest motor up to 238 horsepower in 1965. Parts interchangeability with earlier models allowed owners of earlier vehicles to give mild performance boosts to their –A models at low cost once –B models started showing up in scrap yards in the following years.
Over the next four years, TE8-B motors would find their way into nearly every model in the Ardent lineup as a premium option, starting with the Spark. The heavier TA8-B would remain nearly exclusive to the Angeles model. Only a limited run of 1966 and 1967 Ardent Spark sport sedans would receive the top-of-the-line motor, as a taste of what the company was planning in the future...