Amish Engine Swap? Ye Got That Right!

Here at OnAllCylinders, we rarely come across engine swaps that surprise us. In fact, we’ve seen high-power V8s dropped into everything from a Ford T-bucket to a Mazda Miata.

Then we heard about Ken Burrer from Elyria, OH (about an hour west of Cleveland).

A little bit of back story first: Here in northeast Ohio, there is a large Amish community. And, as a result, it’s not uncommon to pass horse-drawn buggies as you drive further into the rural areas.

So, after Burrer acquired a buggy for use on his farm, he got an idea: How cool would it be to put a Mock-Up Engine on the front?

Burrer went to work, installing a replica of the venerable Chevy 350 small block onto the buggy’s chassis. Then he outfitted the “engine” with real parts, like an Edelbrock carburetor, Summit Racing chrome valve covers, and even an authentic water pump.

The result is a buggy that will really turn heads at the next barn raising. Burrer also assured us that he’s never short of stares as he pulls it around his neighborhood.

Again, the engine is a non-running mock-up and the buggy still uses a traditional one-horsepower/four-legged powerplant—but hopefully seeing this radical concept will inspire you to see what wild engine swaps might be possible.