steady rest

[oldgas]

Did Ford discontinue the front steady rest on the 1956 Ford Fairlane line-up late in the year of 1956?
If Ford did this can i assume the steady rest is not essential at a motor mount & would be safe to not install it?
Thank you for your time in advance.
Old Gas

[5851a]

I don't know if it discontinued but think a lot of people got rid of them during engine swaps. Defiantly not used when a FE engine was installed.

[Jim.UT]

My 55 still has it but it also still has the original Y-block. As for deleting it, I always go back to the idea that a manufacturer never adds a piece to a car unless it's necessary. Why would they increase the cost of the car unnecessarily?

[craig]

Ford did call it a steady rest, not a motor mount to begin with. It was gone on my '56 when I got it and so far, I haven't missed it. I remember a friend back in the '60's telling me it was designed to help prevent clutch chatter as the motor mounts aged and became softer.

[paul2748]

The steady rest was on my car (original 239?). When I changed it to a 312 I kept the steady rest (but did have get a 55). I figured it would cause less wear and tear on the engine/trans mounts.

[Bleach]

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Still present on my ’56. My car has an automatic so there must be another reason for it.

[Bleach]

OK, according to Y-blocksforever, “The Y-block steady rest, used on 1954-1956 Ford engines, was designed to enhance engine stability and reduce cabin vibrations by supporting the front of the engine, often dubbed a "freeway hop" dampener. It linked the engine to the frame crossmember to reduce resonant vibrations on older chassis, though it was discontinued for 1957 when frames were strengthened.”

[41Fordor]

The only problem I noticed in my 1954 Customline when I swapped the 292 in was I couldn't use the thicker harmonic balancer. My machinist balanced it anyway and I just used it with the 239 pulley and timing cover to look original.