The P-51's performance was improved when the British installed the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine that was used in other aircraft. Using a similar way of thinking, could the Cyclone engine that was used in the B-17 have been installed in a US fighter that was lacking in performance in order to make it better and have similar results?
Depends if the weight penalty wasn't to great....a two-row radial, extra bracing and bulkheading, extra strengthening for the increased stresses etc. ....
The RR Merlin and the Allison 1710 were both v-12's with double overhead cams of similar displacement, the Rolls being very slightly smaller at 1650 cubic inches and both were carbureted unlike the Messerschmitt 601 which had fuel injection. The basic engines were probably rather similar in potential power. The difference was in the Rolls having a two staged supercharger and the Allison a single stage . Up to medium altitude the Allison was quite good, up to about 15,000 feet. But the second stage of the Rolls kicked in and gave it an advantage. So it the total package that is important as Phylo pointed out . Is so happened the two 27 litre V-12's were a good swap size and weight wise. Packard also built Merlins but re-engineered them for mass production via better parts interchangeability. The Rolls, as were their cars of the era largely hand fitted and finished which was not a big power issue, just slower to build. . A two row radial is a entirely different issue. Equally interesting to me is that the MB 601, 2 &3 were inverted with the crank on the top.. The Merlin is especially interesting in as it was development from about 6to700 hp to near 2000 in around 50 versions. Some of the late 30's racing versions were more than that. all this from memory and may need checking and correcting. Gaines
Well, the Cyclone R-1820 was only a single row radial, and in it's many incarnations generated anywhere between 575hp-1,500hp. They were fitted to some, mostly naval, fighters. However, outside of the FM-2 Wildcat(final incarnation of the F4F), the performance of said fighters was not exactly spectacular.
Except the F4F used the P&W R-1830 Twin Wasp - 14 cylinder, two row. The P&W R-2800 was the choice for higher performance fighters - P-47, F6F, F4U, F8F...
In the main that is true, however R-1820s were used in those ordered by France and the Martlet IV. The FM-2 Wildcat & Wildcat VI used the R-1820-56, -56W, & -56WA versions of the Cyclone.