That pic was when he first got it. It had deteriorated a bit by the time he went to sell it. Also had mechanical problems....IIRC
Poor 72King. What does he do to these cars that he has mechanical problems? He is having a mechanical problem with the 72 Kingwood too. He has had it to mechanics and it has never been solved. I don't think I would even want to park my car near him.
Silverfox, in your opinion, whats the way to go on an engine? Remanufactured, crate, or find one and rebuild? It would probalby be hard to find an Olds motor in good running order, as you know they are not as plentiful as the chevys.
Back when I was doing these 455's the used engines were plentiful and super cheap. I'm told they are getting a little more scarce now. I would search diligently for a used one and rebuild it if you are capable or know someone who is AND is familiar with the Olds engines. They are NOT the same as a sbc. You will probably only find mid 70's engines around with the J heads. You would be VERY lucky to find any C heads around and if you do they are way over priced for what they are. You have not told me what it is you want to do....350 or 455? Do you want performance or just a strong street car? Lots of variables on how people want their car to perform. You need to make those decisions based on how you like to drive AND the expense involved. I can't really address your question without more info.
More towards a strong street car, and would like to pull my small serro scotty camper on occasion, its only a 10 footer. I can do the pulling of the motor and install but would have someone do the actual motor work if needed. I was leaning more towards the 350.
I usually pick up a 455 Olds core every year locally for around $150. Keep checking Craigslist. C heads are offered on ebay frequently. Cores can be found for $150-$200 a pair. There is also no need to kill yourself trying to find them, however. Every Olds head except for the J heads flows within 10% of each other in stock condition. All have chambers in the 80-84 cc range. Frankly, unless you plan to drag race your wagon, J heads with a mild port cleanup (mainly to remove the A.I.R. bumps in the exhaust ports) will be fine. Just be sure to check your local emissions testing requirements before doing this swap. If you are subject to testing, this engine will likely not pass a visual inspection. Of course, if you dress the 455 to look like the 307, 99% of inspectors will not be able to tell the difference.
Thanks for your input Joe, I'm going to be on the lookout for a motor, I was kind of leaning towards a 350 but as they say, there's no substitue for cubic inches. Any input on the pros and cons on either motor? Also am I right to say that any year will work as far as all the brackets bolting up for the air etc.
I ran into these awhile back. There are cheaper 350's around but I like these. Note that your 307 has around 140 hp and 255 lbs of torque. The first engine and cheapest one on this site blows that 307 away. All depends on what you want to spend. Warrantee seems good too. If you go with a 455 be prepared for 10 mpg. http://www.rockauto.com/dbphp/x,car...E_98_5.7L_350_cubic_inch_V8_Crate_Engine.html
I'll check the site out, yea that's the downside of the 455 the mpg. I'm sure that I'll probably go with a 350. I just want a strong running motor that when I accelerate it feels like I'm making progress!! Plus I plan on a few road trips in the future with it.
Here's some stuff off my favorite Olds site that I just now found again. I had all this and tons more printed out and it is still down at the shop. Read the following...... Replacing With Larger Small Block If you are thinking of replacing a 307 with a 330, 350 or 403, consider the following. Everything except the pistons should swap across. Unless it's an 1985 and up 307 w/7A heads (has the roller lifters), then you won't want to use the heads, intake, and exhaust manifolds because they have puny ports. The 330 will swap right in. The flexplate will stay on the 330 crank. Everything else is same. Really, all gas SB Olds are very similar externally: some harmonic balancer diffs over the years, different bores of course, 403 rods beefier, some engines used roller cams, later ones had 3/8" pushrod balls. But for a whole-engine swap, the prospects are really good. You're better off using as many 350 parts as you can. The only parts I could see using off of the 307 would be the intake (if the 350 is only a 2bbl) and maybe the heads for higher compression. You probably need to use the 307 intake if emissions are strict in your area (at least keep it, just in case). Although the stock heads from a 307 may not flow as well as stock 1972 heads. You don't have to dump the 307's computer controlled carb at all. Doug Roe's Rochester Carb book has a good chapter on modifying an electronic Q-jet (which, of course, is computer controlled); highly recommended as a reference for anyone doing work on a Q-jet. Only part-throttle and idle is controlled by the computer, which formerly was controlled by vacuum on a non-electronic Q-jet; everything else (accelerator pump, secondary barrels) is "open loop", so the same mods for an older Q-jet apply there as well. In fact, as long as your 350's cam isn't too wild, the computer should be able to compensate for the extra 43 cubic inches. You could use a stock 307 intake, or probably even a Performer, as long as you have the hookups for the lines and sensors. Whatever the case, even a mild 350 will be a big improvement. You should also swap in some better rear gears to complement your engine's newfound power. If you start looking right now, you might just find a 10-bolt 8.5" 3.73 posi rear from a H/O/442/T-type by the time your motor is ready to go in.
If you properly beef the 200-4R so you can keep the OD, even I can get better than 10 MPG. I built a 1971 Cutlass with 455, dual quads, and a 3.42 rear axle, and it got 14 MPG. I was not gentle with the throttle, either. All 1968-1976 Olds brackets will fit any Olds motor built between 1964 and 1990. Those brackets have two sets of holes to accommodate both the small blocks and the big blocks. The primary difference is the deck height, hence the need for two sets of holes. Unfortunately, if you plan to reuse your 307 brackets, they only fit a small block. Only minor mods are required to fit them to the big block, however. The biggest difference is the need to weld two small tabs to the A/C compressor bracket to reach the two bolts on the block when it is bolted to the head. The only other change is that you need spacer between the alternator bracket and the PS pump bracket. If you change to the 68-76 brackets, you don't need to do any of this, but those A/C brackets only accommodate the huge A6 compressor. Use the W/Z exhaust manifolds from the 1969-72 442s. You can get pre-formed down-pipes for these manifolds from Pypes Exhaust. By the way, this is exactly the setup I'm putting together for my 84 Custom Cruiser.
Trying to post pics, never have done it before, hope it happens. Not sure if the dog dishes are going to stay or not.
