Ok, a Buick has some plus' over a Chevy. The distributor is in front, making
service times a little easier. They are cheaper than Chevys and they will bolt
up to a Chevy trans, but 2 bolts won't line up. You can buy an adapter or make
one out of some ¼" plate and ¼ " spacers that will go between the flexplate and
the torque converter. There is one major flaw though, it is a 70's smogger
motor, no power gas hoggin' motor. The older Buicks, 1970 and older are much
better. I would stick with Chevy unless you think of it as a temorary thing
until you find a Chevy you want. Oh, I think the Buick is wider than the the
Chevy and can cause exhaust plumbing problems. Get the tape measure out and do
some figuring.
new mexico jim
J Phipps wrote:
> Hi all! I haven't been working on my poor old 57 3600 in quite a while, but
> now that summer's back, I'm ready to start again. What I was hoping someone
> could answer was, what would be the major downfalls to using a 78 Buick 350
> engine instead of a Chevy 350? I haven't found a good deal on a rebuildable
> Chevy 350 (rodders all grabbing them up) locally, but have a chance to get a
> good running Buick 350 from a 78 Century. The tranny's bad, so it'll have
> to be replaced. My guess is that the trans from my old 283 won't swap over
> to the Buick, and I'm afraid I'll get stuck having to pay too much to get a
> good Buick tranny. That's about the biggest problem I see for now. Should
> I keep looking for a rebuildable Chevy 350 or would the Buick engine be ok?
> I'm doing this on a budget, so costs count. Any suggestions or comments
> would be greatly appreciated.
> Also, I've been subscribed to this list for over a year now. Although I
> seldom have occasion to offer my own advice (so many of ya'll know so much
> more than me), I thoroughly enjoy reading all the advice, opinions, and just
> about everything else. Ya'll are a great bunch! Thanks to all.
>
> Jim Phipps, 57 3600
>
> oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
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