The 425 was available in the Wildcat and Riviera in 1963. Only a single 4-bbl carb was available in 1963. The dual quad started in 1964 and ran through 1966. In 1964 the 425 1x4 and 2x4 were available in all fullsize cars (Estate Wagon, Wildcat, Riviera, Electra 225) except the LeSabre. The Estate Wagons were built on the Wildcat platform in 1964 only.
The 1st. 425's were slated for Riviera's in Dec. '62. They were NOT available in ANY other cars until late Jan./early Feb. of '63. NO '63/425's were available from the factory to the general public with the 2x4 set-ups. I do know of one that many of us poured over at the 2000 (if I remember correctly) ROA meet in Pa. that was a 2x4 set-up which by ALL the numbers etc. was probably a "Mule" (as per Dennis Manner) car built at the factory to do some testing on the soon/hopefully to be available for '64 2x4/425. The build tag/body tag had the body built 5/'63. The carbs. had the correct numbers & date codes as well as the dist. The trans. code was a BO which I haven't been able to find anywhere. The rear was a '64. Ratio unknown. The lady bought it as a parts car for the '63 she was restoring. I think in the end she may have restored this one instead. Tom T.
Ok a bit late on this subject but what about the 425 dual quad blocks that had thicker mains and caps than the single 4 barrel? This is from the Hemmings Muscle Car's "Buyers Guide" on the 65 Riv GS.
Totally bogus b/s!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think Tom is trying to say that a factory NH block is capable of handling 1,000 HP so there was no need to make the dual quad block any stronger. Derek
Oky Doky LoL! That Hemmings Muscle Car Mag has really caught my eye on some classic mistake's that shouldn't be from a so called high cal magazine. Who are their fact checker's and proof readers? They seem to always be making be making tech mistakes and remember on one tech spec it was said the bore was 3.90 and stroke was 4.312 on the 455. Back on the 425 nailhead topic, i'm reading that other than a few early 1966 dual quads on the Riv and Wildcat's that came equipt from the factory, later it was a dealer installed option. What the chance that the dealer installed all the dual quad goodies as the right cam and distributor and not just the intake manifold.
I know that this is true because I drove one at Newton (MA) Buick. I wanted that car sooooo bad..... I was 19 and couldn't possibly afford it. It was maroon with a white top.
With the thin wall casting design, started in 1957, which meant that more nickel content was added to the cast iron. This is one of the ways to get a stronger cast iron block WITHOUT the additional weight of adding more cast iron mass to the blocks, heads, etc. I don't know about a 1000HP as the bottom of the block flexes so much even on a stock rebuild. That's why I ALWAYS add Epoxy filler to the bottom of the big freeze plugs. This does a couple things. 1st. it adds rigidity to the bottom of the block so it doesn't flex so much. Without the bottom of the block not flexing as much the pistons have less of a chance of moving around in the bores which adds to the longevity of the rebuild, among other things.
Tom, I recent acquired a rebuilt 425 that has hard bloc up to the freeze plugs. Does this achieve the same thing? My friends think I'm nuts and that I will have overheating problems.
Apologies for answering Tom's question... 1. Hard block works really well. 2. If it runs hot, the filler won't be the cause. I'm guessing the people telling you you'll have overheating problems haven't filled dozens of blocks per year or see all the other reasons engines run hot. Ring finish and various other machining specs affecting heat transfer cause many more problems than the general public knows. Shops that have quality control issues tend to look for an external blame. Tom always has good answers for this question. You can even search around to see them.
