So what are people doing for engine mounts in their BBB Apollo? How about engine position? Are you using manifolds or headers, and what type of steering box? Pictures would be a great help.
Any suggestions or ideas would be very helpful. It would be nice to have info on this kind of swap available in our new forum for others interested in doing the swap. Here are some links to some of the threads that I have found helpful along the way. http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=122251 http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=102034 http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=62070 http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=55302 http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=44767 http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=28751 http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=9139
Clint, it looks like you got some good advice from those threads. How close are you to mocking up the 455 mounts in your car?
My '78 Skylark (Apollo) has B-body mounts in it I think, I don't remember buying another set of A-body mounts. I will look, tomorrow, mine has 1 -7/8" headers for an A-body(GS) 455 with a stick(M-20). I did have to dimple the crossmember to get the header flanges to clear, seems like I even cut the transmission mount off of the crossmember and moved it down an 1/8" or 1/4", man its been a while. '68-'74 X-body cars(Novas) have steering boxes behind the crossmember, that sounds like it would be a one off header '75 up uses same sub-frame as '70 up F-body and A-body, so the GS headers fit.
Just a minor correction to the last post. While the subframes are very similar on the 2nd Generation F-body and the 75-79 X-body, they are not identical, and will not swap back and forth without some modifications. A member on the pro-touring website posted some dimension sheets for the F & X-body subframes, and they are different (If I can find the sheets I will post them). The sway bars, suspension components, and steering boxes can be interchanged, but it would be a good idea to check the part numbers to be absolutely sure. Later, Randy
Here are the chassis sheets for a 76 Camaro F-body and a 76 Nova X-body for anyone who wants to see the differences.
Sorry for not responding sooner guys, I've been out of town for a few weeks. Randy, I'm almost finished with the engine build. When I am finished with that, I will focus on mock up. I would also like to have a trans on it for mock up. This is some good info guys, keep it coming.
Hey Clint, how is the engine assembly coming on your Apollo motor? And thanks again for lunch the other day. Hope the transmission works well for you. Later, Randy
Clint, Thanks for listing all the threads on Apollo modifications. It was good to read them again. I think you can tell how I did it by reading my post so I will not re-list anything here. I don't always find the time to log-in and keep up with what's going on, however, I do check my email a couple of times a week. If I can answer any questions for you, contact me at Marksberry1@bellsouth.net Marv.
Hey Clint, how is the Apollo coming? Haven't heard from you in awhile. Or has that "inline 2-seater project" we talked about been getting all your attention lately? Are you going to the big swap meet in Wichita this weekend? I am not going to make it, but I hear there is lots of parts to be had if you want to spend some $$$. Later, Randy
The progress on the Apollo has slowed down for the time being. I have been very busy with work, working lots of overtime. I guess that's better than being out of work. I have also been saving money to buy another car, something with better gas mileage for my work commute. I did buy the other project I was talking to you about, and that took all the money I was saving for a new car. Although I bought a new project, I have my priorities in order. I will finish the Apollo before getting very involved in the other project. I only need a few more engine parts before I start working on the rear end. Once I have all that done, I will start fitting it all together. Once I get my new car, all my focus will be on the Apollo. :3gears:
I finally got it running!! Here is a thread I started on the Bench with a few more details: http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?247197-I-finally-got-my-Apollo-running!&p=2022133#post2022133 I will try to post more info on the build here soon with better pics. I am getting ready to move into a new house with even more work space so it may take a little bit for me to get all the details up, but feel free to ask questions.
When I started this project I gathered up as much info as I could. I received good info on this site, on Steve's Nova forum, and from talking to numerous people about what I wanted to do. Thank you to everyone who helped me along the way. :TU: Now for my build info. Early on I decided to run a manual rack and pinion set up instead of the factory steering box. I decided to do this because I felt it would give the best chance of running standard Skylark headers and I would be saving a considerable amount of weight as this is mostly going to be a strip car. To do this required removing the lower control arms, so I decided to change the upper and lower control arm bushings, ball joints, coil springs, and shocks at the same time. I picked the Global West Del-A-Lum bushings and AFCO low friction ball joints to help with weight transfer. I also used Moroso 47195 trick springs and 3 way adjustable front shocks. Once all this was done, I mounted the rack and pinion steering unit. I used the Unisteer manual steering setup. All these parts were for a 73 Nova, but fit without any issues on the Apollo. Once the front end work was done I mocked up an engine using a spare block, heads, and oil pan that I had. I fit the engine in the car and install the headers to confirm that everything would fit properly. I also used a spare TH400 I had to figure out where I wanted to mount everything. I placed the engine in the center of the car, and as far back as I could. I realized that the stock trans cross member wouldn't work, so I used a big block Nova TH400 trans cross member. To find the center of the car I measured from side to side and diagonally and marked the center line on the front cross member. I then ran a string from the rear end to the mark on front cross member. I also leveled the car and the engine to each other. I used TA Performance engine mounts and pads for a Skylark and mounted them as far forward on the engine as I could. I marked the position of the mount pads and removed the mock up engine. I then installed the engine and trans that I was going to use to verify everything fit the same, and it did. I then removed the engine so I could install the frame mount pads. With the frame mount clamped in place, I back drilled the bolt holes for the pads using a smaller drill bit. The hardest part of the whole process was installing the bolts in the mount pads. It took me about 8 hours to get the all the bolts installed. Most of the bolts weren't bad, but a couple of them gave me real hard time. Once the pads were in place, I lowered the engine and trans into the car. The mounts on the engine slid right onto the pads with no problems. I then positioned the trans cross member and drilled new bolt holes for it. With everything bolted up, I rechecked the level and center measurements, everything was right on. The engine is a 73 block 455 bored .030, stock crank and rods, forged pistons, 73 iron heads with lots of port work, TA 290-08H cam, SPX intake, 1050 Holley carb, and headers for a Skylark. The transmission is a TH400 with a 9.5" converter from Tri Shield Performance. I used a short water pump and pulley setup because space is limited. I found that a radiator for a 69 Camaro fits pretty well, with only slight modification of the upper support. I had an 18" 7 blade fan that fit perfect between the water pump and radiator with a heavy duty clutch. I found that the stock oil filter will not fit because the forward cross member is in the way. This left the options of relocating the oil filter or notching the cross member. Then I found that the O'Reilly Auto house brand oil filter (MGL3506) for the 455 is shorter than the original. It fits with a little room to spare. I have since found the Wix cross reference to this filter is a 51042. I'm using the stock 8.5 rear with Moser 30 spline axles, Yukon posi carrier, Yukon 3.73 gears, Strange C-clip eliminators, and TA Performance rear end girdle. I also installed Cal Trac bars and split mono leaf springs with Global West Del-A-Lum bushings. I ordered a custom length drive shaft from Strange with 1350 u joints. I hope this information can be useful to anyone else who wants to put a 455 in an Apollo. :TU:
Thanks, it was a lot of work but I am very pleased with the results and wouldn't change the way I put it together. It's nice to have the car built the way that I want. :grin: I was trying to do this with off the shelf parts with little modification. It would have been easier if I had done some things a little different. I forgot to mention that I also removed the power brake booster and I'm running manual brakes. I did this to save weight and for added clearance for the valve covers. To do that I had to get a universal rod to go between the master cylinder and the brake pedal. I had to remove the bracket for the brake light switch and install the rod in the hole where the bracket was. I also had to space the master cylinder away from the firewall a little to make it fit right. Using the stock master cylinder, proportioning valve, and front disc brakes provides for some some pretty good non power brakes. In the coming weeks I will be installing solid body mounts and subframe connectors, then I will be ready to hit the track with it. :3gears:
