I recently purchased a 1964 buick skylark convertible and I am loving it. It needs some TLC but everything important is in great shape. The drivetrain is long gone and a worn out 350 chev and t-350 push it down the road. A little snooping around and I stumbled across a potential goldmine. A neighbor gave me a 1970 electra 225 with the 455-4. It took less than 20 minutes to get it running(not that well, but who gives a sh*t) and drive it home. I am more than a little excited about this because I am a firm believer that a buick should have a buick motor, and if there is room for a small block there is room for a big block. I couldn't believe my luck to get 1970 455. So the plan is to have it rebuilt and put it in the skylark, However I really want an overdrive. I am looking for some advice on what may work here. Will an automatic such as the 700 R-4 or the R2 version ever hold up to the 455? Is going to a T-56 standard a good idea? where do I find the clutch setup and flywheel to fit the buick if I did find a T-56... Anyone know of any other options?
by the way if anyone is looking for parts from a 1970 electra 225 (4door) with ac/tilt/cruise/power windows and seats let me know I would love to see them go to use.
No-- a stock 700R will not hold up and neither will a 200R. You can have this rebuild these to hold up especially if you are not into racing. The 200R is most commonly the trans of choice. Another auto trans route is a TH 400 with a gear vendors overdrive unit.
I assumed that I would need to have the 200r built up, any idea what the cost on something like this is? anybody have experience with the gear vendors overdrive for the th 400?
Snow, First calculate how much interstate driving you will do to justify the cost of an OD trans.......most of the time, it is no worth the swap in order to recover the cost of built-up trans vs the gas you will save.
:gp: The real reason to go with and OD trans is the drivablity with big gears and cam. A stock 455, 3:08 gears with a Posi, and a mild converter would be a great all around cruiser and fast. That being said I love my 200-4r.
A well built 700R4 will hold up to a stock BBB all day every day. I have built over 50 of these over the years and have yet to have anyone break them. There are some simple upgrades you can do when rebuilding them that don't break the bank ($250) that go a long way to helping them survive. I have put over 10,000 miles on mine, run 12.40's, and get 19+ mpg on the hyway. It is soooo much more enjoyable to drive since I have put this in that I will never go back to a non overdrive in a street car. Mike
thanks for the help fella's I redid my dads first truck (68 chev CST with a 396) love the truck but my biggest regret is not putting the overdrive in it. I really think that I am gonna go with the 4 speed auto. I just picked up a ford 8.8 posi with disc brakes... Thanks again Brad
did that car have the ACC option for the A/C If id did theres a part I need. its under the dash and behind the glove box area. Looks like this.
I'll give it a look, I am working some big days and won't be bringin the car into the shop till after harvest is done (month or so). If you can hold out that long be happy to let you know. Brad
