Shopping around for a rebuilt 350...found one for $1,419.00...Is that a good price? Just starting mod my car, 67 gs 340....
Good luck finding a better price for a pre-rebuilt motor. You'll probably end up spending that much or more building one to your own specs. You might want to do that so you can personalize it.:grin: Adam
Contact Eric Ruge near Wichita Ks at 620-583-6484 M-F 8-5 he is close to you and have it built you will spend that much making what you want than buying a prefab that may or may not last... (speaking of the Western Auto/ Oreilly's motors)
i have a complete running rebuilt 350 and rebuilt th350 trans. the motor is a 68 GS "PP" code motor,the trans was purchased at a local rebuild shop.the only miles on the motor are from driving it from nevada to ohio in 96',the trans was replaced after it was brought to ohio.they are both still in the car... too bad you're so far away!! doug
350 Thanks Doug, I'm just trying to figure out if I should rebuild my 340 or get a rebuilt 350 since I heard that it's alot easier to find parts and that it's also cheaper. P.S. Congrats to the Buckeyes on the National Championship!!
Greg what do you want out of your car? Do you plan to dirve it every day or just during the summer months? Drag racing plans int the future? And lastly what is your actual budget on this project? These are the questions that you will have to ask your self befor making a final decision that you and none of us will have to live with. If you want a daily driver you still have to decide what performance level will be enough for you. It is very easy to make plans that don't get you where you want to be. I've done it a lot on my 72 skylark so I know what I'm talking about. I just finished the rebuild on my 350 and I'll tell you it was a lot more than I first planed on. What ever you decide to do it is my humble opinion that you sit down and write on a peice of paper exactly what you will do. This will save you time and money when you get into you project and keep you on schedule when you decide half way through the project to "fix a few more things will I'm at it". Plan on these things in advance or determine to live with things the way they are. If you just want the car to go and you don't plan on opening the hood to show your friends then don't plan on spending time and money on cleaning and painting every thing in the engine compartment. If you don't think about this you will get the old engine out of the car and spend 2 or 3 days cleaning and painting the engine compartment that you didn't plan on when you started. Also have you considered a 455 swap? Would you ever consider this? The truth is if you are going to buy a new engine to replace the one you have a 455 is just as cheap as a 350 to build. Also the parts belive it or not are more available. If you don't belive me call TA performance, Postons, or any other Buick aftermarket parts vendor and ask them. If you really want performance you are going to have to spend the money to get it and brother SPEED AINT CHEAP! An engine build up is going to cost you a minumum of $2200 and that is if you do some of the work yourself. Weather it's a 350 or 455 plan on around $800 dolors for machine work. This price will include having the motor balanced which is very inportant when the engine gets over 4000 RPM. Get the book on building a Buick engine. It's $18 and will help you learn whats behind building your own engine which will save you having to just take some one elses word. I've given you a lot to think about so finally TAKE YOUR TIME and you will save money now and in the long run.
Jason, Thanks alot for the info. I do want to be proud of the way the way it looks and runs...The interior is in excellent shape and the body is too (except for a dent I put in it when the jack crunched the lower body by the rear left wheel as I was changing a tire) I have since bought a hydrolic jack! It has 150,000 miles on it. I was talking to a friend the other day and he said if they weren't hard miles than the motor could last another 150,000. What do you think? I love the idea of putting in a 455 as well, but would it fit? Was the 2,200 figure for install as well? I'm just a rookie at this as if you can't tell.
You'd be really lucky to get that motor to run another 150000 without any major repair work ie. valve work, timing chain, etc. Good luck on the project
Greg the 455 would fit but you would have the additional cost of changing the motor mounts. Not hard to do but it will take some time. What I told you as far as price for engine building is for just that. You have to do the removal and installation of the engine. It really isn't hard but you have to have some idea of what your doing or be willing to figure it out. I have swaped motors in my 72 skylark 4 times. I have it down to about a 2 and a half hour removal and a 3 hour installation. It takes practice. I'm sure that some one on this board is from your home town and they would be willing to help out. If you don't have the cherry picker and engine stand to do the job some one may be willing to let you do the whole project at their place. Ask around. I agree with Adam. You would be really hard pressed to get another 150k miles on that motor but it is possible. If the engine has been taken care of and not hammered all the time and you aren't going to flog it mercilisly, like I would, than you may get a realistic 200k miles total on it. If you have $3000 to spend you could go with the 455. Thats a freshly rebuilt motor with just about new every thing in it. That will include the cost of the engine and accessories if you look for a good deal. You don't have to get the BEST of every thing to have a strong running mill. A realistic STOCK rebuild will give you more every thing than a really built 350 and still give you good street maners. I mean it will idle well, have good response, and the torque it produces won't kill the rest of your drive train. If you go that route or think you would like to you need to do some more home work. There are several posts on this board that talk about a swap to 455 and what is needed to accomplish one. Also don't let any one tell you a TH350 wont handle the power or torque of a 455. It will as long as it's in good shape. If it isn't then it won't handle a well built 350. Besides a TH 350 has better gear ratios that a TH400. You can always do your build up in stages but to be honost you will most likely spend $3000 any way which will buy a hell of a lot of gas over the next several years that it would take to save the money to do the next build up. It's your decision so really think it out.
