Technical BBC in a 51 Chevy Coupe, who has done it

My 51 Styleline deluxe is slotted to receive a BBC. Started this thread yesterday, but apparently tagged it wrong, mentioned the wrong part on the build or some such thing and it was deleted. I'm looking for do's and don'ts on putting the 505 cu in Gen IV BBC into my coupe. It will have a 700R4 and a 68 Camaro 10 bolt rear. Disk brakes and the master relocated to the fire wall. Yesterday before it was deleted it was mentioned that I'd need to shave the firewall stiffeners and possibly modify the trans tunnel. Headers are a concern of mine as I have no idea what fits in this type car and don't want to alter the classic lines of the car with inner fender deletes or the such. The ultimate goal is to have a car that looks like I remember them in the 60's with an up to date drivetrain so it can be driven. This year it's get it mechanically sorted and then test and drive. Next year, I'll start on the body work and make it more eye catching and adjust any squawks that show up during test and drive.

 

I just remembered my friend Kevin has a rat motor in his 54, I can probably get pictures and pick his brain on what headers are on it

 

Why don't people want to list what part of the world they are in when they are asking question.

 

I there are at least 5 examples here on the hamb ,try the search function .

 

My first thought on a big block in a 51 Chevy was a 261

 

He's only asking for info, not a date lol


Getting back to the real question your best bet is to start sliding the motor/trans in and see what needs modified. I don't believe you're going to get a blueprint on modifing things so it's a one shot deal of stabbing it in, it'll take several in and outs.

 

Can't you turn the springs around to achieve the same thing, I'm pretty sure a friend did that.

 

Looks like the front suspension is not centered in the wheel well either. I think I would want all that correct before throwing a big horsepower engine in it.

 

The perspective of that picture is really wonky, it was taken with a very wide angle lens, from close up. So I don't trust what I see in it.

I'm also one of those guys who plans stuff out as much as possible, and then just get to work and make it all fit. For this one I'd seriously consider a dropped axle up front, and a stronger rear, and a different transmission...as well as cutting up the inner fenders as needed to fit some home made headers that go outside the frame, and probably find some different steering to clear things better. I expect trimming the firewall supports will be needed as well.

Should be fun, there's nothing like big block Mark IV power to wake up an old Chevy!

 

That doesn't look like the coupe either.

 

I bought the car as you see it in the picture. It is still original drive train in the picture. 6 cyl, cast iron power glide and all. It does have 15 inch wheels on it, so someone did something with it. I'll crawl under it and see if the driveshaft is open or closed. My rear suspension parts less differential are in the trunk sitting in front of my shop. Trying to move stuff around to make room to start working on it. I hate the thought of moving one of the boats out to put the car in, but it's winter here in Central Iowa and working outside isn't a good option.

 

Here is a side view as it sits out front of my shop. The rear end sits lower than the front which hopefully the Heidt's front end kit and new springs and mounts for the rear end will fix. The plan is to pull the front clip and start trial fitting the front suspension and then start mocking up where the engine will sit. I don't really want to build a setback in the firewall, but the car will hopefully be driven a lot. I am trying to get the plan ironed out and have a strong build strategy prior to taking it apart.

 

Yep, it isn't a coupe. It's a Styline 2 door sedan. The coupe roof is smaller and the catwalk is larger. The rear windows would not be that large and would most likely be a sliding window. As for headers, Sanderson makes a block hugger header for the V8 Chevy engine in the 50s Chevy.

 

...make things easier and go SBC....maybe a 400 c.i.

 

52 Hardtop, yes it is a Styleline Deluxe with crank open back windows. Sorry, in my experience a coupe is a 2 door and a sedan is a 4 door. I apologize for my mis-classification.
rusty1, I originally was going to go with a 383 stroker for the car. But after pulling the engine down to verify it was good to go, I found too many issues to use that engine without a full rebuild. The 505 was needing a good home and I have seen multiple cars with big blocks, just no input on how they made them fit.

Does anyone run mags instead of a distributor. I have a desire to not have computerized tech on the car so possibly a points distributor but thinking a Hunt Mag that I have sitting on a shelf. Definitely not going to use HEI for this build

 

A few guys run mags. If you have one and it's good, go for it. Make sure it has an advance mechanism, because it's pretty hard to start a big block with timing locked at 38 degrees!

Points also work fine....

 

Oh dear, no need to apologize to me! It's a common occurrence around here where you may get correct information to help when you may have gotten incorrect information. Spend enough time here and you will be doing the same thing for another newbie some day.

 

The internals for the 10 bolt came from them. I will have new axles, disk brakes, locker, and 3.55 gears. We spent some time talking and they agreed that with the limitation on how much tire I can fit under the rear fenders without tubs, the 10 bolt should hold up as the tire grip (or lack there of) will protect the weak link which is the pinion. I went back and forth on the 9 inch option. I know if it can handle hooking up all the horses, I will go there and probably more than once. I don't think the factory frame can handle that. The engine is built to handle 4 digit hp with a little spray. We are putting new heads on it to bring the compression down closer to 9:1. Solid roller cam, Ohio Crankshaft rotating assembly and built to spin 7500 conservatively. New goal is to keep it under 600hp and build it to drive. Should still be plenty of fun.

It's always good to learn the correct terms for things that have a loyal following. Is Chevy the only company that made 2 doors and called them sedans? Once I have this car together, I think I'll start looking for another project to build more as a resale project. I'll see how this one goes before I start doing body work for others. I'm getting too old for that kind of a grind every day (pun intended).

 

I would go with a Dana 60 before a 9”.

 

Rule of thumb on body designations regardless of make 40s-60s....aside from a business coupe(either no back seat or simply jump seats) if it has no b pillar it's a coupe and if it has a b pillar it's a sedan. Generally number of doors has zero bearing on coupe/sedan categorization

 

That's what SHE said...

 

With an automatic, things are softer on the driveline over a manual. I have a 9" locker in my car, my only regret is staying with the 1310 yoke instead of a 1330 or 1350.

 

Well, it’s ‘51 Chevy, right?
I’ve no experience, but help the brother out in putting the BBC in

 

There's no reason a pair of cast iron manifolds wont work if the frame rails wont accommodate a set of headers. But I think some shorty headers for a BBC might also work.
As for how it fits between the firewall and radiator I think there shouldn't be an issue there either. A straight six is longer than a SBC or BBC V8, so length should be fine. The firewall may need support brackets removed, or modified, but until you remove the front clip and test fit the BBC between the frame rails you wont know. But before you remove the front clip take measurements from firewall to rear edge of the radiator so when you begin fabricating motor mounts you'll know where the fan will end up once the engine is located.
I have never bought any aftermarket motor mount kits myself. It's always easier, and cheaper to fabricate my own and be able to choose height, depth, etc. by building my own. Once the engine is hanging between the frame rails I use a stock motor mount on the block, and then just build frame mounts to situate it where it needs to be for my build. Same for trans mount also.
If width is an issue (I doubt it will be) then you may need to massage or do some minor changes to retain inner fender sheet metal by reworking it slightly.

 

I have recorded the demensions of the engine compartment, radiator location, hood height, and locations of items that might interfere with placement. I know the engine will fit dimensionally, but hope to set it where the car will perform best. To get the best balance do I need to cut the firewall and set the engine/trans back, move the battery to the trunk, box the frame, are there any specific does and don'ts. I learned a long time ago that the engine too far forward makes a car handle a little sketchy. I really don't want a cage in the car (mostly for looks) but want to make the setup as safe as possible. I plan on driving the car a good amount and I do have the need for speed. Maybe make some drag and drive events. Driving to the west coast and pulling boats back home is possible if I'm cruising and find a good deal. After all it will have a hitch for drag and drive events. I could get a set of shorty headers in the car no problem but I want the ability to get the most out of the engine if the hp reduction doesn't give enough smiles per mile. Putting the hp back in would not be that difficult but I don't want to re-engineer the car to do it. I have a set of outside the frame headers that would fit with some to moderate inner fender cutting (some say go for it) but I'm not sure I want to start cutting a pretty straight car. I also have several sets of boat headers that will clear the frame if turned upside down and switched to the other side. I am wanting to get the most out of the car without taking the car to a point of no return. It is a straight, original, running, car. I haven't looked to see how many style line deluxe cars were built as I would hate to think there was someone desperately looking for this car to restore. I've never taken a survivor apart to build a toy and I want to do the least intrusive build possible to get the same general results.

 

i guess you know that the first olds 88s were basically chevvies with a 303 V8?