my buddy has a 60 caddy with high miles and runs slugish ..he has a chance to get a 500 big block out of a 78 caddy hearse with 68000 original miles and runs great... is the 78 a good dependable motor? would it be a direct bolt in? or would it be better to rebuild the 390 that came in the cadillac?
shit ive heard 390 are gas guzlers ..my 68 caddy with the 472 was dam good on gas ..i guess thats why i was thinkin the 500 would be good on a heavy car ...not struggling to move the weight...but then again there both big blocks i know chevy put 350 small blocks and 454 big blocks in the chevrolet 3500 duallies and the sbc's were alot worse than the bbc's on gas because of the weight of the truck.maybe im wrong tho
I've done it, here's what you're up against. In no particular order, I numbered them after doing the first draft. 6.You will need to make a header to clear the steering box on the left side. 4.You will need to locate and cut a hole (no bigger than needed) in the front suspension crossmember for the oil pump, which will go to a remote oil filter so that you won't have to clear for the filter..-I've done it without any problems. 1.USE- The cast iron Melling oil pump if you can get one. Make damn sure it is on properly. DO NOT USE THE 425 PUMP. Use the 500 pump. I lost prime too many times to care for the 425. 2.Keep the motor mounts from the 390 so that you will know what they look like when you buy NEW ONES. I used milled down keystock and offset my holes to fit the '60 mounts to the 500. Worked pretty slick. 5.A half eyebeam will make a great transmission mount when bolted across the frame. 3.Using the 700r4 trans, fit into the right place, will negate cutting the driveline. 9.Get ready for the eliptical vibration you will find after you make the swap. I rebuilt and replaced everything and in the end I think it is the driveline angle. The A-arm panhard device over the rearend may need to be shimmed out. That is the one thing I didn't do before moving on. 7. I went to an electrical fuel pump for reliability. 8. solid mechanical fan. No clutch-too much noise. 10. Hammer a dime into the smog pump openings at the front of the block. It'll fit. Believe me, I paid my dues on learning this one. But I wouldn't go back.
By the way, I thought '78s had 425s in them. I would wait for a '71-'73 500. They are the best all around for street use.
By the way- Check and see how many exhaust bolt studs are missing if there are any gone. Roughly speaking they leave at the rate of about one every 10k-15k miles after 85,000 miles. So, if 5 bolts are missing,then it maybe a 168,000 mile car.
Full sized cads from 77 to 79 had the 425. It isn't a bad engine but doesn't have near the power that a 500 has. I put a lot of miles on one in a 79 Deville. It would be reliable and should pull fairly decent gas mileage. I think I pulled 16 on the highway with mine. The good thing is that if he put it in the 60 and got it setup the 500 would be an easy swap at a later date if he desired to do so.
The stock turbo 400 trans is sooooooooo much stronger. I was using the 700r to try to chase down the 'eliptical vibration'. I now know it was a driveline issue from the wrong pinion angle.
472's went out in '74. 75-76 had 500s in all but the Seville. All engines '74 and after had noticeable power drops. '71-'73 were slightly detuned for what we now call modern gasoline. Oddly, my worn out '73 472 could outrun my professionally rebuilt '71 500 anyday. Just had to keep fresh plugs in her.
is this something you would do again ? or go with another motor or freshn up the slugish running 390?
The 390 will look better in an open engine compartment, but they are right about the 500s, they are stump pullers!
I've got all the stuff to do it in my '60, and decided against it. The cut(s) made in the crossmember freak me out too much. ~Jason
The 500 fer sure. Just wish I knew then what I know now. The 390 would be expensive to rebuild and hard to support out of O'Rielly's. Truth is we have to be prepared so that we can get the car home. My car is a 62 series, no ac, simple low end '60 Caddy with no real pedigree like an Eldorado. The 472-500 engine has a high nickel content which makes it a better survivor in the long run. It shares many easily attained pieces with other GM engines. It is a stump puller! Moves my 2 ton caddy just fine.
Freaked me out too. Since it was a pilot project to get ready to do another '60 Caddy, our justification was to use another crossmember we had if it didn't work. I only cut into the top surface and routed the lines through the crossmember to a remote filter. I did not cut the bottom. I have had this car SLAM against the road several times with no adverse effects. It's okay if you don't want to do it. I did, and am now glad I did. It should run forever. I already have 20k miles on this combo.
i say keep the 390. in the end the car will be worth more. if it where a 67 or something i may say differnt.a 60 with the og motor should stay stock.
I have the car outside, a camera, but no easy way to get into my photobucket. The hole in the crossmember is one to be cut conservatively. Yes it hurts to do it, but it works. A little bracing might make it easier to accept. It is a 4-sided piece, and the only cut is through the top.
A NOTE OF CAUTION ON 500 CADDY'S- A good temp guage is your friend. Do not assume the 500 is indestructable. They will want a thermostat. Might as well get a good one. I think mine is a 190. Both of mine heated weird without thermostats, much different than the tendencies of an sbc.
Also, a good mini starter-gear reduction- will last longer than a stock version if you run headers. We had to mill 1/8" off the top of the billet mount, and then find the right position to clock it. Then we drilled and tapped those holes. We also had to grind the end of the flywheel gear 'on the starter' like this / instead of this[ until we got it to where it wouldn't rub against the flywheel. There can be more heat than you might imagine down there.
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