500 CADILLAC engine in 56 chevy strip car.

Hey guys I am building up a 56 chevy to look like a older strip car. I bought myself a 500cubic inch caddy motor to install in it. the problem is the caddymotor has front sump the chevy's are rear sump. anyone know of any oilpans for these engines that are rear sump and can change pickup tube on them? If not what are my options? If nothing else I gues could strait axle it but didn;t wanna do that right now to the car. the motor is a 69 500 cubic inch caddy motor.
thanks,
jimmy
PS the motor will be moved back about 3 inches from stock locarion.

 

there is a co. that advertises back of hot rod mag that does the parts for the later cad engines

 

Hey 57rustbucket,
You got any pics of what you have done or the car so far? Would love to see.
J

 

easy whack out the frame and front susp. redo it in square tubing and add a straight axle.problem solved

 

Check here:

http://www.500cid.com/Home.htm

or

http://www.cad500parts.com/

 

MTS can hook you up..... The rear sump pans are almost at the bottom of this page....

http://www.500cid.com/On-Line%20Catalog/2009%20-%202010%20MTS%20Catalog.pdf

 

Thats going to be cool, I think if you bolt on a set of 472 heads you bump your compression up some. I read and article back in the 90's where Hot Rod put a caddy in a Chevette and it ran really good.

Jon

 

Use and Elderado pan. They have a rear sump. Be sure to get oil pump pick up as well.

 

That thing was frickin cool, wasnt it like in the 9s or 10s for under 2k lol?

 

wasnt the chevette at the time Steve magnante was there??????????,maybe before his g***er love

 

There are some REAR SUMP Caddy engines, I don't know what year or body style they came in however. How come you have'nt been over on ChevyTalk for a while? Butch/56sedandelivery.

 

I still have that Hot Rod, I am going to look for it and scan and post it. I dont remeber how fast it was but it showed what you could do with very little cash and also be different.

Jon

 

i think it was in the 11s with a bone stock caddy.........
wasnt it in car craft???
remember the junkyard jems articles???

 

The front drive Eldorado was the only model with a rear sump.

 

Caddy 425's in late '70's early '80's devilles were rear sump that fit. need the pickup tube too. check the valvecovers,some were carbon fiber.

 

The Sevilles also had rear sumps (368 & 425).

If your engine is a 69, it is most likely a 472 with high compression. 500s were introduced in '70 in the Eldorado only (400 hp). A '69 472 has 375 hp and 525 LB. FT. of torque in its stock configuration, so it's no slouch.

Just remember, when gearing your car, that engine wants to PULL, not REV.

 

Good luck moving the engine back 3 inches unless you sink it through the firewall. They're a bit wider, taller and longer than the sbc. I played with the idea with the 472 I have as a street car for my 55 but put it on the back burner for now. Let us know how you make out

 

Hot Rod Mag...April 2000 Steve Magnante went 11's for just over 2 grand.

The trick to the hp in this case was in combining early small chamber heads with later flat top pistons. The 68, and 69 Caddy 472s used a small combustion chamber and dished piston, while the later engines used flat tops, and a larger chamber. When early heads are used with the flat-tops, you get in excess of 12 to 1. However, the magazine article wasn't a durability test. The engine lasted long enough for the 1/4 mile tests. Don't know where it is now, or if it still exists in one piece.

 

57rustbucket:
I would approach this project thus:
Remove sheetmetal, drivetrain (except for rearend, if it's worthy), front suspension, steering, brakes and firewall. Begin head scratching and fabbing. Chances are, you'll want to toss the heavy/ugly frame rails and really do this right, once you have established momentum. Good luck and enjoy the build. The results should be an absolute kick in the ***!!!
Happy Motoring,
Scotty

 

Not exactly. Eldo pans (all before 1979) are in effect MID-sump, with two drain plugs (spotting clue).
All 425 and 368 engines in rear drive cars are rear sump, which means all the downsized models (77 up). The trick to these is that the pickup tube needs be modified slightly. Since the tube mounts onto one main cap, and the main caps were made smaller with the advent of the 425, you will need to A: shorten the strap that mounts to the main, and B: arrange for the proper hold down with the main cap bolt. NO, you may not put it under the main bolt.
This is not hard, but you will not be able to bolt the pan down if you don't shorten the strap.
The 425 pans will give one to two inches more clearance than the Eldo pans, AND are likely to be easier to find and cheaper, because so many people think that the Eldo pan is the only one you can use.
P.S. try to find a V8-6-4. The same pan, but folks think it's an entirely different engine. Different heads, yes, engine is same.

Cosmo

 

http://www.cadillacpower.com/forum/index.php

 

http://www.cadillacpower.com/forum/index.php

Ooops,ddouble post

 

hey guys i ran my numbers on my motor and found out its actualy a 69 472 with the 10:1 complession.

 

375 hp at 4400rpm, 525 ft lbs @ 3000 rpm!!!

 

Is it possible to cut the pan and reverse it? What problems would I encounter?
Dipstick, pickup etc?

 

Find an Eldorado pan 1967 to 76 have rear sump pans, they do have two drain plugs. I have a 72 Eldorado pan on my 68-472 with no mods to the pan or pickup mount.

 

If it helps any , they also make oil pumps that point the filter differant directions. I built a 500 for a guy years ago - he died - its still here !

 

i had a 10:1 compression 472 in my 81 regal. rear sump 8 quart pan/pickup and the special ch***is oil pump to fit non caddys. you have to drive out the ball bearing to swap the dipstick from the one hole to the other so that your stick will fit the rear sump. sold the buick a decade ago-kept the pan/pump.

pm me and maybe we can work sumpthin out.

 

Yup. Did that trick on a '69 472. Just had to rework the pickup tube a little.

 

If I'm not mistaken there was a blurb in a recent HotRod in regard to the Chevette/Caddy project. I think it mentioned that the car was still of it sitting in Steve's back yard...there was a pic too.

-Bigchief.