hello , im tinking about getting a 53 buick that has a bad straight 8,can anyone tell me what engine will swap out with no problem ? thanks BigVicSD
any one point me in the direction of a convershion thread straight 8 buick to chevy any help much appreciated thanks
The thing is, say you want to put a 350 Chevy in it. You'll have to replace the Dynaflow trans too, it won't bolt up, and then you'll have to put in a different rearend and driveshaft, since the Buick has a torque tube, and you'll also have to fab up a whole new rear suspension, since the Buick had a wishbone in the rear on coil springs and the wishbone located the rear end under the car, so when the torque tube is eliminated, the wishbone goes too. So there's not really an easy swap, with the straight 8 gone you have to pretty much replace the entire driveline. You might be able to swap in an early Nailhead V8 and keep the Dynaflow that way, but they're not exactly easy to find either.
Take it from me, it's not an easy task to convert to an SBC. Going with a straight 8 or maybe even going with a nailhead can save you alot of work.
I think you could put in a Buick nailhead with dynaflow, it should bolt to the rear end, I havnt done it myself so I can,t claim to be an expert, but up to 1960 they were torq tube drive lines.
thanks for all the input it sounds like the main bering is going out or a rod nock when you hit 40 -50 mph you can hear it rattle / knock i found a place called bob's automobilla that sells all buick parts im going to yank the motor and see what it looks like inside.i would like to keep the cost down as much as possible. if anyone has the link to a buick chevy swap build please post it for me im searching. i have a 1978 monte carlo frame sitting in my back yard i got for free toying with the idea of using the rear end and sub frame ? but never done one . thanks bigVicSD
Bigvic, that's a gorgeous Buick, keep it a Buick and don't *******ize it just because you have some free chevy parts.
If you have the original engine, which is likely, you have the 263 cube version and it is as good as the straight eights got. The 263 has larger diameter rods and mains than the 248 that preceded it. If the crank is a little damaged, it likely can be machined ("turned") to a reasonable undersize on the bearings and reused. Bob's Automobilia is one source, but don't overlook Egge Machine or Kanter's Auto Parts. Personally, I'd probably lean towards Egge as a parts source. I have ordered parts from them for several vintage engines and have been satisfied with the parts and service from their phone reps. Best Wishes, Ray
thanks Ray , it's the original motor.fire ball ? i think it say's i'm going to pull the eng this weekend hopeing the crank will be able to be turned and new berings installed. i will check out the sources you mentioned Egge's & Kanter's. thanks BigVicSD
no engine will swap out no problem, rebuild the straight 8 will cost you 2500 to 3000, my buick conversion to 305 chevy, 700r4, custom rear truck arm suspension and custom open drive conversion cost less parts wise, but did all my own work and got a good deal on a donor car......if i bought a bunch of new parts and had to pay for labor woulda easily been over 10k......
bakntheday, doing a ring and valve job was common. And bearings were also serviced. With poured bearings shims would be removed on crank n rods to tighten them up. The 263 is blessed with insert rod bearings, all the straight 8,s had insert crank bearings [but still had shims]. This is what was normal service back then. When some of them old Buicks were brought out of hibernation then new owners would just drive them till something started to make noise. Hopefully its just a bearing swap, but then they used to turn crank rod throws without removing the crank. So a complete overhaul isnt always needed, it all depends on what the owner wants, the straight 8 is a good strong engine, basically the 263 is more like a modern engine of today, it was a completely redesigned engine, and will give good performance and service for todays use, and probably you will have the only straight 8 powered car at the cruise. [unless you go to a Buick meet].
tore the pan off and found one bearing bad ordered a set from Egges' (got them yesterday)going to just swap them out in the next couple of days . my pops said just hit the bad one with enmory cloth and put it back togther. 39cent, that is the plan drive it till the wheels fall off or till the easy fix cant be done any more to the inline 8 then swap. thanks newsomtravis, if you have any build pic's can you send them i do have a doner a 78 monte carlo and i have a 327/t350 trans combo sitting in my shed . if i keep the car ill want to do a swap when the inline cant be fixed any more. thanks
Ran into a bad crank has a crack im in the eng about 500$ in new part,gaskets ,head ect ..need a crank and looks like i may not be able to find one ..bumed any one know where i can find one give me a ring 619-750-4851thanks
That's what the Dynaflows do. They take off in second, and they don't shift. It's all in the torque converter. You can take off in Low and then shift it into high range, but I've read that the Dynaflows really don't like that. Essentially the Dynaflows are heavily biased toward smoothness over speed ... that was the Buick way.
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