I am looking for opinions here... If you were to build something, would you build it with a 394 or a 455, and why?
***uming you want a "traditional" build, the 394 would be the easy choice for me. if cost is the issue, then the 455 would be the way to go. if cost is the issue, why not a 350 Olds?
Yea the 350 is a good engine, and they don't look bad. I am going to make an ***umption that you have the option of 455 or 394. For me personaly (as Mr Wop can attest) the 394 is the only way to go.
If it's a custom and you are going to keep the hood closed but drive the wheels off it a 455 but if you plan on opening the hood for show and tell at every rod trot and car show build the 394. Hotrodladycruiser has put mega miles on her 455 and as far as I know the engine it's self has never been a problem. 350R's are great too if you want to have a road car that gets a bit better mileage and still runs with the big dogs. They will cruise at ticket getting speeds all day long on the freeway without breathing hard.
This car...... And yes, I have the option of either... I have the original 394... Can get a rebuilt 455.... I was going to do the 455 swap, which I have the knowledge, ability and $$s to do..... But I am having second thoughts..... Car will be used for cruizing, car shows and probably a daily driver in the summer when it is nice... Yall have given me some good opinions, but not all of you have given me the why....
If money were no object, hands down it would be the 394. Parts are still around abiet very expensive. New Offy intakes available Isky has cam cores Egge has pistons in almost any compression Rings and bearings available in most sizes Roller rocker arm shaft ***emblies available Mondello will still do a very nice set of heads for you You could probably do a very sweet Olds 350 for about 1/3 the cost though.
if you are building a cruiser, it may not be a bad thing to do the 455 swap. But if you intend to put a ton of miles on it, then give consideration to a 350. Then, give the 394 a good looking over and offer it up for sale. The 394 is a very desireable engine in a hotrod and in nostalgic drag cars, so there would certainly be some interest if you were to offer it for sale.
You definitely won't see many 455's (or 400's or 425's) in many fenderless applications, but that didn't stop me One deciding factor may be what you want to run for an intake & carbs. For the 394, there are aftermarket options for different multicarb set-ups. For the 455, you have single or dual 4 barrel aftermarket intakes available only. The only tripower available is a 1 year only factory option available in 66 & 67. They only made about 1200 of these, so best of luck finding one. I got REAL lucky, as my brother had a complete intake & carb set-up that was on his high school daily driver olds many years ago. He was smart enough to save the entire set-up-original carbs, intake, linkage, etc, & bag it up when he sold the car years ago. I scored big time Even if it is for a fenderless app, there is nothing wrong with a two 4 barrel set-up in my opinion. You can dress a 455 to look great I think, hood & fenders or not. In your car I would not mind a bit having the 455, I think it would be great. Gas mileage not so much maybe though. Here's a couple pics of mine for ideas-good luck in your project! Dan
Build a motor for what? To put in what? If you just want to build a random motor in case you get some kind of car some day, don't build either of them. Get a Chev 350. I put a 59 Olds 394 in a Willys in 1972 if that gives you any clue. I still like the Olds for certain applications. In the old days quite a few drag cars and hot street cars had Olds 394 and 371 engines bored and stroked as far as 480 cu in. I had a chance to buy one cheap about 10 years ago and I'm still sorry I didn't follow it up. The 455 is a better engine in some ways at least a more modern design. Either one will work great especially in a heavy car. As long as you can afford to put gas in the tank.
About 12 years ago I helped a buddy (RIP) do exactly the same engine swap you are thinking about. We put a 455 Olds into a 59 Olds convertible that he owned. We used the th400 transmission and it was a pretty straightforward swap, the only real problem area was the drivers side exhaust manifold. The stock 455 manifold wanted to occupy the same spot as the 59 steering box. I had read that the tightest manifold for that side was called an "Industrial" manifold, and not sure what those were used on, but we started scrounging the junkyards and bought a few manifolds to try. We finally found one that was close and as I recall we had to do some surgery on it to make the outlet clear the steering box. Motor mounts were pretty simple, as was clearance for the transmission, all we had to do was modify the existing crossmember with a new plate to meet up with the th400 mount. Overall, it made a nice swap and made it so he could go to any auto parts store and get most anything he might need for repairs in the future. That is not always the case with the older Olds engines, like the 394. I have played with both the older design Olds engines and also the newer 425/455 versions and kinda like the new ones more from a performance standpoint, however I am still using a 64 394 in my newest project because I own it and wanted the car to look like it has been around for a while. Don
Anyone got any nicely decked out 394 pictures to add to this post? I do like the show, and I would like it to have a certain pop when the hood is opened..... I don't race, other than maybe beating someone off the line every once in a while. I love a meaty cam. Here is the engine in my old 59 Plymouth I sold to some guy in Michigan... This is what I like... Would like to compare some blinged out 455's and 394's... If you don't mind shiny that is. I like shiny.
Damn right, bullet proof and money saved over the 394 can buy a lot of gas. Then there is the trans, T-400 cheap, old Hydros not so much.
One problem on the 394 is the trans. From 59 up Olds used the Slim Jim Rotohydramatic on almost all their cars. It is a rotten transmission. The alternative is the old 4 jerk Hydramatic. Adapters for new transmissions cost a lot of money. The 455 was part of the new series of engines that came out in 1965 the same year they adopted the TurboHydramatic. Modern GM transmissions will bolt up.
Since this one is a 59, Everything I have seen points that it would be paired with a Jetaway..... Am I wrong? I even checked Fatsco's website, and it lists the slim jim starting in 61.
Not so sure it is that much of an issue, depending on what the trans looks like on the inside. I have rebuild cast iron torqueflites.... Not sure the jetaway would be an issue to rebuild. So I guess I am focusing on the engines. Lol
If performance is part of the equation then definitely the 455. There have been a number of new aftermarket offerings for the big Olds lately, not that they don't make ungodly amounts of torque in stock form as it is. I have a warmed up 455 in my OT vehicle that breaks the tires loose shifting into third with a 200R
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