frame swap/sub 53 buick on a 78 monte carlo?

looks like im going to do a swap/sub its just to hard and expensive to aquire old buick parts in my neck of the woods.droped 700$ on a i8 263 was suposedly rebuilt but knocks ? like to stay original but the dynaflow is not cutting it on the freeway cash for the project is getting low time for a sbc !


question and i know theres many threads that partialy some what talk about the frame swaps but none that go in detail if any one has done one please direct me to the thread
thanks

as i start the build i will post some detailed pic's as this will be my first frame swap/sub.


starting out with a 53 buick special and a 1978 monte carlo frame.

 

Wanted any info leading to a 53 buick frame swap/sub with a g body monte carlo!

Thanks !

 

bump

 

A frame like out from under a late 70's early 80's Olds 88 rear wheel drive car might be a better fit. If you use the whole frame that is.

I used a 75 Monte Carlo Frame under a 51 Merc by stretching the frame a couple of inches and it fit that car pretty well.

 

frame is too wide in the middle unless you channel the body over it. Seems most people use the donor floor and graft in the firewall area.

similar swaps have been covered in depth here before.

 

Channel the whole body over the floor / trunk floor and frame of the late model.First off you can set the ride height at the level you want ,plus you wont have to make body mounts.I dont know why people think these swaps are so difficult because they are not .I bought a 54 Chevy years ago that someone had literaly just set on an early 80's Buick frame and floor with a few sheet metal screws here and there holding it on.I did all the welding fitting ,trunk floor welding ,fitting ,frontend ,core support mounts ,column ,wiring ,etc .Its basic easy work and in the end it drove great (was my daily for 5 years) and the chassis parts were cheap and always in stock for the late model .I dont blame you for trying to upgrade from the straight 8 crap.My freind had a 55 Buick that he channeled 6 inches over a lengthened 85 Caprice chassis and floor .Him and i dismantled the Caprice down to just the floor and frame in 3 hrs .I think he spent a month or so doing the swap in his spare time and was driving it .It drove nice and sat low,plus he had like $300 in the running driver Caprice donor car and $500 in the two door 55 Buick body (pretty cheap fun IMO).Good luck on it ...

 

I think you got took on the motor... $700 for a straight-eight? Ouch.

And what do you mean the Dynaflow isn't cut out for the highway? That thing is built to cruise.

I'm meddling, but I'm done now.

I just hate to see something cool get turned into a run-of-the-mill, SBC-powered pile of mid-'80s parts.

I guess it depends why you're using the car. Anyway, good luck with the build. Hope it works out for you.

 

I have a 53 buick special, straight eight 3 speed, goes 80 mph down the freeway all day long.

 

the eng screems at 60 on the freeway ?

 

iv been doing alot of reading every one say's its a lot of hassel but others say its a one day deal .
those who say its a one day deal have the cars as daily drivers and thats wat im out to acheve with the 53 !
so im collecting parts for the swap/sub i dont wana start cutting till i get everthing i need for the build im short a tranny then the measuring and cutting starts i will document/video the swap from first cut to last weld on the build for future referance.
like my brother says "do it ".

thanks for all the input .

strange agent,
yea i trusted a fellow hamber's word on the rebuilt motor with out hearing it and i feel the same i got took for a ride. especially when my buddy caught wind of what i paid and said he had one in storage rebuilt a few years back he would have sold me for 300$ and helped me put it in ..... thats 700$ not well spent !

sled & shocker ,
channeling is in the picture but we tossed the old monte floor after a space issue arised.talking it over with my brother to see if he will commit to a channel (time to do it) if not it will be a sub and 4 link rear bagged fron n back .

Thanks
BigVic.....

 

Bummer deal. That's one mistake I bet you won't make again! Live and learn.

Well good luck with the build, I admire that you're going to daily it.

 

got the plans in the work may happen in the next few weeks weather permiting .

 

you could find a mid-80's corvette easily for under a grand. Then you'll have a 53 Buick Corvette. I'm currently doing it to a 54 BelAir. front & rear end.

 

im in the process of swappimg my 54 chevy with a 1980 el camino. ive done 2 already one o a 49 fleetline and another 54. i tried to use a monte carlo but it was too wide, it would fit but the 80-87 el camino works awsome. i will be posting the process soon

 

Just found this thread, I have a 53 Buick project on an 87 Cutlass chassis, more or less. If I were to do it over would do it a bit differently, but I was and am still on a budget. The track width of the GM G body was pretty close, so I used the front and rear clips essentially. The Cutlass was a perimeter frame, way too wide and the wrong wheelbase as well; I ditched the center of it. My Buick frame had some serious issues, and was a pretty tall C section. I ditched the whole thing, except for the body mount brackets which I carefully removed, 15” of the front frame horns and the last 3 feet behind the rear wheel arch.

I made two simple fixtures that bolted to the hubs of the severed Cutlass clips that set the wheelbase at the same as the Buick’s on both sides, (this I would shorten next time-more on this later), leveled and squared the whole works up.

I then used straight sections of 2x4 rectangular tubing set at the Buick’s original frame rail width to join the cutlass front and rear clips, and built a cross member, etc. I set the top of the 2x4 tubing 2 inches lower than the Buick frame rails as I did this, affecting a sort of channel. The idea is when I add airbags I can be at original cutlass ride height, but still be 2” lower at the rockers. Let a little air out, and be down further.

The way I did this, the body had to come off, but I had access to a hoist at that point, so it was simple. When I lowered it back onto the new Cutlass, I moved the body with a front fender forwards and backwards a little and studied, before I decided the exact position for the front wheel in the fender opening. I had read, and completely forgotten, that when you lower a car, the wheel moves backward visually in the fender opening. Once I budged everything forwards to where my front wheel looked right, the rear axle was too far back. I plan to fix this by building skirts and moving the rear opening rearwards. If I were to do it all over, I would shave 1.5 to 2 inches from the wheelbase when I built the frame center section.

With the body positioned front/rear where I wanted and centered left/right, I welded the original body mount brackets to the new frame under their respective holes in the body. I spaced the body ½ “ above the frame before doing this.

The Cutlass is front-steer, and after lowering the body 2” as I said above, there are visual issues with re-attaching the front frame horns. I want it to look clean, but the height differences are making that hard, and the radiator will have to be a custom one so as to clear the Cutlass P/S box. Plenty of height under the hood not much width down low that far forwards because of the P/S box.

I fabbed new motor mounts and was able to move my belly-button engine (everything on this is on the cheap) back almost 6 “ from the Cutlass location. Not sure yet what trans I am going to use, but it does look like I will have to use a 2 piece drive shaft because of the length. Some of my friends asked why didn’t I use a mustang kit, or this or that; well, I didn’t have the $$, but I do have a welder and the inclination, and the Cutlass frame was practically free. Of course, it will need all new brakes, but on that car, the rotors and calipers are dirt-cheap nowadays. I am running 15” GM steel wheels on the Cutlass bolt pattern, also dirt-cheap. Later on, there are upgrade parts for the G body cars if I suddenly find extra dough.

 

I don't know if i would like to see you do a whole body/frame swap deal on this, but that sub-frame is just the right width for all of the early fifties G.M "bigger" cars. I had a hand in doing this sub in Elpolacko's shop a few years ago on a '53 Pontiac, and everything worked very well. The only major clearance issue was with the radiator core support and steering box. This sub is quite a bit narrower than the typical Camaro/ Nova deal that so many guys swear by. The steering and suspension geometry is Far superior as well. With the narrower track width you can run normal front tires and wheels without the mutant back spaces that people seem to come up with with the other clips, and you have the room to get the car low. All in all, I'd say this is one of the few times when a clip is ideal. Nothin' better than a small block and 700R4 or 200R4 for reliability and everyday use. I notice most of the time the guys wincing the hardest at late model power and overdrive gearing are those that live where 55 MPH speed limits still exist... That aint S.D., L.A., or Phoenix these days!

 

I'd go with a Jag IFS myself. I think it is easier, less clearance issues, and plenty strong. Jag parts aren't that bad cost wise as well.

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=24785