So, I'm still on the hunt for a 53 or 54 Chevy. I've asked so many questions, but everyone's replies have been extremely helpful to me.. (I am brand new to "hot rod" cars).... I'm curious to know if the 235 inline 6 cyl is enough power for me. I do not drive fast, (always at the speed limit or slightly above)... and I would never street race. Should I look for a car that has a 350 motor or will a 235 inline 6 be enough power? I'd like to be able to accelerate quickly from the ramps onto the highway so I don't get run over... like from 30mph to 70 mph in about 5 seconds.... Thats really the only requirement, and of course would love to get that nice rap sound when I rev' up the motor (hopefully with glass packs?) Is the motor reliable enough for long distance trips.. I'd love to go out to VLV some time once I have a solid car... How would this compare to a 4.3 v6 motor? I have that in my astro van and it has plenty of power for me....... Does anyone have any tips on what I would do to get a 235 to have better power to it?
I don't know if you'll get your 235 to have lightning acceleration from 30-70, but I believe that it would suit you for the type of driving you're talking about doing. My first '53 Chevy ended up with a stock bore '58 235 with dual carbs, dual exhaust, Mallory dual point, and an old set of Fenton high lift rockers. It was bolted to a stock three speed and 3.73 gears. I drove it to Carlisle (225 miles one way), and it had no problem maintaining a constant 70mph, and got 20 mpg doing it. The nice thing about 235s (or flatheads, for that matter) is that they make you feel like a master hop up artist--they were so restricted in stock form that almost any improvement you make can be felt in the seat of your pants. Even the quicker advance curve of the Mallory distributor made mine feel like it picked up another 20 horsepower.
Short answer, it will be fine for tooling around town. Long answer, $1000 in upgrades will get you near 200 hp. stock is 110-130 depending on the internal parts. The real limiting factor is the 3 speed. double clutching and no od will be a new experience for you. I ditched mine for a t5, and I use a stock 54 (pressure) 235. It does fine, but it ran a 20.7 and about 70 in the 1/4. Granted, with a properly setup rear it would have been better, but you can only do so much with an old mill. I was near the top of 4th at 70, with od it cruises with traffic at 80 without trouble. My rear came from a 55, ratio is about 3:1, i don't know exactly. your 4.3 is likely 200~220 hp and will be a whole different animal. 53-54 cars use side engine mounts and most of the headers on the market won't fit, and that is the 2nd biggest power adder, 1st for sound.
I got fentons and a 4bbl carb on my 235 acceleration is awsome,I also ditched the points and did a bunch of other stuff, Their are all kinds of speed part and things to pump them up. Pump it up a little and put a T5 behind it, better gearing out back and your good to go,I love the 6's cuz their cool and their somthing different. but Its your car, build it the way you want
You can get the stock manifold split for half the cost and get the same effect and not have to worry about hitting the mounts. Crestliner on the HAMB does a good job splitting inline manifolds, and so does Mike Yoder at Kansas Kustoms.
oh yeah, a 235 will be fine. I have a '55 235 in my '50 with the stock 3 speed and torque tube rear (probably from a 53-54). I live IN Chicago and have never had trouble keeping up. Yes, it takes awhile to get up to 65 and you need to be careful merging onto the highway, but it's fine. I can cruise at 70mph with no problems.
My 235 is all stock at the present time and its peppy enough for me on the back country roads. I can get up and going nicely. Never had it on the freeway because I need to do the brakes one of these weekends. By the way the car is a 57 chevy 4 door wagon. Its a lot of steel to get moving. My only beef is with my busted speedo and not having a tach. I would like to know my speed and revs instead of guessing speed by pacing someone else. A dual single carb set up or a 2bbl, a split manifold and maybe different ignition set up would be the extent that I will take the engine. Oh and like 53sled getting a T5 behind the mill. A freeway gear would be nice. Cody
Keep in mind that if you don't deviate from the original three speed, '50-'54 Powerglide equipped cars had 3.55 rear gears that you can replace your 3.73 with for slightly lower revs.
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