455 Buick? Fact or Fiction?
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Joined: Jun 2000
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From: Festus, MO, USA
455 Buick? Fact or Fiction?
I heard that you could swap a 455 Buick motor into a thirdgen. In fact I think I've seen it done. Is this realistically possible? I think when I saw a car it was done on it was said that headers weren't an option because they just wouldn't fit. Would there be room if you removed the fender wells? Is there any chance of this motor passing E-check? What kind of power do these motors make? I heard that they were king when it came to tourque but it was tough to get anything out of them in the upper range. Will the tranny bolt up and any chance it would survive this motor? Any issues with hood clearance? (probably not, but had to ask) Sorry, that's a lot of questions there. Anyone who knows anything about this I would love to hear from you. Opinions and geusses are fine too. Thanks
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Joined: Jul 1999
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From: 51°N 114°W, 3500'
Car: 87 IROC L98
Engine: 588 Alcohol BBC
Transmission: Powerglide
Axle/Gears: Ford 9"/31 spline spool/4.86
Any engine can be swapped into a third gen but the only swap headers available are for BBC. You would have to run stock manifolds or have a set of headers custom fabricated. Everything else would have to be fabricated to make it fit (mounts, wiring, cooling, etc). You would also need to change the tranny because Buick/Olds/Pontiac/Caddy all have a different bellhousing pattern than Chevy.
You can't remove the fender wells because they are part of the structural integrity of the car. The only way to remove them is to have a tube frame made.
Other than car show exotic stuff, swapping in any engine other than SBC or BBC isn't worth the extra cost. If you really want to do it, expect to spent a lot of money and time doing the project. Don't expect it to be a simple and easy swap. The same goes if you want to use an Olds, Pontiac or Caddy engine. Nothing is impossible but a lot of planning is involved.
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Stephen's racing page
87 IROC-Z Pro ET Bracket Race Car
383 stroker (carbed) with double hump cast iron heads and pump gas
454 Big Block buildup now in progress for the 2001 racing season
Best results before the 383 blew up
Best ET on a time slip: 11.857 altitude corrected to 11.163
Best MPH on a time slip: 117.87 altitude corrected to 126.10
Altitude corrected rear wheel HP based on power to weight ratio: 476.5
Best 60 foot: 1.662
Racing at 3500 feet elevation but most race days it's over 5000 feet density altitude!
Member of the Calgary Drag Racing Association
87 IROC bracket car, 91 454SS daily driver, 95 Homebuilt Harley
You can't remove the fender wells because they are part of the structural integrity of the car. The only way to remove them is to have a tube frame made.
Other than car show exotic stuff, swapping in any engine other than SBC or BBC isn't worth the extra cost. If you really want to do it, expect to spent a lot of money and time doing the project. Don't expect it to be a simple and easy swap. The same goes if you want to use an Olds, Pontiac or Caddy engine. Nothing is impossible but a lot of planning is involved.
------------------
Stephen's racing page
87 IROC-Z Pro ET Bracket Race Car
383 stroker (carbed) with double hump cast iron heads and pump gas
454 Big Block buildup now in progress for the 2001 racing season
Best results before the 383 blew up
Best ET on a time slip: 11.857 altitude corrected to 11.163
Best MPH on a time slip: 117.87 altitude corrected to 126.10
Altitude corrected rear wheel HP based on power to weight ratio: 476.5
Best 60 foot: 1.662
Racing at 3500 feet elevation but most race days it's over 5000 feet density altitude!
Member of the Calgary Drag Racing Association
87 IROC bracket car, 91 454SS daily driver, 95 Homebuilt Harley
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