Small block chevy

[whitefab]

I may get thrown out of Squarebirds my first post, but has anybody put a 350-350 in a squarebird. I have a real nice drivetrain from another failed project. My 60 HT has a bad tranny, so a whole later model powerplant seems like a viable option.

[Joe Johnston]

SB* (can't even make that letter combination!)

Anyone want to vote on letting whitefab continue here???

[Guest]

That is just wrong ...

in so many ways. If you don't realize that, sell your bird to someone who will do right by it, or sell the brand x drive line and pickup at least a ford derived one and preferably an FE based setup. It will make more power and torque (especially if tweaked correctly) and you won't become a social pariah and victim of scorn and outright disgust (from ford guys) when you open the hood at car shows. All that being said, it's your car, and you wouldn't be the first human to do something really, really stupid. Mike

[tbird430]

Anythings possible.

It will take a lot of welding & fabrication though. In the end, the TH-350 transmission will probably burn up from trying to keep that much weight moving around. The 350cid would need to be built for low end torque, etc.

In short, its your car. Your time, blood, sweat, & money. It would also devalue the T-Bird so remember that come resale time down the road...

Good luck.

[Restifier52]

When I bought my 60HT 15 or so years ago, I dreamed about replacing the 352/COM with a Hemi. Cause Hemis are cool. If I had won the lottery I probably would have done it - you know, send it to Chip Foose or someone like that. But I ended up putting a crate 351W/AOD in it. I understand that you already have this driveline and I'm not very experienced in car building but I imagine you would have to modify all the mounting points at least and who knows what else. I think Mike's suggestion to sell the driveline is good. It is apparent that you want to keep the Squarebird. Investigate your Ford based options.
Rick

[GTE427]

My first consideration --aside from branding-- is the oil sump location difference between the brands. Fords are front sump [and rear steer], while SBC are rear sump. Look at your SBC oil pan compared to the TBird cross member and steering linkage, if the engine is to be pushed back for clearence, the result may be that the Bell housing hits the fire wall.

This may be enough hassle to sink the job.

[simplyconnected]

My cousin's son in Mississippi did that to a Mustang (fox body). He couldn't get crap for it when he went to sell it.

All these guys are telling it straight... Find an old GMC PU truck, restore it, and put your powertrain in there. That setup will bring far more because it makes sense.

I'm sure your ideas have been replicated in the past, but those guys all hang out at THE H.A.M.B. (it's a message board). - Dave

[Anders]

I may get thrown out of Squarebirds my first post, but has anybody put a 350-350 in a squarebird. I have a real nice drivetrain from another failed project. My 60 HT has a bad tranny, so a whole later model powerplant seems like a viable option.

I would sell the Chevy engine and restore your´s or maybe buy a new tranny for those money.

[Dakota Boy]

A 460 and a C-6 will fit in your car....

460's are pretty plentiful, seeing how they were produced for dang near 30 years

[dgs]

Come on folks, go easy on him, it's his car and his engine. Is it unconventional? Yeah, but there's no real sin here, just a guy trying to make the most of what he's got and keep an old 'Bird on the road.

As far as the SBC being up to the task, I'd say absolutely. These T'birds aren't terribly heavy for cars of the day at ~4,000 lbs. Chevy and Ford put small blocks (and straight 6's!) in full sized sedans likely weighing more for many years, no reason that SBC wouldn't keep up.

That said, there may be real practical reasons that this won't work or will be impractical and it sounds like GTE427 has some god advice. I'm no expert in engine swaps at all,bu tit seems you're in for fabricating motor mounts, transmission linkages, throttle linkages, trans mounts, a driveshaft and possibly more. Not an insignificant amount of custom work.

In the end, I think the only thing you gain here is making use of a drive train you already have, there's no other benefit of a SBC over the stock engine. Anders may have the best solution - sell the SBC to fund the rebuild of your trans.

[Guest]

Hey Guys,
I'm in agreement with dgs Its whitefabs car he can do to it what he wants! No one is going to disown him because of his decision! Look what Larry Watson done to his beloved Thunderbird, she was and still is admired by millions! If I ever get started on my "Christine" she has some major modifications coming She's also going to say that I was rebuilt by Richard Hord!