307 to 403 Olds swap...info please?

[81X11]

I trust the owner of the shop, and he knows the car and that engine. My fingers are still somewhat crossed, but it starts right up and sounds good, has good compression, so hopefully it's a good motor.

For the CCC controls, I was sent an interesting page from someone that done the 307 to 455 conversion but kept the ECM.

http://www.robertpowersmotorsports.com/CCC.html

Lots of good info there.....round and round I go!

Sadly the Cutlass the guy had was stolen. That had to hurt. BUT check out his 94 Caprice wagon, also on this page using the links at the top. Love those chrome Silverado wheels on these!

-Mike

 

[81X11]

The 350 engine is out of the '71 Cutlass. The harmonic balancer has a hairline crack at the crank keyway, Neill found this when we took the components off the front of the engine.



I'm hoping the 307 balancer will fit from my old engine. I'm planning to use all the 307 parts off the front of the engine anyway.

-Mike

 

[DoubleV]

The 307 balancer is very thin compared to a 350 one. Personally I wouldn't want to run a puny 307 balancer but it will fit.

P.S. A VIN 9 307 has a normal 350 sized balancer.

 

[81X11]

The 307 balancer is very thin compared to a 350 one. Personally I wouldn't want to run a puny 307 balancer but it will fit.

P.S. A VIN 9 307 has a normal 350 sized balancer.

Hmm...yes I read last night that it was a smaller balancer when I was hunting around the net. I'm planning on using all the 307's brackets and pulleys and such. Do you know if installing a larger balancer would have an effect on belt alignment? If there is no effect than I'll be on the seacgh for the larger balancer. I'm already in the hunt for 80-84 exhaust manifolds.

Such fun. Thanks for the reply!

-Mike

 

[Dragonist]

The 307 balancer is very thin compared to a 350 one. Personally I wouldn't want to run a puny 307 balancer but it will fit.

P.S. A VIN 9 307 has a normal 350 sized balancer.

Hmm...yes I read last night that it was a smaller balancer when I was hunting around the net. I'm planning on using all the 307's brackets and pulleys and such. Do you know if installing a larger balancer would have an effect on belt alignment? If there is no effect than I'll be on the seacgh for the larger balancer. I'm already in the hunt for 80-84 exhaust manifolds.

Such fun. Thanks for the reply!

-Mike

307 and the 350 are quite the same, heres a statment i copied off classicoldsmobile

307 the harmonic balancer sits in an 1/8th of an inch more (2 3/8 from the timing cover) then the 350's balancer (2 1/2 from the timing cover
http://classicoldsmobile.com/forums/small-blocks/34449-olds-307-350-harmonic-balancer-question.html

 

[DoubleV]

Do you know if installing a larger balancer would have an effect on belt alignment?

Yes there would. To use a 350 balancer, you'd have to use a complete bracket/pully set from a 350 ( or VIN 9 307 ). Fortunately, when I did my 307 to 350 swap, I didn't have to deal with all of that stuff because I had the VIN 9 engine.

You shouldn't have too much trouble picking up a complete set from a late model 350.

Using the small 307 could throw the engine balance off. I've heard people claim it could be WAY out of wack, but others have claimed it will be just fine so who knows.

 

[81X11]

Using the small 307 could throw the engine balance off. I've heard people claim it could be WAY out of wack, but others have claimed it will be just fine so who knows.

Does anyone here know for sure??? I'd thought at most I'd have to swap the balancer....but now it sounds like I have to swap all the brackets and pulleys to install this 350??

My 307 is an '88 model with the roller heads. I DO NOT plan on racing this car or even driving it hard. It's just a cruiser, but I want a RELIABLE cruiser.

Originally when I'd looked into this swap I thought all I'd have to change was the exhaust manifolds.

-Mike

 

[DoubleV]

81X11, Call up a place like Rocket Racing and ask them about the balancer stuff. They'll know for sure and give you a no BS answer.

I have a set of manifolds that came off of my 307 from my 442. They are in excellent condition and the drivers side even still has the studs on them in great shape. It's gonna cost you for shipping ( they're pretty heavy and you're far away ), but if you're interested in them, PM me and make me an offer as I have no use for them anymore and don't want to store them anymore.

P.S. I even have a drivers side manifold with no heat riser valve BS, if you were interested in that as well.

 

[81X11]

81X11, Call up a place like Rocket Racing and ask them about the balancer stuff. They'll know for sure and give you a no BS answer.

I have a set of manifolds that came off of my 307 from my 442. They are in excellent condition and the drivers side even still has the studs on them in great shape. It's gonna cost you for shipping ( they're pretty heavy and you're far away ), but if you're interested in them, PM me and make me an offer as I have no use for them anymore and don't want to store them anymore.

P.S. I even have a drivers side manifold with no heat riser valve BS, if you were interested in that as well.

Thanks for the offer, but happily I can still find a lot of 80's Cutlass' and full-size Olds with 307's at the local Wrench-A-Part, and the manifolds are only $5 each. The fun part will be pulling then in the salvage yard. COME ON FALL!

-Mike

 

[81X11]

Wanna laugh? So most of you know I bought this car last summer, from the Texas hill country, in a county that did not have exhaust emissions testing. The car had just been inspected when I bought it, and I ran on that inspection all this past year since I knew it would not pass the smog test we have in the larger Texas cities.

The car never ran right when I bought it. It ran so rich your eyes would water, would diesel, and smoked black when first started, stalled, it was a mess. Last spring I found out someone had pulled the check engine bulb and there were a lot of issues under the hood.

Well if you remember I had the carb rebuilt twice, replaced the intake gasket and then the intake itself, ALL the vaccum lines were done, and a few sensors, which got the CE light out, and on the way home from the shop, after the car being IN the shop for months, is when the engine lost oil pressure and started knocking. If it was any other car I would have shot it right then.

Well the inspection was up in July. Today I took the car for inspection cold....and it passed emeission!! Hahahahahaha! It runs great now. It's still gutless, but it's smooth, quiet, runs clean, and drives great.....until it warms up and the oil pressure goes away and it starts knocking!

The inspection place is a mile from my house. Car was not knocking yet when I get there, they put sniffer up the tail pipe, and it passed easy as can be. Amazing. Motor is shot but passes smog.

I've got a nice new inspection sticker on the windshield....time to yank the engine!

-Mike