1983 long roof

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sbc383rulz

Apprentice
Jul 1, 2013
91
13
8
Western Washington
hey guys,
picked up a 83 malibu wagon 305/th350 7.5 3.42 open.
needs a grip of work and some general refinement..
im in the middle of resealing the timing cover and changing my intake manifold and carb.
hope you enjoy the ride!!
 

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Longroof79

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Welcome aboard!
Always good to see more longroofs join our exclusive ranks. :)

What are your plans for the car? Daily driver, builder, etc?
 

sbc383rulz

Apprentice
Jul 1, 2013
91
13
8
Western Washington
its going to be a daily driver/cruiser, i have 3 daughters that LOVE to cruise in dads car! my buddy is giving me a 69 olds 350 that im going to fix and throw in it with a 200r4, for now im going to fix the 305 and possibly rebuild the th350... second gear is kinda missing...
 

Longroof79

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Yes, they do make great family cruisers and haulers.
I'm sure the Olds 350 engine and 200-4R trans.would motivate the car nicely. Building an Olds engine can be a bit pricier than building a small block Chevy. Unless of course the engine had already been rebuilt, or overhauled previously.

One of our fellow members (Oldsmoletick) has a 4-dr Malibu that's Olds powered. I'm sure he'll be glad to give you some pointers.

Good luck with your progress. Keep us updated.
 

sbc383rulz

Apprentice
Jul 1, 2013
91
13
8
Western Washington
the only thing the engine really needs is a timing set and gasket set so it shouldnt be any more expensive than a chevy 350. the olds engine also makes more low end and im hoping to be able to get 20+mpg out of this car! first question is HOW THE HECK do you remove the headliner?!?! i have holes in the roof from where the roof rack used to be and i need to weld them up and redo the headliner while its out.
 

Longroof79

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If the engine is healthy compression wise, valves, guides, etc...I say go for it. I agree, the earlier pre-smog Olds 350 is a ballsy power plant. A friend of mine had a '69 Cutlass S back in the day, and that car moved along nicely on the open road.

As for the headliner, Be very gentle and patient removing the headliner. The backing boards can be quite brittle.
You'll have to remove the sun visors, dome light, and the perimeter trim that essentially holds the headliner board up. As you probably noticed, the wagon headliner is in two sections. Be careful removing the perimeter trim, the clips break very easily and the rear trim clips(over the rear hatch glass) are very difficult to find.
It's pretty straight forward, just proceed with caution. When the board is out of the car, inspect it for cracks and fractures in the styrofoam. You can always use fiberglass matting and resin to make repairs to the board.
If you're experiencing any problems, just holler.
 

sbc383rulz

Apprentice
Jul 1, 2013
91
13
8
Western Washington
how do you get the trim off? i tried very carefully to remove the front trim and broke every single clip, didnt want to keep going and break the rear clips!!
 

Longroof79

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Oct 14, 2008
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Gainesville, Fl
sbc383rulz said:
how do you get the trim off? i tried very carefully to remove the front trim and broke every single clip, didnt want to keep going and break the rear clips!!
Basically, use a small to medium size screwdriver, and try to pry them out by depressing the locking tang on the clip. Unfortunately, that's where they break, so you may be able to save some, and break others. Clips also get brittle with time.
The ones over the windshield are more readily available. The farthest rear clips are the difficult ones to find. So those are the ones that will require the most care to remove.
The side trims use a series of plastic clips that are sort of hook like. Those screw onto the body. There's also a few metal spring clips
that actually help hold the headliner board up. You'll notice them as your taking it apart.
 
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