Ok, so here's the deal. I have an 82 Cutlass that I plan to stick an Olds 350 in, motor having come from a 74 Vista Cruiser. Motor is completely stock, and I know for certain I don't want it to stay that way. On the other hand, I'm pretty certain I don't want to build something that can only be run on the track. So, if anyone can give me some ideas, I'd be greatful. If you wanna suggest parts, part numbers would be appreciated as well. Thanks to all who reply.
Best Way to Build an Olds 350
- Thread starter 82oldskid
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you can just clone someone elses engine, but what you should really do is research how HP engine work. things like cam profiles, head flow, intake design/flow and piston design/shape are the determining factors and you need to understand their basics before designing your engine.
start off with good heads...you have #8 heads...which arent bad but will give u low compression and lousy flow, u need a set of 5 6 7 or 7a heads...smaller chambers will bump compression to over 9.
check out lunati voodoo cams engle and ultradyne for cams...comp makes decent grinds for Olds but they are really copied off chevy profiles
run a set of Hooker super comp headers.. a performer RPM intake...a 750cfm q jet...and HEI ignition...and youll have a reliable 350hp 350 for cheap..
If you want to over bore piston choices are kinda limited...
TRW flattops are nice...but heavy...
Run an M22 oil pump (std)
Remove the non adjustable rockers and replace them with Comp cams roller tip..the kit is like $260 but totally worth it...replace the springs on the heads too while your at it
check out lunati voodoo cams engle and ultradyne for cams...comp makes decent grinds for Olds but they are really copied off chevy profiles
run a set of Hooker super comp headers.. a performer RPM intake...a 750cfm q jet...and HEI ignition...and youll have a reliable 350hp 350 for cheap..
If you want to over bore piston choices are kinda limited...
TRW flattops are nice...but heavy...
Run an M22 oil pump (std)
Remove the non adjustable rockers and replace them with Comp cams roller tip..the kit is like $260 but totally worth it...replace the springs on the heads too while your at it
There is a olds book that will show you ever trick to get the best setup. I bought it there is so much info its crazy, here is a link. It says to 1978 but the small block info goes to late 1980s
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Oldsmobi ... QQtcZphoto
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Oldsmobi ... QQtcZphoto
I personally recommend high compression pistons and "C" casting Big Block heads. Then you can get some air flow in that 350!
There are some serious Olds Small Blocks out there with big block heads but you must run high compression pistons to bring the compression back to a decent level. You must also run a Performer RPM intake and port match the intake to the huge head ports.
Buy that book as well. If you're starting off new, you get the benefit of everyone else's experience of what works best.
Here's a little perspective on your build. If you just do a generic "commercially available" build, Using Performer RPM intake and camshaft, 750 cfm carb, 1 3/4 headers, and cylinder heads from 1965-1970 330 or 350. You will be real close (if not a little over) the 400 hp mark and dipping into the 12's in the quarter mile if you have the right transmission and gearing to go with it.
By switching to the high compression pistons and "C" casting big block heads, you get a huge jump. I had to seriously recalibrate our 750 carter AFB after doing this. Then you can run an even bigger cam and 1 7/8 headers and really run hard.
Good luck!
There are some serious Olds Small Blocks out there with big block heads but you must run high compression pistons to bring the compression back to a decent level. You must also run a Performer RPM intake and port match the intake to the huge head ports.
Buy that book as well. If you're starting off new, you get the benefit of everyone else's experience of what works best.
Here's a little perspective on your build. If you just do a generic "commercially available" build, Using Performer RPM intake and camshaft, 750 cfm carb, 1 3/4 headers, and cylinder heads from 1965-1970 330 or 350. You will be real close (if not a little over) the 400 hp mark and dipping into the 12's in the quarter mile if you have the right transmission and gearing to go with it.
By switching to the high compression pistons and "C" casting big block heads, you get a huge jump. I had to seriously recalibrate our 750 carter AFB after doing this. Then you can run an even bigger cam and 1 7/8 headers and really run hard.
Good luck!
Id only run the big block heads with no less than 9.5-1 compression and a cam that has a powerband from 2500-7000!! if your looking to put together a strong street motor..the early 350 heads will suffice...besides to efficiently run BBO heads...you need flattop pistons...otherwise your compression will be horrible!!
you really need to ask yourself what you want the engine to do..
a 9.0 early 350 with 68-72 heads 210-230 duration cam performer (rpm) and 1 3/4 headers..will surprise the hell out of you!! especially..if you have a stock 307 or worse yet a 231!
you really need to ask yourself what you want the engine to do..
a 9.0 early 350 with 68-72 heads 210-230 duration cam performer (rpm) and 1 3/4 headers..will surprise the hell out of you!! especially..if you have a stock 307 or worse yet a 231!
You will need to ask yourself what gas you plan to use, what idle quality is acceptable to you, and what your honest use of the car will be when you are done. What RPM do you plan to max out at, and what can the stock reciprocating assembly handle? Picking a cam that is good at the upper end of the power band will be pointless in an engine that can't spin that hard. If you want to keep the idle quality good, you will need to maximize your low speed cylinder pressure by balancing the compression ratio with the cam profile. You can trade back and forth between the two to get an acceptable balance. As a rule, bigger cams tolerate more compression better since the longer timing events and larger overlap bleed off pressure at low RPM's. I personally do not like driving a car with a rough idle as it sounds cool, but gets irritating in urban commuter traffic and can run hot or overheat in traffic with the A/C blasting in 95 degree summer heat. Low end torque can be fun if you gear for it (taller gears like a 3.23-3.54 combined with a .70 overdrive) and engines built this way are not too expensive compared to a pure HP engine. They also tend to get better fuel economy than high-strung, lopey-idle engines do. This is because they require less throttle input to move the car. Quadrajets are also good for this reason as they tend to improve low RPM mixture velocity and thus, torque.
All that being said, if you want a car that runs faster than low 13's or mid to high 12's, you will need to give up some torque and build HP instead. Either that or go to a larger engine. Remember that building a HP engine vs a torque engine is kind of like comparing a sledgehammer to a lightweight body hammer. They can both do the same work, but the small hammer requires many more hits to do the same work as the sledge does. RPM's represent the number of hits made and so, the high HP engine does more overall work even though it may make less torque per RPM it makes up for it in the sheer number of revolutions.
All that being said, if you want a car that runs faster than low 13's or mid to high 12's, you will need to give up some torque and build HP instead. Either that or go to a larger engine. Remember that building a HP engine vs a torque engine is kind of like comparing a sledgehammer to a lightweight body hammer. They can both do the same work, but the small hammer requires many more hits to do the same work as the sledge does. RPM's represent the number of hits made and so, the high HP engine does more overall work even though it may make less torque per RPM it makes up for it in the sheer number of revolutions.
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