New To the form. 87 Cutlass

[WisconsinCutlass]

Hello everybody. I bought a 1987 cutlass last week. From what I was told it's all original 307 and transmission. The Car fax (which I believe was a big waste of $40) says that I'm the 3rd owner of the vehicle. It's definitely going to be a project car. There's some minor rust but for being a 27 year old car in Wisconsin it's the cleanest one that I found.

I've been searching the web and found that either the olds 403 or 350 is direct swap into the car. The thing that I'm not understanding is the Computer controlled stuff. I keep seeing the term CCC when looking up motor swaps but can't seem to find what It means. Also how much does it take to build an Olds 350 or 403 to 250-300hp?

I'm also going to pick up an 84 header panel headlights and grills tomorrow because I'm not a fan of the front end. I do believe this should be a direct swap.

Just want to say Thanks to everybody already for all the threads I've gone through and The future help I'm sure I'm going to need. I've been waiting along time time for a G body and I can't wait to dig into it!

 

[MrLightning]

Welcome!


CCC = computer controlled carburetor


as for cost on building an engine, that's really a very subjective question, with really no definitive answer that applies. Consider the name brands available for any given part and whether your going to do the work yourself (pending amount of machine work needed or not needed) and if your not going to do work yourself, whether its a buddy or a shop charging normal machining/shop hourly rate. If you have access to good useable parts from a friend, obviously that's going to lower your costs. Keep us posted what your doing. Good Luck! Looks to be a nice car to start with.

 

[LOCOGOMEZ]

Where in Wisconsin are you? Im in MN. Welcome to the Forum. Glad to have you here. Good luck on any future builds keep us posted.

 

[Intragration]

Welcome, nice looking Cutlass!

You're right, the 350 or 403 should be a near-direct swap from a 307. The CCC is a debatable item. Some people like to keep it, some people don't like to waste their time messing around with it. It can be eliminated with a standard HEI distributor and a standard Quadrajet. It does have some bearing though on torque converter lock-up, and also potentially on cruise control and AC function. Otherwise, it's useless and potentially counter-productive to making power.

A good engine rebuild is not cheap, but you might be able to find a decent used motor like I did to swap in. My 455 cost me $1,500 including a TH350, and they had both recently been rebuilt. I was able to drive and inspect the car they came out of, which was a huge plus. If you keep your eyes on Craigslist, you should easily be able to find a good motor for a good price. And regardless of dyno output, either motor should feel pretty darn impressive compared to your 307.

On the header swap, you may need to modify headlight wiring, not positive about this.

 

[williamattop]

Hello and welcome from Milwaukee.

That 87 header panel should bring some decent $$$ towards getting the motor where you want it.

 

[LOCOGOMEZ]

Hello everybody. I bought a 1987 cutlass last week. From what I was told it's all original 307 and transmission. The Car fax (which I believe was a big waste of $40) says that I'm the 3rd owner of the vehicle. It's definitely going to be a project car. There's some minor rust but for being a 27 year old car in Wisconsin it's the cleanest one that I found.

I've been searching the web and found that either the olds 403 or 350 is direct swap into the car. The thing that I'm not understanding is the Computer controlled stuff. I keep seeing the term CCC when looking up motor swaps but can't seem to find what It means. Also how much does it take to build an Olds 350 or 403 to 250-300hp?

I'm also going to pick up an 84 header panel headlights and grills tomorrow because I'm not a fan of the front end. I do believe this should be a direct swap.

Just want to say Thanks to everybody already for all the threads I've gone through and The future help I'm sure I'm going to need. I've been waiting along time time for a G body and I can't wait to dig into it!

let me know about your header panel I am intrested.

 

[85Supreme]

Welcome!

Are you getting the bumper filler as well? I've never noticed and hopefully someone else can chime in, but it may be different.

 

[WisconsinCutlass]

I believe the bumper filler is included with the header panel Im looking at tomorrow. Ill post pics of it tomorrow.

Also is the header panel from my car really that desirable? I think it looks to much like early 90s fwd. Car.

The guy that has the header panel IM looking at tomorrow also has a 1973 Oldsmobile 350. How can I make sure that its the year he says and is that a decent motor? He's asking $250 and I have no clue what shape its in.

Sorry for any typos IM at work on my phone right now.

 

[LOCOGOMEZ]

I believe the bumper filler is included with the header panel Im looking at tomorrow. Ill post pics of it tomorrow.

Also is the header panel from my car really that desirable? I think it looks to much like early 90s fwd. Car.

The guy that has the header panel IM looking at tomorrow also has a 1973 Oldsmobile 350. How can I make sure that its the year he says and is that a decent motor? He's asking $250 and I have no clue what shape its in.

Sorry for any typos IM at work on my phone right now.

I'm just looking for a different look.. where in WI are you I'm in the twin cities area. If you don't mind me asking. You can send me a p.m. If you don't want to put it on here.

 

[Intragration]

Also is the header panel from my car really that desirable? I think it looks to much like early 90s fwd. Car.

The guy that has the header panel IM looking at tomorrow also has a 1973 Oldsmobile 350. How can I make sure that its the year he says and is that a decent motor? He's asking $250 and I have no clue what shape its in.

For some reason, some guys really want the composite light front. I tend to agree, I like the sealed-beam front much better, but it's a matter of taste. There were a lot fewer composite front cars made, so they're just harder to come by.

On the motor, I believe a '73 350 would be marked either "2" or "5" (NOT "2A" or "5A") and the heads would be marked "8". A small block guy might chime in with better information. The problem with buying a motor that's just sitting there is, you have no idea what kind of condition it's in internally. You could turn it over with a breaker bar, you could check the plugs, but basically you're buying an unknown quantity. I'd much rather spend a bunch more money on a motor that's still running in a car, or at least one with some verifiable history, as opposed to a rusted doorstop. Less to worry about if you plan on rebuilding it completely, but even then you can have problems if you don't know the internal condition.