I post this with such satisfaction. My 1980 El Camino with a transplanted Oldsmobile 350 (W-31) specifications and parts,
transplanted TH 350 to replace the up/downshift happy TH 350C, upgraded fast ratio steering, sway bar, buckets and console took a ten-mile shakedown yesterday. If you have forgotten or never knew, this engine swap has been the mother of all nightmarish engine swaps. If you are bored to tears or just curious, the entire process has been painfully documented in this forum and more than a few times I was hoping it would burn itself to the ground. What seemed so simple and straightforward was the absolute opposite, most complicated and most difficult of the 8 projects I have had in my life. I learned that one plus one does not equal two when it comes to G Body. I found that normal logic did not work and even with all the great advice from forums, “usual” was not always applicable. I lost count of the many times people gave advice and precise instructions that sent me in the right direction, but always blazing a path to unknown and little understood fixes that worked.
The shakedown gave me an empty steering box, and a slow drip of transmission fluid in the area of the real seal. I am replacing the pressure hose on the steering as it never could be tightened down. The hose never bottoms out before the nut snugs down. DAMN Rock-Auto strikes again. The right fix was what I did, new hoses, but the one size fits all doesn’t. I am hoping the drip resolves with some use, but it is not a hard one to replace. I replaced the HEI distributor and instantly got spark that I had been missing on two others. Go figure! I had the carb professionally rebuilt for the price of two brand new ones. But when it all came together, the carb needed zero adjusting to work right for a W-31,(bigger valves, double valve springs, W-30 Cam and W-31 Carb etc). The brakes work great and have all the vacuum needed. I used a W-30 Cam factory designed for automatics. It has nice tires and a little rake because the air shock system was junked and it has overload shocks on the rear and GBody 442 springs sand hocks in front to handle the extra weight of a 5.7 Olds vs a 3.8 Buick. It has a 15/16” rear sway bar, and all of the body mounts were replaced with silicone. I’ll know more about handling and ride when I trust it further away from the house. It needs an exhaust system now and I hope to have dual exhausts. The Muffler Guy will help me decide. Seems straight forward hahaha. I have a power driver seat and matching bucket from an S-10, a new headliner, carpet, door panels and some charcoal colored plastic dyed over the ugly….fugly camel.
The new wrinkles to fix; The shifter in the console was for a 4 speed OD trans and though I can shift it, currently it will not go into Park; P is R, R is N, D is O and so forth. It upshifts 1-2-3 fine and downshifts at stop. Soon I will try the auto downshift without the kickdown. I can stay involved with driving it by moving the lever too haha. The TH 350 has a 2000 stall converter which is good and the 2.42:1 gear make it good for cruising. I am too old to race (much). The engine is still breaking in but holds steady at about 210 degrees. I expect that to fall. The oil is 50 pounds of pressure steady. It is a high-volume pump not high pressure. It starts easily and at about 14BTDC is happiest.
So, the end of a project that took longer than the seven other ones I have rebuilt/restored, retromodded. I started this in 2018 and a great deal of time I was so totally frustrated I would let it sit for months then give it another look. From finding the Olds engine mounts, to replacing the entire transmission piece by piece and finally opting to buy a working one, to the stubborn brake system, to the no spark, then spark but no fire (which by the way was all me,,, as I somehow misaligned the timing gears about 1/8 turn off.
I might have given up years ago if not for the help and encouragement of the people in this forum of which Joe P was on top. It might have been easier if I lived in a more populated area, CLOSER TO SHOPS. In previous adventures, I usually had one or two sidekicks, and this time it was absolutely a solo gig. What’s next? I still have to install the speedo cable and some other minor tuning tweaks. Each time I drive it, I will venture further from home until I have less doubt about being stranded. I plan to drive it a lot over the next few months, and it will be my form of transportation so my wife can have the new car. The wastes: 3 distributors and 3 starters, 2 batteries 2 master cylinders, 3 throttle cables, 3 Quadra jets, 8 pushrods in addition to replacing the 16 (my timing error) Anyone need some slightly bent pushrods? 2 rocker towers (yes same incident), 2 sets of freeze plugs. I am sure the gory details are in the posts I made at the time.
It was never intended to be a show car and it is not. It will be an every day driver until I no longer can drive. It will take me to shows, swap meets and Coffee runs once I am sure it will get me both ways. I live 25 minutes from I-5 and I will NEVER drive it in heavy traffic or pouring down rain. This was my plan from the start, and it hasn’t changed. I have attached some pics taken about an hour ago on August 29, 2024. BTW, my advice is free, and worth it, but I would never wish this on anyone unless you have a G Body Cutlass sitting next to whatever Gbody car you wish to swap parts.
Chuck
