Newbie here. The car I was always interested in seems to have come up not too far away. I always liked the G-bodies when I was a teen. My family had an 81 Grand Prix. Fun for its day. The Hurst Olds caught my eye in 1984 when the ad appeared in the car mags. It seems that an 83 has come up with a '69 350 rocket engine swapped into it. It has some Edelbrock aftermarket parts by the look of it...Intake anyways. Provided the engine is a mild performance mod, how streetable is this combination? No racing intentions. Just drama free fun. What should I look carefully at when I go see it. Thanks.
What to look for in a hurst olds with a 350
- Thread starter Genxlarry
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Check the wiring. Make sure there are no weird splices or cuts anywhere. Make sure the gauges are working correctly. It had a 307 in it, so a 307 to a 350 olds is as easy and trouble free as a 305 to a sbc 350. In and out deal, so it should be relatively clean under the hood. Without much to go on, it's tough to tell how streetable it will be. Try and test drive it.
Rust...under the carpet ( check for soft floors underneath the car - take a phillips screwdriver and remove the aluminum door sill plate - then peel the carpet back ) on the bottom of the doors, inside the trunk, where the radiator support mounts to the frame.
Wiring...check for shady wiring after an engine swap has been performed. Check all the electrical functions ( lights, horn, radio, a/c, heat, defrost, dome light, radio, PW, PL ) Sometimes people get caught up/sidetracked and forget the basics.
Pull the dipstick, and check the condition of the oil. Does the oil filter look newer? ( as in changed in the last 3 months / 3000 miles )
Don't get caught up in the " It's a Hurst Olds " pitch, because it's not a #'s matching car. I would ask for the original engine, no mater what the condition.
Look for misaligned body panels / gaps ( has this car been wrecked? )
Good luck with your hunt for a GBody!!
Wiring...check for shady wiring after an engine swap has been performed. Check all the electrical functions ( lights, horn, radio, a/c, heat, defrost, dome light, radio, PW, PL ) Sometimes people get caught up/sidetracked and forget the basics.
Pull the dipstick, and check the condition of the oil. Does the oil filter look newer? ( as in changed in the last 3 months / 3000 miles )
Don't get caught up in the " It's a Hurst Olds " pitch, because it's not a #'s matching car. I would ask for the original engine, no mater what the condition.
Look for misaligned body panels / gaps ( has this car been wrecked? )
Good luck with your hunt for a GBody!!
Never hurts to bring a second set of eyes who will be more objective. I have looked at many cars over the years for friends and thoroughly went through each one of them. I was able to let them know the good and the bad so they could make a good decision without any surprises. I am pretty knowledgeable about cars but it seems to go out the window when I'M looking to buy for myself. Case in point, I bought my 82 Bonneville in July and it didn't even have a door key! (Trunk key only) I'm really happy with my purchase but goes to show when emotions get involved, you can miss things. And sometimes they can be big things....timo22
This. Basically they'll give an unbiased opinion....sorta prevents what I call hungry grocery shopping syndrome lol
All of the above plus, if the timing chain has not been done, do it. The Olds 350 motor is very durable except the lousy, nylon coated, cam gear. The 60's and early 70's versions tend to flake apart and plug up the oil pickup. Otherwise GM's most durable 350 in my books. Make sure the 2004R trans is shifting properly as well.
If it still is an O/D transmission. I'd sure hope so. Nothing wrong with the stock ones if it was working.
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