Why everyone is putting Chevy's in the off brands!

[teambop]

Now before I am called a hater or whatever I just want to have a clean, grown debate. I am a true Olds man plus I dig Buicks and Pontiac's but why drop a Chevy engine in one of these brands? Besides the typical "It's cheaper" response do you really enjoy the swap? If BOP high performance parts were the same price as Chevy, would you still go the same route as far as dropping a Chevy engine in your BOP car? I see alot of gbody's on here that's off brands, look soo good you could eat of the car itself! But, when they pop the hood you see bowtie valve covers ! It's kinda heartbreaking cause one, you knew it cost more to build than a Chevy, just take your time & look @ ebay, craigslist & swap meets. I scored a '66 425 Big Block Olds shortblock for $50. If you don't know nothing about Buick Olds or Pontiacs do your research!! Dick Miller, Bill Travato, Joe Mondello is good for Olds. Jim Butler and Kaufman Racing is good for Pontiacs. Poston & TA Perfomance & AES is good for Buicks. Now trust me I am not downing Chevys, my old man has a 1970 Camaro with a 468 BBC with 13:5:1 compression, Lunati Cam & Iron Rectangular Port heads with a 1050 Holley Dominator. Along with a 'Glide and a 4,000 stall convertor to boot now that aint a slouch!! I been around Chevys since I was able to walk but its like I want to stand out!! Take your time & collect those parts while buidling up those BOP's. In my eyes, its worth every extra penny cause you got something that very few posses I thought that's what hot rodding about! I rather have that priceless look on people's face when I drop that 425 in my '87 Olds Cutlass than another dime a dozen Chevy swap. But that's just me!

 

[outsider_27]

I wholeheartedly agree with you. I know the Olds engines don't have a huge aftermarket parts availability, but it is in the machine work. You can spend the same amount, maybe a little more, and get the same or better out of an Olds as a Chevy. Get a good cam with decent lift since the Olds does better with more lift, have the heads machined, maybe an intake, rebuild that Qjet, and you got a good runner.

 

[custom442]

some people like new engines for a reasonable amount. You can't build a new bbo for a decent price. Trust me I looked into that one for quite a while. Now if you can do your own machine work or you like to throw old rebuilt parts together from junkyards and such (don't get me wrong those types of engines are stronger than any), then yes you can get one for the same price. But I'm talkin a brand new one all except the block. Nope, not gunna happen.

 

[n33no]

I'm glad I'm not The only one that fills that way. I've seen a lot of really nice bop out there with chevy motors. It's like the car loses it's true identity when people swap in a chevy block. And the same goes with chevy with bop swaps as well. Just my 2 cents

 

[khan0165]

I'm 22, just out of school, and broke off my *ss...
Chevy is cheap, fun, and a sh*t ton easier to find parts for, specially if you live in Ottawa (not exactly "motor city")

Pontiac, I know nothing about, but have heard great things... Not alot of knowledgeable people around here to talk to about pontiac

Buick and Olds, I'm really starting to get into. My brother introduced me to Buick, and my buddy just finished his 600hp 455 Olds in his 69 Cutlass. I'm really eager to start learning

If BOP parts cost the same as Chev (10,000+ for heads, cam and a 5spd!?!?), I'd go BOP in a heart beat!... Although, those new LS motors are quite the beasts (once you understand all that EFI sh*t)

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

I built mine in 1997, before I had access to a large amount of data on anything but SBC's. It was the dawn of the internet era, when dinosaurs still walked the Earth and I was not able to afford a computer yet. Yes, it was long before reams of data were easily accessible for me to read through easily. I had also just gone through an expensive build of an AMC 360 that did not live up to expectations. So, this time I chose to use something tried, true and cheap. My whole long block ran me $1700 with a brand new set of heads and the cam and compression ratio of my choice. My intake manifold cost me $15, etc. This engine is easily better than the AMC I had built for twice the money, plus upgrades are very cheap should I ever choose to do them. Yes, you can score deals on anything in the world, but the likelihood of scoring a cheap deal is higher on a more popular item. And what engine is more popular than the SBC? I can also upgrade to port fuel injection at a later time using 100% easy to source factory parts, something I cannot do with a BOP or Cad engine.

I also justified it as the car came from the era of corporate engines. If even GM did not choose to keep engines brand specific, why should I? Had my car come with a V8 to begin with I may have made a different choice, but my car had the epically horrible 2bbl Buick 231 V6. Why not do a Buick V8? I do not like the Aluminum timing cover with steel gears design they have. It is not anywhere near as good as a Chevy. Plus, my AMC had the same design and wound up with shitty oil pressure. And besides, the SBC has one of the best oiling systems of any engine at any price of it's era. Not to mention the heads flow pretty well (not as good as AMC though) and the 350 has a 4 inch bore-something most (if not all, I am too lazy to look it up right now) of the BOP 350's do not.

So, if I like the Chevy so much, why did I build a Cutlass? Well, my grandfather bought me the car and since I could not have a V8 (his stipulation) I figured I would get the most comfortable car I could find instead. A Cutlass was about as much as a Monte back then, and the Cutlass had a much nicer interior so I got a Cutlass.


BTW, were I to do it all over again today, I would use an LS engine instead, complete with EFI and a 6 speed.

 

[Coveted]

chevy motors are just better.

That simple, its why mustang guys run sbc's.
I wouldnt even think of running a small block olds in anything unless it was a 1970 rocket motor, in a pure stock oval class

Now big blocks is a different story, 425 is beyond nice.

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

I'll also say that if you REALLY want to be a non conformist, build something other than a common car like a G body. Go build an AMC Matador Coupe, Hornet Hatch or Javelin. Maybe something foreign like a Peugeot 505 , Datsun 810 Maxima (RWD with a z car powertrain), Toyota Cressida ( RWD with Supra drivetrain), or even a BMW E30 with a LSX swap. If you really want to be different, build a car that does not have to have it's hood popped to BE different.

Then again, if you really want to stand out in a crowd when you pop your hood, put an import engine in your musclecar. No matter what you choose, you will draw a big crowd. Half will hate you, half will love you. There are plenty of good V8's to choose from too. BMW, Mercedes, Nissan, Toyota, etc. all have good V8's to choose from. Tired of V8's? How about a V12! Jaguars and BMWs have V12's that regularly show up in self serve yards. The Jag even uses a TH 400 as it's native transmission, so half the battle is already won! Then again, you an split the difference with a V10 from a Ford or Dodge light truck or van.

My point is, build what you want to build. Don't build something to be different. After all, most of our ideas of what different is are only minor variations on the same old scheme. A Olds V8 Cutlass is no different than a Chevy V8 Monte Carlo. They are both the same except in the minor details. Both are RWD GM coupes of the 80's with a cast iron block, pushrod V8 that was designed long ago driving the rear wheels. Only the division that made the engine and a few minor variations in trim differentiate the two. That is NOT being very different.

 

[v8power]

Why do I like chevy's? cuz they do all that for 1/4 of the price and you don't get made fun of.

 

[megaladon6]

IIRC the BOP motors are pretty damn good. but they're mostly, if not all, torque motors. most people look for HP, and chevy is usually better there.
and if you want high rev's, i don't think there are parts for BOP.