sakins.02vert

I have a 72 454 car.. Somewhere along the line someone put a small block 350 in it.. it does have the 454 hood. To my knowledge the 4 speed manual and read end is stock.

It also has Hooker Super Comp headers and side pipes.

When I bought it I thought someday i'd put a 454 back in it but I'm wondering what makes best sense here.

Depending on the motor I'm thinking the headers may have to be changed but I would not consider getting rid of the side pipes.

I really only drive around town here and there.. for cruising. I don't plan to take it to the track or anything like that. and I'm concerned about the cost and fitment of a new 454..

Seems like the zz383 is best bang for your buck.. but in my case I have a 454 car and feel I should bring it back to what it was.. as best I can.

I don't "need" a ton of HP.. I did see a low HP 454 on ebay with 450HP for around $4,800. Not sure if that's a good idea.

Thoughts? What would you do if you were in my shoes..

terry82

IMO.changing it back to a 454 would be very expensive.It would cost nothing to leave it alone and drive as is.It would be a great car to change to a ls motor if you did want to change the motor.

derekderek

If I HAD to do the engine I would go back to big block. Yes the exhaust will have to be replaced. If your 350 runs good I would drive it. Or if tired, re-ring it and buy better heads-cam. You can always find something on the car to spend money on.

sakins.02vert

Thanks guys.. I certainly don't want to get into a $9-10,000 engine job.

I noticed last year I seem to have an oil leak which may just be a simple valve cover gasket.. Seems to be dripping down over starter, etc. but I also noticed when driving 55+ "sometimes" I notice what appears to be white or grey smoke behind me.. Not all the time but sometimes. I think I even saw it in the cabin once or twice.. The oil does not look milky.. not sure what it might be. Not sur eif it could point to a head gasket or something. I bought the car in 2016 and was told the engine (350) was rebuilt in 2009. That's all I know. Other than what's mentioned above seems to run fine.

So an LS would be easier swap if it came to that? LS3?

If it turns out to be something big I'll have a tough decision to make.. :-)

calwldlife

i looked into changing from a 350 to bb396
in a 70 elcamino.
depending on whether you go completely stock or
some type serpentine belt, brackets and pumps and
pullies need to be addressed.
then the suspension.
trans, rear end.

not an easy thing.
many little things add up.

you could very well have a head gasket leak.

derekderek

No, an LS swap would be harder than a big block swap. Engines are cheap and durable, but wiring and ecm and ignition are a PITA. If you have a head gasket leak, fix the head gasket. While you are at it, do both gaskets and replace the heads and cam. Rebuilt in 09. So you have no idea what pistons, cam. Stock heads and intake?

Mooser

Depending on what you may or may not want to do down the road also matters.

One thing nice about the SB seems to have many more options for your choices of intake, carb, air-cleaner and to a large extent going to EFI... This is of course based on leaving the stock hood and not going to the L88 hood for extra clearance. That brings up painting a hood etc.

The big block is also only part of the switch as brackets hoses and other items needed to be changed as well as the engine itself.

Were the front springs replaced or cut?

I've got a BB and it's pretty cool but honestly, most of what makes it cool is just that it's a BB. Many days I've looking at SB vettes and was pretty jealous of all that extra room (not enough to change or anything, and if I did it'd be to go LS)

My $.02
M

lars

A chrome-bumper C3 that was originally a big block car, and you're wondering what to do..? That's a no-brainer. Spend what it takes and get the big block back in it!

Lars

sakins.02vert

OK, thanks for the feedback.. very helpful..

I'll have the engine checked out by my mechanic and see where it goes.. but given all you've pointed out.. I'm leaning towards not going 454.. Probably not worth the $$.

sakins.02vert

Lars.. just seeing your comment now.. That was certainly my original thought.. just not in the budget right now.. maybe a little further on down the road..:-)

Jebbysan

I would put a nice 496 in it! Tweak it out retro factory style and have a blast......you are really only looking at exhaust and pulleys after building the engine.

Jebby

calwldlife

don't get me wrong, i love big blocks.
just want to give you a heads up on
what it will take.

there is something to be said for
putting the car to original.
but that brings in block numbers and such.

Ryan Menzies

Op,

I just went through the exact same thing on my 72 BB 4 SPD. Bought the car a couple of years ago and someone had dropped a 327 in it and it was tired.
IMO having a BB 4 spd car without the BB was just..... wrong. I went the 496 option last winter and now have my BB car.

It's probably not as much of a PITA to swap back to B.B. as you may think. I started with a core 454 out of a truck and that was it.

New exhaust and yes headers of course as the obvious parts and brackets/pulleys. I went aftermarket pulleys and Alt bracket and fabricated my PS bracket. You'll need a low intake manifold if you want to keep the hood.
The rest are some hoses, I went electric fan, some odds and ends.

If you could find a 454 out of a vette with the pulleys, brackets, manifold etc you'd be way ahead of me on a project.

Good luck !

lars

That's the way to go. Make it a Big Block again, make it look just like original, and make it tear your head off!

You can nickel-dime putting a stroker small block in it, and by the time you've finished building that crate-engine mouse-motor (if you're really honest about the cost and receipts), you're going to realize that you're within a couple of grand of putting a really nice big block in it and doing the job right. Don't waste your time and money - save your change and just do the job right one time.

Lars

ronarndt

I have a 68 convert that the PO swapped out the 327 and put in a 454. The motor is from a one ton truck- low compression, peanut ports, but lots of torque. You can find one in decent running condition dirt cheap at a salvage yard and put a better intake, carb and cam in it and put it in your car. (or put it in without mods and have about 250 hp, but lots of torque) Brackets for accessories will need to be changed and your exhaust will need to be modified. Your bill should be less than the $4800 for the ebay motor. I added a lot of stuff to my motor, but it ran well before I added $$$ to the motor.

427Hotrod

This doesn't seem that tricky. The trans/rear end stay the same. The trans/Bellhousing and motor mounts all bolt right in. You'll need a different flywheel if you use a 454 because of the way it's balanced. No huge expense.

Yes you'll need different headers, but easy enough to hook up to sidepipes unless those are ones where the 4 tubes actually come outside the car.

I would expect the BB radiator is still in place. You'll use same starter, alternator, distributor. Brackets for a C3 aren't hard to do.....really pretty simple. Front springs may still be BB also. if not...no big deal either...

Just get the right motor and you're in business.

JIM

derekderek

and if you dont mind an electric fuel pump, the gen 6 engine is a roller cam block. common, cheap, easy to find. and the low perf version is a vortec oval, not peanut head. you can buy the engine running for 1k. buy a set of alum heads for 1500, or any orig bbc head you prefer and a ZZ502 cam for 200 and easy 450 hp all day.

3JsVette

Why do it twice? If you feel the expense is excessive to swallow right now just wait until you have the resources. After all your Corvette is still drivable. I agree with the others. Put another big block and dress it to look original.

Fredtoo

It sounds like it needs an all aluminum big block engine put in it.

c3_dk

Based on what you say your need is, then I would go for a 454 (it is a 454 car from the factory)