Something's not adding up. Or, is it?

Discussion in 'Buick FAQ' started by RagtopBuick66, Apr 6, 2019.

  1. RagtopBuick66

    RagtopBuick66 Well-Known Member

    I bought a 1966 Special, picking it up tomorrow. I had a friend who lives near the location of the car go and check it out for me, though, admittedly he knows nothing about Buicks. (He builds mostly mid-60s GM stovebolt stuff.) I got to looking at the pics he sent me and I noticed something odd under the hood. Let me preface this by stating that the seller swears it's the original engine to the car, which should be by all rights (in a Special) a 300 if it's a V8. I noticed the ring on the air cleaner said "Wildcat 350". Assuming it's the original air cleaner as well, was a Wildcat 350 actually a 340, since the Buick 350 wasn't introduced until '68? I've heard the 300 referred to as a Wildcat 310, only because I owned one many years ago, and I know it was based on the torque rating rather than CID or HP. Which leads me to my next question..

    If the engine under my hood IS the original engine, which I've then got to assume is a 340, how rare is it to find a Special with a 340? The only mention of it I have been able to find online is in the pic posted below, but there is no info on how many were built with this configuration. I'm really just trying to figure out what I've bought here, though the best way to confirm anything will be to run the casting number from the intake once I get it home tomorrow evening. It'll at least identify whether it's a 340 or a 350 I guess.
     

    Attached Files:

  2. RagtopBuick66

    RagtopBuick66 Well-Known Member

    Just noticed the 340.2 cui. So it IS a 340, referred to as a Wildcat 350. I wasn't even aware they ever put anything bigger than a 300 in the Special!
     
  3. Cnd72sky455

    Cnd72sky455 Well-Known Member

    Didn't the numbers on the air bowl refer to HP not CI in those days?
     
  4. RagtopBuick66

    RagtopBuick66 Well-Known Member

    Nope. Torque rating. But you're correct, had nothing to do with CID. Pretty sure I've determined it's a Special Deluxe SportCoupe with a 340. I just don't know how rare that combo is. No information.
     
  5. Cnd72sky455

    Cnd72sky455 Well-Known Member

    I stand corrected
     
  6. My3Buicks

    My3Buicks Buick Guru

    If it was ordered with the 340 it should be a 340/4. While the 300 us certainly the mist common Powertrain in that era Specials, it was not at all uncommon for them to be ordered with the 340/4
     
  7. RagtopBuick66

    RagtopBuick66 Well-Known Member

    Oh, no doubt. If it was an offered option, I'm sure they were ordered that way. God knows I would have! I'm just wondering how many actually WERE ordered with the 340. Can't seem to find any numbers. All I can find is that there were a little over 10,000 Special Deluxe SportCoupes ordered with the V8. Nothing about how many of those V8s were 300s and how many were 340s.
     
  8. RagtopBuick66

    RagtopBuick66 Well-Known Member

    (Red dot)
     

    Attached Files:

  9. RagtopBuick66

    RagtopBuick66 Well-Known Member

    Anyone know where I might get a build sheet off the VIN number?
     

    Attached Files:

  10. RagtopBuick66

    RagtopBuick66 Well-Known Member

    Already got that. I'm trying to get a build sheet based on the VIN. Engine, gear ratio, original paint/interior colors, options and accessories, etc.
     
  11. wkillgs

    wkillgs Gold Level Contributor

    That's not available. Unless there is a cache of tens of thousands of old records stored away somewhere. There are rumors they burned long ago.
    There might be a body build sheet stuffed in the rear seat springs. That will give limited info.... just stuff that was added to the car at the Fisher body plant. In extremely rare cases, a full build sheet has been found in a 66.
     

Share This Page