I have the original V6 in my engine. Would a SBC 350/350 combo be a drop in swap? I have that combo and would like to make a bit of horse out of the car without too much trouble....
I don't think that anything is going to be a "drop-in", but things can be made to work. Notice the oil pan setup for the steering linkage. I don't have one to look at, but I think there are going to be issues there. Possibly the early Chevy II's had a similar issue and may have something that can be adapted. Also, those generations Specials had the driveshaft carrier bearing and two-piece shaft. You may have to look into adapting that too. I'm guessing there may be exhaust routing issues to deal with also - starting at the manifolds. The motor mounts may have to be made too. You may want to look all around the engine compartment and do some measuring to see what kind of issues you could run into.
There are a few things that you may need to look into first. The compact where built around the engine and transmission. The 215 v8 is very close to the 300 and what I have heard the 340. The turbine drive trans where made for that car and to change out the trans will call for the tunnel to be cut out and rebuilt to clear the larger trans. I am not sure what changes have to be done with a manual trans. The turbine drive trans will only bolt up to the 215 v8. (of all the v8) I am not the all knowing one on these cars, I hope this information hepls you out.
Thanks for the help... It appears for now, I will keep the car as is. There are too many variables to it when I still have part of the summer to drive it.
It was Motor Trend's Car of the Year because of the V6. Mine is running rich and I can still get over 20 mpg. It isn't in the best of shape, so I may be able to get that to improve a bit. My car is a convertible, so I treat it more as a cruiser than a go fast play car. If you do decide to do an engine swap, please seriously consider the 215 V8 in 4-bbl configuration. The V8 and V6 are within 50 lbs of each other, so they use the same springs. It is a considerably easier swap, and since the engine was in production for so long (unfortunately not for Buick), there are accessories / aftermarket goodies available for it. That said, I don't know how much power you can make with the 215. Good luck.
Locally, there's a pretty solid looking Special post coupe with the V6 for under $3000. I'd consider it for a commuter.
