Got a buddy with a worn out 264ci Nailhead in his '54 Buick but the Dynaflow has recently been gone through. His question (and I'd like to know myself :idea2: ) is if he can swap in a 425ci that he has available. Will a '53 trans go to a 425ci? What years will interchange? I'm assuming that the 264ci, 322ci trans are different than the 364ci, 401ci, 425ci trans but hopefully I am wrong :Brow: Aside from the trans, I'm assuming that the motor mounts are different as well? Thanks so much for any info :TU:
I dont think it will bolt up. the bell housing circle is a different size, the flex plate is different, the crank is different and the exhaust manifolds are different. the motor mounts may bolt up. Me thinks you would need a trans from a 59-63 big car and the 425 exh. manifolds+ all the brackets and pulleys from the 54. Now all that said, it is going to take a lot more radiator to cool that 425. AND then there is the issue of the enclosed drive shaft mating up to the later trans tail shaft. It will be a bigger project than it looks like on the surface, not to mention all the issues that the massive increase in torque will bring on.
This is not an impossible job, just very time consuming doing the actual work & looking for parts. If you ARE serious it can be done WITHOUT swapping rears for open drive.
Yeah, like Tom said , you gotta have your head set that you are gonna do it. I think there is some one here on the board that has done a 56 or so. Where is that dual quad fella....????????????
That fella is around... I did a swap about 12+ years ago. I did swap the trans out for a sp/th400 and I chose a 57-64 Olds rear as well. Tom has a real nice way to use most of the stock rear parts when changing over to open drive though. As far as using the 54 dynaflo with a 425 or 401- I have heard that you might be able to use a 57 trans front half-convertor, bellhousing etc but I really don't know about this. I would recommend locating a 1956 322" and having it rebuilt with some performance mods, or planning on a more substantial swap such as trans. The motor mounts are different, the 264-322 use three bolts per mount, the 364-401-425 use four bolts per mount-none of the bolt holes line up though. The exhuast ports on the 264-322 are round, those on the 364-401-425 are rectangular (although a little grinding will make them close to matching) The 401-425 are a little wider, although not by much. The starters, waterpumps, intakes, oil pans and other small stuff is also different. If planning on doing the work to make a 401-425 fit, spend the effort to get a better trans in there as well. Even the later dynaflos were much better than what he has now. Still, a well built 322 with a few mods would be a very noticable improvement over a worn out 264.
Hey, Joe......where you been???????? On this question , I , think, think,think..... ck out what possibilities that a 364 would work with what is there or go whole hog and swap the 425 with a th 400......either one would be nice. my folks had a 56 with a power pack 364 that ran good....... a 100 in. increase in the cubes will make a big difference in the way the car runs. of course so will the 425.......
I've been around the garage and the kids (three now). As far as the 364- you would still need to convert everything as you would a 401-425. It has the smaller bellhousing, bigger heads, four bolt motor mounts etc... It surely would give a noticable increase in performance, the power pack motors (four barrels, 10.25:1 adv. compression, dynaflo trans) were rated at 300hp and something like 375(?) lbft torque. I know these numbers are not real accurate (judging by actual 401 dyno results) but are still a vast improvement over the 264 which had a best rating of 188hp. The only thing with the 364-much like the 59-63 401 is that you need an adapter for the torque convertor support, space the starter forward about 1/2-5/8" and get the flexplate to fit over the crank hub-either by machining the crank down or the flexplate open. If you had a chance at a good 364 and sp400 I would do it, but if you need to track them down, I would look for a 64-66401-425 with the sp400 attached. Last I knew, Tom T had a fresh 401 and sp400 that he was considering selling for less than it would cost to have them rebuilt. Shipping would be the only concern.
Thanks so much for all the info! :Smarty: As of now I think he's going to keep the 264 and see how it goes, while keeping an eye out for a better 264ci or 322ci. Thanks again for all the help :beers2:
If interested I have a couple running 322's for sale. One Auto with trans. that could use a rebuild. The other can go in as is but is manual trans.
