i am buying a 455, very nice engine, but i am worried about actually fitting it in my 67 skylark considering that they did not make 455 in 67. any help or suggestions would be helpful. i know it can be done, but how much a pain in the ass is it? keep in mind i am doing it all, and i have the tools and the capabilities, so money isnt the issue, it is my sanity, lol. thanks a lot!! sinclair
It's a fairly simple swap Sinclair I've done it 3 times now. You need special frame pads (assuming your Skylark has a small block in it now) The pads are avaliable from several vendors. (TA Performance, Poston, etc..) You're exhaust will obviosly need redone, and you should replace the tranny with a TH400 (or at least a TH350) You will need a new driveshaft, and you'll need to drill a few holes in your frame to move the transmission crossmember back a few inches. (If you have a "boxed frame" .. from a convertible or GS... you'll need to make some brackets to move the crossmember back instead of simply drilling new holes) Fire it up and tear up the road! :Brow: Good luck and keep us posted. :beer
hey man, i apperciate it, that helps a hell of a lot. i have a TH350, that in in great condition, but i know it will be destroyed eventually if bolted to a 455. so i will have to purchase a TH400, along witha drive shaft, and probably a new rear. what ratio do you run in your rears with a 455, or what do you suggest for street driving that leaves some rubber on the pavement? im looking forward to doing the job, thanks again. what drive shaft would you recomend by the way? thanks, its my first swap. sinclair
The rad. will either have to have cores added or a new alum. will be needed. Check out the street/stip archieves. I believe this topic was covered. If you use the 300's rad. it will run OK. But as soon as you hammer it down the motor will run hot. Not good. Don't use Hooker headers, they hit all over the place. 1 7/8 or 2". They are made for the 68-72 A body. The Stg 2 TA 64-67 headers fit extremely well. There was someone at the Nats. that had Poston's Stg 1 headers. They fit really well. I have no ex. with the TA Stg 1 headers. TA's frame mounts that that have the two bolt patterns would be a good investment & would alow you to move the engine back a bit & use the more common 68-72 motormounts. Big $ savings. If you decide to use the TH 400 you will need to shorten the driveshaft for 1" travel at the output shaft and have it balanced. I twisted a chevy 12 bolt's axles with the stock shortened driveshaft. If it has no major dents and not pitted with rust I would use it. I think the 8.2 10 bolt rearend would be the weak link. I have 3.73s. I think 3.42 would be a better choice for street driving.It depends on the cam/convertor combo though. You could use the TH350 at first just to get it going. It's a bolt in. Just a few experiences and opinions on the swap. Best of luck!! :beer
they did not make 455 in 67 true, kinda sorta. from 67-69 they made 430's and 400's ... which are, for practical purposes, underbore 455s (less so for the 400). hence the ability to use most of the 430/400 parts on 455 blocks.
