I had a ‘68 GS 350 while in university and have always loved the lines of the ‘68-‘69. Was surfing through Kijiji a couple of months ago and came across this ‘69 GS 400 in Sudbury, Ontario. Found a reasonable quote for transport (I’m in Edmonton, Alberta), made a deal with the seller, and a couple of weeks later it was in Edmonton. The back story is the car was his Dad’s, which he inherited after his passing. He was driving it to his winter storage location last fall, and while in route, a connecting rod decided to aerate the oil pan. I had surgery coming up which was going to severely limit what I could do for 8 weeks post surgery, so it was time to get busy. Got the engine on the engine stand, pulled the pan, and found this covering the oil pick-up. I think I figured out what caused the failure……. that and the fact when I had the car on my lift, I noticed the oil pressure sending unit was disconnected so the previous owner had no warning. The rod took a chunk out of the #1 cylinder bore and the front half of the crank and rods got very toasty. The crank is done. I’ve dropped the block off at the engine shop and the prognosis looks good. No cracks in the block or water jacket so it’s currently having the one cylinder sleeved and the block decked. I am looking for a crank and rods as well as an oil pan if anyone has some leads. More to come. Allan
The engine was supposed to be original to the car, but I really have no way of verifying that. The VIN stamp pad is corroded and illegible. Could anyone decipher the RR 7b1? Thanks in advance. Allan
Personally, I’d set aside the original block and put a 455 in. It should be about the same cost… Patrick RR is a ‘69 400 non-Stage. Here’s some info: http://www.v8buick.com/index.php?threads/what-does-this-engine-code-look-like-to-you.271849/
Thanks for the info! Funny you said that. Prior to finding out the block was salvageable, I found this in Winnipeg on another surf through Kijiji. What made it attractive was the rebuilt engine in it…… The car should be here in the next week. Unfortunately I had surgery yesterday so will need to coerce some buddies for help. The original block will get sleeved and wrapped and stored. Allan
And Buick 350s are often very cheap; put a 350 in the ‘67 and keep it or send it to a new happy owner! Patrick
Although it doesn’t look like it, the ‘67 is a GS 400 also. It’ll be moving along once I get the engine out. Edit: Looking at the VIN of the car, it isn’t a GS 400 (although it was advertised as one). It’s a Skylark. Oh well, I bought it for the 455 Stage 1 anyway. lol Allan
I believe they are. They’ve got an interesting clip they mount onto below the courtesy light when not in use. Allan
While it is at the shop have certain oil mods done. Particularly opening up the main oil galley and getting a 5/8 pickup tube.
I believe you should also have two sets of buckles in the front with them, same as what a hardtop car would have.
I’m curious as to why you are saving/setting aside the original block and replacing with a 455 unless you’re looking for performance . If you can’t prove via VIN stamp on block and you stated you were getting it decked why not just put that motor back in. Once decked it’s just another motor and can never be proven to be original. Seems like extra costs?
I suggested it because it’s the cheapest way to get 55 more cubic inches, plus 400 pistons aren’t cheap (if I remember correctly). Patrick
I do see some numbers on the VIN pad... 1. Go old school- use a piece of paper and a pencil and do a "rubbing"... see what numbers come out.. 2. Go with a light acid to eat away the rust and see what numbers are there. 3. Got some Nital Surface Etchants 4. Rub soapstone over the area then gently wipe it clean... If there are even 2 numbers, in sequence, that match your VIN and the date code is correct to the time frame, I would bet the block is original..
A stage 1 455 has 360hp (Supposedly underrated) and 510 foot pounds of torque. The deal I made on the '67 made this make sense. I think the car will be a beast with the Stage 1 in it. I also need to find a crank, rods, pistons, oil pan, etc. for the 400. The 455 is rebuilt and ready to drop in.
My ‘68 has a .030 over 455 with a little work to the heads and manifolds; with 3.55 gears it runs 12.9s. It has adequate power for the street yet is very driveable-I ran errands in it yesterday and picked my daughter up from school with it today. Patrick
It looks like someone scraped and gouged the stamp pad. I’ll try that when I get the block back if there’s anything left after it being decked. Thanks for the suggestion. Allan
That shift handle is not for a 69. Looks like a 70 plus. 69 A-Body vert my favorite Buick of all time. Great color with that red interior. My 69 below...
