Walt, your car looks great and has the right stance. Maybe I’ll get to see your cars on the way to Jimmys party some year or at the GS Nats this year!
Besides a slightly faster advance curve. The main thing is the distributor has 10* mechanical advance built in (20* at the crank) & 12* initial advance for a total of 32* mechanical. The other has 15* (30* at the crank) & 2 1/2* initial for a total of 32 1/2*. When I build either I shoot for 11* (22* at the crank). What this does is give options for initial between 8*-14* initial. Tom T.
A bit of a necro post and I really don't want this thread to phase out.. Iv'e been lurking all the nailhead post's looking for dyno numbers. Mr. Telesco i'm sure your so tired of answering but can you give a ballpark figure to just how much torque Mr Quiggs 66 is putting out. I've seen it mentioned at 422 Hp at the rear wheels but curious to see how much torque is sacrificed to make that much hp? About 4 years ago I was at my local Walmart and came across a kinda nice hard cover book for only $8.75 "Muscle Cars" Kings of the street from the golden era" Had to grab it! Lots of nice color pic's and written details and stats and i'm sure a bunch here have seen it. Mentions a old road test of the 340hp Q jet 66 claiming about 1 second quicker from 0 to 60 over the standard 325hp at 6.8 seconds doing 14.9 at 95 with a 3.36 rear. Doesn't mention what magazine though. All the lurking here I still can't find any magazine sources for road tests from the day other than M&T set up car comparison and Buick with a Bite articles..
Motor Trend did a comparison of the stock vs a modified Qjet option in the July 1966 issue. 15.47 stock vs 14.0 with Q jet, headers and slicks. Modern Rod featured a Qjet car that ran 13.82 @ 102.7 mph, March 1966 issue. Car Craft, May 1966, 'Buick With a Bite'. D/Stock cars running 12.9 to 13.61 at 105 to 109 mph. Car and Driver March 1966, '6 Super Cars' was a comparison test of the BOP and Ford/Mercury intermediates. Hot Rod April 1966, 'Blueprinting Buicks for Action' was an engine build up of a '66. Speed and Supercar 'Building With Buick' October issue. 197-something. 70?,71?72?73?
Cool Walt, didn't know about the Modern Rod issue, the C&D comparison... Got to try to find a link LOL! The Motor Trend stock and modded comparison though I don't know what to think. Like others I think the 15.47 had to be stock AFB car and it was also the one they modded looking at the all the pic's?? Why they did it that way, I don't know.
Back when my '64 Riv. was new it was NEVER that slow. On average was around a 15.2 give or take with NO mods. As time went on ended with a best of 13.902@98MPH after over 300K. Do the math on Quiggs car. 10.8ET@125MPH in a 3500pd, car. Today more I'm sure as an auto has been added & MORE weight. Closing in on 10.8's again but the MPH has suffered. Tom T.
Found a Wallace Racing estimate calculation, put 3600lbs and a 10.85 et. estimated 501 at the wheels, and at 125mph 506 at the wheels.. Saw a factory 65 Riv ad a ways back that claimed 16 sec 1/4 with stock engine and 15.5 with duel 425 360hp. For once a factory ad that under quoted performance My pops bought new 66 Wildcat 4 door sedan. The 401 SP400. When I had it in 1978 it had only hit 50,000k. My friend was a Ford guy and he would throw a 71 Tbird 429, a 70 LTD390 at me and I would constantly beat him with air cleaner and all still on. Actually any Ford he could find that a relative might of had. I bragged Buicks so he made it his passion to find one!! Did something really stupid which ended up cracking the block right down the front.. I'm ashamed to say how! Same with my 66 GS that I got with 88,000k, ST300 and all it would just about almost keep up with my friends 66 GTO vert. 389 rebuilt with just new rings and bearings but had headers, intake small cam 4 speed and 3.55's. I did have 3.23's and some really sticky re caps though but one cylinder was done about 25 to 30 pounds. Drove it 8 years plus and only on the day I sold it I found out I was only running a 500 AFB all that time. Put a Qjet intake on it a few times but the Qjet needed a total rebuild so went back to the AFB. Thing like all nailheads it only ran at its best when cold out but it was no show car and driven daily..That drove me nuts.. Do want to add this silly thing, in the town we have probably a street that rivals the steepest streets in San Fran. I would have 5 friends in the 66 GS and would cruise up that incline with just about an idle maby doing 1000 rpms tops in final drive. Talk about low end torque..
if you look at some of the road tests the buicks had only 2.93 gears or 3.08, probably no posi too. they put them up against other make cars with more gears. one article said how the buick engineers didnt know what they were doing for track testing, meaning they didnt know how to prop and cheat a little. lol
Yup, my GS had originaly the 2.93, it was a posi though. The 3.23 posi I put in it came out of standard 4 bbl 66 GTO. That's a cheat right there! I believe it was standard on the GTO right? unless you special ordered a more high way friendly gear. Your 65 GS could only be ordered with a 3.73 tops if i'm correct?
I guess i'm reading alot of magazine articles and going by what they say. Steve Magnate's Interesting Muscle Car Facts book even claims a 3.73 was tops on the 65 GS. There might of been mention of a "really hard to get special order" 4.30 on the 65 but not the 3.90.. Hemmings Muscle Machine's is also constantly making mistakes for a so called hi end magazine. I really have to stop believing just because someone wrote it on paper that its true. Just like the the "Police Package" 11 to 1 401 on the 66............
Hi, A friend of mine had a 65 new and supposedly came with 3.73's not sure if they were factory or dealer installed. Regards,
Come to think of it, iv'e seen old factory ads of the 65 with the 3.73 mentioned, actually all the ratios available. http://www.lov2xlr8.no/brochures/buick/65bu.html
From the 66 Buick press release: The car can be ordered with this equipment on it, or installed at a dealer level by the use of the following part numbers: 1. Gear set 3.73, part number 13961417. 2. Gear set 3.9, part number 13961116. 3. Gear set 4.30, part number 1396415. Positraction unit assembly to match gear set is a must. Case number 1396430.
Back in 1971 I had a 65 gran sport with a standard peg leg 308 rear. I ran it once at e-town and ran high 15s . No tach so I shifted from Low to drive at about 65 mph . I was 17 and had no idea what I was doing and could beat most 442s and gtos from a 20mph roll since most street races were short . I once beat a brand new 440 charger 4 speed on the outerbridge crossing and I wouldn’t give him a rematch After he learned to shift better . I’m 65 now and wouldn’t tell this story if my dad was still alive . He was a Buick car salesman and He got me the car as it was a trade in for 700 bucks ....if I promised not to street race it . Lol
If I have anything good to say about that awful SP300 first gear, yup it was good from a 20 or 40 mph roll race when the combo of down shifting to that 1.76 first gear "where a 3 speed auto would hit it's less favortable 2nd gear, and all 4 barrels opening with the high stall kicking in at a Nailheads nice low rpm torque range.. I heard quite a few friends in the day even call it "Wicked" ""If it was a cold day"". It just had a distinct screaming sound.. ^^^Yup Dennis as long as it wasn't much more than a 1000 ft. run^^^ and yes I wouldn't either tell my Pop's if he were alive today..LOL
