:3gears: HELLO TO ALL IN THIS HERE FORUM,I HAVE A BUICK REGAL WAGON 1983 WITH A 3.8L IN I'D LIKE TO INSTALL MY 455 BUICK(SF code)IN IT. I HAVE THE CAST IRON FRAME MOUNTS AND EVERYTHING I JUST NEED TO KNOW WHERE TO LOCATE AND BOLT EM DOWN ON A G BODY.PICS WILL BE POSTED SOON THE WAGON IS SWEET! THANKS FOR YOUR TIME. :3gears: SUPERWAGON455!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :grin: :grin: :grin:
First off kudos on the Wagon project! :TU: Second... er.. the caps are read as "shouting" around here. OK, levelling and centering. My earlier write up on this was eaten so I'll do a brief re-hash here. The engine mounts must be set in yourself, the goal is to get the engine level and centered relative to the drivetrain of the car. The first step is to get the car up on 4 jackstands. It doesn't need to be perfectly level, but it does need all 4 wheels up off the ground. Next, make some centering and levelling measurements: Run a string from the center of the driveshaft mount on the diff to the midpoint of the front crossmember. Check the center by measuring at various points along the C-channel and frame. Measure carefully, because 1/8" off center here means you're going to have driveline vibrations. You really should have your transmission crossmember centered already for this to work, a G-force is ideal, but at the minimum make sure its mounting holes are well centered in the frame. Next, place a level on top of the front frame rails and take a reading. In my case I read 1/4 bubble left. Confirm this reading by tanking ANOTHER measurement at the rear of the front frame rails (where the C-channel starts). OK, we now know where the centerline of the car is, and we know what the level of the frame is.... now do a test fit! Bolt the engine mounts and frame pads to the engine and drop it in, you can "eyeball" the rough fit, checking that it will not hit the firewall, the dreaded heaterbox, and you'll still have enough room to get the oil filter off up front. Try and set the engine back as far as possible for performance and stability. Now for the fine tuning. you'll have to pick the engine up a bit and try to slide it 1/4-1/16 around. Tape a straightedge to the harmonic balancer, centered and hanging down enough that you can see the straightedge and the string we tied up earlier. Next, place a level on the carb mount on the intake right to left, just like it was sitting on the frame before. Your goal is now to get the level to read the same as it did on the frame earlier, and to have the straightedge and the string line up. Once that is done, check that the entire driveline follows your centering string, harmonic balancer, transmission mount point, driveshaft, and diff. That's it! The engine should now be levelled right to left and centered in the frame. You've just done pretty much what the engineers at the factory did, with home materials. Now just mark the pads: Get out some spray paint and coat all around the frame pads. Pull the engine/tranny and you'll see a perfect negative of the pads to give you a pattern to drill out. Drill the holes a touch large, you'll tend to be slightly off when you put everything back in. Also, it's a good idea to leave the pad bolts a bit loose since you'll want to fine tune the fit again once you get the engine/tranny back in. That's the re-hash, hope it helps!
hey thanks for tell me about the caps , didn't know about the shouting sorry . and thank you for the info on how to d.i.y. superwagon455
Hi! If I buy the ta/ poston frame pads do they bolt into existing holes? Should I get the cast or aluminum? Have you ever heard of the aluminum breaking? Thanks Brad
While they are the correct angle so that the engine mounts will sit ont he crossmember, they are not bolt in. You have to drill your own holes. ...it's pretty easy, and you'll want to be able to move things around to get it all level and centered. Never heard of the AL ones breaking, and from a materials point of view the cast AL has as much chance of fracturing as the cast iron. I use the cast Iron, just because I'm paranoid about stripping threads and since I pull Wagon apart every few years the galling ont he AL threads-steel bolts would cause all kinds of :rant: in my shop. Hope that helps!
Thanks Clint!!! It sure does! I think I'll take a "stab" at making my own mounts (reworking centurian mounts) and if it doesn't work I'll buy the other ones. I have more time than money!!! Thanks Brad
Leviathan... PERFECT! :TU: The spray-paint around the chassis mounts... just as I did back in '97. These days I have another Regal (the engine done by Scotty at Pee-Gee's was stolen from me in 2002 along with the Regal) with an Olds 307 (Special-T non-turbo Canada Regal) and limited-slip 3:08 rear. My D&S Performance .030-over 455 will reside in this Buick sometime in July this year. :laugh: I bought a '90 Caprice (GN rear) with 3:42's that I am making an attempt at getting on the Regal o No: Hey, I bought the whole car for $200 ... so far-so-good. Thanks for listening. :TU:
:3gears: hey fellas, i also went out and bought a crossmember from JEGS for $129.00 to house the 2.5'' exhaust i got on my ride(g body) and somewhat adjustable because it comes slotted on the ends for easy centering i guess. a friend of mine told me that the mount off of a 75 riv would fit also when you use new motor mount that have 2 set of mounting holes , top and botom ,to use the top ones will set the motor further in the bay. i however bought ta's alum ones , but haven't installed em yet. everything i needed is all here for the project the :3gears: wagon will roll again i was also contemplating on getting a gn's front clip and making A WAGNATIONAL! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :moonu: superwagon455!
Go figure, when I put the 455 in my Regal, I used big car mounts, I just bolted the 455 to the transmission that was still in the car(attached to the mount) then set the radiator & shroud in place to make sure it all looked right. As for the rear cross member, I used the one out of the donor Electra 225, it has double humps fir dual exhaust like muscle cars did, bolted it up to the trans, then drill some new holes in the frame. The aluminum mounts do bolt into the X-body/Nova chasis, I have a '78 Skylark with a Stage 1 and an M-20, all the clutch linkage lined up too! If you have access to a plasma cutter, or even a torch, cutting slots in the front of the frame/crossmember makes it WAY EASIER to remove and install the frame mount bolt with a boxed end wrench.
I used the T/A mount kit with cast pads. I left the trans in place, crossmember and trans stayed in same location from V6. Bolted the motor mounts to he block and the pads to the motor mounts lower engine into place, then placed a level on engine across the front of block were intake front seal sets. Then squared up block to radiator support. Took a can of white spray paint and sprayed a light mist around the frame pads. Removed engine, took frame pads put them back on frame with the white paint as a template, sprayed a mist into the pads to mark the location of the holes to be drilled in frame. When installing (installed all six mounting bolts) left frame pads loose until the engine was in then tightened everything once in place.. Worked for me...
Re: Regal Frame Mounts For 430 and a 375th short tail Have wanted to for some time do the mount of a big buick in my regal. I did a 350 with no problem , buick motor not chev. My question, the v6 motor mounts on motor of 3.8 line up well on 350hjk motor, would the motor mounts also not fit on the 455 or 430 which I have read, mount up ? Meaning use motor mounts of 3.8 on 430 and drop in? Most buick motors had real similar mount patterns on the sides of the block, thus in 76 when buick put 350 into Electra in place of original 455 it went in ok. Big block also offered 2 motor mount locations on the block. 2) I want to use a 375 with shift kit and has short tail, can I just keep original cross member? I am making exhaust similar to Y pipe driving two chamber mufflers side by side and dump out side pass side rear wheel Nascar style 3 inch pipe. conjoined or to dual at side. If so motor will be in same local as original 3.8 at the bell, now will this cause problems with the AC wall?? thanks craig
The motor mounts are different (V6 and 350 share mounts but 430 and 455 take different mounts). Why a 375 trans.? Very hard to find a yoke for, has less clutches than a 400. Was made to lower costs in production. When I swapped my V6 out for the 455 I didn't have to move the trans is stayed in same location as did the cross member.
If you put in a a455 and trans then what trans did you use a 350 bop, 400 bop short tail, or a 400bop Long tail (like electra 400) shaft? This is my dilema, If I find a 400short will be like the original 350 computer trans, If I put in a shift kit into the computer trans car and let the ECM still shift for me, I could save clutches in that trans from big motor. Motor mounts again must be full cradle removed and new ones marked? and drilled? cant use the mount in std v6 car crossmember, ?? thanks craig
I used a BOP 350 transmission behind my 455 with the stock cross member (in the stock location), a stock length driveshaft, and a stock rearend (in the stock location). Like mentioned before, I also left the transmission, drive shaft, and rearend installed in the car and bolted the engine to the transmission with mounts installed and lowered the engine down, painted around the mounts, removed the engine, and drilled where the new frame mount holes needed to be. You will also need to put a level across the front of the engine to level it best you can before painting around the mounts. Don't do as I did and over think leveling and centering the engine. I spent a week doing it and in the end I really ended up where I finished the first day. Level and center to where it looks best and go with it. One thing I did do that others may not was to use grade 8 studs screwed into the bottom of each frame mount (with some lock tight on them) instead of trying to get bolts to start while going up beside the lower "A" arms with a wobble socket. I still had to use a wobble socket to get the nuts started but it was easier for me. The nuts I used were the kind with a washer made with the nut. Good luck with your swap, I thought I was going to go crazy doing mine, I had to walk away from the car more than once to keep from beating the car with a hammer. It was worth it in the end.
The level across the engine deal is a good idea, I would use the carb mounting surface, or, use the radiator shroud to help line up the motor. If you cut slots in the front of the engine crossmember, the same size as the hole the fuel lines come out of, only extended towards the center of the car, makes for easier install. You can hold the shouldered nuts(that were on the V-6 mounts) with an end wrench and zip the bolts in with an impact or ratchet. I left the OEM transmission in-place to help set the motor for mount placement. If you use a universal GM transmission mount you can use the OEM crossmember with whatever GM transmission. The 375TH is a 400TH with a 350TH/M-20 M-21 output shaft, same amount of clutches. I liked have the should centered, because the mounts, it they are old will sag and give, you go to whoppin' on it and hear this sickening sound, that is only the fan hitting the shroud. Another tip, F-body(Camaro/Firebird) front end springs or some out of V-8 Olds G-body seem pretty easy to locate. My current '87 Regal has a short tail 400TH with a Gil Younger shift kit(from your local transmission supply house, both the 350 & 400 kits come with govenor springs to tailor the shift point to your combo!), make sure you score the down shift/detent linkage from the the donor car, its an electric slider switch arrangement that bolts to the firewall, where the gas pedal is attached. This car had a 350C(lockup) tranny behind the 3.8 V-6, I used it for placement, then ran it for about a week before it crater-ed. The other Regal I have is going to remain a TH350. It only has a 350 SBB going into it. (any cam reccomendations?) The 455 Olds powered '84 Cutlass I built, in the same manner, with a 350TH & shift kit. I added an earlier model double hump crossmember, after everything was in place, the ease in the Olds is that the 455/403/350/307 all use the same frame pads. Score an S-10 ring & pinion gears and carrier to get cheap & easy 3.42's or 3.73's. Make sure you get the bearing races out of the housing, spacers and all. If you going drag racing, snag up a posi unit from a '93-up F-body, with gears or those from the S-10 and then spring for some 28-spline axles for a GN rearend!
