I saw this video awhile back, found it very interesting, and for some reason never posted the link. Watched it again, and it just made me scratch my head. Factory HP rating in 1976 was 205, (up 10 from 1975 which this engine apparently is) and torque was rated at 345 (at 2000 RPM) This is supposedly a junkyard engine, and this engine builder just couldn't get the Q-Jet to run right, so he tossed on a Holly Brawler (never even heard of one) and on the dyno, he got.....308 HP and 465 foot pounds of torque! He does go on to make other mods in this, and another video or 2....but those numbers! I love, love, love q-jets, and I have a 1976 Electra I got in 2021 , and have been pleasantly surprised at the power, from a super low compression (7.9) engine. Feels like more than 205/345 but...not 308/465!!! this guy talked about doing more with this engine, perhaps getting that q-jet right, but as far as I know, he didn't So, did that Holly add 50, 75 HP? A long ago suped up 455 that ended up in the junkyard? Or did Buick fudge the numbers a bit , for some reason????
well, those motors only had single exhaust, this one on the dyno has duals. Heck it looks like headers. So, there is a little more power to be had. I remember my 75 Riv ran extremely good, but it had duals and a reworked Q-jet and a recurved distributor. The other thing that catches my eye is the chrome valve covers???? Unless he added them, which is hard to believe he bought a set for the show. Is it really a plain jane 455 or a stage motor. Just thinking! Hard to believe people anymore. Fernando
That's a 74 engine,...so yea with no accessories and headers and optimized timing,...I would hope it would make 300
1976 SAE ratings were measured in a different way In that video it's just an engine, more like the old Gross HP way of measuring HP:
The heads have a “73” cast into the #1 exhaust port. I would say this engine has 8 to 1 compression, not the 7 to 1 of the ‘75/‘76 455
hmmm....I wonder why he was thinking 75? I seem to recall a video showing when he got several engines from some guy, don't think it has chrome valve covers then (they were just in the back of a truck bed) but I can't seem to find that video. He said it had valve float at 5000 so it couldn't have been too fresh
Think Richard got that engine from Freiburger. Dave apparently had 2 of them and said that he thought were 73s. Dave put one in a 66 Chevelle 4 dr that he and Dulcich did on the Roadkill Garage.
As said...aftermarket dynos always show higher numbers than OEM dynos that are operated to the proper, SAE procedure. There's also the lack of a catalyst plugging the exhaust, and no need for emissions tuning on the carb or distributor.
