Oldsmobile diesel engines

That would be the best option according to me. I guess 6.2's are easy to find and fit with the th400. Better yet, the 6.5 turbo or ultimately the duramax engine! Not so long ago there was one advertised with a diesel conversion here. I did inquire if it was a 6.2 as I thought, but never got an answer. Pitty, because if it would, I would have been really tempted!

 

If you go with anything Chevrolet Diesel, go Duramax, the rest are junk. They don't last long and require much maintenance, and if you want them to start in the cold, better keep dreaming. The Duramax is much more reliable. Or....and I hate to say this, you could go with a 12 valve Cummins.

 

hmmmm

Not ever having anything diesel,I'm not the one to ask.That's why I did ask.Had a VW Rabbit,for a while,that started out as a diesel,but my brother-in-law and I converted it to gasoline.I guess that made it a sleeper.

 

I will have the engine left over from my wife's Durango transplant. 318 Magnum, TBI, heads/block/crank/cam/rods all good, needs 2 or 3 pistons, rings, and the top end resealed. I would love to drop that in a nice clean 75-78 Coronet.Monaco/Fury and build an A500 to go behind it. Same basic idea you've got. I bet a 305/350 TBI or an LT1 would feel pretty good in one of these wagons.

 

other evil plans

Yeah,another idea I had was to take out the 5.0 and automatic from my 86 Colony Park and drop in a Boss 302 and four speed manual from a scrunched up Mustang or Cougar.I realize that means putting on different rims so way bigger brakes will fit in there.But it'd make for one hell of a sleeper.

 

Well OCCUPANT...if that '88 Electra is real nice I'll be happy to take it off your hands. I'll find you a Caprice Diesel and DELIVER it.

 

Nice as in rust free, sure, Texas all its life. It's a cosmetic nightmare, has no go power, and currently has a short in the taillight circuit. I'll get to that this weekend but it still runs like a donkey and isn't as gorgeous as I'd like it to be.

occupant's 1988 Buick Estate Wagon

page 2 for the big pics...the center filler in the back bumper is cracked...end fillers are great all the way around. Header panel damage under the marker light, minor dents, woodgrain isn't bad from 20 feet. Also needs at least one tire, a heater core, heater hoses, blower fan, a radio, radio bezel (car has no defogger, hard to find a bezel without it), center caps for the rallys, and a headliner. I also have no door key so I can't lock it or close the storage cabinet in the 3rd row. That's my short list. If I own it long enough I'm dreaming of a 403 or 455, new tires, and true duals.

 

Oh...that's YOUR car on domain! I left a message there but I don't think you ever saw it. I love the late '80s Electra wagons.

 

Yep. Needs a lot of little stuff. A few medium things. I have 7 kids...no time...limited budget now that this year's tax refund is allocated properly. I've put maybe 800 miles on it since I got it on Groundhog Day.

I'm trying to get my Suburban sold for $1200 so I can buy a running 403 before the guy goes into the army. $300 for that motor, $300 for my mechanic to drop it in, and 320lbs of torque feel the same as 360lbs to me. The 403 can take a Lunati Bracket Master II cam and really wake up. I want to drop it in, lose the computer junk, run it 'til it gets dog tired, then freshen it up. The other $600 goes into the slush fund for all the cars we have. I might get lucky and be able to spend some on mine before my wife gets the bug to put Flowmasters on the Durango

 

403 is an ok engine...little fragile for a BIG build up with the window pane mains and thin walls. Lotta guys run 'em though. I prefer 455's. With TONS of torque...especially after I build 'em. I'm looking for another cherry late 80s Electra...had one but it's gone. Never realized how hard it was gonna be to find one. I found some. People are nuts...they either want $10,000 for an ok one or $3000 for junk. I wish the hot rodders (kinda like me) would never have discovered wagons. They are getting scarce...at least the kind I want.

 

A few years back,when I ended up with my Colony Park,one of these was definitely on the list of wagons to get.I like 'em way better than the Chevy versions.

 

Yeah...the Electra inside trim is nice...all the other '80s GM wagons are pretty much plain Jane inside. Sure wish I could find a nice one.

 

I was talking about the outsides,but the insides were real nice too.Actually test drove one once at a used car lot.I think it's safe to say;since the Colony Park was the Lincoln Continental/TownCar stationwagon,then the Buick Electra was probably the stationwagon Cadillac would've made,if Cadillac did that sort of thing.Remember when Cadillac and Lincoln DIDN'T do certain things?Like trucks and stationwagons?..And,if I remember GM history right,Cadillac and Buick were once at the same level.They were both high end luxury cars.

 

When I was a kid I loved the big Buicks. When GM played up the Caddy and Buick started to take a back seat to Caddy...I didn't like it. Then Chevy started making the fast stuff so the masses wanted those. Then Pontiac came on strong. The thing I remember is that the Buick division was hell bent on quality. When I look back at a '47 Buick convertible or my dad's old '41 Buick Limited with the side mounts I still see the quality, design and craftsmanship. Not to mention the WEIGHT of those cars. Real steel, real chrome and lots of it. They didn't have plastic and vinyl then. Yet, many those cars those old cars are still around today. The wagons began to look like cars: Good coach work and design, big engines for towing. I love the old stuff and find it hard to get used to the roller skates of today. Better technology for sure but where's the class? I wonder what the auto manufacturers would do without plastic and vinyl today? Take those away and a lot of industries would stop in their tracks. Guess I'm like FordFellow says about himself this morning...rambling on.

 

Not sure about more recently,but it's probably not much different,except for one thing...Back in 2000,I got a hold of a Consumer Reports magazine about all the cars available in America.Among those that regularly ranked highest in quality,from 1980 to 2000,were Buicks and Oldsmobiles..Better than all other GM makes,including Cadillac.And,when the Buicks and Oldsmobiles were foreign cars in disguise,they regularly ranked higher in quality,than their foreign counterparts.Even when they were Toyota Corollas and Camrys in disguise,they ranked equal to or higher in quality than their foreign counterparts. Some say the syllable OLD helped kill Oldsmobile as much as anything else.That,and some people thought Aurora was a car by a different company,you just had to go to Oldsmobile dealers to get them. The polls were showing that Oldsmobiles WERE your father's(or grandfather's)car,and that Aurora couldn't be an Oldsmobile because it was such a nice young car.And better than a Camry.