Olds engine in Chevy Caprice - should I be disappointed?

Any Olds V8 engine built after 64 will swap over. There may be some clearance issues with the tall deck engines at the brake booster or AC/heater assembly. Accessories and brackets will change over, as will engine mounts. The 403 in my 4200 lb Vista moves it around pretty well with a very mild cam, but it is running higher compression and ported #5 heads.

If the Caprice has an overdrive transmission in it, it will be a 200-4R. Those have a dual pattern bell housing that will accept a Chevy engine as well.

 

I would love a 405. My husband says no big block engines... but what he doesn't know won't hurt him. Once I let him drive it, I'm sure he'll change his mind.

 

I'd sure be disappointed if I got stuck with an Olds engine in my Chevy.
The Trans-Am owners with that Olds 403 sure weren't happy campers. They had to yank out the 403 and put a Pontiac engine in the Smokey and the Bandit II car just so it could do burnouts. Nothing like a small block Chevy, I can tune one up blindfolded, it won't run when I'm finished but I can do it.
If all you care about is having a Chevy engine why don't you buy a 91-96 GM B-body/Whale wagon?:confused:

 

Without wanting to offend anyone, MY personal taste runs toward the earlier bodies of the 70's and 80's. Call it a first love, but once I drove that first 1986 Chevy Caprice, there was no turning back for me. Albeit, it wasn't a wagon, but the love affair started there and has continued on. A wagon just makes more sense for my current situation (family, carpool, etc), so I understand that I won't be speeding at triple digits on my way back from college again. I'd still like a little power under the hood, but at this point in time (with kids that are and are NOT mine in the back seats), it's probably better to put off the big-block trade out.

As I said, I COULD get an 89 wagon with the original Chevy engine, but can't afford the price right now, so this one works for me at this point. I'm young, so I've got a lot of years of wagon-lovin' and wagon-collecting ahead of me. I think this is a good start.

 

My 1955 Chevy wagon was born with a six and three speed. When I got it there was a hot running 350 with Borg-Warner 4-speed. Like a fool I traded it and it took three years to get the wagon back.
It then had a 307/powerglide that I'd rather not discuss.
We replaced it with a low mileage 305 with good performance heads and later a 200 R4 trans. Far from the first drive train I got but runs and sounds rather nice. Burns rubber and gets around 18-20 MPG. Sadly it's been setting most of the past two years for other upgrades.

 

1989 GM full size wagon would still have the Olds 307 We have seen a lot of wagon for sale where the seller "claims" the engine is a 305 and some times a 350 Chevy, but if it's all original under the hood it's a factory stock 307.

 

Given how you plan to use it, the 307 is going to do just fine. It is no barn burner, but it will get out of its own way. Down the road, a nice Chevy 350 or 400 small block will give you all you really need. Mind you, if you ever get a chance at a wrecked 2007 Tahoe or similar that has the 5.3 with cylinder deactivation, nab it! Install the complete system, computer and all. With minor upgrades, you will have well in excess of 300 horsepower, the benefit of a small block (weight distribution), and fuel economy that will startle people, as it will spend most of its time in 4 cylinder mode on the highway.

 

You're in luck then! The 403 is technically a small block. Dimensionally it is the same as the 330, 350, 307, and 260. At least externally. It is an over-square engine, meaning the bore is bigger than the stroke. I has the biggest bore of any Olds ever manufactured.

 

Can you expand on this? Have you done it or seen it done yourself? Will the engine match up with the 200-4R trans and existing mounts? What sort of "minor upgrades" are we talking about? This sounds too good, there has to be strings attached.

 

I would take the engine and transmission from the wrecked Tahoe as a unit, along with the complete wiring harness. In terms of upgrades, my buddy with the 07 Tahoe changed the muffler to a DynaFlow, made a good cold air intake system based on the factory unit, but removed the bottle necks, and used the Superchips performance tuning device, selecting the highest torque settings. The computer on his dash routinely reported 8.9 l/100km, or about 32 miles to the Imperial gallon. In a Chevy wagon, which weighs several thousand pounds less, the mileage should be truly impressive.

 

I agree completely! You read my mind, this is EXACTLY what I plan to do with my wagon, modified stock Tahoe ECM, just gotta get lucky and find a 2wd Tahoe at some point, I don't care if it's high mileage, I"ll just rebuild it.

Honestly, the 307 is a great engine for what it is. Mine has a RV cam that is the same spec as a stock 455 cam, I don't know why my father put it in there, but holy torque batman. I think my engine is pushing about 200 horses / 300 foot pounds versus the stock 140 horses / 255 foot pounds, it's not enough. I'd kill for that extra 100 horses and fuel econ from a Tahoe.

Also, here's some reading for you:

http://performanceolds307.tripod.com/

Most of the info seems right, mine has the 7A heads, thusly, no aftermarket intake will fit it. I'm only putting another trans in my car as a stopgap until I can get my hands on a 350 crate and a 700R4.

However, if I where to come across a 5.3 as Mike said, I would snag that in a heartbeat! Oh man, I'd change the belt in the parking lot of O'reily's every time it needed it just to confuse them. "I need a belt for a 5.3, '05 tahoe.", then walk out and put it on the engine under the hood of a tan '86 Olds Custom Cruiser.

Anyhow, even though I am of the "No replacement for displacement" persuasion, I would be happy with a 5.3, even though it's only 20ci bigger than what I've got, and only puts out a hundred more horses, it would be worth it. However, I must admit that if I had my way, I'd have something much larger than that, LS 6.2 probably. And some day that may happen, but for now, I'm going to seek out a 350 or 5.3.

My advice? It's simple, keep the 307 as long as she's reliable and strong, then swap it for a 350 carbbed or a 5.3, I'd lean t'wards the 5.3, as I have said many times.

Just my two cents worth. Hope this rant helps, also, I am not saying I don't like my 307, I love it. It moves my car to 60 in about 15s, never seems to run out of torque, and did I mention the noises it makes? But again, mine is a cammed 307 (The logic of my father doing that escapes me, he could've gotten a 350 built for the same). Have fun with your new wagon, love her and she'll return the favor. But don't ever call her old! Last time I did that the negative battery terminal came loose!

 

I would prefer the 307 because then I could swap my Olds 350 diesel in to it. I realize that might be blasphemy, but I like the 350 diesel and I know how to build them to not blow up. I am getting a 1992 Caprice Wagon soon (my parents are finally buying a new car, and since I always maintained the wagon, they offered to sell it to me rather than trade it in). It has a 305 and 4L60 trans. It runs strong, but I will eventually replace it with a 6.2L diesel I have sitting in the shop. I need to tear it down and go through it to make sure it is ok, but when I am done and it is installed, I might have a 35 MPG caprice wagon. The last 6.2L I did went in to my 93 Suburban 2wd and it does 27 MPG highway. Normally aspirated 6.2s run like 305 Chevy V8s power wise, so I wont set the world on fire, but it will be decent on power.

 

Now that is some outside the box thinking. Everybody craps on the 350 Diesel, but it is a good engine when built and maintained properly.

 

It needs ARP Head bolts or studs, Victor Reinz Head gaskets for a 0.030" overbore application (without doing the overbore to move the fire ring back from the cylinder wall) and they should be the 0.010" thicker gaskets for deck or head milling (without milling the deck 0.010") to slightly drop the compression into the 20:1 range from 22.5:1. It also needs ARP rod and main bolts, and the 307 olds accessory drive because it doesn't support itself from (and fatigue) the headbolts like the original 350 diesel accessory drive did. A thorough coating of GM Gasket sealer (A.K.A. "shellac") on the head gasket when putting it together, and a hardened oil pump driveshaft from Mondello and a high volume oil pump. Also a Raycor water separator/primary fuel filter in addition to the factory fuel filter. Do these things, and let the engine warm up for a minute or two before driving it on a cold start, and it will rock and roll for hundreds of thousands of miles. Also use a late model GM 6.2L diesel glow controller, and instal AC Delco 60G plugs that won't overheat and pop, and won't swell in the chamber. Do this and you will be cursing it's lack of power for 300,000 miles or even more.

If you do this step too, it will go from being lethargic to just sluggish, and further extend it's life.

Get a friend or acquaintance who can weld aluminum to grind the EGR port pedestals flush with the intake manifold floor and plug weld them shut. Also have them plug weld the EGR crossover inlets shut too. The EGR valve is no longer there to obstruct airflow and pollute the incoming air flow with sooty exhaust, the engine will now breathe a whole lot better, and make more power without consuming more fuel. The best part is 98% of the smog test officials who will see the 350 diesel will not have any idea that an EGR valve is supposed to be under the air cleaner lid waiting for them and the other 2% won't care. It will just be exempted from a smog test because diesels weren't tested in those years, and you'll be on your way to a 30 MPG wagon (if you gear correctly and drive conservatively).

 

Argo: Back in the day, a friend had the 350 diesel in his 78 98 Regency. At the same time, I had a Buick 350 in an Electra Limited coupe. My gas 350 used significantly less fuel than his diesel 350, out performed it, and outlasted it 3 to one. As for hitting 30 mpg, I can do that, day in, day out, with a Ford 351W in a Colony Park or Country Squire right off the showroom floor. They can be upgraded from there.