buster hyman

can any one tell me the difference between 57-58 and the the59-60 371 engine i know the head gaskets are different the 57-58 ones are abit skinner for more compression will atry carb set up fit on a 1959 motor or are the heads a little different

junkyardjeff

59/60 blocks have a taller deck height then the 57/58.

buster hyman

thanks for that info junkyardjeff but wouldnt that increase the cubic inches or did they change the crank as well?

rustyroger

No.
Displacement is a function of bore x stroke.
For a given bore size increasing the stroke length increases displacement.
For a given stroke length increasing the bore diameter increases displacement.
Deck height, piston design, rod length and cylinder head design are what decide compression ratio.

Roger.

Tedd Thompson

As I remember( could be wrong here) the 59- 60 371's are on a 394 block design think of it as a little 394 so the deck height is different, intake ports are at a different height Also I believe a oil or water passage is different on the heads so be careful if you are trying to swap heads or manifolds.There are other differences but such as the front motor mount may be higher. All that being said I know hotrodders have adapted 3/2 setups on most all of the first generation motors.

You might give Tony at Ross Racing a call (303 544 4466) he would know for sure what problems you will encounter.....Tedd

buster hyman

thanks for the info ted iwill give ross racing a ring i am interested in trying atri carb set up but trying to find someone that can tell me all the differences between the engines is very hard over here in aus most of the spare parts and info avalable is for 1964 and onwards even that is very limited i went to a car show and shine lastnite some peopie show alot of interest in my car but they have no idea that olds even made engines alot think they olds used buick engines nad even cadilac engines trying my hardest to teach these people a little bit about the oldsmobile engine

gearheads78

really good thread to read through
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...d.php?t=715390

buster hyman

Thanks for that gearheads78 there is alot of usefull info in there answers a lot of questions i had thanks again