I've tried to install a HEI distributor on my 67 442. It interferes with the throttle linkage. Trying to rotate the distributor to accommodate the throttle does not work. I cannot rotate the distributor enough because the vacuum advance hits either the firewall or intake manifold. Has anyone been successful doing this? Thanks.

 

Which side of the engine bay do you have the vac advance facing? The left (driver) side or the right (passenger side). The vac advance should be on the right(passenger side of the intake.

 

The right, passenger side.

 

What you need to do is get the engine to #1 tdc, pull the distributor and rotate it with the rotor still pointing to #1 and reinstall it to have full movement with no interference.

 

The "bulge" in the HEI cap, where the wiring goes in to power the unit, is where the throttle linkage hits the cap. The HEI distributor can be installed but operating the throttle beyond the idle position is when the linkage hits the cap. The cap cannot be positioned to avoid this interference. The distributor cannot be rotated enough, clockwise or counter clockwise, to avoid this because the vacuum advance hits the firewall or intake manifold. This HEI unit is Summ9t's "blueprinted distributor" for Oldsmobile and is listed as fitting a 1967 442.

 

Can you post some pictures from different angles so we can see what you see?

 

I ran HEI for a while on my Tri-Carb 66. As noted above, the vacuum advance was on the passenger side and the wiring on the driver's side near the linkage. I did not take photos--that was about 50 years ago.

 

I solved the problem. I've decided not to install the HEI distributor. I'm going to convert my original distributor to a Mallory Unilite system.
I did this conversion to a 454 I have in a boat 45 years ago and it's still working fine. Thanks for all the replies.

 

I'd still like to see some pictures because there are plenty of 67's out there with an HEI and stock linkage.

 

Not a 442, but I was able to get an HEI into my 67 with a 330. I swapped a 4-barrel manifold and carb onto it and I think I reversed the throttle linkage to clear the air cleaner. Once installed there was plenty of adjustment. (After reviewing the pics, I reversed the throttle linkage to fit the **** on the carb shaft.)

 

Your throttle linkage is different from mine. I can't see if yours is different near the firewall but at the carb, it's offset further out from the carb.

 

oldcutlass; sorry but it's too late for more photos. I've already returned the HEI. Thanks anyway.

 

Yeah, that was not a factory carb. I switched to a throttle cable from a Cheby puckup a couple years ago so the linkage is no longer a problem. The manifold was not for a 67 either, it had EGR passages that were plugged and capped off. I am not a purist and take hits for it now and again, but whatever keeps my Hooptie on the road...

 

This is the HEI that was on my 442 when I bought it. I have since changed the cap to black. It clears the throttle linkage just fine after some effort to install it.