Need suggestions for trustworthy and affordable short block, complete,&/or turn-key crate engine with an emphasis on daily driving and good low end torque. I'm sick and tired of throwing thou$and$ at my 350 when the 455 is what i really wanted to begin with. Also need recommendations for appropriate stall converter,tranny,& gear ratio for big rims.

 

*bigger(I.e 22"-28" rims)

 

28" rims?

 

Yup lol.... I suppose this may discourage plenty of you from wanting to help but i see no point in bs'ing you.

 

Just a suggestion post your location, I'm sure several folks here could help you out. And its your car, make it yours. Good luck

 

Only 28's?
Budget?

 

What state are you in maybe i can help

 

My bad , im stationed in HI(my car is here as well) but will be headed home to FLA in a few yrs. I contacted the ppl at mondello and they quoted me at about $11k for a turn-key 455, & about $13,500k with tranny , thoughts or concerns? As for the rims, i currently have 22" rims but in a few yrs may go bigger. I honestly dont have the $$ for any of this right now , so im just trying to see how much i need to save up.

 

Which Mondello?

http://www.mondellotwister.com/

or

http://mondello.com/page7.php

JMRE is the one you want.

 

Mondellotwister.com

 

IMHO $11,000 is WAY too much money to spend on a street engine. And with 28 in. wheels, no drag strip is going to allow you to run.
My suggestion would be to look for a complete 455 core engine from a 68 to 70 Olds 98 or Toronado. (high compression) Find a good local performance oriented machine shop to do a stock rebuild . Have them put in a hydraulic cam with about 230 degrees duration (at .050 lift). Add an Edelbrock manifold and your favorite big 4 barrel carb and you're all set.
I wouldn't spend any more than $3500 on the whole thing.
As far as gear ratios, 28" wheels are about twice the size of the stock 14". That means you must double the gear ratio. A 3.42 ratio works pretty good for a 455 with stock 14" wheels . So a ratio of around 6.84 should be about right.
A quick check of Jeg's reveals that the lowest gears available are 5.57 for the stock cutlass rear end (8.5" GM). If you can get a good welder to adapt a 9 in. Ford rear you can get 6.50's for that.

 

Charlie Jones speaketh the truth. If you are going to put a big-power engine in the car, then you have to build the rest of the car to take the power as well.

Intentionally installing heavy, failure-prone wheels that will wreck your gear ratio, as well as your suspension and steering geometry, is just shooting yourself in the foot before you're out of the starting gate.

Hey, build a clown car if you want, but this entire thread is essentially a long explanation of why big wheels on cars just scream "I have no idea what I'm doing!"

- Eric

 

It would take a lot of torque to break those babiesl loose. Maybe that's why I didn't see and MT drag radials listed in 28". Lots of ways to take a car project. Show or Go. It is hard to make one to Show AND go! At the end of the day it is your ride and do what you want. But why would you invest in power you cannot put to the ground?

 

Lol true but thats just what im into. Ive got 22's on my car now and it still has a fair amount of power so i may or may not go bigger. Ive considered doing 24's with a low offset but first i wanna get a feel for how much power a bbo can put to the wheels.

 

Damn , you weren't kidding! I checked out jmre and they boast a 455 on pump gas with 500 hp & 604 Tq! Too busy to quote a turn-key from them but they've deff got my attention.

 

If you're coming back to FLA you would do well contacting Mark (cutlassefi) & having him handle your engine build & at least consulting on any driveline equipment.

 

What part of FLA is mark's shop?

 

Please, sell your car to someone who will take proper care of it and put some actual sensible and good looking wheels on it, and buy a box caprice and ruin that. Thanks.

 

Lol

 

My two cents-that is alot of power going to those big inch wheels- very easy to lose control. I would stick with a good stock 455 rebuild.

 

Thank you very much bccan.

I'm in central florida, between Orlando and Tampa. I can do just about anything you're looking for, mild to wild.
But first we'll need to make sure we're on the same page so you know what to expect for your money, and what not to expect.
Let me know if I can help. Thanks.

 

Pm me your info

 

I just did, thanks!!

 

and a 4 door to boot....