An old family friend called me tonight, after years and years of collecting he finally realized he won't be building all the projects he had plans for (he's 73 and just had a hip replaced) so he asked me to come look at his stuff since he really doesn't know where to begin, I did see 3 f block 455's with c heads, a few sets of c heads and there are 5 other motors which he thinks are 400's and 425's, most look all complete minus carb and ex manifolds. I'm hoping this weekend to get out and dig my way back to those to look at the #'s. Everything has been in his storage trailer since the mid 80's. He says he only pulled good motors, but would sell all as cores since they've been sitting so long, he said he flooded them.with oil when he put them in storage but that was 30 years ago lol. I am just curious what the # is on a 400 and a 425. And what core 400, 425, 455 and misc. Heads are worth as a core

 

From the Olds FAQ page:



http://www.442.com/oldsfaq/ofblk.htm

 

Thanks , that will come in handy, are those older motors worth anything? I doubt there is any rare stuff there, he says it was all mostly 88's and 98's he bought for drive lines and scrapped the rest

 

Pre 68 all have steel cranks, but that doesn't do anyone with a 455 any good. The early 400's are a bit more desirable than the later ones due to the bore/stroke combination, but if everything was from big cars you probably won't find any of those as they were only in 442's.

 

Might want to post your location maybe a olds guy on the site here may help you evaluate what you have there... I would if you were close to Kentucky... may get more cash that way at least for some of the pieces... correct year heads in good shape not too warped are nice items... dual exhaust manifolds... I read some of the other posts... didn't realize 425's had steel cranks thought that was 400's out of 442's only... if so I may be in market for a 425 to replace the 455 in my 67 442 convertible which is tired anyway... cool to know... as cores the engine rebuilding places give decent money for mated blocks and heads... ones they don't have many of but the 455's they got a lot of depends on year... at least the motors should be dry rather than sitting on ground or out in weather... olds motors do well sitting long periods... if they were chevy blocks you would probably be s.o.l.... if you have a original 400 with the B or C heads or without make that a priority to see if the crank turns... a lot of guys pulled them if the bearing spun and threw in a 455 to replace em rather than rebuilding... shudder... that's how a buddy of mine found one for his 66

 

All 1964-1967 Olds V8 have forged steel cranks, even the 330s.

 

... And in station wagons.


It's right there: Fon du Lac, Wisconsin.

- Eric

 

Sorry missed the wi instead of ,WI......not familiar with the area... hmmm wagons too... almost made a package deal with the guy who sold me this 67 convertible for his 67 vista cruiser... was in great shape under cover... he had it since new though so wouldn't let it go cheap... had 330 with 2spd a/t tranny... anyway Wisconsin is kinda far for non specific need for me but maybe someone else is closer... or maybe just take a lot of pics on phone and upload them here so guys can see what you see and pitch in on ID process... has anyone mentioned the turnpike cruiser cutlass having 400's too? anyhow good luck Almond

 

1968 455s have a forged crank. Probably most of them. The crank hub has a notch in it. Even two barrel 455s in 68 had the forged crank. Usually I see them for sale for around $800 sometimes more. Forged 425 cranks bring much much less, like $200. 65-67 400s are great motors and really scream but are valuable mostly just for the resto crowd. Drag racers and street machiners go for the cubes: 455s. You might get a couple thousand or more for some D, F or H heads, everything else, $100. Take J heads to the scrapper.

 

Probably not. Only a handful of early-build 1968 455s got forged cranks and they are both rare and expensive when you find one. Ironically, most have been found in unusual places, like 2bbl Delta 88s.

 

Supposedly the 68-69 400 engines are also very hard to find since many were replaced with a 455, even if the engine was still good due to the bore/stroke dimensions, and the 400 block unfortunately disposed of at a salvage yard.

 

There was an old man who drove around town in a rusty 68 Toronado. I asked if he would sell it to me for $600. He said sure. I pulled rhe motor, never out or apart before and sure enough, forged just like I expected. Junked the car, sorry Toro fans. Complete assembly still sitting in my garage, all accessories still attached. I think many 68-69 400 owners spun a bearing overreving them since they didnt run like the 65-67 400s. Natural thing to do was replace it with a 98, 88, Toro 455 from a junkyard.

 

Got in to look today, 3 motors are 389244D with B heads, the other is 396021F with C heads. The other motor is a 350

 

So you have a couple 425's and a 455.

 

So he is interested in selling the motors, I dug out 1 425, it's complete minus 2bbl carb but it is tight, what is a core 425 worth?

 

I'd ask $400-$500 to start. A 425 block is functionally same as a 455 and only needs a crank swap to be a 455. The cam bank angle nedds to be determined. Is it the .921 lifter or .842 lifter? 45 degree or 39 degree cam bznk angle. ?

 

Is there a way to determine bank angle and lifter diameter without taking it apart? It's complete and I really don't want to tear it down if i don't have to

 

Since its a two barrell its not a Toronado engine. That means it is probably a 45 degree cam bank angle and .842 dia lifter but the only way to be absolutely sure is pjll up the intake manifold and look. Use a protractor to measure cam bank angle and calipers to measure a lifter. Or just compare a lifter out of another newer engine. Use our search function. There are a lot of posts on hhis subject. Two barrel heads mean small valve but that is good. Installing large valves means the valve seats will not be sunk.