Indyjenks

Would like everyones opinion on where my money would be best spent. (engine refresh?) Car is blue with white top and interior. Dual ram hood/350/4bbl. 3 speed auto (currently being rebuilt). Car has no mechanical issues other than the tranny rebuild. Looks good but has a few door dings and the like. All numbers match as car is original. It was my wifes first car and she got it when it was 6 months old. All of you resto-experts give me some advice. I want to maintain the value of the car but am not an expert at this type of thing.

Indyjenks

Also, anyone able to recommend a good engine rebuilder/upgrader in the Indianapolis area? If I should decide to rebuild/upgrade the engine. I would like to try to get about 300HP out of it. its the 350/4bbl that I think was rated at about 180hp back in 72. Should have plenty of "meat" to make 300 if done right.

oldcutlass

The best advise I can give you, as its your wife's original car. Make it a common interest resto. If the wife is not happy, then no one is! Make a plan, but remember that plan is always subject to change based on financial and other considerations! I would not be concerned much on the value of the car, but concentrate on what makes both of you jointly appreciate the vehicle.

You guys need to come up with a direction and a budget before most of us can give an opinion. Also after you come up with the budget, take that number and multiply x3, don't ask me how I know. Remember always that one modification can or will lead to others. We as a group refer to them as the dreaded might as wells!

Pic's are always appreciated! Good luck!

Indyjenks

Wish I could but she passed from cancer in 2008, now Im battling it too. I think my budget is about 10,000$ Want it to look good and possibly get a performance boost too. I have tried to post some pics here.

droptopron

I am sorry for your loss.
300 HP is very doable from a 350. Try to finalize your plans before your transmission is done. To get the best results everything should be matched. Whatever cam you should will probably require a converter with a high stall speed. Also check what gears you have out back and if you have posi. Good luck.

Indyjenks

Car does indeed have posi. Im just having the tranny brought to factory specs, mainly dried seals and the like from not being driven enough. I'll call the tranny guy and ask him about the rear ratio as I have him rebuilding the rear end/posi also.

Misc pics under my profile. Your and my cars are very similar in looks, but is yours a 71?
https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...e-leather.html

droptopron

Mine is a '70 but its not a 442. I would ask the guy about a shift kit to firm things up and a transmission cooler. Heat is a transmission's greatest foe.
Shift kits are great to impress the kids chirping the tires 1st to 2nd.

droptopron

Just clicked on your link. That is a very sharp looking car. They do look very similar. I have a white interior also. Even though its a '70 it has a '72 interior. The previous owner preferred the pure white to the pearl that was available in '70.

Indyjenks

Thanks, it was the wifes first car, she bought it from a girlfriend when it was 6 months old. Had it ever since. Kind of a tribute to her. I want the vehicle to be "right". And that engine is so anemic....180 factory hp I think. Should be easy to pull 300 out of it. I'm not really interested in scorching performance, I have an 02 Acura TL-S for that, runs mid to high 13's. Just want decent performance staying as true as possible to the original form of the car as I can.

boondocker

Sorry to hear about your wife, my soul mate (wife) is fighting brain cancer but doing well, Cancer appears to be reaching epidemic levels these day's...the good news is that technology is advancing.
There is lots of good advice on this forum for the 350 block, I believe I have a really good combo gleaned from advice from this site, i'd go with flat top piston, a longer duration cam (i'm using 218/224 @.050 w/ higher lift), make sure you buy the cam w/ matching lifters and springs. The quadrajet should be up to the task although I would suggest a rebuild kit, check out Cliff Ruggles HP kits. Headers would help here (I'm using Headman's), with Flowmasters. Good luck on your build whatever direction you choose, should give that Acura a run for it's money.

Indyjenks

Thanks boondocker, very helpful. Tell your wife I'm there with her, had a glio blastoma brain tumor removed the day after Easter last year. Been doing well once they got me off of that Irino Ti-can chemo, just about killed me, literally. Im on short term disability at the moment and was just found to have bilateral pulmonary embolisms (blood clots in both lungs), so my fight gets a bit more complicated. But, not going to let any of this crap beat me. Do you have an estimate of what your engine/exhaust mods cost by chance? Just trying to get an idea.

Oh yeah, Acura is not stock, headers, intake, pulleys, iridium plugs, tune...it smokes G35's like they were 67 beetles. Seriously fast car, surprises everyone that rides in it. I need to get the Olds finished up, then I will have a representative in 3 classes.

Acura - fast luxury
09 versa hatch - customized for looks and sound only. Fun car with great sound and gas mileage
72 Olds 442 conv.- Class and fun summer cruising. Hopefully more grunt when Im done too.

droptopron

What you need to do is access the health of the engine and see if it needs to be rebuilt or if you can work on it as is. How many miles are on it?

Indyjenks

Only 132000 miles. Its numbers are all good, compression is good, doesnt use any oil. Ive maintained it pretty well over the years. I need a good engine builder in Indy though.

boondocker

You should be able to pick up long headers and a header back exhaust for around $500, check out Summit or Jegs. I did a complete rebuild of the engine myself (aside from the machining), the machine work and parts cost about $2K.

http://www.summitracing.com/

hookem horns

Looks good and runs good, so I might look underneath first. Suspension components could be pretty tired if still mostly original. Search for Rob's front end rebuild thread - very thourough. A quick ratio steering box is also nice. Shift kit and lower rear end will help seat of the pants feel.