67 convertible. cutlass
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 41
67 convertible. cutlass
greetings all. ive been lurking thru all internet sites until I found this site. looks like the one to be on.. ok, so I have 67 conv cutlass that had a 330 that started out as a refresh and ended with needing complete rebuild. sooo my sons father in law has a 455 that was a recent rebuild 5yrs sitting on pallet in garage all kinds of motor work ,etc. says 500hp. picking it up cheap .(family Thing). I believe all brackets back on no problem, need bigger radiator? and the big question is the tranny? th350?th400? 700r4?
CH3NO2 LEARN IT BURN IT
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 5,635
From: Land of Taxes
A TH350 can be built to handle it So can a 200-4R. But...
A TH400 is stronger from the get-go. Knowing what the internals look like Id go TH400 with a GV overdrive. Or a 5 or 6 speed stick.
TH400 pros... just beefer. Cons more parasitic loss...but at 500 hp who cares.
At that HP/Torque level, I strongly consider chassis upgrades to include the cooling system, motor mounts, braking system, boxed rear lower control arms with sway bar, upgrade front sway bar, rear-end and a driveshaft/ujoint upgrade as well as some kind of frame "tieing"
You will need other mods such as shifter mods, ebrake front cable relocation, speedo calibration(verify the driven gear on the new trans if you do a trans swap), Trans cross-member relo or upgrade. Not sure if the ST300 2 speeds cross-member works with a TH400 by simply relocating it on the frame, but a 442 came with all of this so it should be straight forward.
The 455 torque will make short work of that 8.2" rear end and flex the body good enough to pop open the passenger door on hard acceleration with a good hook of the rear tires.
TCI makes a great Street n Strip semi-auto valve body TH400. Their converters are second to nun.
As you can see all systems must be considered with a single upgrade. A rebuilt 330 looks attractive now.
Let the MAWs commence.
https://www.jegs.com/p/TCI/TCI-Stree...46476/10002/-1
https://www.jegs.com/p/TCI/TCI-Stree...47568/10002/-1
A TH400 is stronger from the get-go. Knowing what the internals look like Id go TH400 with a GV overdrive. Or a 5 or 6 speed stick.
TH400 pros... just beefer. Cons more parasitic loss...but at 500 hp who cares.
At that HP/Torque level, I strongly consider chassis upgrades to include the cooling system, motor mounts, braking system, boxed rear lower control arms with sway bar, upgrade front sway bar, rear-end and a driveshaft/ujoint upgrade as well as some kind of frame "tieing"
You will need other mods such as shifter mods, ebrake front cable relocation, speedo calibration(verify the driven gear on the new trans if you do a trans swap), Trans cross-member relo or upgrade. Not sure if the ST300 2 speeds cross-member works with a TH400 by simply relocating it on the frame, but a 442 came with all of this so it should be straight forward.
The 455 torque will make short work of that 8.2" rear end and flex the body good enough to pop open the passenger door on hard acceleration with a good hook of the rear tires.
TCI makes a great Street n Strip semi-auto valve body TH400. Their converters are second to nun.
As you can see all systems must be considered with a single upgrade. A rebuilt 330 looks attractive now.
Let the MAWs commence.
https://www.jegs.com/p/TCI/TCI-Stree...46476/10002/-1
https://www.jegs.com/p/TCI/TCI-Stree...47568/10002/-1
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 41
A TH350 can be built to handle it So can a 200-4R. But...
A TH400 is stronger from the get-go. Knowing what the internals look like Id go TH400 with a GV overdrive. Or a 5 or 6 speed stick.
TH400 pros... just beefer. Cons more parasitic loss...but at 500 hp who cares.
At that HP/Torque level, I strongly consider chassis upgrades to include the cooling system, motor mounts, braking system, boxed rear lower control arms with sway bar, upgrade front sway bar, rear-end and a driveshaft/ujoint upgrade as well as some kind of frame "tieing"
You will need other mods such as shifter mods, ebrake front cable relocation, speedo calibration(verify the driven gear on the new trans if you do a trans swap), Trans cross-member relo or upgrade. Not sure if the ST300 2 speeds cross-member works with a TH400 by simply relocating it on the frame, but a 442 came with all of this so it should be straight forward.
The 455 torque will make short work of that 8.2" rear end and flex the body good enough to pop open the passenger door on hard acceleration with a good hook of the rear tires.
TCI makes a great Street n Strip semi-auto valve body TH400. Their converters are second to nun.
As you can see all systems must be considered with a single upgrade. A rebuilt 330 looks attractive now.
Let the MAWs commence.
https://www.jegs.com/p/TCI/TCI-Stree...46476/10002/-1
https://www.jegs.com/p/TCI/TCI-Stree...47568/10002/-1
A TH400 is stronger from the get-go. Knowing what the internals look like Id go TH400 with a GV overdrive. Or a 5 or 6 speed stick.
TH400 pros... just beefer. Cons more parasitic loss...but at 500 hp who cares.
At that HP/Torque level, I strongly consider chassis upgrades to include the cooling system, motor mounts, braking system, boxed rear lower control arms with sway bar, upgrade front sway bar, rear-end and a driveshaft/ujoint upgrade as well as some kind of frame "tieing"
You will need other mods such as shifter mods, ebrake front cable relocation, speedo calibration(verify the driven gear on the new trans if you do a trans swap), Trans cross-member relo or upgrade. Not sure if the ST300 2 speeds cross-member works with a TH400 by simply relocating it on the frame, but a 442 came with all of this so it should be straight forward.
The 455 torque will make short work of that 8.2" rear end and flex the body good enough to pop open the passenger door on hard acceleration with a good hook of the rear tires.
TCI makes a great Street n Strip semi-auto valve body TH400. Their converters are second to nun.
As you can see all systems must be considered with a single upgrade. A rebuilt 330 looks attractive now.
Let the MAWs commence.
https://www.jegs.com/p/TCI/TCI-Stree...46476/10002/-1
https://www.jegs.com/p/TCI/TCI-Stree...47568/10002/-1
Registered User
Joined: Aug 2019
Posts: 2,089
Welcome aboard, and nice ride.
Nice, sounds like fun.
If you had a base 330 with stock setup, I would say bigger radiator for sure as well as a 7 blade fan and definitely a shroud.
With regards to trans, if stock units than there is no other option but a TH400 imho. 500 HP and likely 500 lb ft screams for it. In the end factory knew best when we are talking stock. Big block engine should be paired with a big block trans. A built big block even more so.
PS as has been mentioned with regards to the rear-end on your Cutlass, if its a 8.2 proceed with caution. I hurt one on the street with regular day to day driving. Albeit with a heavy foot from time to time in my younger days. The rear broke with a 250 HP 330...
With regards to trans, if stock units than there is no other option but a TH400 imho. 500 HP and likely 500 lb ft screams for it. In the end factory knew best when we are talking stock. Big block engine should be paired with a big block trans. A built big block even more so.
PS as has been mentioned with regards to the rear-end on your Cutlass, if its a 8.2 proceed with caution. I hurt one on the street with regular day to day driving. Albeit with a heavy foot from time to time in my younger days. The rear broke with a 250 HP 330...
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 41
Welcome aboard, and nice ride.
Nice, sounds like fun.
If you had a base 330 with stock setup, I would say bigger radiator for sure as well as a 7 blade fan and definitely a shroud.
With regards to trans, if stock units than there is no other option but a TH400 imho. 500 HP and likely 500 lb ft screams for it. In the end factory knew best when we are talking stock. Big block engine should be paired with a big block trans. A built big block even more so.
PS as has been mentioned with regards to the rear-end on your Cutlass, if its a 8.2 proceed with caution. I hurt one on the street with regular day to day driving. Albeit with a heavy foot from time to time in my younger days. The rear broke with a 250 HP 330...
Nice, sounds like fun.
If you had a base 330 with stock setup, I would say bigger radiator for sure as well as a 7 blade fan and definitely a shroud.
With regards to trans, if stock units than there is no other option but a TH400 imho. 500 HP and likely 500 lb ft screams for it. In the end factory knew best when we are talking stock. Big block engine should be paired with a big block trans. A built big block even more so.
PS as has been mentioned with regards to the rear-end on your Cutlass, if its a 8.2 proceed with caution. I hurt one on the street with regular day to day driving. Albeit with a heavy foot from time to time in my younger days. The rear broke with a 250 HP 330...
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
