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First post and questions 63 olds 88

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Old July 22nd, 2015 | 12:12 PM
  #1  
guywiththetruck's Avatar
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Exclamation First post and questions 63 olds 88

Hello Classic Oldsmoblie! I've been searching for a classic car for some time to build. I didn't want a Camaro, Mustang, Challenger etc. I found a 1963 Olds 88 Holiday 2 door for sale. I could care less about the engine and transmission because I would be swapping it with a newer GM LS powertrain and overdrive transmission yet keeping it look old school, no chrome bling crap. try to hide most of the electrical. I found on your site Fusick Automotive parts for quite a bit of the OEM parts but for aftermarket brakes like power brakes, dual master cylinder with 4 wheel disc brakes setups has anyone done? also repair panel such a a floor (passenger front seat) and rear inner fenders, quarter panels. Do they exists in the after market? I know a Pontiac Catalina shares the same chassis. I can pick up this Olds 88 pretty cheap and the body is straight except for the hole in the floor and the rear quarters.this is an original A/C car, and will keep the A/C and want to keep the stock interior much as possible. did these only come in bench seats or did some have center consoles/floor shifter? so to list my main concerns,

Floor repair panel/rear quarter panels
Chassis/suspension components
upgrade brake system

Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Old July 22nd, 2015 | 01:39 PM
  #2  
oldcutlass's Avatar
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Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 41,127
From: Poteau, Ok
Welcome to the site, post some pictures of your car when you get a chance. There is no real aftermarket body support for your car, you'll need to find used ones. Post a list in the parts wanted section. There are no installation kits for your powertrain conversion so you'll have to fab all the mounting points.
Old July 22nd, 2015 | 03:08 PM
  #3  
lonestarjarhead's Avatar
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 174
From: North East Texas
63 88 Parts

Like Olds Cutlass said, not many repro parts available. Scarebird has a front disc conversion kit, but none for rear. 63 Starfires had bucket seats and console shifters, so you might go that route. Some floor panels are available, but fitment is sometimes a problem. Good luck with your build.
Old July 22nd, 2015 | 03:45 PM
  #4  
joe_padavano's Avatar
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Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 48,344
From: Northern VA
Welcome. Be forewarned, however, that you won't find a lot of love here for LS or SBC swaps. That's not to say they aren't outstanding motors, but most of us have Oldsmobiles specifically because they AREN'T Chevys. Hopefully we can change your mind, or at least open it a little to the coolness of the first-gen Olds V8s. They were THE performance motor of their day, and Ross Racing Engines sells a lot of parts for them, including aluminum heads. There are a ton of very cool intakes available used, up to 6x2 and 8x2 setups. Good luck with your build however it goes.

eng02.jpg

PICT0019.jpg

2682462213_4e086e50f7.jpg





Yeah, I know the last two aren't 394s, but the intakes fit with spacer plates.
Old July 23rd, 2015 | 07:53 AM
  #5  
Don R.'s Avatar
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Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 1,176
Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your good taste choosing a big Oldsmobile. These cars are a bit hard to find parts for but the good part is you probably will have the only car like yours on the street. I agree with Joe on the drivetrain but there are a lot of conversions out there. First thing to do is start searching this forum for your questions and the second is to buy a factory shop manual. Good luck!
Old July 23rd, 2015 | 10:53 AM
  #6  
rocketraider's Avatar
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Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 10,588
From: Southside Vajenya
Scarebird has had a rear disc brake conversion for 57-64 Olds-Pontiac axles for many years, unless they've discontinued it.


Basically anything that fits a Pontiac or Chevrolet B-body from those years will also work on the same body style Oldsmobile, consideration given to the Chevy's X-frame differences.


I've said many times I'm not fan of LS swaps as I think they lack imagination (see the four and six pot and blown Olds Rocket pictures- those have a cool factor an LS can never dream of achieving). However, I can deal with those better than sticking a Chevy 350 crate in whatever you're building. That is the absolute height of boring.


Should you decide to keep your old-school-cool Rocket, there are adapters made to bolt a THM to them (see the 4x2 carb engine).
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