First off, sorry for the play on words. You have my sincere apologies. Here's a pretty random question.

When I bought my '72 Cutlass S (350, 2bbl, daily driver), it had been converted to HEI and had an aftermarket air cleaner on it already (Mr. Gasket or something). I recently bought the original air cleaner from someone online for super cheap, but when I tried to put it on, the distributor cap seemed to be a little too tall for the air cleaner to fit....I didn't want to force it on there.

I was wondering if anyone with a 68-72 Cutlass with a 350 and HEI is successfully using their original air cleaner housing?

 

I used a spacer between the carb and the air cleaner and it raised the air cleaner enough to clear the distributor. I bought it years ago when Super Shops was still in business. I forgot who make it but am sure somebody still does.

 

Sorry I just realized after I posted that you have a 2 barrel. Mine is quadrajet. I doubt you will find a spacer. You will probably have to modify the air cleaner but it will be worth the effort.

 

Thanks for the reply, Red.

It's good to know that others had the same problem. I was wondering why the car had an aftermarket air cleaner when the rest (other than the HEI) was basically factory.

Yeah, I'm not having an easy time finding a riser for my 2bbl. Although I'd love to have the ROCKET 350 air cleaner rockin', I'm more concerned about the fact that I need to use a cheap plastic adapter to fit the aftermarket (which was intended for a 4bbl) onto the two barrel. I'm just not sure I'm getting a tight connection there. It gets all warped by the heat of my engine, and doesn't really fit the bottom of the cleaner very well.

Mr. Gasket sells a 4-in air cleaner that's designed for 2bbls. I may get this until I fashion a riser for my factory air cleaner.

Does anyone know if there is a correlation between air cleaner size and performance? I've always wondered that.

Thanks Olds buddies! See you next weekend at the Carlisle, PA All GM Nationals!

Russ

 

^^ I'll be in Lansing for the Homecomming show

 

That's sweet! I wish I could go...maybe next time.

Hope you have an awesome time.

Russ