I have a 61,000 mile 65 cutlass with the High compression 4bbl 330 and 2 speed auto. I have 3 problems I've been working on all summer.

1. The car does not seem to have the pick-up that I believe it should have (Even with the 2 speed auto) I can hardly spin the tires. I am running the timming at about 10 degrees advanced of the factory setting, and put a Pertronix points replacement system on it.

2. The car has an idle that is not real bad, but I notice a roughness when it's warm.
When I blip the throttle after it has idled in line at the Dairy Queen to try and smooth it out, I get a little blue smoke. I do not notice this on start-up. I have been adjusting the 4jet back and forth all summer. I also noticed this week that it has a cracked passenger side exhaust manifold.
( could this all be a poorly adjusted carb )

3. The other day I floored the accelerator from a stop. The engine seemed to rev higher then normal before shifting (guessing 5800 plus RPM)
When I returned home and opened the hood, It looked like oil had come out of the oil fill tube. I could not do a leakdown test, But a compression test showed 155 to 165 compression in all cylinders.

This is my first post.
Any and all opinions would be appriciated.
Thanks in advance,

Rob

 

The first thing you should do is remove that cracked exhaust manifold and have it repaired. It might not be anything more than a minor exhaust leak but you will need it fixed eventually. Take it to a good welding shop to have it repaired.

I also suggest doing a tune up. When was the last time you looked at your cap, rotor, timing, and carburetor settings? This will at least put you at a base line that you can work from.

You might also try to find a way to do a leak down test on your engine. You might be loosing oil through your valve guides if you get a puff of blue smoke every time you start the car. This is cured by having the heads machined.