hello all im a us soldier in the army currently in iraq i posted early on with questions about my olds an got a lot of help out so thanks to all the helpful hints an support but now im almost at the end of my tour an still no find on the engine to buy or rebuild no one in elpaso tx wants to even touch this thing one guy told me it would be better to just swap for a chevy he has a 454 engine an tranny that he says will slide right in im not sure on this but i wanted to keep the 350 olds in it but cant find a new or rebuilt one an cant seem to find anyone willing to rebuild it so im not sure what to do is it just there noone rebuilds olds motors or just elpaso lol but i dont want to put a chevy in it cause then its not a olds anymore so if anyone is in the texas area or has a good engine that the would like to sell that would bolt right in or know of aplace i can buy one that is to what i have will just go into the car i would be so happy i have waited almost a year an nothing the car is a 1976 delta 88 2dr coupe an i cant find any parts for this car but im holding on with all i got to see this one to the end

 

Hey nitodog,

I couldn't find anybody to do my engine in the area that didn't want my first born so I had a production shop do it. One horse shop engine builders are some of the biggest self-important prima-donnas in the world. I just wanted a straight rebuild but they will do it into a hi-po version if specified. Do hundreds of engines a year and been around since dirt so I gave them a shot, been running for years and no problem. I found out lots of people use the place but just never say anything.
A little far for you though?
The rebuilding places do sell Olds engines if you aren't worried about numbers, you could have any of them ship one to you if they have it in stock or throw yours on a pallet and send it to them to be done. That area has to have somebody that does it?
I did a quick search of the American Engine Rebuilders Association and a place in El Paso comes up, they don't do them? Been around since 1920 so they have to have done an Olds engine at some point. You can ship it to them for nothing but it's probably around the corner. If they don't do Olds maybe the place can steer you in the right direction.
I don't know about south of the border? Have some real nice trim shops.
Keep checking back with your progress, between you and all the guys on this site we'll figure out something to keep you Olds powered.


http://carpartsmachineshop.com/GasEn...7/Default.aspx

 

Does your engine need to be reubilt? Perhaps you only need to have the heads machined and install a new cam and intake...

 

I agree with what one of our members used to say often. Any machinist worth his wages should be able to rebuild almost any generic American V8 if he has been around. If they say they can only do Chevies or Fords it is because that is all they want to do because it is easier for them. All it takes is a little effort to find sources for consumables that are Oldsmobile specific and to find the specs. There may be some specific tools or adapters required to do an Oldsmobile and they may not have them (thinking about the head plates when boring the block) but again, as I understand it those aren't necessary for a basic engine rebuild. I guess this is part of the pain we experience owning an Oldsmobile, the infrastructure just isn't as broad and the market isn't as supportive as the run-of-the-mill Chevies and Fords.

 

The only reason they told you to go with a Chevy is because they had in the shop ready to go. I don't live in Texas so all I can do is wish you the best of luck with finding a machine shop and come home safe.

 

Otherwise talk to Mark(cutlassefi) here in the forum,he knows olds motors,he is building a 455 for me right now and is great to deal with.He is not living in TX though but im sure he can help u.

 

thanks to all who replied back i wont give up on this car just a lil frustrated but i will find what im looking for an to olds64 you may be right the car fires on a dime but i did nt get to drive it so it may not need to be rebuilt but i would feel a lot better knowing it was but once it comes from paint i will have my painter drive the hell out of it for me until i come home to see if it holds up

 

I used an outfit here called City Motor for my 330 heads and they did a complete rebuild for $225 they are in Dallas. They also do great work on all motors!!! Not expensive!! Also you might try Jasper engines, they are all over!!

 

I have an old high school friend in Houston that races Camaros and builds his own motors. I'll see if I can get ahold of him. Maybe he can help.