Hi everyoneMy car is leaking oil, and I don't know what previous owners did to it. Runs good but i hate surprises...
(65 cutlass, 330 low comp 4 bbl, single exhaust)

So if I take out the engine to fix the leaks, 2 options:
I take this opportunity to put some hiperf parts or so I go back to the blueprint sauce with oem parts.

Whats your opinions?

 

How fast does it leak oil? If it's only a drip just continue to drive it.

 

This could be a cheap or an expensive fix. If the leak is valve cover gaskets, cheap fix. If the rear main seal is leaking, expensive fix. Any other leak in between is just money. Do your research to find the leak before jumping off the deep end and cost yourself a bundle of cash.

 

Well either of those are quite a leap from fixing an oil leak.

What "hiperf" or "blueprint sauce with oem parts" are you thinking of? New pistons would require a complete disassembly for boring the block (essentially a complete engine rebuild). Just a new camshaft would be much less involved.

 

JD,
The first thing I would do is go to a local parts store and buy a bottle of the die they sell for finding leaks. Put that in the oil and drive it for a while. Then you can use a cheap ultraviolet flashlight to see where the oil is coming from. That way you can figure out the best way to approach it.

As far as changing things goes . . . . are you happy with the way it runs other than the oil leaks ? If so then I would fix the leaks and leave it alone.

If you decide to start changing things you may as well be prepared to do the entire engine from top to bottom.

Just my opinion,

 

I agree with others who said that additional diagnosis is needed. An oil leak may not require major surgery. If an oil leak is the only problem an easy, cheap fix may do the job.

 

JC I would look for the simplest solution when diagnosing a problem like this first. The acronym K I S S is absolutely our friend with cars like ours. If your not familiar, it means Keep It Stupid Simple. In other words if your battery is giving you a hard time, try tightening the terminals before you buy a new one.

I had 2 oil leaks develop since I bought my 69 over 5 years ago... One was as simple as it gets, when you think the drain plug is tight on your oil pan give it another half turn. Cause that was the solution for one of my leaks. The second was the valve cover gaskets. For this you can have your engine cleaned and monitor closely to see that this is the problem. If so its a relative walk in the park for a experienced mechanic.

Now my favorite part of your post is the might as wells. I might as well rebuild my engine and give it some performance goodies, is a monumental leap and I love It ! I suspect from this and some of your previous post that you are looking for a little more performance. If so I would go with a better rear gear for acceleration if it doesn't already have one ? Stock I believe your car is a 3.00, and if originality is not of utmost importance I would swap your transmission. The Jetaway is holding you back in my honest opinion. A TH350 is a awesome substitute.

 

Actually it stands for "Keep It Simple Stupid". I also agree that you should find the cause of the leak/s prior to applying a cure.

 

thanks guys for your help

You mean that this engine (330) could run till 100 000km without being open, so i'll clean it to see where the leaks come from, then fix them.

ANd it's true the tranny seems to be ....not approrpiate for what i want to do.

Does the th350 easy to switch with the original, or is there major modifications, like driveshaft or smthg else?

 

Easily when cared for properly.