olds 307 and 403

You can use hi temp RTV with the gaskets, but quality gaskets should be ok and use the Copper or Aluminum collector gaskets. Using shorties, they should just slide in. The tightest spot was the steering shaft, everything else had plenty of room.

coppercutlass

No although a quick disconnect set up makes life so much easier on the starter wiring.

mikejana

Thanks guys.

olds 307 and 403

With a mini starter and shorty headers, the starter should be able to stay in place just unhook the cable, even a full size starter should be able to stay put.

coppercutlass

Not with my mini starter. I have a summit brand.

olds 307 and 403

I always over tighten the battery connection on the Summit starter and bad things happen, I need to see if it is fixable. I may just bite the bullet since the Bendix has been weak since nearly new. I liked the cheap sbc Powermaster starter, worked great till Olds powered Z71 burnt to the ground.

mikejana

Sorry, I have not abandoned every one here and failed to update you. Delays on my build and the arrival of some parts just pushed me into a point in my schedule that I have little to no time to work on the car for about 6 weeks.
I had a day this week after parts arrived. The Remflex Header gasket is a great recommendation. I installed it with a . The bolts were pretty solid, but the bit they included was crap. I used safety wire and everything was ready to go in.
The 200r4 bolted in flawlessly and the whole assembly slid in perfectly with the Hedman shorty's and transmission bolted together.
I ran out of time and daylight and may only have 1 day this week to work on her. It looks like the Holley bracket will mate the Quick Fuel carb to the new TV cable and the old throttle stuff without headache.
The new Champion radiator is artwortwork.
Everything that cutlassfi suggested is art or better.
No bolts got connected other than the motor mounts and the tranny crossmember. No time or light was left for pictures.

Thanks for all the guidance,
If I'm lucky this week, I may have one day for progress and photos, I'll let you know.

olds 307 and 403

Which Champion rad, the two or four core?

mikejana

I went with the 2 row 1 inch radiator, they say it is same cooling as the 3 row standard. I'm kinda (or really way) outta money on this build. I did not cut corners on anything inside the engine, but had to cut back on the other stuff. Really wanted that fuel injection but that can come later.

Thanks again for the transmission book !

olds 307 and 403

Not a problem on the book, if you have any issues with your 2004R, I will send it back. That 2 core should out cool your 3 core, no problem. I had a 2 core aluminum with 1" tubes, no name brand, it cooled very well in my 88 Cutlass. I went to the Champion 3 core and it was well made but only acceptable with my 403. I used that same Champion 3 core, literally that same rad, in my 94 Z71 with an Olds 350. It ran 20 degrees cooler probably because the 350 has thicker non Siamese walls and the truck had much better air flow over the rad. The smaller rad size and seemly less air flow makes me not want another G body I guarantee it will be an easier fit than the Champion 4 core, that thing is huge. I am really tempted to try a Griffin with double 1.25" cores but there quality is hit and miss. I will need one as my 2 core is seeping near the tank and just big enough for my 350. I plan on piecing together a 9.6 to 1 403 and I think the Champion 2 core may be the safest bet. I can hardly wait to hear your feedback on your stroker build.

mikejana

Thanks Christian, I made copies of everything I anticipate needing from the book.

I'm very fond of these champion radiators.
I deal with them directly: Champion Cooling
I like their mission statement and their products. They are super helpful on the phone.

We have a Jeep CJ7 Golden Eagle that we've had for 30+ years. It is literally a Frankenstein vehicle. It has had cooling problems and fitment of every part problem for a decades. Their 'biggest" radiator was one of the best solutions ever, nice fit & super chill.

FWIW- My cutlass radiator was a perfect fit, hoping to report how it cools soon- looking forward to the car on the road and 80 plus on the thermometer!

olds 307 and 403

I plan on buying that rad from them direct, their Canadian shipping is reasonable as well. Now, I just need to find a good price 1970 fan shroud to go with it. Glad you made copies of the important stuff in the CK 2004R manual. If you get stumped, I will look and send what you need from the book. Good luck.

mikejana

Okay, so sorry I've been out of touch. Was out of the country for a while on a missions trip. Got the car started just before I left and had no time to take her outside the neighborhood. My timing is never great, it was hard to leave when my car wanted to play.
So I'm back now and she patiently waited. My tic toc tach was waiting for me, but had to make a return trip to the tic-toc-tach Doc (see what I did there?). I have no good way to judge where the rpms are, yet. It feels right.
My exhaust is "Kapakahi", or back yard engineered, but just temporarily. It definitely needs a proper visit to cutlassefi"s exhaust guy as soon as I have a chance. I'll replace the mismatch with a full 2 1/2 dual setup.
Other than these small hiccups, and maybe the Hedman shorty, there is nothing we could have done better.
Thursday I ran some errands in the morning and babied her. Actually got 22 mpg? which I'm finding very hard to believe. Could my numbers be right?
Filled up the tank to get another mpg check in the evening, 13.8 mpg with several drag race starts and a about 10 fast miles on the interstate.
Yesterday we took the car on a 160 mile trip to Orlando; about 130 miles on the interstate, 75-80 mph on cruise control, the rest in awful city traffic. Got home late, and used a little over half a tank. WOW.
That was my ultimate objective, refreshed and drive able motor with enough torque to comfortably cruise cruise at fast highway speeds with the 200R-4 in overdrive. My gear is 2.93, I'm running 225/70-14 shoes. She is very fast off the line, just a different league than stock. Shifts flawlessly (thanks CK and Dr Olds) and almost feels like a constant drive with normal driving. The 200R-4 has the CK Street & Strip master rebuild kit with Billet Drum & Servo. As CK Chris commended, I went with the low stall lock out converter. He said with my HP/TQ numbers it would stall above 2k. It's perfect for me.
The build is topped off with the Quick Fuel Carb. I really would have liked to crown this builds with the slayer EFI, but I REALLY blew the budget here. Before the rebuild I was running the best Quadrajet ever build (okay, IMHO, but it is a really good one). The QF 750 Slayer is an upgrade; flawless, easy and a great choice.
So she is very drive-able, comfortable on the highway. She moves out as necessary and gas mileage seems to have improved with twice the power of her previous mill.
I'll need to tame the cruise control, and buy some more tires.

So I will keep you updated as we get some time on the road. I am super stoked and blessed. Thanks for Classic olds and the access it provides. Everything in this great build is because of this community. The few misteps, all my fault, were resources outside of classic Olds.

My advice for anyone pondering a rebuild:
1- Get in touch with Mark, aka CutlassEFI
2- Tell him what you want
3- follow Mark's advice
- if you are unsure, talk about it here and then see #2

Thanks

olds 307 and 403

Wow 22 mpg is awesome, maybe possible, thinking the modern, super thin ring pack and a proper tuned carb go a long way. I bet it is super nice to drive. I got 21.5 imperial mpg driving the 88 last trip and that was mighty 260 power.

mikejana

I'm hoping my numbers are right on the 22mpg, but not sure that is possible? I was really treating it like a baby.
Also easy to baby because my exhaust sounds awful, that is 1st up as soon as the budget recovers

DR_DAN

Mike, was just on the phone with Mark. Glad everything went smooth and the trans is as expected. Hope you enjoy it!!

mikejana

Thanks Dan.
Can't begin thank you enough for all your help.
That 200r4 is the best upgrade ever!

mrw8i

Love this build. Mark is a good guy. Impressive numbers. He sent me my 455 (port EFI, tuned for pump gas 91 octane), last May 2017. I'm finally going to install it later today after all the work of test fits, fitting headers, wiring for EFI, fueling for EFI, vacations, life getting in the way. However I did not get the trans out to trans shop until last week, so that's a month away as I waited too long and drag racing season is about to start up and he is backed up working on more important clients than me.