Reasons pro/con on Engine swap solicited

[pbrown]

if I value those things I listed above, should my keeper be the one that gets the 305?get rid of that 305 and keep both all Studebake

monetary comments like "the value of a 57 with a Stude engine is double/half that of one with a SBC, so that would/wouldn't be the smart way to do it"

or technical comments like "the 2 piece drive shaft on the 57 would be much easier/harder to adapt to the output of the 700R4"

So, which car gets what?

[Mike Van Veghten]

To me...the 305 is a "no deal", deal. In general...the small Chevy is a great engine. They wouldn't have made so many, for so long if it wasn't, but the 305....leave the 289 in the car.
Also, I had a 700-R4 in a car for a few years, I would NOT own another. The gear ratio spread (1st to 2nd) is horrible.

Why do people worry about the oil....!? Just use good oil..! Again...my 259 runs just fine on a diet of Castrol GTX, 20-50..my only car...as in daily driver..has for over 12 years (14 I think..!).

Fuel...swap fuel fo oil in the above statement. Put an electric fuel pump on it and just drive it.

Mike

[PackardV8]

There's no correct answer. The value of a modified car is totally dependent upon the skill and good taste of the builder. The more original the car, the easier it is for a potential buyer to make a decision on condition.

That your Silver Hawk has a V8 and thus is no longer original is a bit of a cop-out IMHO. The same year was available with a V8. Don't feel the need to justify why it's now OK to change; just do it the way you want.

and if I ever want to add power steering will require custom bracketry,

Don't understand this. The PS brackets for the V8 are thick on the ground.

Your car, your money, your decision.

jack vines

[Dick Steinkamp]

My experience has been that there is a much bigger market for a SBC powered Stude than a Stude powered Stude. Bigger market = more demand and higher price for an otherwise identical car. That assumes, of course, a proper conversion and not some cobbed up job. I'm not talking about the market within the SDC or this forum. I mean the entire old car hobby.

My experience also is that it is not as easy as it sounds to put a SBC in a Stude...especially a C/K. All kinds of "gotchas"...motor and trans mount, drive shaft and yoke, exhaust headers, throttle, cooling, motor position, trans linkage, pinion angle, crossmembers, wiring, There are more failed and incomplete swaps out there then there are ones on the road.

[Swifster]

I'm not against swaps, but the 305 and 267 V8's were the biggest turds Chevy every made. As for power steering, it should be pretty easy to locate the correct parts. As for the compressor, I'd just get a Sanden unit. If you're going to put an engine in the '57, get a 327 or a 350 for it. Heck, a 4.3L V6 would be better than a 305.

As for the 700R4/4L60, these are fine transmissions. 4L60E's are not that hard to set up either.

[64studeavanti]

in my opinion, in the long run, the best return on investment for the post war Studes are just like for other makes. The prestige models such as Speedsters, Hawks and Avantis should be as close to original as possible. For the Larks etc, which are much more plentiful and not generally admired outside of the Studebaker community it probably doesn't matter. That being said, for at least the short term, some resto mods are bringing pretty good money.

[EssexExport]

As said earlier, the 289 was available as an option. Even going with the 305 doesn't sound so drastic. Have a Prowler friend that put a 6.1 hemi in his. Now that's drastic.

[SN-60]

The Chevy 305 CI is an excellent street engine, and that 700R4 trans is definitely a good choice too! I've been driving that same combination in an '83 Avanti for twenty years....very dependable, and easy on gas!....Good luck!

[Pat Dilling]

The Chevy 305 CI is an excellent street engine, and that 700R4 trans is definitely a good choice too! I've been driving that same combination in an '83 Avanti for twenty years....very dependable, and easy on gas!....Good luck!

If you put the 305 700R4 in you can tell folks it has an Avanti drive train

[Dick Steinkamp]

Here's my 305/TH350 Lark. The combo was out of a low mile mid 70's pickup. It was a low HP (150 HP 2 barrel). My only change was dual exhaust and a 4 bbl.

Not super fast, but hardly a turd.

[sweetolbob]

IIRC the 89 engines are usually TPI or TBI. If your's is are you planning to run it with the ECM or convert to Carb. Transplanting a ECM controlled engine is a bit of a job but the reward is a good running good mileage engine. I'm not so down on the 700 as my 54K has a TPI SBC with a new chip in it and a 700R4. It's actually a nice street/highway combo. Mine is a 350 however.

A conversion to a carb setup could raise the cost of the conversion.

Good luck, Bob

[JoeHall]

"Best" between 700R and 200R is subjective, and involves several dependent variables. I prefaced the swap in the wife's GT with a ton of reading on the internet: if $ is important, a good, used 700R can be had cheap, since they are thick on the ground; lots of wrecked, low mileage V8 utility vehicles with them. If you insist on rebuilt, cores are plentiful, and cheaper to rebuild, since they don't need many upgrades. Got mine used, plug & play, from a 1992, 3/4T van, with 84,000 miles on it, for $220.

With 200R, finding a good used one is difficult since most came in sporty cars. Even if you find an excellent used one, it is not gonna fit the bill behind a Stude V8, since it will need to be "built up" stronger than OEM, to the tune of about $1500 and up. Unless you get one out of a Buick GN, and that ain't gonna be cheap either. Cores are not as plentiful either.

Gear ratios and gaps are relative to the rear end gears: a 3.07 makes a 700R almost too high geared, from 1st through OD. After about 3000 miles on the wife's GT with a 700R & 3.07, I plan to swap a 3.31 in for just that reason. A 3.54 is middle of the road, and should work equally well with either. Any higher than 3.54, i.e. 3.73 and the 200R begins to shine and the 700R begins to dull.

As for installation, a 700R fit the wife's 63GT with NO modifications to the bottom sheet metal, and only required removal of about 1" from the front side of the bat wing, behind the oil pan. A 200R woulda required major surgery on the bat wing, with the part between the frame rails replaced by an adapter.

From the first time out the driveway till now, the 700R has done exactly what its supposed to, and very well. A $1500-2500, 200R may be a "best" for some, but the $220, 700R is fitting the bill nicely in the GT

[jclary]

Well...I'm not going to push you one way or another about what power plant you use. It is your vehicle, your money, and you should enjoy it your way.

However, if you end up with a good running 289 or 259 V8 that is lying on the garage floor in your way...I'll be very happy to haul it away for you. After having the original flat 6 in my C-cab I have owned for four decades...I'm ready to explore how much fun a V8 would be. I already have an overdrive unit, V8 radiator, truck water manifold and intake. A CASO deal on an engine would be the icing on the cake.

[rkapteyn]

I have a TBI with a SDC pushing up past the ECM up the butt of 5 different and
disunited Caso's.TBI.

Robert Kapteyn

[JoeHall]

Well...I'm not going to push you one way or another about what power plant you use. It is your vehicle, your money, and you should enjoy it your way.

However, if you end up with a good running 289 or 259 V8 that is lying on the garage floor in your way...I'll be very happy to haul it away for you. After having the original flat 6 in my C-cab I have owned for four decades...I'm ready to explore how much fun a V8 would be. I already have an overdrive unit, V8 radiator, truck water manifold and intake. A CASO deal on an engine would be the icing on the cake.

I bet a lot of folks have went from Stude 6 to V8, and never went back. But I doubt many have went from V8 to 6, and never went back.