Thread: Thoughts On The 305..

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DAMN RIGHT ITS GONNA BE A DAILY DRIVER. WHY SPENT ALL THAT TIME AND EFFORT AND JUST LET IT SIT AROUND???

AND THANKS FOR THE IDEAS CAB 81!

Originally posted by merc53man
DAMN RIGHT ITS GONNA BE A DAILY DRIVER. WHY SPENT ALL THAT TIME AND EFFORT AND JUST LET IT SIT AROUND???

AND THANKS FOR THE IDEAS CAB 81!

Oh,I don't know it is over 50 years old.

SO IS MY DAD, AND HE GOES OUT EVERY DAY.

MY MERC WEIGHS 3600 AND CHANGE FULL OF FLUID. I WOULDNT THINK ITS MUCH HEAVIER THAN ANY 60'S/70'S MUSCLE CAR

Originally posted by merc53man
SO IS MY DAD, AND HE GOES OUT EVERY DAY.

3600? Hmm, that seems light enough for a 305. My mothers caddy has a 4100 and it moves it allright. Not going to win any races, but it should do. If you want to build a low-budget 305, grab some early 327/350 heads, shave them down to regain compression, attach a free-flowing exhaust system and a good intake. Dont go for the Edelbrock 350 heads as they have too large a combustion chamber. Remember, a lot of what makes a small block breathe is how much air can be drawn through the heads at their respectible RPMs. And as long as you dont go with too radical a camshaft, it should be fairly fuel effiecent and driveable. Finally, grab yourself a 7004r and bolt it behind. If you do any highway driving, Overdrive is a great thing.

Originally posted by merc53man
I HAVE THE CHANCE TO PICK UP A SBC 305 FOR NEAR NOTHING TO PUT IN MY 53 MERC...DONT KNOW THE YEAR, IM ASSUMING EARLY 80S. IS THIS GENERALLY THE SAME BLOCK AS THE 327/350, ETC OR IF IT DIFF, ANY OPINIONS ON IT? IM PLANNING TO JUST GO W/ EDELBROCK PERFORMER INTAKE/CARB, AND HEADERS, AND MAYBE GET IT DECKED TO INCREASE COMP.

Hi Mercman, You seem to be mainly interested in gas milage for your daily driver Mercury. It weights 3600 pounds which 'is what it is'. Meaning that you like the car so the wieght is immaterial. Since you mentioned nothing about 1/4 mile times, top end speed or wanting 350 HP I'd say the 305 is just fine. I originally had one in an '84 Camaro, think it was 195 HP. Now it certainly wasn't fast {at first} but on the other hand it wasn't THAT slow. I think the Camaro weighted 3500 pounds. I put a chip in & it made a HUGE difference {$160 bucks with thermostate}, Cold air intake which I built myself {very little money}, I'm sure it helped but couldn' t feel it in the seat of the pants. Then I put a cam in, a waste of money, no difference. I was told the weak link was the heads but didn't listen. Anyway, long story but I added nitrous, BIG difference but it blew up. But what I'm getting at is if you use the 305 & want to add a few speed parts, great! BUT don't put a bunch of money in it trying to go fast cuz you can get a 350 {or 383} that puts out more power for WAY less than building the 305. Remember that this is a web site where {for most of us} there is NO such thing as 'too much HP'!, but you didn't even mention HP, you said gas milage & daily driver. Go to Camaroz28.com & go to the Gen. III engine site. It tells some good stuff about 305's. Also remember if you build the 305 to much you'll lose the gas milage..... bill

Hey Dammit!!! I'm way over 50 years old, and I still go out every day too. I think your hearing a common thread here.---the 305 can be a good motor for power if you ----mill the heads/change the heads/ add a cam/add a set of headers/yada yada yada.
Bottom line is---you can get the 305 FREE. Free counts for a hell of a lot!!!! And frankly Scarlet, the 305 will outperform any stock flathead that was ever made.
I am running a stock 305 in my roadster pickup. It doesn't have the gut-wrenching power of a torquey 350, but it runs good, scoots around quick enough to get a real fat ticket, is reasonable on gas, and is good for up to 100 plus miles an hour (I had to go home and change my shorts after that one, so I'm not sure, maybe it'll even go faster)
It will drop right into your 53 Ford and there are numerous people selling aftermarket mounts to make it a bolt in.---I strongly recomend using the turbo 350 automatic transmission with it.
If you are looking for a good engine for an every day driver, use the FREE 305----just don't be going off to the local dragstrip on Sunday, expecting to bring home gold!!!!

Even for free, most any engine swap isn't cheap when you have to go get everthing else. I suggest you look for a complete donor car and use as much as possible,even if you do a full chassis swap,and up grade your brakes, steering and parts availability in move. Hank

Merc53man,
Yes a 350/383 will make more power, but the 305 is not that bad for what you want to do. The trick thing is to do like caballero said and get a stroker kit (3.75x3.75, a "square" motor good for torque, which you need in a heavy car) and you have 335 cubes. If it is a late model you may have a roller cam motor and that is just that much better. One thing to be aware of, the stock heads have very small chambers and valves (57cc or so) and most other heads have 68 plus cc's and you will loose a lot of compression and the valves can hit the cylinder walls. I'm not sure about vortec but World Products and others make a 57cc replacement head with good valves and springs. I am going to build one of these with a tuned-port later for my roadster when I get tired of the rump-rump motor I'm building now and I think it will have good torque and cruise-ability.
Good luck,
Jim

I'm not sure that Mercman wanted to jump into a total engine build here. The 305 in stock form will pull the nuts off a stock flathead. It is a direct bolt in if you use aftermarket engine mounts, and if you go with the automatic then all you really have to add other than the engine and tranny is a bolt-on tranny oil cooler, as the 53 rad won't have an oil gallery in the base of it to cool the tranny fluid.-You will also have to upgrade to a 12 volt battery. If you do buy an aftermarket 4-bbl and centerhead, they will add to the 305 performance without any other work, and if he ever does upgrade to a 350, then he can use the 4-bbl and headers on it.
It will be a real plus if the 305 has an HEI or old points style ignition, as then you don't have to mess with a computer or sensors of any kind.
Mounts aside, this is a swap that can almost be done in a weekend---if you use a set of aftermarket mounts, then it can be done in a weekend.
Remember folks---the key word here is "DAILY DRIVER".
If the engine/transmission package can be had for under $100 it will be an excellent choice for a "DAILY DRIVER"
----And John Force will still be safe

I'm sure the front mount engine mounts are still available which lets you use the same mounting points as the flathead. A good competent radiator shop can clean and cross block the radiator and it will cool the 305 with no problems been there, done that. You should also be able to find a tranny mount and as brian said a tranny cooler and an after market floor shifter. The rear end will hold up under normal use. You will have to find a new driveshaft and mix and match u-joints been there, done that. A good set of 1 7/8 headers, dual plane alum. manifold and 600cfm carb should do the trick.

...just put on some headers {for ease of install w/ a bonus of more HP} & a cold air intake on it {build it for free}. And put the motor in. May be later a 4 barrel if it doesn't already have one. According to www.campbellenterprises.com a 3600 pound car with 205 HP will do the quarter in 16.5 seconds {of course with a good trans, proper gears, traction, etc}. That's not slow at all for someone who isn't even concerned with going fast. But myself I'd use a 700R4 for the overdrive. I don't believe they cost any more than a turbo 350, don't remember if you need electronics to run the 700R4 {someone else here will remember}. Gas milage will be better..... bill

Originally posted by NTFDAY
I'm sure the front mount engine mounts are still available which lets you use the same mounting points as the flathead. A good competent radiator shop can clean and cross block the radiator and it will cool the 305 with no problems been there, done that. You should also be able to find a tranny mount and as brian said a tranny cooler and an after market floor shifter. The rear end will hold up under normal use. You will have to find a new driveshaft and mix and match u-joints been there, done that. A good set of 1 7/8 headers, dual plane alum. manifold and 600cfm carb should do the trick.

....aren't 1 7/8" headers a little to big for a 305??? Seems as if he'd be losing a lot of low end tq. with this size.... May be 1 3/4" at max. if not 1 5/8"??? bill

Whoops---Your right NFTDAY I forgot the gearshift. You can step up and pay a gazillion bucks for an aftermarket unit, or you can get a floor shifter out of just about any old (70 to mid 80's) Chevy or from an early Mustang and make it work. If the stalk is too short, take the knob off, pull out the flexible inner peice that activates the detent in the rachet mechanism. Then go to the nearest "metal supermarket" and buy a peice of steel tubing with the same I.D. and O.D. and weld it onto the existing shifter column. Drop the internal flexible part back into place (its made of plastic and looks a bit like your spine) then drop a 3/16" diameter steel rod equal in length to the peice you added to the shifter column down on top of that, and reassemble everything. It works great, the only "sticking point" is that the peice you add on has to be straight---(the 3/16" rod won't bend around a corner like the flexible spine will)