Thread: Everybody that is currently building a car...

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Thats a tight sqeeze, I like the mounts they look pretty stout. Are you going to have to make headers for it?

Thanks, Brick. I got a set of Cutlass headers and they drop right in other than having to do a small frame notch on one side.

A construction pict ure of the Bmer when theb Ford 9" and mopar super stock leaf suspension was being fitted, the prewsent engine in the car when 1st off the engine Dyno at Finish Line Mtr Sports with their intake and Carb, i have a dom intake and 1050 Dom on the engine as its in the car now, its a 464" 70 Stage 1 455 Base engine with production block and heads...

Far out, Mr Wizard! I love Buick 455s; my mom had one in a beat to crap, green, 4 dr 1970 Electra and I loved borrowing that car. That old beater spanked quite a few "cool cars" at my high school. I'll bet that beamer it a blast to drive with that set up.

It is Falcon, blast to drive as u say. Full tilt, its always skatin, a surprising amount considering the 60's IMHO.
I'm, as well as BOP, a manual shift Junkie, well...better add JUICE to that...took out the TH400 n put in a Tremec TKO 5spd manual, made it a hell of a lot more fun to drive!!!!..
Not very effective to race tho, too hard to keep up with. So, i put back the TH400 n 3500 verter.
The 455 Buicks, especially the Stage 1's set up like mine are some awsome tq monsters, add spray, i got 300 on it, and its brutal. 455's have a giant bore, but a relatively short stroke@ 4.3125 x 3.9, so much like a SB they r rev happy, but don't breath well if u rev em up TOO quickly or TOO hgh. once ur at or above 400 cubes with the V8 BB Buick, its at a point where the relatively small valves(2.14 x 1.71 in mine@464") and purposely restricted exhaust ports don't breath well when revved too quickly or too hgh.
TA Performance offers Ported Stage 1 heads for the 400-455 and the 300-350, but i do my own, with much the same result and for less Money.
TA and Edelbrock also offer Aluminum replacement heads for the BB V8 Buick as well...the Edelbrocks are dupes of the Stage 1 Head but the TA's are dupes of the Stage 2 head, 1 which accepts Stage 1 Exhaust, the fully ported Stage 3 and 4 versions of their head accept only Stage 2 exhaust(All Stage 2 cars CAME with custom built tubular exhaust headers by Kustom Speed Equipment in Flint, MI).
I atually have built 3 strokers for the car w/ TA's Stage 3 version of their, a 523, and when that broke, a 535, when THAT Broke i built a 573 in a BullDogg Engineering Aftermarket block, but never put it in the car before selling it(the engine).
The 523 ran veritablely, w/ Headers, on mtr what the 464 in the car now had run on spray w/ exhaust manifolds, but was useless tryin to spray it, jus slowed down. The 535 was even worse, it wouldn't run as good on the mtr as did the 464 on spray, and of course usin spray was a none starter issue. When it let go, I built the Aftermarket 573 w/ the same heads. While that was being done, i bought a set of Stage 1 Headers for the car and put the 464 back in.
The car still has the stock track at both ends, and the stock wheel tubs, tho i shortened the whlbse from 101 to 100.5 by movein the 9'' Ford forward 1/2" when i installed it. I had planned that after the 573 was done i was gonna tub the car up w/ 30x12 tires, add some more cage. By the time the 573 was ready and dyno'd i'de decided that i was having TOO much fun with the lil peanut 464", and w/ the headers, quicker than either the 523" or the 535" ever had and the car was near 80lbs lighter with the Stage 2 Engines, off the front of the car at that. Sold the whole thing, headers and all, save for the intake n carb which have been on the 464 since the 535 let go. got $9500.00 out of it, lil under 4k less than i had in it, but i looked at it from the point of the 5k or better i was goin to have to spend to get any use of the thing in the car.
Still got the stick shift hankering for the car tho, Still have all the stick shift stuff for the car save for the trans which i put in my TA that was a factory 4spd car, and where the TH400 was while the tremec was in the Bmer. The Tremec has a 2.64 1st 1-1 4th n .64 5thm mayb with a 2.20 M22 wideratio i can keep up with the thing and hook better.....maybe i'll jus leave the car alone and enjoy it like it is.....LOL
You know how car crafters are, long as ya got it, it ain't ever finished huh ?

46 convert, frame and chassis finished, started tearing body down for body work and paint

Man Mrwizard, that is alot of motor for that car huh? Dang, I like it!!

in a word, YES!!! The premise was to have as much motor as possible so that it could as mild and streetable as possible. Since the BB Buick is such a liteweight package in comparison to its cube cpacity, AND my favorite mode of hot rod motivation, in it went. Thanx for the compliments, thats always encouraging...especially comin from someone like u brick, who obviously understands what a project like that entails, and u as well Falc....

A few other shots of the Bmer Brickman...n thanx a mill for the kudo's.
You too Falcon, comments like that from fellow car crafters, im sure u agree mean far more than any critique from any other source.
In a Word, Yes, that IS a whole lotta mtr in that car, I don't show underhood installed pics of the car, nor do i often open the hood in public( i have since these picks made the HOOD lift off with 4 pins, and a 4" cowl, but still the stock steel hood)..u'de b quite surprised as i was when i 1st bought the car as a driver for 5k, at how much room there is under the hood of this lil devil.
Then too, for the cube capacity of 543" for the production 455 Buick Block, they are nearly the same weight(less than 50lbs more) as a SBC when both ar3e dressed in cast from the factory and 150 less than a BBC. Add alum heads(TA Performance makes Stage 2 alum dupes of the Stage 2 Head 1 accepts the Stage 1 exhaust, the full tilt version only accepts Stage 2 exh, and Edelbrock make alum dupes of the Stage 1 Head)intake and headers to both and the 455 Buick is near 10lbs LESS than an SBC, and still 165lbs less than a simularly equiped BBC, That liteweight is somewhat of a neg as well as a pos tho, since the TQ laden lw rpm nature of the BBB is very stressfull on the lite block, and strokers in production blocks require some "band aids" in order to hold up, especially at RPM's over 6k, and BIG SOLID roller cams should b left to race only situations since they tend to crack the lifter valley, even with some bracin in that area(i have scattered both a 523 n a 535 from what remained of that due to this, lifter valley cracks, u drop a valve n thas that).
Fortunately, up to 493, w/ attention to detail and good strong parts are more than u can shake a stick at and produce some unreal power numbers.. even so, tho u can retain the stock forged steel rods unless u stroke, and the stock nodular iron crank to 496 if u like, pretty much no matter what ya do, by 930whp in most situations the block isn't gonna last long, reason being is that by that point the thing's gonna b makin in excess of 1000lb/ft tq, at least 100 more than the block can take. TA Performance now produces the defunct BullDogg Engineering style iron after market Block and their own Alum aftermarket block, either of which will take up to 2200bhp and up to 604 cubes. I actually HAD a 573" BullDogg block version w/ the TA Stage 2 alum Heads 764bhp@6230rpm/714lb/ft TQ@4110rpm @ 9-1 on 92 octane; this with a flat tappet solid cam of LESS than .650 lift n only 298*/314* duration.
Whats in the car now is the engine in the picture, which was built out of the 70 Stage 1 455 that i originally crafted the car together with after the car was a driver with it, with the intake and carb from the strokers, but with headers rather than exhaust mans as it was before the strokers. Didn't wanna buy 2 sets of headers so only bought a set for Stage 2, none for stage 1. After the 535 i bought stage 1 headers b4 reinstallin the 464.
With the 523 and the 535 they lasted long enuff for me to realize that it was gonna take a lot more chasis and a lot more tire to make any use of the 573 and by the time it was done, i decided i was having too much fun out of my car to sink another 5-6k into it jus to have somethin more exotic and expensive to repair. I can make in excess of 800bhp on the spray with the lil Hydraulic flat tappet 464 which is bout the most i can effectively plant anyway. lost bout 3k on the sale of the 573 since at the time of sale, BullDogg engineering was no longer producin the blocks, they made less than 120 before stopping, but thats better than 6k more to have somethin i don't think i would have enjoyed as much.

This is a cool setup; I dont know if you saw it but Car Craft did a B-O-P 455 shootout a few years ago where they built identical spec'd 455s from all three makers. The Buford put up the best overall numbers.

Doodling on my lunch hour.......

I did note that article/shoot out with all 3 of the GM 455's, in fact they employed parts an supplies from all my fav BOP providers.
The 455 Buick is TQ supreme, the lil 464" in the Bmer now was built from a 70 Stage 1 455 which was rated @ 360bhp@5000rpm and 510 lb/ft @ 2800rpm.
When i 1st built this engine was after i used it stock, down to exhaust manifolds to fit the car and construct it. After i had it pretty well sorted out, i added the cage, Ford 9", a Coan TH400 race rvs pttn w/o brake and built the engine. Its .040 over(max recommended overbore for the 455 which has a 4.3125 Std bore). Sealed power liteweight forged alum 10-1 pistons, w/ Total seal gapless top ring rings, stock forged steel rods(all 455 Buick's have FORGED Steel rods and the Stage 1 and Stage 2 Engines have a nodular vs cast iron crank). The engine presently has a Poston GS 105 flat tappet hydraulic cam slightly reground by TA Perfomance .523/.538 105/105 296/304 with TA 1.65 Roller Rockers; Rhodes Lifters; TA/KB Wildcat Dominator Kool Runner air gap intake, 1050 Dominator carb, TA 1 7/8 primary Shorty block hugger headers; ARP rod bolts and head studs, TA/ARP ductile iron block girdle kit; TA hgh perf oil pmp w/booster plate; Ferrrera Stainless Steel swirl polished valves( Stock size 2.14 int w/ Stage 2 size 1.71 exh) in Tall Ported Stock Stage 1 heads; ATI Super Dampner; MSD 7al3 Ign; Modfied NOS 2 Stage Dominator Big Shot wet plate Nitrous system; Custom 10" 3500rpm baloon plated verter; 9" Ford axle has Strange alum center section w/ Richmond 3.50 gear, Ford Trac-Loc Posi, Moser 31 spline axles, Wilwood 13" Dual Piston caliper disc brakes.
On mtr alone, the engine makes 554bhp@5410rpm/563 lb/ft TQ @ 3200.( The Stage 1 455 was rated at 360bhp, 370 if in a GSX, but they actually made right around 425bhp and well over that for the 370bhp GSX version which comes with the Stage 2 valvetrain). For 68 - 69 the Stage 2 Buick was a 400" mtr rated at 370bhp, the 70 up 455 version was rated at 390. The 400 actually made right at 425bhp and the 455 Stage 2 made in excess of 500bhp.
As much as because its my fav engine i chose the 455 Buick because of its lite weight, less than 50lbs more than a SBC if both r dressed in cast as from the factory and 150 less than a BBC dressed the same way, and if u add aluminum heads, alum intake and headers to all 3 the BBB is nearly 10lbs liter than a simularly equiped SBC, 165 less than a simularly equiped BBC.
The lite weight however comes at a cost in the structural ability of same to contain hgh power figures.
With surprisingly little a 455 Buick can produce and contain 930bhp, especially with head studs and the ductile iron block girdle that i use, but no more since by that time they make in excess of 1000 ft/lbs and the block jus will not contain any more, ur pressing it there. In point of fact, ur best served with a 455 Buick if when useing the stock crank u stay at or below 850whp if u plan to hook it hard, otherwise u gonna kill production blocks pretty quickly. If u go over the .040 recommended over bore, u'll b best served if u grout or expoxy up the water jackets bout halfway the jackets, matter of fact, this can't hurt if ya don't over bore the block at all and plan to make hgh power figures, however, u can use the stock crank all the way up to 523 cubes, and u can use the stock rods a long as u do not stroke the engine. The 455 has a cube limit of 543, but 535 is the best safe limit for the production blocks. NO v8 BBB much cares for comp ratio's above 11.5 - 1, they make so much static cyl pressure even with that relatively low mechanical compression that they have such a narrow and peaked power window that tho u may actually make more peak power u'll like as not run better overall if u stay at or below 11 - 1 because that produces a much wider and flatter power curve. I have actually had for the car both a 523 and when that went i built a 535 for the car, in production blocks. After the demise of the 535 i bought a set of Stage 1 Headers and reinstalled the the 464 in the car now. I built then a 573" BullDogg Engineering after market iron block w/ a 604 cube limit; but by the time the 573 was done i decided that i was having to much fun with my car to spend another 6k or so that the 523 n 535 taught me i was goin to have to put into the chasis as well as tubbing the car(the car yet has STOCK wheel tubs) in order to get any effective use out of that monster so i sold the engine, headers and all, w/o ever installing it into the car. did have my outsource engine builder( Finish Line Motor Sports of Freeport, MI) to dyno the engine with HIS intake, carb n 1.52 Rocker set, with a .638/.646 105/105 300/306 solid flat tappet cam it made 764bhp@6130rpm/714 lb/ft TQ@4000rpm on 93 Sunnoco.
W/ spray, i can make in excess of 800bhp with the mtr in the car now, but i planned to build a 493 Stroker w/ The same TA Stage 2 Aluminum heads i used on the previous stroker later down the road, but now i expect the only thing i will do is ADD the TA heads to the engine i already have in the car in the base model which accepts Stage 1 Exh.( The full tilt versions will only accept Stage 2 exhaust )and just enjoy the car.

You have done your homework Mrwizard and it shows. Thats a great looking car and one I would LOVE to take a ride in! I bet that baby pins you in the seat huh?

When it hooks Brick, yea, it does pin ya but its a driver's car, something u have to learn how to best drive. Programed, always shift here drivers who don't have the hair to stab it n work with what happens would never do very well with it.
Don't know if u have any experience of the old HOT ROD short wheelbase Vegas, but its something akin to that due to the short wheelbase.
The Mopar Super Stock leaf spring set up i use in the rear has a rear end LIFT tendancy on the launch as the springs seperate and plant the axle, this counteracts the tendancy to wheelstand quite a bit, AND its why i use such a small tire...Like i say, its a drag race drivers car and thats exactly what i built it to b, that and a near ultimate sleeper, one that doesn't really look or sound like a sleeper, but when its discovered its a Buick motor seems folks jus discount any potential the car may appear to have...actually that kinda works in my favor as far as gettin bet races with the car...that and i've always had a way of enticing my competition to allow their mouth to overload the rear end of their car and themselves, im sure u know how THATS done....LOL
Again, thanx for all the Kudo's guys and hopefully all of ya can some day get to see the car and maybe even have a ride in it, that would jus tickle me pink...
I'm Hopeing by May to b able to travel to and compete at the annual Buick Nationals at Beach Bend Raceway outside Bowling Green KY this year in May. If that pans out then thats a chance for a lotta folk to see the car....altho i expect its gonna cut into my money makin racin the car...its such a unique combo i expect somehow its gonna end up in some publication, especially if it does well at the race...but... thas how it goes huh ?

Hello everyone, my name is hector. I'm new to this forum. Last weekend i bought a 66 chevess ss 396. Unfortunately, when i got home the car would not start. I checked the started and it came out good. I replaced the starter ignition and got the same result (nothing). I bought a new battery and again got no results. Bottom line, i need to find a good mechanic who can work on my car at a reasonable price. I would like this person to come to my house. Please, please I need help. you can e-mail your response to hromero_2002@yahoo.com. thank you.