Thread: Engine swap problems

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Please help. I'm bout to go crazy. I have a 69 chevy that had an i-6 in it. I pulled the i-6 and am now putting in my 305 (1988). Then engine fits fine (had to go to pullapart to get v-8 engine mounts) but i am having other problems:

1. How am I supposed to rig the throttle up now? The bigger block does not leave enough room for the linkage set-up that was used on the I-6.

2. Clutch linkage- my 305 doesn't have the holes on the side of the block to mount the two bolt bracket for the clutch linkage swing arm thing. So i am thinking i am going to have to put in a hydraulic clutch system with different belhousing.

3. If I can use the old transmission, the crossmember is too far back. It is riveted in the frame. Do i drill those out to move the cross member or how do i move it forward?

I know that's a lot of questions but any help would be great.

I would go with a cable type throttle setup, either off of some existing car or an aftermarket, like Lokar. So much easier to rig up. You might have to do some bracket fabrication on the carb end, but nothing impossible to do.

One out on the clutch linkage would be to fabricate a bracket that bolts into some existing holes, like on the bell housing or side of the block. Again, you just need to look at what is needed to anchor the end there and build some bracketry to accomplish that.

How far off is the crossmember? Sometimes you can add a plate to extend the area where the transmission mount goes, weld that in place, and then remount the trans mount onto that plate. I had to do that when I swapped a 5.0 engine into my Jeep pickup...........some 3/8 plate about 6 x 6 inches, welded to the old crossmember put it where I could mount the trans mount.

Swapping one engine into a different car or truck is just a matter of knocking down one problem after another to make the two work together.

Don

On the crossmember if you want to move it forward to use another set of frame holes one widely used way to remove rivets is to cut an "X" in the head with an angle grinder & cutoff disc, pop off each of the four quarters with a BFH and a sharp cold chisel, then knock out the shank with a punch or better an air chisel with a bull nose driver. Some say a flat air chisel will cut the heads off smooth without quartering - depends on your chisel Here's a specialized group you might get some good info from on your truck:

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/

i thought you had to relocate your engine to fit your trans .. now you`re saying you have to relocate your trans to fit your engine .. then you will need a new driveshaft .. then most likely your shift linkage wont work .. .. i should think the trans should have been left where it was and make the engine come to it .. chevy`s arent sposed to be hard to work on .. so i`ve been told ..

At this point I believe you need to put the wrenches down and start doing some research.

This is not a swap where you are installing an engine in the truck that was never intended to be there. Chevrolet made thousands of these trucks with small block V8s in them. This swap should be a bolt in. The key being getting the correct factory parts and mounting them properly. Spend some time on the internet and/or looking at actual trucks that have the V8s in them and see how the factory mounted them and with what parts.

As far as the throttle and clutch bracket I think you will find they are completely different between the 6 and 8 cyl trucks and your best bet will be to dig up the correct parts. I’m not sure if the bosses for the clutch bracket/ball are the same between the 305 and earlier SB engines and there is even the possibility that the V8 used a different bellhousing with the bosses located on it.......that is where your research comes in. Push come to shove you could always fabricate a custom bracket but that should be a lst resort.

Hoss is correct normally the transmission placement remains constant between the 6cyl and V8 models. If your engine now sits too far forward chances are you have the wrong mounts or have located them in the wrong location.

The factory spent a lot of time engineering mounts and brackets to make this body work with both Inline 6s and V8s. The problem comes when you try to re-invent the wheel. When you make a change in one area it will effect everything downstream from the change. It becomes a real domino effect ending up with a lot of fabrication and one off parts......and in my experience ending up with a cobbled together mess that never really works quite right.

I don’t mean for this to sound harsh but I’d like to see you avoid a lot of the common problems first time swappers often run into.

I agree with Mike and HOSS. Find a similar truck with a sbc and with camera in hand take as many pictures as needed and then hit the junkyard.

Like I said before you can mount the motor with the existing mounts but will sit back towards the firewall,you can use the bellhousing flywheel and clutch parts from the six plus your existing trans. If the block does not have the hole for the ball for the Z bar you will have to drill and tap it or find a older motor that has it,the Z bar will need to be shortened on the motor side some to use with the V8. If you use the six mounts and bellhousing there will be no need to move the crossmember unless you want to use a automatic trans and then that crossmember will meed to be removed,back in 83 I installed a 1970 350 in a 1967 C20 that originaly had a 250 and retained the original 4 speed like I mentioned above.