Olds 350 vs. Chevy 350

Hello,

Can someone tell me what kinds of problems I am going to run into installing a 1980 Olds 350 into a '78 Chevrolet C20 truck?  The pickup currently has a worn out Chevy 350.  I have a 1980 Olds Custom Cruiser that I don't drive anymore, but has an excellent running 350 with almost new heads.

The car originally had a 350 diesel and I replaced it with the 350 gas engine 10 years ago.  It was an extremely easy swap.  But I'm thinking that putting this engine in the truck is not going to be as easy.  Will it bolt to the Turbo 400 transmission?  What about engine mounts?

How different are the Olds and Chevy blocks?  I'm trying to decide whether its worth the trouble, or if I should work out a swap with a salvage yard for a good Chevy 350.

Thanks!  

the engines are very different but i think the mounting is the same......i think the trans bolts right up  

Olds and Chevrolet 350s do not have the same transmission bolt patterns. But some transmissions are drilled for both and there are adaptors.


I'd sell the station wagon to someone who'd appreciate it for what it is ("long roofs" are cool) and use the coin to score a running Bow-Tie lump.  
*****
TURBO TED --Internationally known as the "John Force of the Yugo Racing Association."

Sergeant-at-Arms and immediate Past President of the SoAL Yugo Owners Group.

Yeah, swapping in that Olds 350 is not only gonna be a pain, but not good for your truck.

I agree with the suggestion above, sell the Olds for enough to get a fresh motor, or find someone with a car that you can trade straight up for that has a good 350.  

If it is a Turbo 400, the trans will not bolt up to the Olds.  The 200-4R used on many vehicles in the 80's have a dual bolt pattern that will accept BOP and Chevy engines.

The motor mounts are different, but thats not a huge deal...just swap out the Chevy mounts.

Whether or not it is worth the trouble is completely up to you.  You know the history of that Olds motor...you won't have the luxury of that if you buy a junkyard Chevy.  As TurboTed said...you can buy an adapter plate for the trans, or you could probably find a good used BOP TH400 for cheap...  
68 Olds Cutlass ~ 350 Rocket
85 Delta 88 ~ 425 Rocket
02 Silverado 4X4 ~ 5.3L

Thanks for the feedback.  I did a quick google search and I see the adapter plates you are talking about.

I'm still on the fence, but at least I know it is possible to make this olds engine work.  

just a suggestion. why don't you sell the cruiser and use the money to rebuild the chevy 350 with quality parts. work with you have. and besides the parts for a chevy are a dime a dozen if you run into trouble down the road or need a quik fix, and you will have to worry anything mounting up correctly or swapping anything over. well good luck bro. >>>>>>>>>bandit burning out  

I have a 1963 oldsmobile cutlass conv. i want to know if any parts from newer anything will bolt up to my car such as suspension front or rear and where i can find some floor pans everyone only has parts from 64 and up  

bwood:
Hello,

Can someone tell me what kinds of problems I am going to run into installing a 1980 Olds 350 into a '78 Chevrolet C20 truck?  The pickup currently has a worn out Chevy 350.  I have a 1980 Olds Custom Cruiser that I don't drive anymore, but has an excellent running 350 with almost new heads.

The car originally had a 350 diesel and I replaced it with the 350 gas engine 10 years ago.  It was an extremely easy swap.  But I'm thinking that putting this engine in the truck is not going to be as easy.  Will it bolt to the Turbo 400 transmission?  What about engine mounts?

How different are the Olds and Chevy blocks?  I'm trying to decide whether its worth the trouble, or if I should work out a swap with a salvage yard for a good Chevy 350.

Thanks!

I agree with CS. A swap is possible, but you will need tolocate a bellhousing adapter. THM-400's are drilled for SBC applications. As far as the 350 Rocket? Well it has similar characteristics of the 350 Chevy. The bore is a little larger, and the stroke is smaller. Since this a truck inquestion, I'd say get a new Chevy from a salvage yard. The olds 350 Rocket was a great engine, but they did have drawbacks. Smaller crankshaft will mean less reciporating mass, that equals less torque. Trucks usually operate on low-end torque. I have heard that the 350 rocket, did have some oiling problems in high-rpm ranges, not too sure if that is true. Need an olds guru to clarify that. On buying a used 350, that will be the most time efficient and cost effective means of reapiring the truck. See if you can work out some way to buy/rebuild the truck while keeping your SW. There aren't too many classic BOP offering2 on the road. Everything is Chevy. One day I'd like to pick up a hot rod mag, and read about a crafter's 326 Poncho, or a Buick 455, or even an olds 307, let alone an olds 350 rocket!! It gets kinda boring reading about Joe Crafter and his bored out chevy 350, with this cam and that manifold, only to turn the page and see Jim Smith with his 350 chevy. It's in a different vehicle, and a different cam, but everything else is the same.  
Guzzling gas and hauling ass, the true American way.

You got my vote for the Olds in the Chevy, go for it!  

in the early nineties I had a 1978 chevy c10 that i put a trus olds 350 rocket in(is your olds 350 a rocket?)and I had aprox the same power as the chebby did but it got a little better miealge so I dont think the olds will hurt the truck at all besides olds are known for torque or if ya want ill trade ya my chebby 355 in my truck now for your olds 350 (if its a true rocket)  

boyd1on:
in the early nineties I had a 1978 chevy c10 that i put a trus olds 350 rocket in(is your olds 350 a rocket?)and I had aprox the same power as the chebby did but it got a little better miealge so I dont think the olds will hurt the truck at all besides olds are known for torque or if ya want ill trade ya my chebby 355 in my truck now for your olds 350 (if its a true rocket)

All Olds 350s are "Rockets"  Hell all Olds V8's up through the 80's were "Rockets".  The Rocket motors were introduced in 1949 and ran up through 1990.  
68 Olds Cutlass ~ 350 Rocket
85 Delta 88 ~ 425 Rocket
02 Silverado 4X4 ~ 5.3L

Amazing how the 307 lasted until 1990 with everyone else going with fuel injection and what not. Read a site that mentioned that the high swirl head models felt like a fuel injected engine in the drivability of the vehicle.  

While gutless...the 307 was a pretty good engine when it came to reliability and fuel economy.  I had a 307 in my Delta 88 (85, 2-door)...at 178000 miles the only reason I pulled it was to drop in a 425  That thing never let me down...even with all the wear and tear (it was NOT taken care of the 5-6 years before I got a hold of it) it still managed over 20 mpg on the highway (and thats a heavy car!!!).  Back when my parents first bought it...it supposedly returned 25 consistently.  After my parents sold it to my grandparents to put a down payment on their our first house, my grandfather tore the hell out of the body...he wasn't all that great with spacial awareness.  But now its in my hands, with a 425 sitting in it...waiting for everything to get hooked up...  
68 Olds Cutlass ~ 350 Rocket
85 Delta 88 ~ 425 Rocket
02 Silverado 4X4 ~ 5.3L

My father has an 83 Delta 88 two door that just sits now. When he first got it he could not stand the down shifting it always did on the way home from down town. We live about 1700 feet above down town. So he had a 455 done up at a local shop and proceeded to have fun with it until one night coming up the hill from down town a rocker arm which was not checked for clearance interferred with the retainer and well you can guess what happened next. Two cylinders had to get sleeved as well as 2 new pistons and rods etc. etc. All back together everything was fine again until he wanted to take a vacation trip to Florida. Sighting fuel economy he pulled the 350 Olds from a 75 Delta 88 which has been in there ever since. Regardless the car is a porker but the Olds engines have no problem moving the load except the 307. Had a 260 Olds in a Cutlass too.