1976 Buick 350

[Fateinc2005]

I came across a 76 pontiac ventura with a bucik 350 in it.
It has the distributor in the front of the block and read it is a long stroke,low rpm motor the price is so good i dont want to pass it up anyone know more about this motor ? I like the fact it looks different than a normal 350
Thanks john

 

[donsrods]

Does it say Buick on it? Reason I ask is it seems strange it was in a Pontiac. I know there were some "Corporate 350's" but those were based on the Chevy 350.

Anyway, if it is a Buick, they are very good engines. Long stroke and a block with a very high nickle content, so they are super durable. Aren't used much in the hot rod world because they are not considered "pretty engines" like a Chevy, Ford, etc. The oil pump being mounted on the outside of the timing cover is one reason for that, and the generally look is not very symetrical.

That being said, I would grab it. Them make good power and a BOP bolt pattern TH 350 will bolt up, as will some overdrive transmissions. It will also be cool to see a different motor in a rod.

Don

 

[RAT IHC]

Great motor! High nickel content casting. Good low and mid range torque...but doesn't like high rpms. It's a wide motor! But lite weight for what it is. Will make a great build with a hot rod!

 

[42chevy]

They are a great engine , just don' like to rev high.

 

[Fateinc2005]

I couldnt find any where thats says buick but i also can find no other motor produced by pontiac in that time frame that matches what is in the car. Thats why i started doing research on thay era and found that pontiac started to use buick motors around the time when smog was being introduced to california.My concern was it was a bad engine like th 455 olds motor since this is like its little brother i think i read somwhere . I found ta performance back east that has perfomance parts for these engines still trying to find some other dress up parts for it . I happy to hear that it is a decent motor since the engine comes complete with the tranny and rearend actually the whole car comes with it .
Thanks. John

 

[LOWANDRATY]

350 buick

I had a 77 regal with the 350 buick motor and like everyone has said it did not like high rpm, but it was a great off the line motor, it would burn the tires as long as you wanted it to, what are you going to put it in, you don't need big HP for a light weight car, a 1500 lb. T bucket with 250 HP would be a tire smoker, a big motor is just for bragging rights and the OMG factor, I like to brag about how much I didn't spend.

 

[Fateinc2005]

It will being going in my 30 model a sedan fordor . What i want and what i can afford are worlds apart but i like the look of the motor its not standard so theres some appeal there to me .
John

 

[Ol Blue]

They're supposed to be about 100 lbs lighter than a SBC.

 

[zzrodder]

If the distributor is up front, it's definitely a Buick engine, the only other front dist GM engines were the Caddy 368 - 500 V8's.

 

[donsrods]

Not sure what you meant by saying the 455 Olds is a "bad motor"? If you mean bad as in badazz, you are correct, if you mean bad as in no good, you are way wrong. Probably one of the best big blocks ever made IMO.

Don

 

[Fateinc2005]

I had a 455 in my jet boat thats my experience with the motor and it was not a good one , i have seen other 455 in boats and they ran great i think it all depends on who built them. They could be a great motor but i had a bad time with mine .
John

 

[Fateinc2005]

Sorry i posted it twice

 

[donsrods]

Yeah, even Rolls Royce built a bad one once. Olds engines are my engine of choice, and the later 400-455's are about the best of the genre'. We built the 468 CI that is in my Son's rpu, and it is going to be a monster. They make tons of torque and are pretty much bulletproof.

Just wondered what you had against them.

Here, for your listening pleasure.......crank up the speakers.

http://www.youtube.com/user/dhdh71#p/a/u/2/eq2IHg-QE34

http://www.youtube.com/user/dhdh71#p/a/u/0/R-j2Q75Y4b0

Don

 

[Fateinc2005]

They are defitnetley great sounding and good looking motors. I can only hope my stuff turns out that nice.