350 Olds From Diesel to Gas

[Lakota]

I have a friend that wants to give away a late 70's Olds Tornado, with a 5.7/350 diesel engine. It was my understanding that the 350 Olds diesel was a conversion from a gas engine, and as a diesel they weren't worth a damn. Can these engines be changed back to a gas engine?

 

[Unkl Ian]

I 'm pretty sure the Toranado was before the Olds diesel.

Someone might have swapped in a later motor.

IIRC, they can be converted into gas motors.
No idea how practical that conversion is.

 

[Sam_Fear]

Just taking a guess, but might it be easier and cheaper just to find another 350? I mean diesel and gas engines have very different ignition systems. My understanding is the diesel block, crank, etc. is stronger, but the heads don't have plug holes and being a diesel, the compression has got to be really high.

Might be a good core to rebuild on, but I'm not even sure if the oiling systems are the same since diesel kind of lubes itself. Just rambling BTW...

 

[Unkl Ian]

The diesel motor is heavier, but the bolt patterns are the same,
so gas cylinder heads and manifolds will fit.

http://oldsjunction.classicoldsmobile.com/oldsfaq/ofedsl.htm

http://www.popularhotrodding.com/features/0408phr_worst_automobile_engines/index.html

http://www.v8buick.com/archive/index.php/t-34635.html

http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/cadillac-forum/t-30682.html

The "easy" answer is to get another motor, with the Buick/Olds/Pontiac bellhousing pattern.

 

[Lakota]

Thanks for the input guys. still haven't decided what I'm going to do with this Tornado. It's a front wheel drive, so to change the engine would mean I'd have to change oil pan and oil pick up.

 

[Unkl Ian]

Might be able to use the current pan on a Olds 350 gas motor.

 

[PA41]

I had a guy telling me he had turned a 350 diesel GM motor into a alky burner for a dirt car. A cam and a set of heads??.. Never saw it, but it might coulda been true. He claimed he whupped up on $10,000 motors.

Don't really have to be true as long as theres a good yarn hooked to it. The 'truth' is a little overrated.

PA41

 

[Unkl Ian]

Some of the drag race guys like the diesel blocks.

 

[HotRodCadillac]

Yup, Olds put diesels in 'em after the downsize in '79. My '78 Toro XS has a 403, but it's the last year of the big ones.

 

[Lakota]

Here's an off the wall thought...

Since the trans on the front wheel drive Tornado is a TH325, (front wheel drive verson of the TH350), and it's a BPOC bolt set up, do they make an adapter plate to bolt a 350 Chevy to it?

 

[26Troadster]

in the early 80's we built a 452 cid olds from the d-cell engine. the block was bored .400 and the 425 crank had the counter weights cut down to fit in the small block. the d-cell has the same size mains as the big block. i was thinking about using the d-cell block and crank bore it about .100 to.150 and use the 403 rods(better rods) to make a stomp puller for my old pickup. hot rod or car craft had the wright up on this setup back in the early 80's that is where we had the info to do it. after we built it the man who owned it moved out of state so we never heard how long it lasted.

odie