I'm a career Soldier that just bought an '87 Monte that has no engine or transmission. This is my first "toy", and I want to do it right. I have no problems gettting grease under my nails, but I can only do basic stuff. My wife is currently taking some basic automotive tech classes at the local college, so I want to try to do as much as possible myself, with what little funds I can scrape together. Also, I have an uncle close by with a junk yard, so I should be able to source most anything with ease. Knowing all this, here is my question...

What motor/tranny combo would be a good start? The car will mainly be my weekend driver, and I have no plans of ever putting it on a track. With that being said, I would still like something with a bit of go to it...a little smile on demand if you will.

Thank you all for any help you can give.

 

blank canvas is great. no trash to take out. id start with a small block. 350+ cubic inches. you want something that makes at least 330hp to propel the car. mild cam maybe 480 or so lift, vortec heads, or after market iron heads, small carb, and aluminum intake. long tube headers, and a 2.5 exhaust. since its a weekend cruiser id go with a 350 trans theyre light, fairly strong, readily availble, and are know for neck snapping shifts when built right. shift kit and 2200-2500 stall. finally you want to find a late ss rear with 3.73s, and a limited slip, or upgrade your current rear with a new 28 spline carrier, some gearing, and 28 spline axles. that kinda hp should get it to go flat 14s if not high 13s. if you want you could also go with the 700r4 or the 2004r that way you have an overdrive. you could also try to find a 8.5 rear from a grand national/t-type, or 442. way stronger, but theyre also scarce. good look with the build, and post some pics.

 

Thanks for the reply. I see a lot of "family" time in my future. LOL.

 

Which of those would be direct drop in's?

 

What I meant was, is the small block 350/400 a direct drop-in? Also, I don't have a "Garage" at my disposal, so which of set-ups would be the easiest for a 1st timer?

 

You can drop pretty much any SBC into the engine bay. But you may want to stay away from SB 400, as it's known for overheating problem due to Siamese bore. BBC also fits, but it'll be a tight fit, especially if you planning on running headers. If you're starting from scratch, why not 383? Do you need to pass emission test at your area? If so, You may need to stick with original 305 H/O with computers.

AS for the trans, if you not planning to drive this baby as a daily driver, TH-350 or 400 will work. But you'll be spinning at around 3800rpm on freeway just to go around 50mph. To keep up with everybody, it'll be higher rpm. Trust me. I did it with my TH-350 with stock 3.73 gear out back. I was spinning my engine anywhere between 3800 - 4600rpm everyday, just to keep up with everybody on the freeway. It's not too fun, especially with the gas price now days. I did this when it was about $2.50/Gal and it almost killed me, wallet-wise............

If you got the time and money, you may want to go with 200-4R from known builder, suck as CK trans. Here is the link. www.CKPerformance.com . He have great parts, and can make your 200-4R to live behind pretty much anything. I have his tech book and did my 200-4R rebuilt, and I can only say great thing about him. And I didn't use any of his parts. I can only imagine how good it'll be, using his parts. BTW, I am building a 350 right now, shooting for about 350-400HP, and planning to use his internal part. If Turbo Regal guys trust him, that's good enough for me. Besides, I have his book to prove it. One thing. IF you decided to go with 200-4R, avoid at all cost, to go to "we do transmission!" type of place for a rebuilt. You going to regret it later.

Any set-up is pretty easy, straight forward drop in. But YOU need to decide what you want to do. depending on that, parts you need to collect will be different. For example, TH-350, TH-400 (or TH-200-4R) and TH-700-R4 all uses different trans crossmember.

 

Thanks finallyss. I have a line on an SBC 350, so I'll prob go that route engine wise. The same guy has a TH-350 as well, but it sounds like that may not be the way to go for me...IDK. I'll have to do some research into the 200-4R and the 700-R4, as I have no knowledge of either of those.

 

Pretty much everybody would say go with 700-R4. But look at it this way. How many Turbo Buick with TH-700-R4? It's your choice, but 200-4R is pretty much direct bolt-in. I also remember you stating that you're looking for easiest swap. 700-R4 never came in the G-body, so you need to adjust here and there, due to age of the car and manufacture tolerances. You also need custom driveshaft or cut the stock one about three inches.

In any case, whether you go with 200-4R or 700-R4, Please! Don't go to the "We do Transmission!" place. You may save little now, but you will pay for it later.

 

No "We do Transmission!" places. Got it. The only prob I see with the 200-4R is that I keep hearing about how weak it is, and I'm worried about how much $$ it would take to make it strong enough for me not to worry too much about it. I don't want to have to change transmissions every year ir so.

 

Have you ever visited a turbo regal site? And if you do find a thread in there with anybody saying about the TH-200-4R being weak, do let me know. So far, I haven't seen one yet.

I'm not saying the 200-4R is the greatest trans. But it is easier to swap it in. And can be made to be a great trans. Anyway, it's your choice.

BTW, walk away from anybody that say 200-4R is weak or not worth it. Guess what GNX have it behind it's engine?