Hey Guys, Wanna swap a 350 in my Lemans

[stiness101]

Hey Guys,
I was looking to swap a 350 into my 67 Lemans convertible along with a manual transmission for it. Currently it has the stock 326 with stock mounts and everything with a 2speed auto. I was wondering what was necessary to be able to mount the 350 into the car. Do i just need the engine mounts for the 350 or do i need to get a set of like conversion mounts or something along those lines. Also, since it has the 2 speed and I want to do a manual conversion, what is needed for the tranny mount and possibly the driveshaft? Is there like a list i missed in this forum that lists stuff needed for this swap? Any help with this would be great, thanks!

[chipster]

It all depends on whether you are talking about a 350 pontiac or a 350 chevy,
column shift or floor shift, and what transmission you are talking about putting in.

[YVEYANT]

If it is a Pontiac 350 it will fit right in, same mounts and all. The tranny swap is a lot more involved. You will need to locate a clutch pedal assembly, have your driveshaft cut shorter or get one already out of the same year car with a four speed, clutch setup, shifter, floor shift steering column cover to delete the column shift etc..

[rustedgoat]

Welcome to the forums. Lots of good info here. Check out the search function tons of info and photos covering many issues that can keep you busy for hours. Where are you located? You may have a pontiac neighbor nearby that can help you locally. Getting a factory repair manual (swap meet $40-$50) is always a great investment considering all the info you will now have on hand. They have diagrams of all the clutch linkage and everything else.

Is the car running now. I'd like to know what kind of mpg you get with the 326/2 speed setup?

Good luck with the swap

[GT182]

Stiness, if you're swapping to a 4 speed, I have a brake and clutch pedal assembly I can sell. PM me on it. If you have an Ames catalog, a picture of it is on page 206.

Rustedgoat, back in 72 and 73 my all stock 66 Tempest with the 326, 2bbl, and ST300 averaged 24 mpg on a trip. I had G70 15s on the back. I checked it every trip I made from Rochester to Massena, NY and back. That was driving 2 and 4 lane highways at 55 and 60+ mph. Not sure what the rear gear ratio it had was, but it did have a limited slip unit in it.

[stiness101]

Hey Guys,
Thanks for the responses. I was thinking the Chevy 350 rather then the Pontiac. Also, the car is a floor shift, not a column shift. Rustedgoat, sorry but the car is currently not running so i cant report on the mpg that it gets. As for a manual, how is the service manual offered from this site? I was thinking of ordering that one.

[goquick]

Could I ask why a chevy engine? My opinion is keep it all Pontiac. Why? It's a Pontiac, not a chevelle. It'll be worth more, plus a chevy engine will never get the performance and mpg a Pontiac will on the street. But then, after years of running chevy pro street cars, what do i know about them.

[Ron67]

I agree why chevy im in the middle of removing a 350 chevy motor from my tempest and putting in pontiac 400 its costing more but my tempest will love me for it :)

[GonzoF1]

I considered a Chebby 350 in my LeMans. It's a viable option and I don't scold him for considering it. There are TONS of parts for them. They are cheap, easy to get and are available it a wide variety of HP config options. That's all I'm sayin' :D

[1967Clone]

Does every post turn out like this? I mean, it's in the right section. :confused:

[sleepy]

Why not? rebuild the 326 and change over to a TH350.

[Ron67]

If your goin with 350 chevy? you will need chevy frame mounts. im goin from 350 chevy back to pontiac 400 wanna trade mounts?

[rustedgoat]

stiness101 You would have to pick up the factory service manual (used) from ebay or a swap meet. As you see your going to get many opinions about which engine is better for your car. Just don't listen to any chevy guys saying pontiacs can't run. Since its a convertible you'll most likely be using on the street. I'd personally stick with a pontiac engine much better resale value and it just belongs in there.

With pontiacs you can build a nice strong, reliable street motor using nothing more than factory parts with a cam change. Many people on this forum will help out with a (pontiac) combo for your car. Just decide what the car is really for, what you're buget really is, and how much work you can do yourself.

[Stuckinda60s]

When set up for approximately 1 hp/cube, the Pontiac will give better mileage and be more user friendly in traffic than the Chevy configured similarly. You'll also be able to run a higher rear-end ratio.