Is this thing any good? Power wise I mean, or is it a gutless heartbreak?

Is this thing any good? Power wise I mean, or is it a gutless heartbreak?

I had a 1981 Turbo Trans Am, 4.9 liter kicked ass, and very promptly spun a bearing... just my expieriance!

My experience is they suck....turbo or not. 400s are very plentiful, not worth building a 301.

unless the 301's a turbo model the bottom end is weak. turbo's had forged crank and rods. the 301 is expensive to build compared to a 400 and the power isn't there for the money.

from my experience the turbo cars are dependable and get good mileage when built right and the proper care is taken with them. if the turbo chucks it's cookies get out your wallet.

personally if the car's a 79 0r early 80 model [ non computer] i'd set the 301 to the side and slide a 400 in it with a good trans and shift kit behind it. mike

I agree with Lemans1. The 301 is not worth rebuilding. I had one in my 1980 Firebird Esprit and blew it up shortly after purchasing the car. It now has a 400ci in it from a '77 TA SE.

You may still find this interesting though:
"The engine in the Silverbird is not based on the familiar 350ci V8 as you might expect, but on the short-deck 301, bore and stroked out to 4.15 x 3.58 inch, taking it to 366ci......The engine is actually a heavy-duty version of the current 301 and has 3-bolt main bearings, for instance, where the standard 301 (and 350) has but two.......
......the Silverbird engine pumps out 590hp @ 7500 rpm and 460 lb./ft torque @ 5000 rpm." :eek:

This would cost a lot of money and is probably not worth it but I just thought you guys would like to know. :D

[ July 23, 2002, 10:56 PM: Message edited by: 79TA455 ]

I need another engine though. I want either a 400 or a 455, whatever I can get my hands on. I have the cash and the time for this, if anyone can help me out with an engine deal that lives relativly close to me, email me and we can chat! Thanks guys!

By the way, how many litres is a 455?

[ July 26, 2002, 09:07 AM: Message edited by: SpeedDemon455 ]

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">7.4 litres! :eek:

Thank ya!

1 Litre = 61 C.I.

I thought it was 7.5?...if 61 cubic inches = 1 litre then 455=7.459...basically 7.5

On the trunk lid of the first gen Grand Ams, the 455 is referred to a 7.5 litre.

S.D.I have an 80 T/A that came with a 301 .I bought this car when it was almost new (1983) I drove it for a year and swapped a 455 it was an easy swap.The guy who built my engine told me the tranny was the weak link (Metric turbo) I thought I would try it anyway.Guess what? It lasted exactly one day till the tranny let go behind the 455s torque.
The best my car has run so far is 11.7s(street trim) right now I have a turbo 350 and a built 10 bolt 3:73 gears.Custom H.D.driveshaft & u-joints.Definltly install either a turo 350 or 400 or a Heavy Duty manual. Even a basically stock 400-455 will eat a 301 alive just from the torque factor.Remember these cars are very heavy 3700-4000 lbs and nothing moves weight like big old American V-8.
Later Mark

Righton, well...sounds cool. TH350 or TH400 eh... ;)

All TA's supposedly were built with TH350's, but this is the second car I have heard of that came with a 301 and TH200.

Don't bother with the 301 even if its a turbo. The heads and bottom end weren't built for anything but "A to B" driving.

Interesting tidbit about the Silverbird. My friend has a 301 block that was ordered from Pontiac by Richie Morlock, of the Herslow and Morlock Super Stock team.

Funny thing is, this block was specially cast with no coolant passages. That's right; a solid 301 block. Go figure.

There's a Turbo TA site somewhere that has a section on some guy that is running low 13's with a modified 301. It can be done but will take at least the turbo set up to get a decent output. The intakes are really tiny and the engine is head limited to the max. Also the CR it 7.9:1 which doesn't help. I have one in my daily driver and if I can get the time I would like to see what output can be gotten from it. Naturally it's a waste of time and money but a 13 second unboosted 301 would be an accomplishment. Kind of like flathead Fords, some weird challenge but non-mainstream.

I just bought a 1980 TA with a 455... I have no idea what the tranny is, I haven't looked yet. But, it slips in every gear and is really pissing me off. I read about the TH200-4R in GM High-Tech performance magazine, and was wondering if that would be a good way to go. I hear it's a tough little tranny, but also has overdrive. I'm in the Army and do a lot of highway driving, and this car is going to be driven regularly once I get it up to snuff (have to rebuild the 455 too).

So anyway, do you think this is a good idea? Can this tranny work on a 455? What about the 4th gear, I'm supposing I'll have to get a special shifter. I'm mechanically inclined, but this is my 2nd engine rebuild and this is my first project like this by myself. Any tips?

By the way, you're right about the 301's, I spun a bearing in mine ('79 formula) and traded in a 400 I rebuilt... and it was wonderful!

Thanks a lot

Mike

By the way, i found a th200 from a 1990 Chevrolet Caprice Classic 4 door sedan 5.0 liter. Is this a feasable addition to my TA?

Thanks

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by AcidSoul:
By the way, i found a th200 from a 1990 Chevrolet Caprice Classic 4 door sedan 5.0 liter. Is this a feasable addition to my TA?

Thanks <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

chevy bolt patterns will not fit BOP unless it is universal.

ahh, ok. The only reason I ask is because I've heard of TH200's in turbo trans am's.

Also, I have a dumb question... what is BOP?

Buick Olds Pontiac
bellhousing patterns are the same on these.
Chevy and Cadilac are the same.

ahh, that is what i was speculating...

The one I found supposedly fits on all 81-89 Buick and Pontiac V8's... but did pontiac continue making their own engines? I have an 88 GTA and it came with a Chevy motor.

I dont think either one built their own v8's between 81-89...Olds was still producing the 307 until 85 or 86 Im pretty sure.

Oldsmobile actually built the 307 V-8 all the way to 1990 for the full size station wagons.

Anything from 82- on is mostly corporate.. 301 is the last pontiac motor in 81, 307 till 90 in wagons, Cadillac will always tinker, and then theres the 3.8 Buick V6 which told the V8 to bite it in 79 or 80.... I think my girlfriend runs a Buick in the bedroom for christ sakes. (Hey, I work alot)

http://publish.uwo.ca/~agrehorn/301shrine.html
301 turbo shrine

Cadillac bolt pattern is the same as BOP - bolted a 472 in my 81 Regal with stock TH350 (previous motor was 3.8 Buick)