im thinking about buy a studebaker enginge it runs and is all there but i dont know to much about them what do you think
Good idea. Do something a bit different. Parts are available. I've never had a problem getting anything I needed. Also, check out the Studebaker Drivers Forum. The people on that site are the most helpful and knowledgeable I have experienced. I don't know much, but if I can help, let me know.
There is plenty of support for Stude V8's. I have two of those 259's. http://forum.studebakerdriversclub.com/
Good little engines. Reverborama gave you the best site of all, but also check out: http://racingstudebakers.com/racing_forums.htm Good Luck!
Be prepared to answer a lot of what the hell is that questions. Which is exactly why I bought this one. Only the people that have owned Studes will be able to identify it. They are not high winders but put out a lot of low end torgue. I put a T-5 behind mine and it's fun to drive. They do have some odd things about them that an experienced Chevy guy might not foresee. Join the SDC listed above and ask questions if you are not sure. I learned a lot from those guys. They are not purist snobs and hopping up a Stude engine is fine to them. I never would have guessed that to go from an automatic to a stick flywheel, that you would have to drop the crank some and change the flywheel bolts.
A lot of people confuse them for the Olds or Caddy engines of the era because of the separate valley cover. Personally, I couldn't bring myself to use a Chevy or Ford smallblock in a project where the engine is a showpiece because those engines are just too common. I'd rather see a Nailhead in a t-bucket. It will make a great conversations starter.
Tough engine. Only things 'different' are... Factory forged crank and rods. Gear driven camshaft. Crankshaft end play set with shim washers. External oil pressure relief valve (service yearly). Besides what else that has been posted here... Not a lightweight (550 pounds about for the dressed long block). The 259 will buzz up faster than the 289 (Stude) V8 will. There are a couple of guys building adapters to run a GM auto trans (700R4, etc) You can get about anything you need from the sources listed.... Hope the info helps... Jeff
It is kind of fun to stand about 20 feet from your car and watch a bunch of people stare at your motor trying to figure out what it is.
The SDC (Studebaker Driver's Club) has to be the most friendly club I have ever run across that is inclusive of all aspects of the car hobby so that it may have been started by restorers but every month that club has something going on somewhere that includes guys working on Bonneville projects, customs, drag racing, hot rod trucks, you name it. They put out one of the finest glossy paper magazines in the hobby. I've soured on most marquee car clubs in this hobby over my decades but NOT the SDC. If you get any chance to attend a local, regional or national meet of this club or any venue where Studebakers are racing, talk to the owners and find out what I'm talkin' about. Oh yeah, you asked about the 259. There were a LOT of them used in '50s -60s hot rodding when they were still plentiful because they were fine motors. Get that one and you won't be disappointed. There are tons of Stude vendors who are all helpful.
Most people would think that this would need a total expensive rebuild. The same engine with a little clean up. Believe it or not a little Marvel mystery oil and a few miles to let things free up and it does not smoke a bit after a 20 year nap. Tough engines.
They are strong. Mine was rebuilt in the late sixties or early seventies. It was never run and put on a warehouse self until 2007. We put it in the frame and wired it up. It turned over and fired up. With the help of the Salt2Salt guys, we timed it and that was pretty much all it needed.
You might check out Racing Studebakers, too! http://www.racingstudebakers.com/stl-web/bulletin/bb/index.php
Search is your friend. great, now i'm "that guy" Here is mine. I got alot of stuff to do still. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=273809 this is one of the best threads about stude v8s.
I was at the Pick Your Part in Sun Valley, CA the other day and there is a Studepecker P/U in the yard with the engine still in it and untouched. FYI
I got one with my truck project, by the number a 63 (fist year of full flow oil filtration) Canadian built unit out of a lark. 259 4bbl unit. It has been sitting at leat 4 years probably longer. Finally got it wired up and plumbed. and put a cleaned up GM sourced AFB on, and fired it up. Smoked for about 5 minute on high idle, then I idled it down, the smoke disappeared and it runs very nicely. On the later ones the intake manifolds for the 2bbl engines also have the bosses for the 4bbl studs, so with a bit of simple machine work the 2bbl intake takes a 4bbl. Supposed to put out 195 HP with the 4bbl. Remember, they got the paxton supercharger in the Gt's and Avanti's with minimal internal changes. And with the right exhaust system they sound different and great. If you are lucky, your engine number will have a clover leaf casting in front of it which is a HD truck motor with even stouter stuff inside. Engine number is on the top of the block just infront of the drivers side valce cover.
The 3X2 is off a Cadillac. It took some cutting and Brazing to make it bolt on but it works. Progressive linkage so I run on a single 2bbl most of the time. I'll be switching to this 2X2 STU-V intake soon.
Okay, I'll chime in. My daily driver is a '58 Stude sedan with a 259. The car is all original and the engine has never been apart, and has a little over 100K miles on it. I bought it in January of '09, from the grandson of the original owner. The car was parked in '74 due to bad brakes, and wasn't touched again until I purchased it 35 years later. The 259 wasn't stuck, I went through the distributor, and we had it running within 30 minutes. Two valves were stuck. I mixed a quart of ATF with some gas and in 15 more minutes the valves were free. All the mosquitos in the area were dead too. I have since put several thousand miles on the car with no issues whatsoever. I drive it with my foot through the firewall and have gotten up to 95 MPH in it. The few times I have kept it under 60 on the highway, it's gotten 21 MPG with a 3.31 rear and auto trans. (Checked mileage with the GPS). Overall it's a great little motor that'll run forever. The only "problems" is having to adjust the valves every 10K miles and they all leak oil. (Factory rustproofing). Here's mine right after I got it running. And ya know, I still haven't cleaned it. I also have a 289 (Stude engine) in my '59 Stude pickup that I'm going through. They're great engines.
259's are very good engines. You can do a lot with them if you have imagination. They are fun to play with and to surprise the big-engine crowd with. They last almost forever, and are almost impossible to break. The most fun is when it draws a crowd in the pits and people say "Wow, I didn't know they could run like THAT."
Got one in my '52 Land Cruizer, good lil eng, planning to swap it and use the Stude eng in a rpu, has 100k and still runs strong.
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