Mr. 57' Townsman, 1957 = 19 body styles x 7 engine combo's = 133 1956 = 20 body styles x 4 engine combo's = 80 1955 = 16 body styles x 2 engine combo's = 32 A nice round number of 245 possible combinations. Throw in the hot 61' Vette. 283/315HP 283/275HP 283/270HP 283/245HP 283/230HP Thats 12 more possibilities. From the factory, only 4-speeds were available in the 315HP, 275HP and 270HP originally. Paul
1965 Reynolds Buick Skylark Gran Sport....we are finishing up the Restoration....it looks stunning...! if anyone out there has any other pics of this car..we would love to see them posted....the car was ran outa Southern Ca in 65 and 66...Lenny Kennedy "pops" ran it
I don't recall ever working on a '57 with a 265....My mechanic days started in the mid '60s. I worked on many cars from the '50s for sure....and was happy to see the '50s cars disappear! I was not fond of a lot of the work on cars of that era..... Was the oil filter std. equipment or an option? I thought it was an option at one time but possibly on the six cylinder engines. I hated those filter canisters mounted up high.......hard to change and get the dirty oil all out without making a mess.......and when they went to the block mounted model.....it was easier but the gaskets could easily leak and often did...... A Screw on filter was a great improvement....
The original 1955 265's did NOT have an oil filter. The oil filter canister on top of the engine was an "Ad on" (not an otion) at some time early in the production run by GM. The 1956 265 came with the filter can mounted on the block in the usual place we are all used to.
Fred, You are correct. The 56' was available with the 265/245HP Vette engine. Also, the (4) 55' Body-styles could be had with the 265/195HP Vette engine. Paul
The 55s had an optional oil filter as shown in the picture. There were lots of 55 265s with no oil filter, but, if one was ordered with the car it would have been painted black (assembley line installed) and if it was blue and orange it came from the dealer parts dept. In 56 the filter was also an option, but, all of the engines came with one so you had to buy it. The 56 deal was just a way to get a little extra money out of you. My 55 had a dealer installed filter on it's 265.
Maybe, but, I thought the 225 hp was available in the passenger cars as the only dual 4 set-up. The 245hp engines had a different cam. I will have to look in my books.
Bob W, It was, but the NHRA permitted the 265/245HP as a non-factory installed option in the 1956 cars. pc (information from Fred)
I guess what it boils down to , is, what NHRA allowed and what was factory built were not the same. I still find it hard to believe that 66 Chev full size 4 door and a 283 2 barrel was allowed to use a 4 speed. Were any ever built by Chevrolet ?????
Same deal as in todays stock eliminator.....Its not what is legal (factory built).....its is what is allowed is all that matters
Chevy built some odd cars.....if you could get a dealer to order it they built it. My friend had a '68 Chevy wagon that was a 396/325 with a 4 speed. I think it was a Biscayne and had very few options other than the engine and trans. He used it as a tow car. It's the only one I ever recall seeing with that engine/trans combo.
Mr. 57' Townsman, With the 1957 cars, you had 266 possible combinations. Lightest car; 150 2-door/3-passenger Utility Sedan at #3156 lbs. Heaviest car; Belair 2-door/6-passenger Convertible at #3485 lbs. Not including wagons. Personal Favorite; 57' 210 Sport Coupe, 283/270HP Dual-Quad, w/4-speed option. All black, w/Inca Silver painted rear-quarter panel wedge. 1968 Class = H/Stock. pc
In 1964 chevrolet advertised a 409 station wagon for trailer towing. My brother ordered a impala wagon 409 340 Hp 4 speed. i think it ran in E/stock. that car was stolen i think in 1965. In 1966 he ordered a impala wagon 425 HP 427 4 speed ran B stock. Ran the cars at island dragway. the 66 was also stolen.The people that took the car ran this new car through the woods smashed almost every panel on the car took the motor and trans. Robert
If I recall correctly, the cylinder heads were also different for the 245hp. I had a set back in the day.
I have a story about my first car/racecar the car was a 1955 chevrolet two ten 2 door sedan [post] i purchased a new replacement short block from my local chevrolet dealer installed it in the car went to island dragway going through tec they said the car was illegal because of the oil filter on the replacement block they called it crossbreeding of engines. So i was put in a class called AA cheater. The engine was a 162 HP . so i guess we all know how that went in eliminations the next weekend i went to dover dragstrip in dover plains ny. they let me run the car in stock class i think it was in K/S. the next year i built a 1955 block without the oil filter . than NHRA changed the rules an allowed the replacement block. this was 1962 in 1963 the replacement was allowed. ROBERT
I have followed this thread from the very beginning but lately i have noticed one or two sly remarks concerning the NHRA and the manner in which it conducted/conduct's it's rule changes. I didn't notice these sarcastic comments previously but after this years Indy some things have caught my attention. The talk lately has focused a little on the shoebox Chevy's and i can't help but think that with todays debacle that is Stock Eliminator, will this discussion progress to some word's regarding the 1st gen. Camaro's and how they 'made', for lack of a better word, the 'older' car's obsolete. It seems that history is repeating itself. Just wondering.
I was thinking this thread was for 71 and back cars that would have run in Jr. Stock aswell as their engines , combos, etc. Or did I have that wrong ?
Gary, It's not my intention to do so. I just found the current discussion in a way somewhat coincidental with todays events, especially after reading Robert's story. I guess i should have worded it differently. I appologize. You guys live it while i can just read about it. I'm just a lonely admirer of Junior/Stock from downunder with nobody to talk to....so just ignore me when i get a little depressed.
In 1966 we ran a 59 Biscayne 283/185 4 speed car, how many of those do you think Chevy built ? I drove a wrecker right out of high school in 62 and I sure pulled a ton of Corvettes out of the swamps along US-1 in N Miami Beach. They would unbolt everything and turn them on their sides & dump the drivelines out. A great many ended up in drag cars & circle track cars in the area. 427 Fords, tri-power Pontaics and 413/426 Mopars were big movers too. This is not something I thought happened, I knew it happened, I knew the people who did it.
Thinking back, 1965 thru 1969. How many 57' Chevy's were running the 283/283HP Fuel-Injection, and 283/270HP Dual-Quads with 4-speeds or Turbo/Hydro's. Man they were everywhere. Almost everyone was converting the 283/185HP 2-barrels to those combinations. Though I'm Mopar, I still enjoyed watching those cars clobber everyone. Of course, several guys that ran real well at the 'Outlaw Tracks', had 327 short blocks. pc
I do not think the 4 speed was as much for performance as it was for durability the three speed was very week i think it was the same trans that chevrolet used in the 6 cyl. i was told by someone who i shall not name that some racers used a 66 and newer 3 speed when NHRA outlawed the 4 speeds in cars that were not factory installed. ROBERT
Paul, if that was the gist of your question, I would doubt that many, if any, ran the 283 Junior Stock engine combinations with the TH350 or TH400 transmission. In the first place, neither transmission would have been considered "legal" in a Stock class car. In the second place, the TH400 involved so much parasitic power consumption that few people would have considered it to be a viable option. In the third place, it is my opinion that competitors would have been quick to identify the number of gear changes on a run as inconsistent with either the Powerglide or Hydromatic transmission. I would never say "never" when making reference to Junior Stock racers but, in this case, I would say that it is "highly unlikely" that anyone would have put much time and/or effort into a TH transmission in a '57 Chevy. c
Not only that , but, wouldn't the trans have to use stock mounting points ? No side mounts on a 350 or 400 THM.
Chuck and Bob, I never said 'LEGAL' combinations. We primarily raced at Dover Drag Strip, Wingdale, NY. Though it followed NHRA guidelines, it was not NHRA sanctioned. No points meets. The rules were bent their in Super/Stock and Stock. Car counts were more important. More than a few 327 short-blocks were used in 283 cars. Though I'm no expert on the TH350 or TH400 transmissions, there were several 55' thru 63' Chevy's running very nicely in Stock Automatic classes with some smooth shifting transmissions. A certain 57' Chevy 210 2-door Sedan 283/270HP Dual-Quad ran in E/SA in 1967. He pulled the best 'Neutral-Drops'. Pretty sure it wasn't a 'legal' 283 with a Powerglide. Never got DQ'd or protested. Just stayed 3/10's above the record. Paul No one really complained. Really a 'Racer Friendly Track'
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