A question for you Olds cats! I saw a walk around of a gorgeous convertible, triple black 57 Olds 98 J2 Tripower, conti kit.... SPOTLESS!!! It was sitting there on high idle with the lifers chirping and when kicked down to curb idle it sounded very good with just a hint of mechanical lifter sound. The motor was as perfect sounding as the car was beautiful. My question.... is the motor equipped with a solid lifter cam or hydraulics? It just sounded perfect....
There was a mechanical lifter version of the '57 J-2, sometimes called the "export", but I doubt you'd find it in a 98 convert. The circle track racers were the intended market. Rattling valve train in '49 - '64 Olds is the result of poor maintenance & wear ... they aren't supposed to chirp or make noise.
OK thanks, maybe it wasnt really chirping but they sounded more mechanical than I thought hyd. would. It didnt sound over noisy, just a bit more than I thought hyd. should. From the looks of this car, Im sure evrything was perfect and perfectly adjusted inside that engine. I just thought it might have a solid lifter cam along with the multiple carbs
From my old, worn out memory - there were Oldsmobiles of that vintage with solid lifters, if so, the valve covers had bumps along the top on the intake side to clear the adjustable rocker arms. Very rare.
Back in the day, one always knew when an Olds was pulling in. Their valve tap was specific, and standard.
in about 77, i bought a 57 olds 98 convert, dead, leather interior, top still on it, J2 motor, from a junk yard for 75 bucks. couldnt stand watching it die outside, no big sheds at that time, so i sold it about 3 years in the sunday paper ( remember those?) for 300. thought i made a killin
Not a 57 but a 58 with the J2 tri-power setup. He had this 2 ton car running 13.80's. Very impressive.
www.hemmings.com/stories/article/1957-58-oldsmobile-v-8-j2 www.hemmings.com/stories/article/outlawed-by-nascar-1957-oldsmobile-j-2 https://forums.aaca.org/topic/58610-help-1957-j2-racing-motor-specs/ The extra carburetion, plus thinner head gaskets bumping compression to 10.0:1, was rated at 300hp @ 4,600 RPM, and 415-lbs.ft. at 3,000 RPM in 1957--not bad for your $83 outlay. (The same package was rated at 312 horsepower in 1958.) A hotter camshaft, not recommended for street use, was part of an over-the-counter J2 (W-1) package that cost $395 at your local dealer. The 371's normal output was 277hp and 400-lbs.ft. The J2 package came with the Isky E2 cam. The W-1 was a kit that was ordered over the counter or ordered on the car as a J-2R option. From what I have read the:- J-2 was hydraulic; and J-2R was the mechanical. www.justanswer.com/classic-cars/9y6gh-need-cam-specs-1957-olds-j2-motor-the-street.html The 57 J2 apparently had two (2) cams. The street version used the 4 barrel carb cam----hydraulic. The NASCAR version (W-1) motor used a mechanical cam and adjustable rocker arms identified by dimpled rocker covers. Only 2,500 J2s were produced with the package from 1957-1958. I feel that @GOATROPER02 here on the HAMB would know the subject matter intimately.
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