i just recently picked up a 56 caddy 62 series 4 door. it has no motor or tranny. i was thinking a 472/500 caddy motor, but everyone is telling me to use a small block chevy. nothing wrong w/ a small block in my opinion just not right for this car. any help would be greatly appreciated
Not "everyone" has any imagination. Sure an SBC will move it, but there's no substitute for cubic inches. Caddy build info isn't that hard to come by, try searching the board -
the 472-500 s are great engines. High nickel content helps keep the weight down within about 75 - 100 lbs. of a sbc. Late 60's 472 are your best bet for the hp and torque. 1969 was 375 hp and 525 lbs of torque WITH the stock intake. If you change to the Edelbrock 2115 intake the numbers got to 388 hp and 540 lbs. They are also typically a low rpm engine that don't like to be revved over 4200 in stock form but you won't need to go that high before it hits it peak power. That's mainly due to the poor design in the valvetrain. The 70's were still good power makers but the numbers did drop by about 15 per cent. The 74 472 was considered the worst of them with 120 cc heads and not enough valve, so they suffered the worst but STILL a good engine with plenty of grunt
If your going to run headers, buy bigblock chevy headers and get some Victory flanges and weld those on, Caddy headers are through the roof and they are almost identical.
awesome info fellas, youve all been a great help. ive been looking for some motors i have found one that is all apart and fresh from the machine shop. it is all there except a rebuild kit, is $500 a good price? thanks again fellas
no i have to buy the re-buil kit. (i need rings, bearings, gaskets, and a cam, plus other misc. parts)
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