mikeringland

I have a '72 350/TH350 with a 12 bolt rear end with 2.73 gears single tire fire. I put in a 454 with 440HP/450 torque about 2 years ago. The rest of the drivetrain is still the same. I want to do an overdrive transmission, as well upgrade the rear end to posi. Talking to car buddies around town, they all told me to steer clear of the 700R4 & 4L60, and to go with a 4L80 and maybe 3.73's. This is a car I take out with my wife/boys to car shows, cruises, nothing crazy. I want a decent setup for highway driving when I do go on the highway. What do you guys think, what is the best setup for what I'm looking for? Also if I go the 4L80 route, is it a simple enough swap with the TH350, or are there all kinds of modifications I'll have to make to make that thing fit in my car? Thanks, Mike

Ever since I put a big block in my 72, the header rubs the intermediate steering shaft when the car is in reverse. My plan was to remove the shaft, put a little dent in the header tube, to avoid the rubbing. I checked my Haynes manual and it simply said to mark the shaft on each end, pull out the u-shaft bolt at the connection to the column and the u-shaft bolt at the steering box. It then said to use a flathead to collapse the intermediate shaft and remove. I've managed to get the shaft to collapse to the end of the steering box spline, but now there's a small cyclinder pin past the spline that I can't get it past. It does not want to collapse any further. Any advice or tips? Am I better off just pulling the steering box down at this point?

I recently swapped my 350 for a 454 and I took the water temp sensor out of the 350 and put it in the 454. I am not getting a reading for some reason. When I crank the engine, it pins all the way to the right, then once the car is running, it just stays at the minimum, 100 degrees. It is a factory SS gauge cluster that I installed a few years back and it was working before the swap. Could the sensor have gotten damaged somehow just laying around? What else could it be?

It was the kickdown cable. Due to the location of the bracket on the 454, the cable is under a load when it is simply connected to the carburetor. I disconnected it and it shifts perfectly fine. Basically when I was accelerating, the transmission was trying to downshift, rather than upshift since the cable had tension on it already. I just have to determine how to change the slack on it now to be able to reconnect it. Thanks for the help everyone, Mike

No console

Hey guys, So I swapped out the 350 in my 72 for a 454. It runs great, but...it's not shifting into third gear. It has a TH350, worked perfectly fine before. I have a suspicion its the transmission kick down cable. I attached a photo of it installed. It is the one from when the 350 was in there. It appears to be long enough, but, should have I replaced it with the longer one? The transmission itself seems fine. The hard vacuum line from the trans is connected to the vacuum port on the top of the intake. What do you guys think? Mike

It's the same carb I had on my 350. I didn't change anything on it either.

I have not. I always heard teflon tape and gasoline don't mix?

Hey guys, I got my big block swap done, but with one hiccup, a fuel leak. The fuel line that goes from my mechanical fuel pump to my quadrajet, drips where it screws into the larger threaded fitting before the small fuel filter. When I start the car, there is a drip enough that it creates a small pool on the top of the intake after 5 minutes. I cleaned and checked all the fittings, everything seems good, nothing seems stripped. What could be the issue??? Mike

Guys, I recently swapped my 350 for a 454 in my 72. I'm planning on using my original Quadrajet carb for the time being off of my 350. The choke mounting plate does not match the one on one Edelbrock big block intake. Right now there is just a blank off plate there and the bolt pattern is different. Does anyone know where I can find the correct choke/choke plate for this intake? I tried calling Edelbrock and never reached anyone. I also looked at OPGI with no luck. The other question is how crucial is the choke? I live in MA and typically only drive the car from April to October, so it's never really started when it's very cold out. Thanks, Mike

Absolutely, I'll take it off your hands. I'll send you an email to set it up. Thanks

I am in the process of swapping my 350 for a 454 in my 72. I was under the impression the fuel pump to carburetor fuel line would work, but it’s not long enough. The 454 has an Edelbrock intake and I’m using the same Quadrajet for now. I also bought a new stock 454 fuel pump because I was told my 350 fuel pump wouldn’t be strong enough to feed the 454, is that true? I've been looking for the correct line and there are just so many different options that would seem like they would work. Does anyone know the exact one I need, am I better off just bending and flaring my own line? Thanks for the help, Mike

I'm going to be doing a big block swap on my '72 Monte this winter. Currently, I have a 350 4bbl, TH350 with a 12 bolt read end. I'm getting a rebuilt '75 big block that has a distributor, plugs, wires, Edelbrock intake, water pump, 4 speed flywheel, oval port heads and valve covers. I did some research online and this is what I gathered I could use from my 350: Quadrajet carb (for now) Power steering pump Alternator A/C compressor Fan Water pump pulley Fuel pump Already has big block springs in front This is what I saw that I'd have to purchase: Motor mounts A/C compressor bracket Power Steering pump bracket Alternator bracket Crank pulley Exhaust manifolds (someone recommended Hooker 2" comp headers for easy installation) Starter 168 tooth automatic flywheel Big block fan shroud Longer throttle cable Possibly shorter valve covers to avoid hitting brake booster Possibly a new radiator? Does this list sound correct to you guys? Am I missing anything? Where is the best place to buy these brackets? A came upon SS396.com, which seems to have everything. It's geared more towards Chevelle's, but didn't know if there was somewhere else I should look? Thanks

I have a stock '72 350 4bbl in my Monte and am looking to replace the valve seals. I was told by a friend to go with the "umbrella" type, rather than the OEM type. I looked at Autozone and they have 10 different brands and styles. The manager at Autozone didn't know which to go with. Does anyone have a brand or model # that they could recommend? This is a stock motor with the only upgrade being a stock HEI ignition system from points. Thanks, Mike

I'm looking to change my quadrajet to one of those fuel injection kits. I have zero experience with these. Are they worth it? I have a stock 350 4bbl in my '72 with the only change being electronic ignition, so I'm not looking for anything crazy. Any advice on brands, sizes? How much would I be looking to spend? Easy enough for any shadetree mechanic to install? I've just kinda had it with my Q-jet. From time to time it stumbles, stalls when I put it in gear. Not any major issues, just inconveniences. It was rebuilt a few years back too. Thanks, Mike