Inliners International Forums General Discussion Tech Tips buick 263 straight eight

any one have info on hopping up buick straight eight? having a hard time finding info. I have a 1950 buick and I would sure love to have more power

There was never much info ( or speed equipment ) for tweaking the straight 8's. They were considered overweight, a "luxury car" motor and not often used in Hot Rodding. But some Inliners like that kind of challenge (see picture below)!



You should probably swap up to a 320" motor from a Century or Roadmaster model, as a first step. Fisher Books has a 1954 California Bill book titled "Chevy GMC & Buick Speed Manual" that has some Buick info, but it's mostly basic Hot Rod stuff like raising compression, regrind cam, more carburetion, etc. It's available at Amazon.com.

Thanks for the info. I have ordered california bill's book.I'll look into the 320, but it seems like some one told me that it was too long to fit in a buick super. They said that it was six inches longer than the 263, but even so that could probably be made to fit. again thanks for the heads up. that picture looks like the hotrods when I was a kid


Henry

Longneck, if you need any parts for your Buick let me know. I have a fenders,hood,trunk lid, some glass, grill. etc. Lots of parts in my attic in my garage. Also have the motor,trans, and rear end. Let me know, and make me an offer. I even have the title for it.

Longneck; I have a couple of old "Motor" repair manuals that cover up to the earily 50's. I'd be happy to copy the BUICK pagers and mail them to you; there are lots of specifications. I have a Chrysler 8 chassis that I'm building up so I'll have the same problems once the budget gets big enough to buy a motor. (soon I hope) My e-mail is leif@bendheim.com

My Dad put a 320 in a 37 chev coupe in the mid 50's, and people around here still talk about it!

Boo

Longneck

Here is an article you may want to read about straight 8 Buick engines.
CLICH HERE FOR STRAIGHT 8 PERFORMANCE INFO

My uncle raced a Buick Straight 8 in a Buick Coupe with some success in the Northeast in the late 50's.