Guest scothman Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 I have a 1950 to 1956 Olds motor that I am not sure of the cu. in. or what year it is as it is in a 1940 ford fixer upper that I bought. On the left head is a set of numbers 8A198735H, on the right side of the bell housing I can only see 4 numbers 5556** and on the intake is a set on numbers 556693. Valve covers say olds rocket. The plug wires are held in place on the valve cover by the plate that has the words Oldsmobile Rocket on it. If anyone can help me identify this motor I would appreciate it. Thanks:scothman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest windjamer Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 :)Guy I think you need to find a flat spot on the block with numbers. I dont think #s on the head or intake will ans your question. Fav. spots for GM are at the rear of the block just in front of the tranny,vary front top center back of the water pump and I tthink chev marked some on the right front near the fuel pump. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scothman Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 I know that I said left of head but it is left side of the block between the middle and backexhaust ports. sorry about that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PONTIAC1953 Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 hi, the valve covers you have, were used from 1949 to 1953, on the rocket 303 engine. they should fit the rocket 324 also. if you post this in the olds forum section, one of the rocketheads there can help. charles coker, 1953 pontiac tech advisor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mellor NJ Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 It's your car but I think the best thing to do would be to sell the engine to an Olds guy and look for a Ford flattie to return it to original. You might be able to end up with no difference in money. The Ford parts are a lot more available and they're fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PONTIAC1953 Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 ford flatheads are fun, but so is an oldsmobile rocket V8, i like the idea of taking out the olds motor, and returning the 40 ford back to stock. that's what the aaca is all about. charles coker, 1953 pontiac tech advisor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest N43 Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 Your description sounds like a 303, probably 1949 by the engine number but possibly 1950. They are essentially the same. The H suffix means it was built for a Hydramatic transmission. All 1949's were Hydramatics; if it hasn't been modified already, the crankshaft needs to be modified to accept a stick.If the tranny is a GM stick, there is a good chance it's the Cadillac/LaSalle unit Olds used only in 1950 that is alleged to be better than the Olds units. The Delco tag on the distributor, generator and starting motor, there should have date codes like 9F23 for 1949, June (6th month) and date; 1950 begins with "0". There is a good chance they are not all original components but distributors seem to have the highest survival rate.The engines were built for 12:1 compression but set up for 7.25:1 because gasoline quality had not caught up. They were the hottest thing running in NASCAR. There is an excellent thread in the H.A.M.B. tech archives on engine parts interchange. Dick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mellor NJ Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 ford flatheads are fun, but so is an oldsmobile rocket V8, i like the idea of taking out the olds motor, and returning the 40 ford back to stock. that's what the aaca is all about. charles coker, 1953 pontiac tech advisor.Please excuse me, I certainly didn't mean Oldsmobiles aren't fun. I just stated my personal opinion that Fords are more fun with a Ford engine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PONTIAC1953 Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 i didn't think you meant that olds rocket V8 weren't as much fun as ford's flatheads. heck just about all of the older engines are cool to have. charles coker, 1953 pontiac tech advisor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 I would vote for keeping the Olds engine in the car. It was probably put in there 50 years ago and therefore, has been in the car longer than the original engine. Besides early hot rods are being preserved for historical interest. If the engine swap was done properly and the engine still runs I would preserve the car as it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scothman Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 The Olds is going to stay in the car. The rest will go back stock all metal parts. Of coursethe drive train and brakes will have to be up dated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rsd9699 Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 It is for certain that who ever went to the trouble to put an Olds engine in place of the original engine - wanted the car to get up and go and the original engine did not do that to his satisfaction. Brakes of that time period were not good back in their day - just that most people drove slow and there was little traffic. This allowed you to take your time to stop the car.There should be some rather large numbers on the olds heads to at least identify them but parts interchange from 49 through 56 easily - so who knows what is under the heads.Ron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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