Don Terrill’s Speed-Talk

Does anyone know what the bore spacing of a 215 Buick block is?

Hi, Dave, It's 4.240".

Thanks Jack!

Same as Buick 300, 340, 350, Oldsmobile 215, Repco, Rover, and early Buick V6.
Compare from my table here: http://victorylibrary.com/mopar/m-table-c.htm#B6

It's not all good, they're taller and wider than a 5.0 Windsor.

panic wrote:Same as Buick 300, 340, 350, Oldsmobile 215, Repco, Rover, and early Buick V6.
Compare from my table here: http://victorylibrary.com/mopar/m-table-c.htm#B6

It's not all good, they're taller and wider than a 5.0 Windsor.

That is a great source. Thanks!

panic wrote:Same as Buick 300, 340, 350, Oldsmobile 215, Repco, Rover, and early Buick V6.
Compare from my table here: http://victorylibrary.com/mopar/m-table-c.htm#B6

It's not all good, they're taller and wider than a 5.0 Windsor.

I remember them best from an MG I had many years ago. Seemed cool to have the only english built car with an american V8 that came stock production.

Fwiw, if not mistaken, David Ray, (aka, Ignitionman), can tell you how to bore and stroke a 215" BOP aluminum V-8 out to 300"s or so.

Drop it into an early Vega and have a, "stop light to stop light", giant killer car!!

He, He!!

Heck, install it in a Chevette and one would be a hoot, imho!

pdq67

That is what the customer wants to do.

I had one in a Datsun 510 autocross car; one of the more fun around-town rides everr!

Have you sleeved the 215 block for bigger bores?

We used to race then on boats years ago. The limit was 230" so the good motors were re-sleeved and bored .100 over

ProPower engines wrote:I remember them best from an MG I had many years ago. Seemed cool to have the only english built car with an american V8 that came stock production.

MG, Triumph, Morgan all used the Buick-based V-8.

Jensen used Mopar big blocks--383, 440, 440+6.

Of course, there were the Sunbeam Tigers with SBF power, but those were engine-ed by Jensen, the way Shelby did the Cobras.

> Have you sleeved the 215 block for bigger bores?

I have a Rover 3.5L that was sleeved to the larger Rover bore (3.7" as used in 3.9L, 4.0L, 4.2L and 4.6L Rovers). It has a 3.5" stroke crank with 6" rods and custom pistons (Diamond forgings) and has been cross-bolted. It's much easier to start with a 4.0L or 4.6L cross-bolted Rover block. With a 3.4" stroke Buick 300 crank, displacement is around 294 cubic inches (assumes 3.71" bore). The Rover 4.6L crank can also be offset ground to get to around 4.9L. Some have discussed offset grinding for small Honda journals but I've not actually seen one in practice. I know one guy who fit a 3.85" stroke Buick crank. He re-routed the oil pickup passage to the outside of the block and ground rod bolt clearances into the old passage. The old (circa 1985) Phil Baker article used 3.75" x 3/32" sleeves for some of the larger displacements. From the "Affordable Aluminum V8's" article:

"Baker uses Ohio 231 sleeves, SL 4150 or SL 1121, the former ones being cut in half and used to produce two sleeves for the price of one"

Dan Jones

PackardV8 wrote:I had one in a Datsun 510 autocross car; one of the more fun around-town rides everr!

Mine was in a baby blue split-window VW Beetle. Super Sleeper!

The Rover V8 ( Rover bought the Buick V8) eventually was produced as a
5.0 Liter engine. Not too shabby with up to 340 hp (factory)
The engine had a very good run, being manufactured through from
1960- 2006.

After Ford took over, the Rover V8 engines got phased out in favor of either an AJ8 or ford mod engine.