I was at a car show in Locust Grove, Ga yesterday and there was a beautiful European 1979 280CE with a big block Chevy engine 383 stroker motor. I got to talking with the guy about some of the mods - they were as follows:
a) Mustang steering - rack and pinion. The original box was in the way.
b) Chevy auto tranny with the original MB shifter gate.
c) Aftermarket a/c - there are no vacuum dampers underneath the dashboard. He had pretty muched reworked everything underneath the dash.
d) Radiator was from a Corvette and required a minimum amount of modification.
From the tranny back it is still original MB 280 CE. The guy had done a really good job on the car.
I will try to get the pics posted.

Do get those pics posted I am more than eager to see them!
I love the 123's!

Pictures of car are at the bottom of the following link.

http://12.96.14.5/engatwork.htm

Jim

Nice car!

383 motor
 

That's actually a Chevy small block motor...no way a big block (smallest displacement was 396 CI) would fit under the hood!!

Nice car...must fly:D

Re: 383 motor
 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Michael
[B]That's actually a Chevy small block motor...no way a big block (smallest displacement was 396 CI) would fit under the hood!!

383 = 350 cid SB + 400 cid crank (thus 'stroker').

Steve

sbourg - you are absolutely correct in what makes up a 383 stroker motor. I knew that - I just had big block on the brain :)

WOW! That car is cool! I might have to wear a bib. I knew someone had done this kind of thing. I'm not the only one with it on my mind. Did you happen to get any other inforation from the owner? I could use all the help I can get. If you have any other info, please post. thanks for being at the show and taking pictures, andy

Big Block vs. Small Block
 

Steve,

Indeed a "stroker" motor refers to a motor that gained displacement by virtue of an extended throw crankshaft...I'm not contesting that, but that simply wasn't my point, amigo. I think what you might have missed was that I was referring to the original statement by engatwork as to the motor being a "big" block, which it isn't-it is in point of fact a stroked small block.

At the risk of revealing my Chevrolet-speckled past, as I understand it Chevy produced 2 highly distinct V-8 motor series after 1955 (excepting the 409, which was based on an earlier design but soldiered on way past '55 into the mid-60s). In '55 Chevy introduced it's "small" block,in 265 CID guise. It ultimately grew as large as 400 CID, but that was a "siamese" block with no water jackets between the cylinders(how's that for minutia?). The big block arrived in the '66 (I think) Corvette at 396 CID, and still is produced in 454 CID displacement.

FYI!
Actually the 396 came in late 1965 vettes. Then in 67 they went to a 427, then 454 in 70. Last year was the last of the 454's(trucks & boats) now they have the 496 which is a sweet engine.

The 383(I have that in my 80 vette) is a 350 bored .030 over making it a 355 with a 400cid crank=383. Without bore it is a 377 which is the Mercruiser Scorpion small block. Gm made a total of 10 different displacement SB's. 263,265,283,302,305,307,327,350,400 & 1 more that I think is a 260 or 261CI? Growing up I studied "How to hot-rod a small block Chevy".

Nick,

The "missing link" was the 262, or 4.3 liter, that went into early Monzas. I had a '75. Had maybe 165 HP, but the next year they offered a 2 barrel 350 with only like 175 HP!

I just have one little item to ad:

The quickie way to determine small vs. big block chevy is from the exhaust manifolds: Chevy small blocks have exhaust ports that are non-uniformly spaced on the heads. The two in the middle are very close.

Chevy big blocks have uniformly spaced exhaust ports so that the exhaust ports on the heads are at even intervals.

This is true (I think) up till the LS-1, which has uniform exhaust and intake ports.

The reason for this is that the small block has a smaller cylinder bore and a simplified rocker arm arrangement. In order to leave space for the pushrods on the intake side of the head, Chevy reversed every other port.

Sholin

280C 383
 

Do you have the owner's e-mail address? phone? address? Interested in more facts about the conversion.

I did not get his address. He was from the Atlanta area. I did give him this web address so maybe he will sign up and answer questions about it.

116 Ignition Switch
 

Jim:
Thanks for the info. On my 116 450sel the ignition switch key suddendly will not turn right to #1 (On) and #2 (start) but it will turn right sufficiently to lock/unlock the steering wheel. Saw your 300 D tumbler pics and I wonder if it is the same problem. Need help on how to remove the tumbler; there is a white chrome ring that appears need to be removed first: how to?; and then what? I have located another 116 with a functioning ignition switch; if need be do you know how to remove the entire switch assembly?