Oldsmobile 303 Conversion

[custom59]

Hi,

I have found an 1953 Oldsmobile 303 engine and hydramatic for sale and from checking photos
and measurements supplied by the owner it appears that it would be a relatively straight forward conversion
for my 1953 Kaiser Manhattan.

The shifter linkages on the column may be close to the rocker cover and the sump/oil pan may need
some massaging to clear the steering and the crossmember would need to be drilled for the front engine mount,
but that all seems relatively minor.

Has anybody on this forum actually done this conversion and can tell me what I'm missing, because it can't be
as straight forward as that or everybody would do it.

I like the idea of a period engine upgrade and the Olds engine seems a logical swap.

I have done many miles in my Manhattan and love her but feel a bit more power/torque would be great.

A disc brake upgrade would also be done to help with stopping.

All constructive comments welcome.

Cheers,
Mal.

[MarkH]

I can't offer any input on your transplant but did do a front disc brake conversion on my Aero. I sent a steering knuckle with upper & lower trunnions, steering arm, spindle, hub, wheel & hubcap to Scarebird in WA state and he came up with a conversion that was a neat install. It used common off the shelf parts plus his custom brackets.
It sounds like overkill on the parts I sent him for the mock-up but it seemed prudent after reading other forums & their members experience about getting discs and then often needing to source new wheels to clear the calipers.
The only modifications needed on my end were to turn the rim of my hubs down .020 to fit inside the rotor hats, install studs a few threads longer, remove the residual pressure valve from my master cylinder and plumb in a residual valve & proportioning valve in the line to the rear brakes.
There's also a few other shops doing conversion brackets.

[joefrazer]

There was a club member in OKC who completed a couple of 303 conversions using 54 Kaisers. They fit nicely and looked like they belonged. I don't know what became of the cars. The 303 also fits in the early cars as well.

[jmxkf1]

Hi,
I'd like to see pictures of the conversion process since I have a '53.   An upgrade is needed on my car.   thanks for the info.   Jim

[HJ-ETEX]

The Olds Rocket V8 was the Golden Choice in early Kaiser conversions. After all, Kaiser used (mostly) the same Hydramatic and negotiations were made to buy engines from GM.
However, at the National held at Oshkosh, someone showed up with such a conversion. I viewed it with interest, but I was put off by how much cutting to the chassis and the driver's side exhaust manifold was done.
Well, if you have a Hydramatic car and have an early Olds V8 with Hydramatic, I suppose you could rationalize putting it in a Kaiser. However, there are much better and more modern choices for engine and transmission. I am not even limiting consideration to SBC V8s either. You know all those big 79-83 square bodied Olds and Buicks? Well they mostly came with 307 c.i. Olds V8s with Turbo350s or later, 200R4 automatics. The 307/350/400 Olds V8 (all the same in external size) have some design features that facilitate installation into narrower frames. For instance the plugs are angled upward and the exhaust manifolds angle down towards the side of the block which makes the engine slightly narrower than a SBC.