Oldsmobile front wheel drive conversion

[Sleddgracer]

did any do a Olds front wheel drive skoolie conversion, or ever see one? - saw several where the front of the Olds from back of the front seat forward was attached to a camper trailer - made a neat conversion

[cadillackid]

wow!! were those the pre-cursor to the GMC "eldorado" Motorhomes?


the GMC of the 70s used the 425 and the 500 V-8s and front drive drivetrain from the cadillac eldorado of the time... which was of course similar to the old toronado

[Sleddgracer]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

wow!! were those the pre-cursor to the GMC "eldorado" Motorhomes?


the GMC of the 70s used the 425 and the 500 V-8s and front drive drivetrain from the cadillac eldorado of the time... which was of course similar to the old toronado

yes, same drive train for the GMC and Chevy front wheel drive motorhomes - I was told one time that the reason you can't find any of those front wheel drives now is they all went to making holiday trailers into motor homes - the one that I saw here for sale years ago belonged to a guy that worked in the oil fields in northern Alberta, but had his home next to an investment house i was remodeling - the trailer itself must have been a 28' 5th wheel - it looked impressive

[cadillackid]

Originally Posted by Sleddgracer

yes, same drive train for the GMC and Chevy front wheel drive motorhomes - I was told one time that the reason you can't find any of those front wheel drives now is they all went to making holiday trailers into motor homes - the one that I saw here for sale years ago belonged to a guy that worked in the oil fields in northern Alberta, but had his home next to an investment house i was remodeling - the trailer itself must have been a 28' 5th wheel - it looked impressive

ha!! those FWDs all got their big blocks harvested out of them... they were extremely Buildable engines.. those cad 425's and 500's had basically similar setup to the Buick stage 1 engines.. the olds toronados got the 455's and later the 400s.. a company out of california made custom cams and forged pistons / rods for those... the cads and the olds engines...


I built an 81 Fleetwood sleeper with a Built 500 in it.. sold one of my other engines to a guy who built a T-bucket out of it and gave it to his wife who squealed the tires every place she went..



that built 500 was so torquey it twisted the input shaft clean off at the drum of a TH-400 transmission..



man Ive had a lot of fun building stuff over the years... broke stuff.. made lotsa fast things... damn wouldnt trade it for the world... the experiences and such..


and im just gettin started with my busses.. now at age 50 I plan a lot more years of coming up with wierd but cool stuff on wheels
-Christopher

[o1marc]

My brother bought a Corvair with a Toronado swap in it. He was adamant about having the back seat look stock and sleeper. This swap allows that, but puts the motor behind the transaxle. This would make it a terribly handling car good for nothing but wheelies and drags. Swapping V8's into Corvairs midship makes them an excellent handling car.