I know people get tired of seeing these pics, but here they are again. This was my car: The Cadinator:
Cody G. Carson
Not me. Best looking 79-84 Eldo I've seen.
Dave
Thanks, Dave.
Oh and Nick, and I remembered more info that I wanted to share: Before you begin the swap, pay attention to things like trans shift lever bracket, Exhaust manifold studs for accessory bracket mounts, location of wiring harness grounds that attach to the engine and look for ways to duplicate them on the 425 before you start the swap. If the trans shift linkage is going to be a problem because of how it bolts to the back of the 368 head (not sure it does bolt to the head of a 368, but it was bolted to the head of my 4100), then you can use a Toronado column, trans shift cable, and either install the cable shift trans linkage (difficult when the trans is in the car and you have to go under it). Or you can swap transmissions with the Toro. I went with the cable shift because I installed a floor shifter and console from a 90 Eldorado (which required me to reverse the direction of the linkage throw on the trans).
You will not have to change torsion bars because your engine is in the same weight class. And if you convert to a carb with your pre- overdrive setup, you don’t have to worry about your torque converter lockup feature. Another nice thing about your swap is that your 368 already has the distributor you need to run your fuel injection & it has the longer wire to reach the front of the engine.
If you do decide to go with the TH425 tranny, and if your tranny is vacuum shifted, it might be possible for your car’s computer to run the TBI even with that transmission (I’m not sure of that). But if you want to run the TH425 tranny in that car, you will need to cut and weld (or use a hammer) to make clearance at the lower part of the firewall to clear the chain drive and you will need to fabricate front and rear tranny mounts. That will also add 100 lbs. to the car and you may want to consider using 80-81 touring coupe torsion bars or installing 71-78 Eldo/Toro torsion bars (and using drop keys with them) to firm up the suspension again.)
If you run the TBI and computer, a stock or mild cam like the MTS #5 series would work better than a more radical cam. Since the 425 (tuned for 200 HP at the wheels) is not too overboard on power for a non-overdrive 325, it was me, I’d keep it for the simplicity of the swap, lighter weight up front, and since it requires 40 less HP to turn it, it will be like a 40 HP bump in performance and it will give you better MPGs.
One last thing I just remembered. The 500 Eldorado manifolds I used, required a small amount of hammer shaping on the passenger frame rails. I think my problem with the frame and the air box was that I may have used a RWD manifold on that side.
I have not measured, but is possible that 71-78 Eldorado headers could be used. Again, I would have to measure and it may require firewall massaging with a 4 lb. sledge to get the down pipes located in the right place. But again, for 200 HP at the wheels in a 425, the 500 exhaust manifold should be enough.
Remember that the Edelbrock manifold will not fit under the hood, and if you use a cast 472/500 intake, then you will be 50 pound heaver than the 368 with its aluminum intake.
If you choose to run a carb, aluminum 368 Carb intakes that will fit under the hood are out there, but again, it would need to be port matched to let the heads breath. I have also heard that there are aluminum 425 intakes also, but am not familiar with what cars they come on.
You are also invited to join my yahoo group that is specific to the 79 – 85 Eldorado & Toronado. That group is not meant to compete with group in any way – it’s more of a data collection place for performance mods of this car. I still want to share the information learned with this (and other) foums, but I am trying to make a focal point specifically for this car and support for its performance upgrades.
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/79thru85Eldorado_Toronado/Cody G. Carson
