i just acquired a 1989 caprice classic brougham as a project car. this is the first car/engine that i'll be wrenching on, so i don't know much yet. i guess i'll drop a few questions here while i work on the car. i don't intend on keeping the original 305 motor, but i am interested in getting it running right before i pull it/put more miles on it. dash says 99k so it has to be around 200k miles judging by the shape of the engine/car in general. the interior is fresh and the exterior is great but plastidipped black.

it's running rough. engine bay is loud as hell and the radiator fan comes on as soon as it starts running. stutters sometimes when cranking, and needs gas sometimes. i want to do most of the work myself, so i'm wondering where some of you would start. the inside of the distributor is a bit rusty, and there's only oxidation under the cap. should i start with a tune up? dist cap, rotor, spark plugs and wires.

 

That's a very old vehicle. I was racing and winning at long-distance dirt-bike races back in 1989. If I were you, and you wish to put a 350/5.7 liter in that old Caprice, I'd just do it and forget "fixing" all these issues. The 350 is much stronger running then the 305 and will obtain the same MPG as well. You'll be money ahead if you do so now.

 

i do hear you and that's the plan. that's very good advise as well. you think i'd get the same amount of experience/worth out of the 305/caprice ripping the motor out instead of trying to fix it? it sounds like a bit of a headache fixing it, but i am interested in the experience instead of just getting it running. i'm still a youngin if you couldn't tell, haha. now that i think about it, 200k miles is a lot..

 

Why spend the money on fixing up an engine that you are going to take out and get rid of. Get your experience on the 350 you are going to put in. You will get plenty of experience if you do the swap yourself.