Swapping an early 235 engine into a late 235 set up problem.

[jake s]

i have a 59 chevy impala i am rebuilding the 235 engine on. The customer i am doing it for did not want to spend the money to rebuild the engine. We got another 235 from craigslist. This one is the early 235. Found the engine mounts are different so i made adapter plates to bolt on the newer style engine mounts. Tried putting engine in and oil pan hits crossmember. Measured oil pan and found it to be roughly 2 inches deeper in the spot by crossmember. Tried switching oil pans and found oil pump to be too deep for shallower pan. I could make engine mounts that lift the engine higher but then i run into clearence issues with the hood. I just want to get this thing in and done. Any ideas??? Has anyone done this swap this before? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Deve]

I am just guessing Jake, but maybe use the new style oil pump? I do not think many people do this because of the babbit nature of the old style 235. No insert bearings and splash oiling is not an improvement. Its a good thing it was the owner that made that decision.

 

[vwnate1]

I'm keen to hear how this all turns out in the end .

Good 235's are out there and cheap to boot, even after all these years .