SM91002 472 / 500 / 425 / 368 Into X-frame 54-65 Cadillac Swap Parts

This list of parts includes common items needed to swap a 472, 500, 425, or 368 into most X-frame ’54-’65 RWD Cadillac cars. For perimeter frame cars, see the ’63-’67 swap kit.
’63-’65 X-frame and some early ’65 perimeter frame cars are … ‘special’ … and you may need parts and / or techniques from both kits / instruction sets. All X-frame cars require an Eldo pan, and all perimiter frame cars require a front sump (’68-’76 RWD) oil pan and pickup. The rest – you’ll have to look at your car and figure out what will work and what won’t.

• The motor mount kit has only been test fit in ’60-’64 cars. It should work in all X-frame cars. If the kit doesn’t work in your car, it is returnable (we would like pictures of what didn’t fit). The DIY mount technique detailed in the swap guide has been tested across the entire range of X-frame cars.
• You will need manifolds OR headers. The manifolds will only work without substantial modification (cutting and welding) in some ’63 and most ’64-’65 cars. If you are using manifolds, you won’t need the header install kit. If you are using a 425, factory RWD (non-Eldo) 425 manifolds can be substituted. If you are using a 368, factory 368 RWD (non-Eldo / Seville) manifolds must be substituted. The headers have only been test fit in ’59-’64 cars, but _should_ fit all X-frame cars. If they don’t fit in your car, they are returnable (we would like pictures of what didn’t fit).
• You will need a FWD (’68-’85 Eldo, ’80-’85 Seville) oil pan or aftermarket pan and matching pickup tube. These will fit a 425 or 368 engine. If you are getting a junkyard pan (rather than using the one that came on your engine), we strongly recommend a new pickup tube. There’s no telling what’s hiding in a junkyard pickup tube that might take out your new engine. New pickup tubes for the ’80-’85 368 pan are not available.
• You only need 1 fan. We offer our fan kit in 2 colors – there are many way to handle the fan, but this fan kit fit in every swap we’ve done since we worked it out, with the factory fan shroud. It’s simple, it does the job, it looks good, and it’s bulletproof. These fans work in most ’63-up cars, and some folks have fit them in earlier cars, but usually you have to go electric, or move the radiator forward to clear the fan in the earlier cars. The mechanical fan kits listed will not clear any of the serpentine belt systems currently available.
• You only need the transmission adapter if you are keeping the original 429-spec TH400 (shift pattern PRNDL). Some ’64-’65 cars with a TH400 and factory adapter are a different bolt  pattern, and our adapter won’t work. If you are changing the transmission, you may need a different adapter or no adapter. The Hydramatic 4-speed (shift pattern PNDLR) cannot be reasonably adapted to later engines.
• We strongly recommend using an internally regulated alternator. If your donor is ’73-newer, that’s what it will come with (if it came with one). The alternator wiring kit on the list is for wiring an internally regulated alternator in your car that was originally wired for an externally regulated alternator (’62-up). ’61-earlier cars that originally came with a generator are a little more complicated to wire for a 3-wire alternator, but we still recommend doing so vs using a 1-wire alternator.
• If you are converting to electronic ignition, you will have to consult the wiring diagram for your car to find the resistor wire or ballast resistor that drops the voltage on the ‘key on’ power supply to the coil, and bypass that so you get full battery voltage to the coil. If you are converting to HEI (coil in the cap), you will need to change the connectors on the ignition power wires to plug into the HEI (there are (2) power wires on points cars, they must both be connected to the ignition).

The detailed swap guide for these cars can be found on the tech page .