Value of a 1957 283 V8 engine and Powerglide 2-speed transmission

57Pontiac · Addicted!

Value of a 1957 283 V8 engine and Powerglide 2-speed transmission

beaumontguru · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

200

Gillis · Addicted!

Well I dont know about 200 because I saw a takeout 307 from 69 Camaro on kijiji for over $1k yesterdayI know the 307 is a boat anchor so what would the 283 be worth? Well at least to the 307 guy it would be $2500 all day long!!!! (Slight sarcasm here)

CdnGMfan · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

The popularity of the 283 is not what it once was. This is due to an ocean of 350s out there that are actually cheaper to rebuild due to the ubiquitous nature of the off-the-shelf 4" bore pistons vs. un-popularity of the 3.875" bore pistons. Sure they made millions of 283s, but face it, any engine swapper is going to go for the cubes. Unless it is cheap.

A vintage 283 and cast iron Powerglide would be of the most interest to a '57 restorer. A friend had a 1955 235 six he pulled out of his 210 Handyman and got decent money (i.e, Anything at all) for it from a guy restoring a '55 Nomad (with a six?) The Nomad owner was elated because he now had "numbers". Definitely a niche market. Maybe a rat rodder would also like a vintage small block. A lot of T-buckets were running 283 / Powerglides because they were cheap, plentiful, easy to dress up, and a T-bucket doesn't take much to have a nice power / weight ratio. Powerglides were easy and compact, though a cast iron one is a brute.

It is definitely worth something, but not really a lot. I paid $50 for what was a decent 250 (put $6000 into it!) but it that doesn't make it worth gold on the market. A 283 is kind of in the same boat. It is certainly worth saving (except to the New Green Religion crowd).

4SPEED427 · A Poncho Legend!

Gillis wrote:
Well I dont know about 200 because I saw a takeout 307 from 69 Camaro on kijiji for over $1k yesterdayI know the 307 is a boat anchor so what would the 283 be worth? Well at least to the 307 guy it would be $2500 all day long!!!! (Slight sarcasm here)

Unfortunately for the 307 owner I suspect his price isn't in the reality zone, unless he finds a REALLY dedicated 307 lover. As Cam's opening paragraph stated most guys want cubes. Maybe a guy wanting to make his 57 original again would be willing to pay more than a few hundred dollars for what you have but it may not be an easy thing to find that buyer. I always thought nice running early 327's had great value and even though they are hard to find these days, while supply is low it seems demand for them is even lower.

57Pontiac, I may be wrong but I suspect you will have trouble getting more than a few hundred dollars for what you have, crazy as it sounds. For your sake I hope I'm wrong.

LandShark68_2+2 · Guru

Is that engine/trans combination very heavy ?

Would it be a nice combo for a small hot rod ?

Regards, Scott (LandShark ...)

Gillis · Addicted!

4SPEED427 wrote:
Gillis wrote:
Well I dont know about 200 because I saw a takeout 307 from 69 Camaro on kijiji for over $1k yesterdayI know the 307 is a boat anchor so what would the 283 be worth? Well at least to the 307 guy it would be $2500 all day long!!!! (Slight sarcasm here)
Unfortunately for the 307 owner I suspect his price isn't in the reality zone, unless he finds a REALLY dedicated 307 lover. As Cam's opening paragraph stated most guys want cubes. Maybe a guy wanting to make his 57 original again would be willing to pay more than a few hundred dollars for what you have but it may not be an easy thing to find that buyer. I always thought nice running early 327's had great value and even though they are hard to find these days, while supply is low it seems demand for them is even lower.
57Pontiac, I may be wrong but I suspect you will have trouble getting more than a few hundred dollars for what you have, crazy as it sounds. For your sake I hope I'm wrong.

Absolutely. My dad always said there is no substitute for cubic inches. Well ..up until turbos, nitrous, superchargers so on and so forth.

DonSSDD · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

LandShark68_2+2 wrote:
Is that engine/trans combination very heavy ?
Would it be a nice combo for a small hot rod ?

Regards, Scott (LandShark ...)

The 283 ironglide weighs more than a 409 4 speed or a 427 4 speed.

Prefectca · Poncho Master!

DonSSDD wrote:

The 283 ironglide weighs more than a 409 4 speed or a 427 4 speed.

This discussion reminds me of a friend in the early 70s that had a 1962 Strato Chief wagon with a 261 and a powerglide. He had a 348 and three speed manual transmission out of a 58 Impala. He thought he might need to change the front springs after he put the 348 engine and trans in. We measured the ride height at the lip of the front fender before and after the swap. With the 348 and standard trans in the car it was an inch higher than with the six and powerglide!

Paul

CdnGMfan · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

I think the cast iron 'glide weighs 70 lbs more than the aluminum version.

Beaumontguru threw a figure of $200 for the package. Needing a rebuild, that sounds like a reasonable figure.

I'm wondering out loud here, but were the engine #s on the Canadian Chevrolets & Pontiacs for a given 283 the same in '57?

LandShark68_2+2 · Guru

DonSSDD wrote:
LandShark68_2+2 wrote:
Is that engine/trans combination very heavy ?
Would it be a nice combo for a small hot rod ?

Regards, Scott (LandShark ...)
The 283 ironglide weighs more than a 409 4 speed or a 427 4 speed.

I had no idea. Thanks.

Scott

Greaser · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

What would a numbered 1969 Big Block 427 block and heads be worth?

These must have a better value than the 283.

-G

seventy2plus2 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

is the 283 a 2bbl or 4bbl? Back in the day the 1957 Chevy 4bbl carbs, intakes and air cleaners had some value to restorers.

57Pontiac · Addicted!

It is a 2bbl

57Pontiac · Addicted!

Thansk for all the replies.

seventy2plus2 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

I'd be interested in the 'Pontiac' valve covers.

-- Edited by seventy2plus2 on Wednesday 10th of May 2023 01:29:50 PM