Auto body repair & detailing: 1969 impala ss, impala ss, chevy 305

Question
Im restoring a 1969 Impala SS two door coupe. I want to put the same motor that came with it off the lot but Im having trouble finding one with matching numbers. What should I do.

Answer
Chuck, I give a lot of people the same advice on these old cars. Stop fooling around, looking for this and that, waiting for the money to do this and that, and just get the car painted and on the road. I love to see these works in progress out on the road, not languishing  in a garage. My neighbor "restored" a 1960 Impala (Biscayne) a few years ago, and put in a 1984 Chevy 305, with a 200R4 tranny. He loved it! His buddy has a 1971 El Camino, with the original 350/350 turbo trans. His buddy is always envious of Charlie's fuel mileage, especially when they hit a show 75 or 100 miles away. Even with the oddball engine, and oddball interior out of the 84 Caprice, Charlie took best of show at  a place here a few weeks ago. If you managed to find an original numbers matched engine, so what? You will have to run premium gasoline and put lead additive in it if you don't want it to chew up the engine and spit it back out. If it has an original 4 barrel carb, the compression ratio will be over 10.0-1, and pump gas won't run in it without detonating. That means octane boost on top of lead additive. Purchase a post 1973 engine, one meant to run on unleaded regular gas. Cam it up a little, maybe put on a carb and intake, maybe have it freshened up. Put in a 700R4 transmission. It will get respectable gas mileage, and run well on pump gas. I loved my GTO before i put in the 389 and tri power. yes it has a lot more kick, but the cost of fuel really sucks the fun out of driving it. You will likely look for years to find a numbers matching engine, if you ever find one. It would be easier to find another car with the original engine. The only way i will back off of this advice, is if the car is in nearly showroom condition. It will cost you 20-30,000.00 to completely restore one back to showroom, and the car will have a difficult time bringing your investment back at auction. Look at this like what it is- a hobby. Enjoy looking, look on ebay, but don't let a fruitless search keep this car off the road. Be willing to settle for good enough for right now, the car can always be improved down the road- something that is much more likely to happen to a car that is on the road. Bill