How to spend a lot of money and restomod a 3rdgen.

[badjuju342]

Here's the scoop :
I've got an '89 RS convertible and I'm pretty much replacing everything on it but the body. I've got an '99 LS1/T56 combo and about 20k worth of parts to install. So here's the pics:
First off the wimpy 305.
http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/9531/swappics00116ie.jpg

[badjuju342]

Here's the car, it had a fresh paint job a little over a year ago , still looks the same:
http://img452.imageshack.us/img452/8448/miscpics0371tc6.jpg

[badjuju342]

Here's the donor car a '99 M6 T/A , an unfortunate victim of a 50 mph crash with another vehicle , nobody was hurt , thank goodness!
http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/4060/wiped2jq6.jpg

http://img235.imageshack.us/img235/7944/wiped1nt4.jpg

[badjuju342]

Here's the motor and trans , the front of the car was cut off and made removal fairly easy. The right side frame was bent very badly and the T/A was totalled as a result. Damn shame as it only had 43k miles.

http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/3381/ls1t5642se.jpg

[badjuju342]

Got everything unbolted and it went pretty smooth. For a 16 year old motor , it was amazing how easily it came apart from the car . Didn't even break the exhaust manifold studs that the Y-pipe bolts to. When's the last time you had that happen? Here's my buddy Paul guiding the boat anchor out . It still runs good and passed emissions with flying colors . Interestingly , he's going to use it for a test mule to test transmissions he rebuilds.

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/5424/swappics00119tb.jpg

[badjuju342]

One empty , nasty engine bay. Next ,up on stands and the stock suspension goes bye bye. Once everything is stripped , cleaning and detailing begins . I'm going to POR 15 the undercarriage and detail the engine bay.

http://img450.imageshack.us/img450/2842/swappics00214sm.jpg

[badjuju342]

After the detailing part , we're gonna get to the good stuff: mods! I took the 10 bolt out today to a local shop to get totally rebuilt. I scavenged it and the springs ,swaybars,and quick ratio steering box from an '87 IROC. My stock rear axle was a drum brake ,non posi so it had to go. The IROC rear axle was a rust encrusted eyesore , now it's fresh , clean metal waiting to be painted . I'll do that after all the internal stuff is done. I'm having 3:73 gears installed , Ratech rebuild kit and I'm putting on a Baer touring big brake kit all the way around. 13" rotors upfront , 12" rotors in the back. I also am putting a Thunder Racing girdle on it . Should hold up as long as I stay away from DR and slicks.
_____________

[badjuju342]

The rear end is outta there!

http://img347.imageshack.us/img347/5874/swappics00115wr.jpg
Trash canned the whole setup because none of it will be reused except for the bolts. The gas charged rear shocks weren't so charged anymore , LOL. Also the bushings on the shocks were pretty wasted which explains the horrible noise when I tried to light up the rear tires

[badjuju342]

Now here's something you might find interesting : a comparision of the stock RS rear swaybar VS the stock IROC swaybar. Guess there really was more to the suspension than nifty door decals.

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/8718/swappics00313va.jpg

And here's a closeup to give you a better idea.
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/7251/swappics00217ir.jpg

I'm replacing the bushings and endlinks with Energy poly ones. The new LCAs are Lakewoods , rear shocks are Koni "Yellows", and a BMR adjustable panhard bar to round it all out . I also will be using stiffer IROC rear springs.
__________________

[badjuju342]

Front suspension is outta there!

http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/2523/swappics00312yf.jpg

I was figuring the k-member was gonna be a bear to remove but it came out easily. Guess keeping car garaged most of it's life and not driving it excessively in bad weather paid off.

http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/47/swappics00415np.jpg
__________________

[badjuju342]

More nifty IROC info.

The left spring is the RS front spring and the right one is the IROC . Notice the IROC is a bit shorter. This is good because the LS1 is about 100-150 lbs lighter and would have caused the front of the car to sit higher . Looks like this won't be a problem now.

http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/7460/swappics00119kt.jpg

Same story with the rear springs , RS on left , IROC on right :

http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/6664/swappics00215sj.jpg

[Phoenix 5.7]

that is goin to be one sweet car when its done. and better than that, you will know all the hard work you put into it urself

[badjuju342]

Last but not least , I'll compare the stock RS front swaybar to the IROC swaybar, the top is the IROC , bottom is the RS

http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/4895/swappics00519ds.jpg

And a closeup:

http://img421.imageshack.us/img421/2799/swappics00613re.jpg

[badjuju342]

Had a little time today so I crawled under the car and removed the old gas tank. I'm using the one out of the '99 as it has the correct lines ( I got those too so I won't have to fab anything up , hopefully.) The '99 is the same shape and pretty close size wise. I will have to trim the rubber filler neck a bit but no biggie. Here's a pic of the two tanks. The '99 tank is on the bottom.

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/6327/swappics18pp.jpg

[badjuju342]

Got most of the engine bay stripped and removed the auto shifter and pedals. The LS1 pedal brackets match except for the gas pedal . In this pic , you see the LS1 pedals on the left (obviously because they are for a manual ) and the 3rd gen auto pedals on the right. I will have to cut off the gas pedal bracket and discard it . It's ok because the 3rd gen will work just fine. I will need to use the LS1 throttle cable .

http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/4271/swappics18zl.jpg

[badjuju342]

Took these two pics just to give you an idea of how out of control I went on buying new parts and I ordered more stuff that hasn't made it here yet!http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/images/smilies/LS1Tech/gr_eek2.gif http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/images/smilies/LS1Tech/gr_jest.gif

http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/7578/swappics00119pv.jpg

http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/1709/swappics00215lc.jpg

[Uncle Paul]

That is such a bad pic of me. :lol

Also, this last pic you put up is the cleanest I have ever seen your garage. :lol

[badjuju342]

Okay , here's our progress so far. First the 10 bolt. It started out looking like this:
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/4587/housepics00111fq.jpg
Then after a LOT of scraping sanding and cleaning:
http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/6897/swappics00719xm.jpg
I then used POR-15 ,the Marine Clean and Metal Ready (all POR -15 products) to get this:
http://img230.imageshack.us/img230/8817/swappics19ko.jpg

I'll still have to topcoat it as POR-15 does not react well to sunlight. But it won't get rusty again.
This pic is a peek at the 3:73 gears , plus a few other goodies. I used a Ratech rebuild kit , Ratech solid pinion spacer , and a stud kit for the bearing caps I got from Thunder Racing. I also had the axle tubes welded to the the differential housing and removed the casting flash for added strength.
http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/6903/swappics00118dq.jpg
I realize that a 10 bolt is not going to be even remotely strong as a 12 bolt or 9 inch but it should do ok for my purposes.
__________________

[badjuju342]

I also hit the battery tray and the bottom of the radiator core support with the POR-15 before I repaint the engine bay. They weren't real bad in terms of rust but there was some there. Might as well get rid of it now before it gets worse.

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/8383/swappics00314tx.jpg

Also here's a pic of the rest of the engine prior to being painted. Haven't done this yet but I have been a busy lil' buggeras my next posts show.
http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/5794/swappics00417sj.jpg
__________________

[badjuju342]

A good friend of mine , Paul McKay came over to help out with the cam/valvetrain swap . He's done quite a few cam swaps and had it done pretty qiuck . We did it in just over 3 hours start to finish. Here's Paul starting in on the valve springs.

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/5051/swappics00219rm.jpg

Here's a pic of the man in action:
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/1443/swappics00119ik.jpg

Next up, we got the LS1 on the engine stand to get access to everything
http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/8637/swappics00317oi.jpg
Valve springs completed on one side:
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/7287/swappics00416hk.jpg

[badjuju342]

This is a pic of the stock oil pump and timing chain, they're outta there! I removed these while Paul did the springs on the other side. He took a stock balancer /pulley bolt and ground the "washer" part of the bolt head down so the harmonic balancer and lower timing chain sprocket would slide off easily when using the puller.
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/6551/swappics00511gh.jpg
he used a compression leak tester and this tool to remove and reinstall the springs without removing the head. I bought Comp springs and titanium retainers .
http://img236.imageshack.us/img236/5915/swappics00613os.jpg
Even though this motor only had 43,000 miles , we went ahead and also replaced the valve seals. Just good insurance , I think.
__________________

[badjuju342]

n this pic , Paul is removing the old cam :

http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/9255/swappics00716yi.jpg
Next up , we used cam lube on the bearing journals and here we're oiling the cam lobes:
http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/3266/swappics00819ki.jpg
I used a double roller chain I purchased from Texas Speed & Performance , the cam is a 224/224/114 that was also purchased from TSP.
http://img229.imageshack.us/img229/8449/swappics00919cv.jpg
And here's the TSP ported LS6 oil pump installed:
http://img273.imageshack.us/img273/1970/swappics01018xr.jpg

[badjuju342]

Here, Paul has installed the Harlan Sharp roller rocker arms and TSP hardened pushrods. The cam instructions stated not use 1:8 ratio rocker so I used 1:7 . They're too pretty to put valve covers over!
http://img273.imageshack.us/img273/1081/swappics01118qr.jpg
This last pic is the FluidDampr harmonic balancer and the timing chain cover installed. I also bought a stainless steel LS1 bolt kit from Year One for a lil' bling to my sting.Also note the ARP bolt instead of the stocker.
http://img387.imageshack.us/img387/2384/swappics01217xc.jpg
Afterwards , we used a serpetine belt to insure the the balancer was aligned correctly , worked great. Stay tuned, more to come! http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/images/smilies/LS1Tech/gr_stretch.gif

[badjuju342]

Ok , here's what I did today.First thing, I removed the LS1 intake and removed the coolant tubes. I snapped a quick of the LS1 coolant tubes for reference before they were removed:

http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/7205/swappics00112cc.jpg

Afterwards I installed the LS6 plug/coolant tube kit:
http://img348.imageshack.us/img348/2373/swappics00219wi.jpg
You have to install this kit and remove the harness shown to get the LS6 intake to fit. The LS1 intake is curved at the bottom while the LS6 is flat.

Then , here comes the LS6 intake. It's a bit dusty but you get the idea of what the paint work I did to improve it's apearance:
http://img336.imageshack.us/img336/5734/swappics00318kk.jpg

I installed the Aeromotive billet fuel rails after that, what do think about this? :
http://img336.imageshack.us/img336/1971/swappics00414fx.jpg

[badjuju342]

I bought the BBK 80mm throttle body:
http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/5117/swappics00512eh.jpg

But didn't install it because this area needs to be polished:
http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2882/swappics00610tx.jpg

[badjuju342]

The factory valve cover bolts here have a catch that won't allow the bolts to slide out of the seal/sleeve, I'm using the stainless bolt kit so they gotta go :

http://img332.imageshack.us/img332/6528/swappics00112os.jpg

Nothing that can't be cured by some trusty boltcutters!:

http://img332.imageshack.us/img332/803/swappics00212tc.jpg

Valve covers are on and MSD coil packs installed:

http://img332.imageshack.us/img332/9018/swappics00318jv.jpg

[badjuju342]

Today , test bolted in the clutch/brake pedals and cut the holes in the firewall for the clutch linkage/cylinder to fit . As I've previously stated , this was an auto car so I had no provision for a manual . I bolted in the pedals, drilled the 2 outside holes to bolt in the cylinder using the support on the pedals as a template . After that , I removed the gasket from the cylinder and used it as a template to cut the center hole for the cylinder to go in the firewall . Afterwards , I cut the hole with a hand held air saw and deburred the holes for a nice flush fit. I needed to do this prior to painting the engine bay so I wouldn't chip the paint. This is what I ended up with. The cylinder is not round so this is why the hole is egg shaped. Test fitted everything , fit very nicely.

http://img353.imageshack.us/img353/4590/swappics18oe.jpg

[badjuju342]

Got 2 of these little jewels today , 18"x9.5" . I set a lug nut on the left just to give you an idea of how big these things really are. Me likes!

http://img398.imageshack.us/img398/5994/swappics18oa.jpg

[badjuju342]

Got the engine bay painted today. 3 coats of primer/sealer, 4 coats of primer filler at this point:

http://img45.imageshack.us/img45/179/swappics00117xa.jpg

Then 4 coats of base color:
http://img377.imageshack.us/img377/3762/swappics00214mt.jpg

Then three coats of clear:
http://img377.imageshack.us/img377/4919/swappics00316gc.jpg

It has a really deep wet look to it , and should stay looking good for a long time with the amount of paint laid on it.

[PNYKLR2]

Coming along great man, I would love to do a H/C swap on my SS but don't have the money or a garage to do it in. I'm working crazy overtime for the next 3 months in attempt to pay off all my credit cards and some bills so I can do some mods to the SS and maybe get married within the next year or so, so I can be poor the rest of my life!

[NoChrome]

maybe get married within the next year or so, so I can be poor the rest of my life!


You have no idea gettin hitched drained the pockets really quick.

That car is looking GREAT! I really like the color, and it seems your doing every thing right now so theres noting to fix later.

[Darth Quagmire]

WOW just saw the pics, looks like badjuju and the orange M&M were doin a engine swap

[Uncle Paul]

Yep, I look terrible in those pics.
I have since ditched the bright orange sweatshirt. :lol:

[The DanSmith]

I really like that Intake manifold. The blue with the Aeromotive fuel rails is really cool IMO.

[badjuju342]

Yep, I look terrible in those pics.
I have since ditched the bright orange sweatshirt. :lol: The orange M&M reference somebody made was pretty good!

[PNYKLR2]

I prefer peanut butter filled candies lol

[unfortunate5.0]

mmmm. reeses peices........ anyway i dont know if they would fit but custom painted coil covers like on the vette's would look really bad ass blue to match it would give the car a really clean look . just my opinion

[badjuju342]

Well , I'm scrapping the IROC swaybars and springs. I bought the Spohn chromemoly front&rear swaybar set instead (UPS man dropped those off today)and I'm buying the Eibach Prokit springs today. I also bought a new convertible top with a glass rear window. No more of the hazing on the plastic rear window crap!

[badjuju342]

New convertible top with black Stayfast cloth and glass rear window instead of the cheap plastic one came in today. The Eibach Pro springs also showed up.

[Uncle Paul]

How does that top look? Pretty sturdy?

[NoChrome]

What no pics?:nono:

[badjuju342]

How does that top look? Pretty sturdy? It's the Stayfast which is the same material as the old top. Here's what got the old one , the top didn't wear out , the top frame rubbed holes in it when it was down. When I have the new one installed , I'll ask about some sort of padding to stop that. plus the cheesy plastic rear window hazed up pretty bad.

[ss rally red]

Great write up thus far.

[badjuju342]

Trashing the crappy Unlimited Products fiberglass hood and buying this Thursday:
http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?lang=-1&catalogId=10002&storeId=10001&categoryId=21213&searchItemId=353909

I think it will look great with the 18" wheels and it's steel so bodywork will be minimal.

[Uncle Paul]

That will look mean as hell. :D

[Josh]

What was the other hood that you had?

[badjuju342]

The 2" cowl hood in the pics of my car in the photo gallery.

[badjuju342]

Bought the new hood , Lokar dipstick , Aeromotive fuel y-block , braided fuel lines and all the necessary hose ends and fittings. I can't believe it but I'm running out of things to buy for the car.

[Biff85ta]

Did you buy the four inch cowl?? Are you planning for something in the future you are not telling?

[badjuju342]

Yep , I got the 4 inch cowl plus the Racetronix fuel pump kit and this lil' goody:
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/8438/swappics00112vz.jpg

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/1360/swappics00215tz.jpg

[Uncle Paul]

BLING!!!!!
Me like!

[badjuju342]

Snapped a quick pic of the Street&Performance accessories kit to match up with the water pump.This kit is billet but it's been chromed so I won't need to polish it all the time. This kit isn't cheap but it is the only LS1 kit I know of . Alt, A/C compressor, P/S pump & reservoir, and the brackets and hardware.I also got the polished A/C dryer . I purchased Aeroquip Stainless steel braided A/C hose and the neccessary fittings. The throttle cable bracket is also from S&P along with a Lokar s/s throttle cable.
http://img364.imageshack.us/img364/474/swappics16mj.jpg

[Uncle Paul]

That's what I'm talking about! :D

[badjuju342]

The garage has become a living thing ! I literally could not fit all the new parts in one photo with my camera. The Jeg's box at the top of the pile can be used for a reference point:
http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/6016/swappics002ed6.jpg
http://img185.imageshack.us/img185/5633/swappics001wq4.jpg
Here's what's taking so long, I'm stripping the entire bottom of the car for the POR-15 finally down to just getting into the cracks and crevices. I'm very picky and won't be happy until the whole thing is bare:
http://img350.imageshack.us/img350/1943/swappics003zu3.jpg

[Phoenix 5.7]

keep it up, its comin along great. thats goin to be a sweet car when its done.

[Tomogchi]

DAMN.
How much you got invested into that now? Hahaha...
Looks DAMN good though.
Bet it will even catch you offguard.
Bill

[badjuju342]

Honestly , I stopped counting when I spent over 20k , I don't really wanna know at this point...

[tbojbob]

Dang man, what a monumental project......... I had assumed that you had it together and on the road by now.......of course now I don't feel so bad. Been workin' a little O.T.?

[badjuju342]

I pretty much live there during the week. Between work , promoting this site and getting a little work done on the 'Maro , I don't have diddly for time.

[badjuju342]

Ok , read my lips: No new taxes... er... wait ... that's not it..... oh yeah...the @#$%^&ing floorpans are getting painted this weekend . Yes, this weekend . You heard me....

[Uncle Paul]

Bout time! :D

[NoChrome]

Thats awesome, so whens the "projected completion date" some time this year? (not trying to sound like a smart ass) or do you think it will be a little longer?

[badjuju342]

I'd like to have it ready to be repainted (i.e. running ) by the end of Nov.

[badjuju342]

I stripped the floorpans using various wire wheels , cordless drill , and sandpaper. After doing this in my spare time for what seemed like FOREVER, I finally got it all bare , clean and ready for our next step.Here's the ingredients for the paintwork:
http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/3651/swappics001gz8.jpg

First, I blew off the floorpans with an air nozzle , vacuumed the nooks & crannies, then I wiped every square inch down with wax/grease remover, followed up with the lacquer thinner to remove any leftover residue. I used shop towels because they work well, are disposable , and I had plenty of them in a roll. Fold your towel into 4 or so section and always wipe off with a clean towel area. You need to constantly work with a clean towel area or you're just smearing the dust you picked up (and you will pick up more dust) in the next area. After a couple of hours and the shop towels coming off clean after wiping , it was time for the Metal Ready.

The Metal Ready is an etching solution and it is quite nasty! Cover as much of your face and body as possible and use protective eyewear. (Trust me, after what I saw it do to the bare metal , you DON'T want it on your skin or eyes!). The directions then stated to rinse it off with water after 15 minutes but that wasn't going to work in my case , so I wiped it off with wet shop towels.

After that , paint time! This stuff is a polyurethane paint and most car guys swear by it. I painted my rear axle with it previously so I knew what the end result would be.

The result:
http://img165.imageshack.us/img165/679/swappics002it6.jpg


What do you folks think? I'm happy with it and it will last for a long time!

[badjuju342]

Also , with this done , I can start to ressamble. Conveniently , I'll be on vacation from work next week so should have LOTS o' pics for ya.I want a rolling chassis with an engine , trans , and suspension by the time I'm off vacation......

[Uncle Paul]

Good job Mike!!!!

[MrSkull]

Gotta love the big cathedral ports on those heads.

[badjuju342]

Did a super fast cleanup of the dust in engine bay(I'll detail it later) and installed the Hawk's tubular k-member:
http://img357.imageshack.us/img357/2448/swappics001aa4.jpg

Just for giggles , I set the Spohn billet strut towers in , too:

http://img457.imageshack.us/img457/3506/swappics002qt0.jpg

And installed the Spohn tubular A-arms:

http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/5213/swappics003fo5.jpg

[Phoenix 5.7]

looking good. thats some nice lookin pieces. now hurry up and finish this damn thing

[badjuju342]

More progress today:
Got the front spindles/brakes/Eibach springs installed. This was a royal PIA and if you don't have access to a spring compressor and a port-o-power , not gonna happen. Anyways ,the finished product:
http://img473.imageshack.us/img473/2904/swappics001is8.jpg

Also installed the Koni adjustable struts and I painted 7 installed the IROC quick ratio steering box . A big thanks to LS13RDGEN as this whole ordeal was a definite 2 man job!:
http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/3303/swappics002fj5.jpg

[Tomogchi]

Soooooooooo Jelous.

Looks damn good though.
Cant wait to see this completed.....
Bill

[Uncle Paul]

Your goal is the following:

1. Organize garage.
2. Organize garage.
3. Finish up front suspension and steering.
4. Finish up the rear end and install.
5. Clean garage.

Once those 5 steps are done, then we can drop in the engine and tranny. :D

[badjuju342]

You have nailed the situation correctly, sir. I have just about finished the front , threw out corresponding boxes and trash and am on the case right meow.

[Uncle Paul]

Hehehe, meow. :D

[badjuju342]

Finished up the front suspension , did some garage clearing out and I decided the black floorpans and a black rear axle were too much black. So I came up with this:
http://img47.imageshack.us/img47/1148/swappics001fu0.jpg

The rear suspension will be assembled partially to move the car so the engine can be dropped in this weekend. I'm waiting for some parts for the fuel tank ( fuel sender kit GM part #25319676 ,to be exact, so the stock fuel guage will read correctly) and I won't be able to completely assemble the rear setup just yet until the tank is installed. Expect more pics a little later.....

[Uncle Paul]

Sweet!!!! I like it!

You need me to measure the hole for the shifter to come through?

I may be able to come by Saturday late afternoon to help drop the engine in if you are ready by then. That may be the only free time I have this weekend.

[badjuju342]

Yeah , we can do that . I'm going to have the rear axle installed by Sat . morning so it would be ready to drop in that afternoon.

[Uncle Paul]

I will give you a call Saturday afternoon once I get done with the suspension stuff I am working on for my buddy's Acura.

[john_d.]

Is that the same shade as the body?

[badjuju342]

Very , very close to it.

[badjuju342]

Just hit a snag , looks like I got the wrong caliper brackets for the rear axle so I'm not going to be able to assemble the rear axle yet.

[Uncle Paul]

Just hit a snag , looks like I got the wrong caliper brackets for the rear axle so I'm not going to be able to assemble the rear axle yet.
Well crap.

Oh did you ever call Summit about the clutch slave cylinder?

When you do get the rear put in and ready to drop the engine in, give me notice and I will try to make some free time. :D

[badjuju342]

I'm going to put the axles in , then pull them back out when I get the brackets and I got the McLeod slave cylinder today(the right one).

[NoChrome]

Thats looking really good. For such a huge project, its pretty amazing how few problems you have had.

[badjuju342]

We're far from being out of the woods yet. I've got the rear axle in , and am going to start putting the clutch on tonight and tommorrow. Still got to install a few more pieces on the rear axle yet.

[badjuju342]

Rear suspension is installed.Bear in mind this is more of a "mock up" as the gas tank still needs to be installed (waiting for parts on it) First pic , Spohn adjustable torque arm:
http://img82.imageshack.us/img82/6374/swappics002pn4.jpg

In this pic , the Spohn rear crossmember for the T56 . I ran into a snag because onf this piece , I won't be able weld in the MAC subframe connectors. I'm figuring I'll just make those bolt in and do some more Spohns along the outer frame rails . Convertible differ from coupes there , but I've seen it done. Anyways , the pic:
http://img82.imageshack.us/img82/2839/swappics003gw2.jpg

Next up , the Thunder Racing differential girdle and the BMR adjustable panhard bar:
http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/3165/swappics004aq8.jpg

Quick shot of the Eibach Pro Kit , Koni rear adjustables and the BMR panhard:
http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/2783/swappics005sr6.jpg

[badjuju342]

Here's a shot of the Baer rear discs:
http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/7109/swappics006yt6.jpg

At this point , we're ready to bolt the wheels on and roll it back to drop the engine in. I've got a couple of things to do first , install the clutch and I'm changing the motor mounts from the stock LS1 rubber ones to Prothane poly ones. Here's what you have to do : You need to grind down two rivets on 1 side of the mount then drill them out and drill three holes out on the other side. You'll need to drill the holes out to 3/8" . Once you've did that, the rubber in the clamshell is glued in and they weren't screwing around on the adhesive. I took a torch and heated both sides until the adhesive finally gave. I want to paint the clamshells silver so no biggie. Left is an assembled clamshell , right is a disassembled one. The red part is the Prothane replacement:
http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/1718/swappics001nx0.jpg

[Phoenix 5.7]

comin along very nice. i want to see that thang rollin

one word of warning about that BMR panhard bar, ppl have had problems with them flexing at the adjustment point. th design that the road racers use is the adjustments on the very ends, preferably rod ends.

[badjuju342]

Duly noted , my good man !

[badjuju342]

Ok , the last thing I needed to do was install the clutch and bellhousing before dropping in the motor . I chose the Textralia OZ700 . Everything you see in this pic came with it except the ARP flywheel to crank bolts. You do need to buy new bolts and not reuse the old ones if you're changing your clutch. Pressure plate to flywheel bolts were included in the kit.
http://img154.imageshack.us/img154/959/fbodyreunion002ax5.jpg

Also you need to use this . Don't overdo it because you might need to remove the bolts sometime but I have heard horror stories of what hapens if you don't loctite the bolts. It's cheap and it's good insurance as replacing the old bolts.

http://img133.imageshack.us/img133/4593/fbodyreunion003cd4.jpg

Another important step is clean the flywheel and pressure plate surfaces with brakeclean or lacquer thinner to remove the coating from the manufacturer to prevent rust while being shipped. Some guys don't do this step but I do. Here's what just one wipe of the flywheel took off and the pressure was even worse.
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/9357/fbodyreunion004gv9.jpg

Here , I've installed the pilot bearing & flywheel and torqued the bolts to 75ft/lbs as recommended by ARP , slipped on the clutch plate using the provided alignment tool .
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/544/fbodyreunion005qg1.jpg

[badjuju342]

Next , I installed the pressure plate and torqued the bolts to 52ft/lbs

http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/8789/fbodyreunion006gf9.jpg

And finally , I installed the bellhousing before dropping in the engine. My friend Paul (LS13RDGEN) has removed the engine & trans in his '92 (he's done the same swap as I'm doing) and says this is the easiest route. Being that he only lives a few miles from me , he knows I will hunt him down and kill him if he's lied to me!

http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/1954/fbodyreunion007nr4.jpg

[MrSkull]

Looks like a good clutch. What power levels is it rated for?

I am hoping a Centerforce Dual Friction will hold up to the twin turbos.

[Uncle Paul]

LMAO!!
I swear Mike it is much easier this way. :D
You about ready to drop that bad boy in there?

[badjuju342]

It's rated for 700 hp , yep , it's on the hook and ready to go. It's been very hard not to play hooky from work , I swear...

[Uncle Paul]

What days are you off of work? Saturdays and Sundays?

[badjuju342]

Behold the glory! I dropped it in last night but ran into a prob. The holes in the K-member were too small for the LS1 engine bolts. I also discovered that drilling the holes out were a *&%$^&*! I suspect the Kmember is chromemoly instead of mild steel. Anyways , I had to pull it back up , run down several batteries in the cordless , then drop it back in . I'll be doing touch up on some areas I scratched tonight. First attempt:
http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/8172/fbodyreunion001of9.jpg

Then it's in as of a few minutes ago and bolted!:
http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/2659/fbodyreunion002ca0.jpg

[badjuju342]

What days are you off of work? Saturdays and Sundays? That is correct , sir.... I'll be needing your trans jack next weekend .

[badjuju342]

Time for some tranny prep , obviously this crappy stock shifter had to go:
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/7765/swappics001lq1.jpg

And I replaced it with this Pro 5.0 billet one:

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/5632/swappics002xf2.jpg

[NoChrome]

After stabbing the motor a few times I bet your glad you didnt have the tranny bolted to it.

[Uncle Paul]

That is correct , sir.... I'll be needing your trans jack next weekend .

Not a problem. :D

[badjuju342]

Ok , got the transmission in this weekend . First I jacked up the trans after bolting it to the engine and I marked a hole , when the shifter touched. Also the auto shifter bracing has to go. Here's hole drilled and bracing still intact:
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/7246/swappics001pq1.jpg

Back 1/2 of bracing removed and preparing to cut floorpan using the 4th gen shifter boot and a piece of cardboard as a template, i don't care about the carpet getting burnholes in it because I'm replacing it:

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/2792/swappics002jy8.jpg

Using a hand held airsaw (you need one of the these and compressor if you do a lot of work) , I cut the hole after marking the floorpan with the cardboard template and a Sharpie pen, boot had a lip on the bottom , fit nice and flush:

http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/3379/swappics003rb0.jpg

[badjuju342]

Next , I bolted the rear crossmember up , here's some shots of how it fits:
http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/6062/swappics004pt4.jpg

http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/3583/swappics005yj4.jpg

Here's where the shifter sits after the crossmember is bolted up:

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/3225/swappics006cj1.jpg

The fuel sender kit made it in today so we'll modify the gas tank this weekend.

[87ciz]

any updates so far? I'm basically doing the same thing as yourself except at a much slower rate. plenty of time not enough money haha. Anyway the car is coming along great can't wait to see the finished product.

[badjuju342]

I actually have pics of the gas tank mods from last weekend , just haven't had time to post 'em. These 60+ hour work weeks are killin' me!

[badjuju342]

Gas tank pics, first you will need to remove the fuel pump sender assembly . You will need to tap on the gold ring to turn it until the assembly is loose , screwdriver points at it:
http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/9522/swappics001xp5.jpg

Once you've got it out , you'll to remove the sender and replace it with the '97 GrandPrix unit that I gave the part number on , do this first and save your old parts until you reassemble it , I'll explain why a few pics down from here. The white clip holds the sender on , squeeze the tabs at top and gently push clip down , I'm pointing to clip halfway removed:
http://img284.imageshack.us/img284/3756/swappics002ob1.jpg

Next remove the plug for the sender and fuel pump by gently prying red clip and a gray one :

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/8614/swappics003bh1.jpg

I chose the Racetronix fuel pump to replace the stock LS1 unit, I probably didn't need to but while it's apart , might as well. There's no need to detail the fuel pump installation as they include very good, step by step instructions with pictures to walk you through it . Here's a quick shot of the pump and install instructions:

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/2109/swappics004sq0.jpg

[badjuju342]

Here's why you need to save your old parts. The new sender float is different from the LS1 sender unit. Top is new sender float , bottom is LS1 float, it would give you a false reading if you didn't reuse the old float:
http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/8762/swappics005mc6.jpg

Reassemble the assembly and put it back in the tank , turn ring and you're set. The next thing is the gas filler neck , you'll need to trim the LS1 rubber neck back a bit and on the metal fill part , you need to cut this tab off:

http://img303.imageshack.us/img303/1411/swappics006ge6.jpg

I'll post more pics a little later in the weekend after I complete a few more details on the car and get some sleep from working from 10:30 PM last night to 11:00 am this morning.

[badjuju342]

Installed the Hawk's longtubes & the starter today . They fit very well and are stainless steel. This is the only longtube out on the market for a 3rd gen LS1 swap, 4th gen longtubes will NOT fit even with the tubular K-member. Here's the right side:
http://img60.imageshack.us/img60/9871/swappics001pg1.jpg

And the left:
http://img68.imageshack.us/img68/5116/swappics002xw4.jpg

Next , the ugly stock dipstick had to go , I replaced it with a Lokar billet one:
http://img56.imageshack.us/img56/4642/swappics003kz4.jpg

[badjuju342]

After this , I got to a part of this swap that left me sporting serious wood. In fact , I'm going to have to ask anyone under 18 not to view this post as it is much too graphic. I give to you the S&P chrome accessories kit (drooool!) :

http://img60.imageshack.us/img60/2369/swappics004pt6.jpg

http://img70.imageshack.us/img70/5931/swappicsag1.jpg

[87ciz]

that chrome kit really sets it off! Looks fantastic!

[The EnforceR]

looks real nice man, i've been following this buildup but havent posted anything yet. only thing that motor needs appearance wise is maybe paint/powdercoat the valve covers to match the car and intake manifold, or polished them up to a mirror finish. awesome car tho, you're doin a good job with it.

[badjuju342]

I really have thought about getting the valve covers chromed, it would be a good appearance item.

[87ciz]

ever think about relocationg your coil packs and getting a better set of valve covers?

[Uncle Paul]

Yep, huge wood right here. (drool)

[The EnforceR]

ever think about relocationg your coil packs and getting a better set of valve covers?

those MSD coils are more cosmetic than performance i believe (since there 8-9 sec cars still runing stock coil packs) so it'd be a shame to hide the good looking MSD coils. if they were the ugly stockers id relocate them.

[87ciz]

could relocate them to the firewall and still see them. Don't know thirdgens just have alot of firewall space.

[badjuju342]

I did consider that but it would be a trade-off. I'm using the Taylor 10 mm wires now , if I relocated the coils , it would be an awfully long run of plug wires.

[Phoenix 5.7]

check out these valve covers and coil relocation:
http://www.nastyperformance.com/images/Img13.png

found here:
http://www.nastyperformance.com/Valvecovers.html

[MrDavid]

what is the status on this beast now?

[badjuju342]

On vacation , and wrenching! Gotta take care of minor misunderstanding between our local law enforcement , a radar gun and myself today then I can get back on it. I did run into a major snag . The Y-pipe is hitting the rear crossmember . I'm gonna call Bruce @ Hawk's and see what I can do.

[MrDavid]

you can always Fab something up. Its a pretty custom car anyway

[badjuju342]

Actually , I'm going to trim the Spohn crossmember a bit. The thing is severe overkill. The Y is stainless steel and has the dual Random Technology cats welded to them . I have to pass the sniffer test to get tags , so I gotta have 'em.

[Uncle Paul]

That is one reason why I am glad to be moving to Columbia. No emissions test. :D

[badjuju342]

Bad day: Ypipe is not co-operating nor is BeCool aluminum radiator/ condensor/ fan setup , I think I'm quitting for the day and enjoying a bit o' Crown Royal Select. (It seemed the proper thing to do ,lol)

[badjuju342]

As promised , more pics. First off , if you looked a while back in this thread , you'd notice where I showed you that the BBK throttle body wasn't quite up to par in the polished dept. around the throttle blade . With a little help from Standard Abrasives , I tok care of that. I started off with a medium grit roll on my die grinder to get this :
http://img140.imageshack.us/img140/9978/swappics003su2.jpg

When you do this , you want to a smooth , sweeping motion , don't stop in one spot and "dig" , keep lightly going around the circumferenceuntil you have a smooth level surface.

After that step , I used the scotchbrite rolls in the kit until the surface was a very smooth , semi shiny , silk texture. This will flow well and not cause turbulence:

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/9742/swappics004of8.jpg

This techinique can be used on you stock unit , also. Just be sure to blow out any grit and wipe it down with good cleaning solvent like lacquer thinner afterwards. I then popped it on:

http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/3199/swappics005we5.jpg

[badjuju342]

I also installed in the BMR strut tower brace. Sorry about the pic quality on this one , batteries were low. Here you go:
http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/1593/swappics001hy9.jpg

We now come to a part I was dreading : replacing the heater core . It wasn't as bad as I thought because the interior was partialy dissassembled anyway. Here's all the way stripped and heater core removed. This is one area you do NOT want to go cheap on . Buy a good quality one! I bought mine from NAPA.:

http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/9769/swappics002wq7.jpg

Got it in , but I let the dash off to remove some wiring and unneeded modules from the TBI setup. I then began to install the Coolflex heater hoses . I also have the matching upper and lower radiator hoses. They look really nice in person:
http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/6834/swappics003kp9.jpg

Had to stop there until the billet hose separators/hold downs arrive . I'll have more pics for you folks in a couple of days.

[MrDavid]

man, I really hope you drive this car to Upstate SC someday after the rebuild is complete so everyone in Upstate F-Body can gawk over it.

[badjuju342]

I might just have to do just that. I'd like to hang with you folks sometime

[MrDavid]

we will have to arrange something soon. Do you have any projected time of when the rebuild might be completed?

[badjuju342]

I really , really want to have it done by the end of the year.

[87ciz]

any more progress? i just altered the way i'm going with my car. how did you get your engine? from another car or build it from the block up. i don't recall and im to lazy to go back and read again today lol. but i was going to get one out of the new goats but it's cheaper to get a forged rotating assembly and bulletproof t-56 than it is to get it from the goat and build it up. since i'm going with a high horsepower setup. so now i'm going with the SDPC 402 forged shortblock with the L92 heads and L76 intake should be pretty impressive with about 12lbs of boost from a turbo! might even get a little crazy and throw a little nitrous shot on there :whistle:

[badjuju342]

I bought mine from a buddy"s totalled car. The GTOsetup would be a better way to go. Engine is stock except for cam& valvetrain , LS6 oil pump, and LS6 intake. I've done a lot of bolt ons , though. Probably gonna do a little work on it after I run a couple of errands.

[87ciz]

looking forward to updates, can't get enough of these swaps especially when it's done right. i just got done building my rotisserie so i'll be restoring my car that way. im not a fan of spraying and scraping underneath the car like you did. but hopefully by spring mine will be about where you are now if all goes well in the financial department

[Uncle Paul]

Looking really good Mike. :D

[sashik2005]

Very nice car, cant wait untill its done! But there is a quick question... I drive a 1989 camaro rs, and my floor under the driver side is rusting pretty badly right now. I am only going to fix the spots not the whole thing like you did, but if I get the POR-15, how long would it last without starting to rust again. Thanks

[87ciz]

Por-15 will keep the rust from spreading. It's basically a moisture/air barrier but you need to seal all you can otherwise it will spread from the inside out.

[badjuju342]

Well , got out today and got busy in the garage. We're going to deal with the rear Baer brakes here .

First , removed the rear axles and installed the supplied new backing plates for the calipers:

http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/4508/swappics001sc6.jpg

After making sure they were flush and the bolts were tight against the factory axle flange , reinstalled & reassembled the the rear axles. I snapped this quick pic because it is just good sense. You definitely want to put thread locker on the bolt that retains the pin that keeps the C-clips and axles in place. If that little bolt backs out ( especially at speed ) bad things are gonna happen! Note red on bolt:

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/4188/swappics002cj5.jpg


Then , hung the rotors back on , and installed the calipers. Now we'll need to install the stainless lines and braided lines along with the parking brake cables.

http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/4275/swappics004cs7.jpg

[MrDavid]

Those rotors look really familiar.... possibly because I am using the same ones! Rock On!

[The EnforceR]

"Rock On!"......................who says that? all you need is a mullet!

[MrDavid]

I say that! I got it from my buddy in the army, whom you will meet this weekend because he is coming down from VA to hang out with me! He has an 05 GTO, but I doubt he will be driving it.

[The EnforceR]

oh yea i remember you tell me about that car....what are we doin this weekend tho? lets start up a new thread discussin it.

[badjuju342]

Okay , today , I installed the 4th gen gas tank. I wanted to keep use of the charcoal cannister and evap solenoid so I drilled out the rivets that held the fuel pump /fuel level sender harness , made a template and cut a larger hole . Afterwards , touched up the screw holes and bare metal of the cut with POR-15 then installed new harness. Here's the result:
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/1678/swappics001if2.jpg

There are 3 seperate plug in this connector you only use two. 3rd is for ABS which I won't be using.

Then I installed the 4th gen tank , it fit perfect . You will need to trim the rubber filler neck down a bit as it is too long.

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/9000/swappics005tj7.jpg


And finally installed the aluminum 4th gen driveshaft , also fit perfect .

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/9145/swappics002vd8.jpg

[badjuju342]

Installed Spohn rear swaybar & e-brake cables today:
http://img391.imageshack.us/img391/2964/verynaughtypicsel5.jpg

[MrDavid]

man, I can't wait to see this ride on the Road. I really hope you can come to SC and hang out with UFB one weekend when she is done.

[badjuju342]

Will do!

[badjuju342]

Measured
, cut mounts and bolted in BeCool A/C condenser today:
http://img369.imageshack.us/img369/1884/swappicsvt8.jpg

[badjuju342]

Well, the car is now officialy a manual trans car. Painted and bolted up the vacuum booster and pedals.Outside:

http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/4936/swappics001ps6.jpg

Inside:

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/1729/swappics002yn2.jpg

If you look under the booster in the first pic , you can see the McLeod clutch slave cylinder peeking out.

[badjuju342]

Just set in the BeCool radiator/twin fan set up, SLP MAF , and the AEM 2004 GTO cold air intake. Thunder Racing has these in a sliver or a polished. By now , you've probably figured out I like shiny chromy things so my choice was pretty obvious . You have to make a mounting tab for the CAI but no biggie. Also , the stock TPI air intake is pretty restrictive so you Z28/IROC-Z swappers don't want to adapt that.
http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/4973/swappics001fh2.jpg

[NoChrome]

ok. Stop teasing how much longer till you can crank it?

[badjuju342]

We're getting there but not out of the woods yet.

[badjuju342]

Haven't been able to do alot on the car as of late because I moved out of my old house and into a new one. We had to trailer the car but that was a good thing . Saw it with it's new wheels ( went from 17" to 18" ) and am pretty inspired. I'll be getting back on it next week after we're finished unpacking. Here's a couple of quick shots in the new Mad Scientist's laboratory:
http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/5295/swappics003mq4.jpg

http://img201.imageshack.us/img201/7642/swappics004ji2.jpg

I like the way the front sits but the rear is a bit too high. Gonna remove the rear spring isolators and use rubber hose on the upper part of the rear springs. I think that and fuel in the gas tank should get it at a lower height....

[Uncle Paul]

I love those wheels and the stance of the car. Makes me jealous. :(
I need to get some suspension stuff done for mine sooner or later.

[junior]

i just read throught the whole post and all i can say is damn. good work man.

[MrDavid]

i just read throught the whole post and all i can say is damn. good work man.

I did that for the first time when it was 12 pages long. Takes a quite a while doesn't it?

[junior]

sure does but its worth it. that is a verry fine machine.

[Josh]

Man it is looking nice. I have been waiting for the day to see your car in action. How long have you been working on it now?

[badjuju342]

About a year and a half , I try to sneak out to the garage when I can and do a little wrenchin', it's good stress relief

[MrDavid]

the question is: "How much longer before you finish:)"

[badjuju342]

Now that one is a good question , I keep finding things I want to deviate from stock but don't have money for now....:(

[01BlackBird]

How bout an update its been awhile i know youve been busy but its time to get this thing up and goin i wanna see it

[MrDavid]

How bout an update its been awhile i know youve been busy but its time to get this thing up and goin i wanna see it

you might as well start your own thread too titled: "how to take forever to rebuild a fourth gen"

[01BlackBird]

na I just didnt ever start mine till now it will go fast it took a total of 4 hours to go from running to bein out of the car now I got to get a few more parts then throw it back together dawg. its hard to take time between work and a girlfriend plus all the time ive spent at the hospital the past few months

[89RABIDFOX]

I Know What You Mean Man. It Has Been A Hell Of 2 Months. The Ol Lady Is Why My Car Is In Hybernation Right Now. But It Will Be Back Out Looking For Something To Eat Maybe A Little Bird. Lol.

[MrDavid]

Maybe A Little Bird. Lol.

horses don't eat birds. :nutty:

[89RABIDFOX]

Oh This One Does!! Has!! And Will Again!! Lol. But Anyways I May Never Race My Car On The Street Again.

[badjuju342]

Car is getting ready to moved from my house to the shop I work at where it will be getting the "treatment". After it gets finished , it will reside on the showroom floor with the occaisional run to car shows.

[MrDavid]

I've been waiting almost a year now to see this car finished. Hard to believe I have only been here for a year. Feels like a long time.

[NoChrome]

I cant wait to see this project finished, its gonna be so awesome. Good luck dude.

[badjuju342]

This job thing is really good for the project , got the resources now to finish the car RIGHT ( in case you haven't noticed , I'm kinda obsessed about the whole thing , lol) , and really make a ride I can be proud of.

[MrDavid]

how much more is there to do? It seems like you have been at it for quite a while and you are in the last phase....?

[LWillmann]

Car is getting ready to moved from my house to the shop I work at where it will be getting the "treatment". After it gets finished , it will reside on the showroom floor with the occaisional run to car shows.

BOOOOOOO


I thought you were building this car to DRIVE?

[badjuju342]

LOL.It will be driven and driven hard. Just not in the rain , excessively dusty conditions or in smelly places.

Seriously , I'm really gung ho about my job ( haven't felt like THAT in loooong time) and it will be a great example of what kind of work I am capable of.There's parts of my soul in that 3rd gen along with blood , sweat , and tears. I refuse to make it a daily driver but inversely, you can't leave it rotting away in a glass case. She needs a dyno run and at least a couple of passes down the track . I will DRIVE it to shows , NO enclosed trailers.....

[CamaroRSS]

I'm just starting my 3rd gen conversion, (Meaning I just bought my block and am still collecting major components for my swap.) so, I have a couple of questions....

1. Have you kept track of what you've paid out so far for your swap? If so, would you share that dollar amount with the forum? (What tools have you needed that, if you didn't have a garage, you would have to have bought?)

2. With our cars, is it truly better to remove the engine from the bottom, rather than the top? It seems, from pictures I've seen, that it only takes about 5 feet (roughly) to clear both the old and the new engine.

3. What was the reason you chose to go with the fuel tank replacement instead of using a fuel pressure regulator? What kind of errors/flaws have you found with using a fpr?

4. I've talked to Lingenfelter about re-working my 2004 LS1 stock heads and supplying me with a valve-train and cam set. They say that their combination will give me 475 hp to the crank and that it's worth $2550 (to them). Fair or unfair?

5. Are you keeping the stock 3rd gen dash? And since I asked that, how are you tackling the wiring situation? Up until now, I've pretty much figured that speartech was the best choice. They've said they'll create a custom harness for $850. Any suggestions? (This one conversation has been the focal point for me considering a swap to a 4th gen dash/console. Thinking that it'll be more "Plug and Play" than the 3rd gen dash.)

6. Structural questions. I have a coupe and you've spoken about differences between coupes and convertibles. Can you elaborate on this a little bit please? I want to stiffen up the chassis when I do my swap so I want to maximize the effectiveness of SBC's.

7. Aside from cosmetic reasons, is there a good reason to go with a set of after-market front-belt-driven-accessories? I've looked at the newest March Pulleys system and rejected it due to budget limitations. Since you went with an after-market solution, I have to wonder if there is any performance advantage there or if it's purely cosmetic.

8. Is the Spohn cross-member(s) setup the way to go, as far as, lining up the motor to the mounting point for the shifter? (I understand that you were converting from auto to manual. What I'm asking is: In guesstimation, would everything line up properly for a manual to manual swap?) Sphon says that no modification is necessary if their parts are used.

9. Is it obvious that I'm a newbie yet? lol

10. Suspension: Did you happen to measure stock ride-height prior to starting your project? I only ask because I plan on measuring mine prior to breaking it down and I was wanting to compare results. With my swap, I want to maintain factory appearance in every way except for cosmetic. (A LS1 sleeper basically.)

Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated as well.

Thank You (in advance),
Aeigs Jones

[badjuju342]

1.I figure I'm well over 30,000.00 in this project BUT a lot of things ( such as the big brake kit , audio/video/wheels , etc) are figured in that and you don't need for the swap . I figure with swap related parts I'm around 20,000.00. Some of those things are not necessary just ( while I'm there, might as well...) easier to replace when it's all apart. A budget swap could be for around 10,000.00 realistically.

2. On a 4th gen body , yes you'll need to remove the engine from the bottom because of cowl overhang. On the 3rd gen , you can easily drop it in from the top and have plenty of room.

3. The 4th gen fuel tank is plastic, lighter and bolts right in so weight reduction and no rust in the tank. I am redoing the fuel system as the 4th gen stock set is a strange design with the return at the fuel filter by the tank instead of up front by the engine. I am using an adjustable fuel pressure regulator that has a guage for tuning purposes . Bear in mind the convertible was a throttle body car thus fuel pressure was inadequate for the LS1. I think it was 7 psi vs. the 43psi the LS1 needs.

4.I bought a mild cam, pushrods, springs and new retainers for 900.00 from Texas Speed and Performance, Harlan Sharpe rockers for around 500.00 , a double roller chain for 150.00, and ported new LS6 oil pump ( replace that while you're there) for 120.00 so it depends what they're giving you in their kit . You can buy better flowing heads relatively cheap but the stock heads do respond well to port work. I think you would be better off to buy aftermarket heads for the difference $$$$ wise.The difference would be small but the potential for power gain vastly more.

5.I am keeping the 3rd gen dash, I'll pass on the inaccurate serial data and wiring nightmare the 4th gen dash had. I had my harness converted plus I bought the HP Tuners tuning package so I can program the LS1 from my laptop in the car.I've seen 4th gen dashes in 3rd gens , they do look spiffy . Still , the 3rd gen needs to keep some of it original self in my opinion.If you're doing this in a '91-'92 F-body you have a speedometer that uses a speed sensor instead of cable driven the '90 down models have.You'll also need a '98 water temp sensor for the engine to operate the 3rd gen guage.Speartech does great work and you can't go wrong with them .

6.The 3rd gen convertible is not a production car. Every one of them rolled off the assembly line as a t-top coupe which were converted by different companies over the years. ASC did most of the '87 up conversions.The convertible's only difference is some paper thin sub frame connectors right under the doors that are pretty much useless.I could drive over a rough spot in the road and the doors would rattle. While this might be ok for the almighty 175 hp 305 , it wasn't good for 245hp tuned port cars , much less the LS1. In fact , GM quit offering t-top cars with the 5.7 engine after 1989 because of structural stress.You do need subframe connectors if you plan on driving the car hard.

7. The LS1 has the alternator and A/C compressor down at the bottom of the engine and it can interfere with your steering . If you use the stock K-member , you'll have to notch it if you plan on keeping your A/C . I've seen quite a few people go to a tubular K-member with rack and pinion to get around this . Not cheap. I bought this setup not only for cosmetic reasons but for servicability and to eliminate the steering clearance issue.

8.The Spohn is a direct bolt in and very stout. I found also if you bought the Spohn torque arm ,it sure looked and worked a heck of a lot easier than trying to make the stock torque arm fit.Defintely worth a few dollars more.

9. No , you're in "research mode" so it's definitely time to ask questions!:grd:

10.The LS1 block is all aluminum so it is lighter than the iron Gen I block.About 150 pounds , I think. Most guys say the front end sits up higher after the swap. I did not end up using the IROC springs in the pictures , I went with the Eibach Pro Kit and the Spohn strut towers so my front end is lower than stock. I think the IROC springs would be perfect to keep the front end at stock height and cheap to buy.

My car is a little extreme in terms of budget and if you don't want to go wild on money , not a good example. However , there is another member on here, LS13RDGEN, that did this swap and kept costs reasonable. I know him personally and his car runs and drives unlike mine which I need to finish. He would be just the man to talk to on the economy side of a project like yours.

Both of us would be more than happy to help you on your project.

[LWillmann]

FWIW, many of the late 4th gen F-bodies were putting down 330 RWHP on Dynojet Dynos. That equates to roughly 402 Flywheel HP, given an 18% loss though a manual trans an rear end. Assuming I'm correct with that math... Then Lingenfelter is going to give you like 73 HP for $2500?

I would seriously consider looking elsewhere as I'm sure there are other places where you could spend that amount of money and make more power over stock.

[CamaroRSS]

I knew there was power loss when transferring the power from the engine through the transmission and through the rear end but is it consistantly 18%?

What factors change that rate? Weight? Entire drivetrain length? Heat?

-AJ

[Uncle Paul]

I did my swap years ago and I have lost count on the money I have spent.
But nowadays, the parts to do the swap are getting very affordable.
Just to list a few of the major components:

1. engine k-member
2. tranny k-member
3. custom made wire harness (see Speartech)
4. fuel pump
5. pressure regulator
6. exhaust manifolds and system.


That list there is enough to get the engine and transmission installed and running.
Then there is the little things:
1. Air intake
2. Suspension
3. Tuning the computer.
4. Other little nickle and dime stuff.

If you go from manual to manual (like I did) you will have to elongate the shifter hole in the tunnel about 1-2 inches. The transmission sits further back than the stock 5 speed.
If I were you, I would just do a stock engine for now. Get it completely installed and running. Drive it around for a good while. Then after some time, look into upgrading the engine for more power.

Not to sound mean or anything but with a project like this, there is no real way to sit down and say, "Ok here is a specific list of every single little part I am going to need to buy."
There are ALWAYS going to be little things that come up with a project like this.

Good luck with the project. :)

[LWillmann]

I knew there was power loss when transferring the power from the engine through the transmission and through the rear end but is it consistantly 18%?

What factors change that rate? Weight? Entire drivetrain length? Heat?

-AJ

No, it's not a consistent percentage, but as a general rule for manual transmission cars 18% seems to be the generally accepted standard for drivetrain loss.

And most people consider that automatics lose more due to slippage in the converter and such.

Weight of the vehicle will have nothing to do with it, since you're talking mechanical components that connect the engine to the wheels themselves. You're looking at things like clutch (or converter), transmission, driveshaft, rear end, etc. So stuff like rotational mass and stuff like that will have an effect.

There is a base percentage that never changes, then there is a variable percentages that changes based on the power you're making I think, but most people just rough it with the 18% for manuals and I think 20% for automatics and figure they're safe and are usually on the low side (with the car acually making MORE power than they are thinking it is).

So with this post, I'm through discussing HP in juju's restomod thread, as we really shouldn't be off-topic here. If you'd like to continue this discussion, we can start a new thread elsewhere (I'll move our posts out and we'll continue where we left off).

I just wanted to let you know that for your money, there are better ways to get 75 crank HP. Shoot a $750 nitrous kit on a stock engine would give you 100 HP at the wheels, and you'd still have money for a cam and heads.

[MrDavid]

I just wanted to let you know that for your money, there are better ways to get 75 crank HP. Shoot a $750 nitrous kit on a stock engine would give you 100 HP at the wheels, and you'd still have money for a cam and heads.

And several of us on this board will attest to what a well setup nitrous kit is capable of. Pull some timing, add enough fuel and you should never have any problems. :)

[89RABIDFOX]

I Will Agree With Mr David On That One. I Have Had Nitrous On Every Car I Have Had In The Last 4 Years. It Is The Best Bang For Your Buck. Exspecially If Your On A Low Budget.

[Magnum97]

what ever happened to this car?

[LWillmann]

It waits for the owner to get time to work on it mainly. He works a LOT, and just doesn't have much time to work on it these days.

[CamaroRSS]

Not to be a pest but.... any updates? It's been quite a while since your last update dude.

Not that I have all that many myself. I did clean my garage this past weekend though. (Not that that's saying much.) Just curious how things are going with your project bro.

Later.

[Biff85ta]

Hey just digging up some dead posts but you know since I last read this one we have changed decades and there are no updates.