possible 3800 to lt1/ls1 swap...

[esoteric18]

I think if I had the money...I would do find a good ls1 and do the swap hands down...but it appears as though with my budget, I will probably have to sell my car and buy an lt1 camaro in order to get a v8. My dilemma is that I have a very very dependable car and I've went through it and fixed many basic things and done preventative maintenance and a good tune up...so it is in nearly perfect running condition. It has a good 3800 with less than 100k on it..Its paint and body are in very very good condition and it is a great first car for me..And being an 18 year old with a 560 dollar social security check each month, I need to save all the money I can get...I don't even know why I want a v8 so bad, it's just like a drug. The sound, the feel, the pride, the speed!!!
so realistically, in your opinions, what SHOULD I do??? would I be able to afford the gas? the insurance? should I save up for agonizing years and finish this car how I want to? sell this one and buy a v8? just keep this until I can afford to buy a new camaro? I just need words of wisdom from some car gurus...

I know the feeling, I am 19 and want to do the same thing . With that much money your gonna have to wait and from what it sounds like your finding excuses to keep your car. So get it in your mind that you will have to wait for it all to happen and imo i think a f body with the swap is way cooler than buying one and im sure those who have done it can agree that when people find out how it started life their reaction makes you proud. Wait for the money than a donor car than the drug we like to call speed lol. Like i stated this is all my opinion and im kinda biased cause i love my car more than anything and I want a v8 more than anything.

[meissen]

from what you just stated it does not seem fit to do it. you are going to run into more costs than expected...sacrifice your reliability. And a v8 is a drug...that keeps you spending....first its a CAI then on and on and on

you will always be wanting to spend money you dont have.

imo i would wait it out, the temptations are too great

Highlighted in red is false - everything else I agree with. The only reliability issue that I've been dealing with since the Meet & Greet is that my car doesn't like to start sometimes due to a bad battery. Yeah I had some issues leading up to the M&G because I pushed to get my car on the road before it should have been but since then it's been smooth sailing.

[Derek]

Highlighted in red is false - everything else I agree with. The only reliability issue that I've been dealing with since the Meet & Greet is that my car doesn't like to start sometimes due to a bad battery. Yeah I had some issues leading up to the M&G because I pushed to get my car on the road before it should have been but since then it's been smooth sailing.

Meh, that could be argued forever, I have to say I disagree with you, but there are points on both sides.

[meissen]

No way man - there's no way that swapping engines is really a reduction in reliability. If you mod the engine, yes, but if you're taking a perfectly working stock engine and stock transmission out of one car and install it in another car your only failures in reliability would be if something was installed wrong. Otherwise it's no different than the process that's done when the car was first built and the engine was installed. Especially if we're talking about dropping the kframe assembly (engine and transmission and all) out of the one car and then immediately installing it in the 2nd car.

My swap had a rocky start but let's look at the issues I've had. The biggest issue was the spun bearings only 80 miles after the swap. I let the stock tune run with 30# injectors for 15 minutes and didn't change the oil which led to complete lubrication failure and two spun bearings. That's not a reliability issue caused from the swap but rather a reliability issue caused from modding the engine and being stupid. My second issue that happened was when the power steering line fell off the pump - I guess that could be debated either way... but the swap wasn't the cause of that, it was a mistake made while installing the power steering pump. My third issue was that the power steering pump completely froze up a week after the line fell out - again not swap related, that's a result of the line falling out. Last but not least is my starting issues. We replaced the starter but still had issues with it starting and to this day we're not 100% sure on the cause but it seems to be the result of a bad battery not the starter. Obviously not related to the swap either.

[esoteric18]

No way man - there's no way that swapping engines is really a reduction in reliability. If you mod the engine, yes, but if you're taking a perfectly working stock engine and stock transmission out of one car and install it in another car your only failures in reliability would be if something was installed wrong. Otherwise it's no different than the process that's done when the car was first built and the engine was installed. Especially if we're talking about dropping the kframe assembly (engine and transmission and all) out of the one car and then immediately installing it in the 2nd car.

My swap had a rocky start but let's look at the issues I've had. The biggest issue was the spun bearings only 80 miles after the swap. I let the stock tune run with 30# injectors for 15 minutes and didn't change the oil which led to complete lubrication failure and two spun bearings. That's not a reliability issue caused from the swap but rather a reliability issue caused from modding the engine and being stupid. My second issue that happened was when the power steering line fell off the pump - I guess that could be debated either way... but the swap wasn't the cause of that, it was a mistake made while installing the power steering pump. My third issue was that the power steering pump completely froze up a week after the line fell out - again not swap related, that's a result of the line falling out. Last but not least is my starting issues. We replaced the starter but still had issues with it starting and to this day we're not 100% sure on the cause but it seems to be the result of a bad battery not the starter. Obviously not related to the swap either.

Served sucka lol

[1BADAIR]

why would a v6 to v8 swap be unreliable? its a bolt in. just like factory. that is unless you are a hack and dont do the wiring, fuel lines and everything properly

[Derek]

why would a v6 to v8 swap be unreliable? its a bolt in. just like factory. that is unless you are a hack and dont do the wiring, fuel lines and everything properly

thats what I was inferring, doesnt seem like many people swap EVERYTHING over, so something is bound to be hacked up. If they do swap everything correctly it would be pointless anyway, the costs would go through the roof, not to mention the pain of rewiring everything as its supposed to be. Thats why i said it could be argued either way, of course it would be reliable if you swapped EVERYTHING and put a bone stock crate motor in there, but it didnt seem like that was the intention of the thread creator..

[Doug96CamaroRS]

thanks for all of the advice...I guess I just needed to know if you all thought that I had the necessary funds... but I have opened my eyes and realized that I must wait. So I'll have my good old 3800 for a good while and keep this car for as long as I can, then do something to get a v8 later!