V6 to LT1 Swap ?'s

[wezeles]

eaither way if you have the trans,engine and all the wirring and computer for the roadmaster... use it this will be the cheepest way... if you go manual you will be paying atleast 2 grand to do it.... you can buy a b&m shifter and just put it under the shift boot you have now... it looks nice when its done... but it everything still works out of the roadmaster all your looking it is motor mounts, maybe springs and a drive shaft... and alot of work... if your thinking money wise your going to have to go auto..

[1fstss]

motor mounts should be the same, lt1 into a 3.4 is a cake walk compared to 3.8 to LT1. i think the 5 speed tranny would bolt up but itll last one time of you tromping on it (being in highschool i know you will ) youll also need the LT1 car front springs, leave the v6 ones in back (weight transfer) but plan on spending 1000 to do the swap... or for 1000 put some headers, cai, a nice exhaust and a lil spray on your 3.4 and your already faster than a stock LT1, expecialy a roadmaster LT1 those things have very restrictive cast heads, where as the camaro/firebirds have aluminum.

[93formulalt1]

Do you honestly think a 3.4 V6 with 260,000 miles will handle spray, headers and a new exhaust? My dad said that I couldn't even change the heads and intake manifold without changing the compression ratio and adding more stress to an already overworked engine. And to 92camarors, how much will you give me? If you're interested, and I decide not to go ahead with this project, you can have the whole car. It may be totaled, but it still runs and drives good, and it has some flowmasters on it. Maybe they could be salvaged, but I don't know. You all need to keep in mind that I only paid $1100 for the camaro, and it is a high mileage car, so I couldn't sell it for much more than that.

[93formulalt1]

Maybe somebody would trade me for a z28 or ss. I like the 4th gens now, I used to be a 3rd gen guy. Almost bought a 1990 RS convertible with 305, but changed my mind. I just want a nice car, and I'm tired of my parents nagging me about not driving long distances in the camaro. Dad says that a car with that many miles will not last much longer, but I don't agree. The engine is still very strong. It is reliable too. The only problem I have had with it is a dead battery, but I accidentally left the domelight on and forget about it (damn a.d.d.!).

[DETROITMUSCLE]

Well to be honest everyone hear has pretty much the same idea for a reason. I realize your on a budget and trust me most of us are but in reality you would be a lot better off buying a fourth or third gen with a V8 like everybody said. If you cannot afford it and you know that then maybe try to sell both engines and figure you get a grand out of your car, save some more cash and you'll be there, maybe not overnight but sooner than later. It sucks but in reality you have to pay to play and the more money you have the fatser you car is, patience is a virtue. Give it time and work your ass of and you'll have a nice and fast f body. Just my $0.02

[93formulalt1]

I don't think I'll sell both engines, the 355 is a father/son project. It used to be in our 1957 BelAir, then we put it in a 92 S10, now it's on an engine stand with a sucked valve. I'm gonna rebuild it to gain experience. I'm still trying to find a job, it should be easy to save money after that. I guess my car is just hopeless right now. How much should I ask for the roadmaster? Lots of body damage, but the engine and tranny are in pristine condition. Only one very small oil leak, if I recall properly. Other than that, it's all good.

[wasjo6431]

if ur goitn to race it v6 springs in the rear hals for shocks. v6 struts up front give the perfect squat for a launch its an old trick.

ive dumped about 23000 into my swap but mines more radical then an lt1 swap.

plus i let a shop build the first motor. bad choice.

which set me backa nother 8000 to rebuild it. but i got some new upgrades in it and for the trans.


personally the lt1 will work yes.
two u can bypass the trans module.
three you can use a th350 or 400 trans and it will work just fine plus its way cheaper.
and no the 5 speed will not bolt the the lt1 if i remember properly because the manuals bell housings are different but the blocks have the same connections. the 5 speed wont hold up to the LT1 for long.

Just go with an automatic. plus ur going to need a new guage cluster from an lt1 car also.

it can be expensive unles syou know what you need and u slowly buy them.

[JoeliusZ28]

it would be an affordable swap if you used the 700r4. IMO any v8 auto > 5 speed sixer. If I had the time and resources, i sure as hell would do the swap, and worry about the six speed later.

[1fstss]

you dont need to change your compression ratio to change your heads bud, and yes as long as your 2xx,xxx mile motor was well taken care of youll be ok, next oilchange have some of your oil tested and that will tell you if your ok, or if not that look at your plug, see if there is metal shavings, look at the oil for coolant (milky). also do a compression test on it and a leak down test, if thats all good, you could have another few good years left in that short block. these new motors arent like when your dad built cars, 200,000 isnt shit for a motor now. so i will say yes, your motor will handle all of those mods, just keep the nitrous spray small and get all the appropriate accesories, like a window switch, and low fuel pressure cut off switch ect... i had a 94 3.4 firebird i put a 65 shot on it with 180k on the clock, took it like a champ and even if you pop the motor a f body 3.4 can be had for around 300 bucks.

[wezeles]

and there are alot of parts for that motor too after market nothing huge but a full stroker kit i have seen the crank with bearings .30 over pistons and rings go for 350 400 bucks... and that adds a good amount of power... and is half of a rebuild all you would have to do is the top end then... a few other cheep ideas make sure you have a CAI maybe bypass your emissions if you know how... i did it on the 3.1 made a huge differance... a couple of chips on the market for it.. that with a small nitrous shot really is the best idea if you want to keep the car... because even though you have everything in the roadmaster to convert it to an lt1... you have to first bypass the vats system to get it to work do a shitload of wirring meaning tearing out your old wirring and then trying to fit all the new stuff in nicely... you could keep your v6 springs but think about this your engine has that many miles im guess half the parts on the car does too... the rear axel will probably go quick with that many miles use to a manual trans... all of a sudden you add more power at different shift points it will be gear salad...lol a full rebuild and a little hop up of the 3.4 would be easiest and then you can keep your manual trans...

[93formulalt1]

I saw a neat article in my GM High-Tech Performance Magazine about a Buick GN with a 3.8 liter V6 that would run 9.80 in the 1/4 mile. I'm not reaching quite that far, but at least low 14's, high 13's would please me. Is that possible on a budget? I have a 95 Olds Ciera with a 3100 FWD V6, are there any engine parts on that I could use to start my build-up?

[SS4Matt]

Buick GN's are a bit different than any F-Body motor...for one..they are TURBO and built to handle some abuse from the beginning. and the GN's are a lot easier to make go faster because of the crap load of parts on the market for them

[wezeles]

acctually yes it should be close to the same thing the 3.1 and the 3.4 are the same 2.8 block the only 3.4 that was different was the early 90's dohc version but like i was saying with the stroker kit it works for the 2.8 3.1 and 3.4 its all the same block just different bore... but like fuel rails injectors computer its all basically the same thing just with slightly different programs based on what motor you have...how many miles is on the 3.1? really you could almost use the heads on that get them rebuilt... maybe reuse the block i know the internals are the same but i dont know about the bolt pattern on the block for fwd...but if it is that would be a perfect idea... get that motor rebuilt with like the stroker kit rebuild the heads and i think your intake should bolt right onto the heads no problem then really you could have a built motor for say 600 bucks if you do all the work yourself... its still a v-6 but if you bore the 3.1 to a 3.4 then you will still have the extra stoke i think on average gave an extra 50-75hp stock with the stroke... so just drive the car till your ready to swap it and all you would have to do is bolt on your intake... thats if the block is the same ill have to check for ya... but i can find that stoker kit and give you a few sites of where i got my 60-degree parts from if your thinking of doing it...

[wezeles]

and matt they GN's arnt very different from a mid 80's early 90's turbo trans am acctually its basically the same car...lol turbo 3.8 rwd... but hes got a 3.4 so it doesnt matter the 3.8 is a completley different style block... but they do make turbo kits, and supercharger kits for the 2.8 3.1 3.4 block... ive seen some pretty wicked fwd cars running crazy numbers on that little v-6

[SS4Matt]

Yeah... i know the turbo TAs...and GNs are similar...but i was saying his 3.1 isn't exactly a 3.8 GN motor...his was not built originally for the same purposes as the GN...and yeah you can make more power with any motor!...I've seen some whicked 6's as well....abbott racing has some crazy 3.8 stuff...and "comparativly" speaking V6 parts are a hell of a lot cheaper than V8 stuff. but then again it's only 3/4 the size