68 Camaro RS LS1 Swap - In progress
05-28-2013, 09:39 PM
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68 Camaro RS LS1 Swap - In progress Hey LS1Tech,
I'm mid-project and have found so much good info on these forums I figured I should contribute.
Here's some stuff about my project:
Vehicle: 68 Camaro RS Convertible, originally 327 4 speed
Donor Vehicle: 2004 GTO LS1 6 speed, ~30k miles
Previous mods: steeroids power rack & pinion, SSBC front power disc conversion, magnaflow full stainless exhaust, 3.73 gears w/Eaton posi
LS1 conversion details:
Big stuff : S&P oil pan, crossmember and PCM tune, Dynatech Long-Tube headers - modification required to fit steering column. Energy suspension engine mounts (required mods for headers too). Custom driveshaft made locally (ordered today)
Fuel system: 3/8 stainless hardline & 8AN braided at the ends. Vetteworks mounting plate for new camaro fuel pump, stock sender
Wiring harness: factory harness is currently at 150Tunes.com getting reworked to a 3 wire hookup with ODBII plug and check engine light
Gauges: I plan to run full factory gauges with separate senders (not done yet)
Accessory Drive: I was able to get away with stock accessory locations by cutting a big hole in my crossmember. See pics below, it ain't pretty but it's strong and hidden
Power Steering:I put a bulkhead fitting on the factory bottle and made braided hoses with powerflex hoses and fittings from jegs
Remaining stuff:
Cooling system
Clutch (detroit speed & engineering parts on the way)
Intake
Accelerator
AC (not happening this year)
So far the biggest lesson I've learned is to buy a motor mount/header/crossmember combo that works together, and that it probably wasn't worth all the trouble to modify my dented up POS gas tank just to save 300 to 400 bucks.
I'll post more pix when I make more progress.
BTW I know my welds look like crap, I sit at a computer all day so I don't get much practice!
I'm mid-project and have found so much good info on these forums I figured I should contribute.
Here's some stuff about my project:
Vehicle: 68 Camaro RS Convertible, originally 327 4 speed
Donor Vehicle: 2004 GTO LS1 6 speed, ~30k miles
Previous mods: steeroids power rack & pinion, SSBC front power disc conversion, magnaflow full stainless exhaust, 3.73 gears w/Eaton posi
LS1 conversion details:
Big stuff : S&P oil pan, crossmember and PCM tune, Dynatech Long-Tube headers - modification required to fit steering column. Energy suspension engine mounts (required mods for headers too). Custom driveshaft made locally (ordered today)
Fuel system: 3/8 stainless hardline & 8AN braided at the ends. Vetteworks mounting plate for new camaro fuel pump, stock sender
Wiring harness: factory harness is currently at 150Tunes.com getting reworked to a 3 wire hookup with ODBII plug and check engine light
Gauges: I plan to run full factory gauges with separate senders (not done yet)
Accessory Drive: I was able to get away with stock accessory locations by cutting a big hole in my crossmember. See pics below, it ain't pretty but it's strong and hidden
Power Steering:I put a bulkhead fitting on the factory bottle and made braided hoses with powerflex hoses and fittings from jegs
Remaining stuff:
Cooling system
Clutch (detroit speed & engineering parts on the way)
Intake
Accelerator
AC (not happening this year)
So far the biggest lesson I've learned is to buy a motor mount/header/crossmember combo that works together, and that it probably wasn't worth all the trouble to modify my dented up POS gas tank just to save 300 to 400 bucks.
I'll post more pix when I make more progress.
BTW I know my welds look like crap, I sit at a computer all day so I don't get much practice!
05-29-2013, 08:51 AM
#2
Best of fortune with your swap.
You're right...getting the header/mounts/plates combo right, is important.
And, I've realized that what worked for car "A", may not work for car "B".
A case in point would be Hooker motor mount swap plates. In my case, they worked perfectly. However, when applied to someone else's 68 Camaro, there were clearance issues to the firewall. All dimensions being equal (67-69 Camaros), his front frame must be mounted slightly rearward, compared to other cars. Given that this problem has cropped up on more than one occasion, it was not an isolated incident!
Ah, the inexact science of the swap.
I'm looking forward to seeing your progress!
You're right...getting the header/mounts/plates combo right, is important.
And, I've realized that what worked for car "A", may not work for car "B".
A case in point would be Hooker motor mount swap plates. In my case, they worked perfectly. However, when applied to someone else's 68 Camaro, there were clearance issues to the firewall. All dimensions being equal (67-69 Camaros), his front frame must be mounted slightly rearward, compared to other cars. Given that this problem has cropped up on more than one occasion, it was not an isolated incident!
Ah, the inexact science of the swap.
I'm looking forward to seeing your progress!
08-11-2013, 09:26 PM
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Well it's running and driving! I got some odds and ends to work out (finish burying PCM and wires under dash, some misc wiring, speedo)
I got a couple of thorns in my side right now:
Cooling System:
I went with the original small block radiator just to see if it would work. So far at speed under light load it works fine. Just sitting idle though, the fan is not coming on till my temp gauge is BURIED hot. Using an infra-red laser thing I saw the heads get to about 240 before the fan kicked in. I talked to S&P and they recommend reprogramming the PCM to kick the fan on at 195 and off at 190. Apparently now it's around 226 on and 221 off. I suspect I will end up with a big block aluminum radiator soon.
Gas Gauge
I've driven this car for 8 years with a shitty gauge where 1/4 tank meant full and empty as hell meant 'better get some gas'. I got a brand new gauge and new sender, both repro. Tested for ground from the tank and continuity to the sender. The SOB is still handing around 1/3 of a tank and didn't budge with another 7 gallons dumped in the other night.
Looks like i'll be dropping the tank, pulling the gauge and sender out, and debugging them on the bench.
Attached are more pictures...
I got a couple of thorns in my side right now:
Cooling System:
I went with the original small block radiator just to see if it would work. So far at speed under light load it works fine. Just sitting idle though, the fan is not coming on till my temp gauge is BURIED hot. Using an infra-red laser thing I saw the heads get to about 240 before the fan kicked in. I talked to S&P and they recommend reprogramming the PCM to kick the fan on at 195 and off at 190. Apparently now it's around 226 on and 221 off. I suspect I will end up with a big block aluminum radiator soon.
Gas Gauge
I've driven this car for 8 years with a shitty gauge where 1/4 tank meant full and empty as hell meant 'better get some gas'. I got a brand new gauge and new sender, both repro. Tested for ground from the tank and continuity to the sender. The SOB is still handing around 1/3 of a tank and didn't budge with another 7 gallons dumped in the other night.
Looks like i'll be dropping the tank, pulling the gauge and sender out, and debugging them on the bench.
Attached are more pictures...
08-12-2013, 07:34 PM
#4
Congrats dude. looks Very clean. How many people have you surprised so far? What are your impressions on the new found power and drivability?
Jim
Jim
08-12-2013, 11:10 PM
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I haven't torn up the streets much with it yet with no insurance or registration yet. The initial impression from neighbourhood test drives is that the 6-speed T-56 is amazing, 4th gear on the T-56 feels higher than my 4th (highest gear) on the Super-T10 I had before. Given that I have a completely new hydraulic clutch and a new Lokar Eliminator accelerator, the car is hard as hell to drive smooth so I have to get used to it. I just dropped the clutch pedal about 2.5" so the friction point will be closer to my daily driver ('10 WRX). Power is great, the sound from the magnaflow & airaid combined is bad ***. My 9 year old son can't get enough.
Stay tuned... I need to send off the PCM for retuning of the fan on/off temps and get my legal **** straight. I plan to do some 0-60 & 1/4 mile runs with either my G-tech accelerometor or an IPhone app to measure true stats.
Stay tuned... I need to send off the PCM for retuning of the fan on/off temps and get my legal **** straight. I plan to do some 0-60 & 1/4 mile runs with either my G-tech accelerometor or an IPhone app to measure true stats.
