SleepyNova

well, not like i have enough projects waiting, i was basically given two novas, (a 76 with a cracked unibody, and a 78 thats very very solid). they belonged to my friend's dad, and age started catching up with him, and just wanted them to go to someone that would work on and drive one of them. the 76 has a 305 and a th350, the 78 has an I6 thatll make a fine boat anchor. i believe ive narrowed down driveline choices, and ill begin my long quest for a 2003 5.3 or 6.0, with a matched 4l80. im going to try to find a van with engine/trans/harness/pcm/driveshaft etc. wish me luck on that one. im curious how the guys that started doing swaps (even back to big block days) would figure out which mounts, crossmembers, headers, oil pans, etc. im excited to start, i need a new project to get me back in the groove.

anyway, ill be lurking and posting, think nothin of it!

76larkman

I have a L33 5.3/4L65E in my 76 skylark. Dont use musclecar pan it hangs to low, I have it but may change it. I have my motor foward as far as can go & can barely get fingers between floor & tranny tail. Cut driveshaft 3 inches. Had to space motor up to clear tie rod ends.

Envy

Just some general advice as I havent done your particular swap.

1. Read every swap that comes remotely close to your's, any GM vehicle like it so you know the pitfalls of that particular model and specifically what are the solutions people use to fix the problems, i.e. oil pan to crossmember clearance, car or truck accesories, do you want AC, does the frame need to be modified or do you need a relocation bracket, fuel tank/pump setup, etc.

2. Give yourself a realistic goal, then prioritize around that. Are you trying to get the thing on the road next week or are you patiently building your dream car over a period of time? Budget build or is this going to be a no expense spared build?

3. Can you weld/fabricate, have any friends that can, or are you going to a shop? How close are you to a junkyard, is everything going to be ordered? Do you know how to re-wire a factory harness or are you buying a standalone?

Questions aside, you might have a hard time finding a 5.3 attached to a 80e as most of them came with a 60/65e behind them. 6.0 is a different story, some got 65e some got 80e. If you stumble upon a full pull out, engine/trans/pcm/harness, you can either modify the wiring or send your harness out to a vendor in order to put an 80e behind it. IMO the 60/65e is plenty strong from the factory behind a factory LS, but if your goal is peak HP, I would likely look for something a little stronger. Also the 80e has a lower 1st gear than the 60e, so you might want to take this into account, depending on your rear end gearing, it might help or hurt.

1bigoldman

All your questions about this swap are answered here.

http://www.stevesnovasite.com/forums...d.php?t=181182