88vert

iTrader: (5)

Was looking at doing a set of heads in my 98 ta.
Seeing how most of you guys do it. In car or out of car. Do you pull the motor or leave it in?
I was going to leave motor in. I know it's easier when the motor is out of car, but I don't want to pull the motor if I don't have to.
To do them in the car.
Any hints and tips?

I was Looking to do a set of ls6 heads , arp bolts,ls7 lifters since I'm in there. And a set of head gaskets. I already have a 228 cam. So I'm good there.

Thanks for any info

Burken01

iTrader: (88)

Yes 90% of head/cam builds are done with the motor in car... Unless your getting the shortblock rebuilt or upgraded...

sick_tight

how bad is the head install with the motor in the car?

Burken01

iTrader: (88)

Not bad at all... Once the intake is off and the front intake setup is off there's actually quite a bit of room to maneuver around...

Take you time and buy a big box of ziplock bags and a sharpie and label everything, ls1howto.com breaks it down and simplifies it...

Just don't use your old crank bolt to install your balancer like it says... Get the install tool in the classified section or make your own (M16 x 2.0 threaded rod 6.5" long with a couple washers and a nut...

LS1T56FTW

iTrader: (3)

Enjoy the ground wires on the back of the heads!

Other than that it should be fairly straight forward. I dropped the K-member on mine when I went H/C, but I also did rod bolts, etc.

sick_tight

see i was reading about that but then again i also have been reading about how you need to but new rods because they get warped because of the stretching of the bolts.

and then you have the whole "while youre in there" and holy **** that adds up fast haha.

is there room to loosen the head bolts and turn them so you can get more room in there?

therabidweasel

iTrader: (5)

Screw the ground wires. The gd spark plugs suck ***. Lol. Really the intake and air system suck the most. You get used to it. The 10 oclock bellhousing bolt is the very worst on the car. If you have swivel sockets and a 3ft extension its a 5 minute job. The fbody isnt that bad once youre used to it...but its 1.5 bitches the first time. Thats just the way it is. Its definitely the car the stubby gearwrench was made for Lol. Dont worry, just get in there.

Troy5061

iTrader: (19)

Pretty easy to do it in the car, obviously there are a few things that suck.

ground wires on back of head
trans dipstick bolt if you have an auto
fuel lines can be a pain if you dont have the correct tool
p/s pump sucks sometimes
torquing the stock stretch bolts in the car

not to bad though, Ive done it a few times and it gets easier everytime.

LS1T56FTW

iTrader: (3)

If you go with Katech rod bolts they are a "direct drop in." The ARP's require the machining work. I have been running my Katech's up to 7000RPM for ~5000 miles now with no issues. People that spin bearings due to bad rod bolts blow their motor at like 200 miles.

sick_tight

adding rod bolts to my list-o-parts i guess!

and ive already ripped out and capped my AIR system so thats one less thing to worry about.

Zlow28

iTrader: (11)

make sure you dont strip the head bolts. Then youll be in a world of crap.

If you have small hands, you should be able to reach all the rear bolts with less of a struggle.

LS1T56FTW

iTrader: (3)

Sounds good. If you have any questions during your build just PM me. Let me know when you will be doing it and I will try and check up here and there to see if you have any questions.

JustAFooL

iTrader: (45)

It's not really bad at all. I have never done anything like this before and I just finished my head swap. Couple things that plagued me, make sure to take the OPSU off the back of the intake. I broke mine and it was 60$ that was pointless because I didn't take my time. Also, the PS pump can be a pain in the ***. Just take your time, label everything thoroughly and you won't have any problems.

I actually enjoyed it and I bought a 5.3 block a few weeks ago. Thinking bout trying a turbo build.

sick_tight

thanks, i probably wont be starting until late june or july because im changing duty stations in june and waiting to close on a house in fort worth. (finally ill have my own garage) so ill be able to have the camaro torn apart as long as i need so i can take my time and not worrying about leaving the car over night at the hobby shop on base or in the driveway.

and thanks everyone, this is what this forum is for. before starting on forums like these i never installed a CAI and now im going to be building the 9" rear i bought and heads and cam swap. Im definitely mechanically inclined and these forums will put me in the right direction i need to go.

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

In the car. No reason to pull the engine.