sako

Hey guys,

Its been a while since i updated anything in this thread. First things first, just want to say that my wife has been doing great for the last 3 months now because she is on the meds that she needs and also had to change her diet. We learned that the most important thing with MS is what you eat and do not eat.
I just want to thank God for keeping us strong to deal with this and for all the blessings.
Anyways, about the car, I still have it and have been working on when I have time. Thats my only choice right now because I have not gotten any reasonable offers on it. Aslo, a lot of people do not want to pay that much money for a car thats not running. I really do not know what the car is worth but i have close to 27K into it. I would not sell this car less than 30K. So stop with your low ball offers...lol. I might sell it if I have to but right now I cant give the car away.
I sold the 4.8 which i thought was a 5.3. Its all good because i made about $800 on top of what I paid for it. I just pulled out a 02 Camaro ss LS1/4l60e with only 50K miles on it. I have a t56 for it and need to sell the auto tranny. If you need one please hit me up. I have the 4l60e along with some other parts in the classifieds if you want to check it out.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/parts-cla...ine-parts.html
I will have updates and pictures soon.

sako

Here is the pic of the engine.

Hopefully I have time this weekend to put on my new Holley oil pan on.

sako

Hey guys, check these out.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/88116636...ref=v1_other_1
http://www.etsy.com/listing/88114072...ref=v1_other_1

For those of you who do not know me, my name is Sarkis (SAKO). Im an artist by profession and a car guy. My love and passion for cars, especially American Vintage Muscle Cars has inspired me to create these crazy stylized wooden art toys. When I’m not in the garage wrenching on my 69 Camaro, I am in the studio creating these limited number of toys to share with kids and adults alike.
All of the funds from this will be going towards my wives hospital bills and the medication that she need for her MS (Multiple Sclerosis). She was diagnosed in early this year and its been a very stressful and hard year for us. I have been busting my a$$ off trying to do everything in my power to provide for my family. I also tryed to sell my Camaro with no luck.
So, if you like these toys and you want to buy one for your kids or for your self, please email me at vintagemuskle@yahoo.com or pm me. Other makes and models will be available soon. So far I have the 69 Camaro and a 32 Ford.
Check out my Etsy store and leave me some feedback even if you do not buy. Thank you, God bless you all and have a Happy Holidays.

sako

I finally got some of the parts that i needed to drop this engine in the car.The first time i dropped the engine in was just the engine and no tranny. It went in with some pushing and pulling but i noticed that the Holley oil pan was sitting on the cross member. I did not want to raise the engine with spacers because i wanted to make sure the tranny was going to clear the tunnel. So I ended up notching the cross member with the help of my brother. But I also noticed that the engine was not sitting straight. The firewall is not parallel with the back of the block. Just to clear things up, Im using the tall narrow stands with the new energy mounts. I really do not understand what the heck is going on. The stands are in the same location when i replaced them. The funny thing is that when i took out my SBC the engine was in there straight but it also had the short wide stands with stock engine mount on the passenger side and a solid mount on the drivers side. Here are some pics so you can see what im talking about.
The old SBC before i pulled it out.

Some pics of the cross member being notched.
You can also clearly see my new tall stands in the original location.



And the pics of the engine and tranny in the car

tango68ss

Sako,

Remember, the LSx motors do not have a "squared-off" set-up like the SBC. The drivers side head sits alittle forward of the pax side, giving you the illusion of being crooked.



TC

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

The solid engine mount on the drivers side should not be a cause for alarm as alot of people that raced these cars used a chain, solid mounts, or some sort of device to prevent the rubber mount from breaking and hanging the throttle wide open. You have the shorter stands that were deemed high performance as I have the taller lower performance ones. If the new stands are in the identical location that they came out from the factory then there shouldnt be any issues there. You have the same adapters as I have so that shouldnt affect anything. Is the tranny hitting anything causing it to pull to one side? I see you are in the neutral position at the mounts. I am stumped!!! I would double check everything, adapters (symmetrical), mounts are the same, plates under mounts in the same position and not flipped upside down, measure from the stands to the firewall and from the stands to the front of the subframe. If you figure it out please let us know whats what. If I can help you in any way feel free to ask.

sako

tango,
Thanks for the pics. I have read that its supposed to be off a bit but mine seems to be off a lot. The thing is that when you look at it from inside, the shifter is way off to the left towards the driver. I will have to do some measuring to figure out whats going on. By the time I was done setting the engine in for the last test fit with the tranny it was starting to get dark so i had to stop. Plus I was about to brake something because i was so pissed...lol.

Tsnow,
The engine stands that are on there now are brand new and they are the tall and narrow ones. I replaced the short wide ones that were on the car. But you might be right, I might need new stands, these seem to be off. I will let you guys know when i get some measurements of everything.
Thanks again. You guys are the best.

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

If the subframe is square to the body I say get some different engine stands or slot the right hand side stand and move the stand forward to swivel the engine counter clockwise to square it up to the tunnel and firewall. Are your engine stands factory Chevrolet or are they el'chinese'o reproduction? Sometimes it matters!!! Trust me, with all of the Taiwanese pieces on my car its amazing it has as good of body lines as it does. I say source out some OEM engine stands and just for ***** and giggles go back over the adapters and mounts just to make sure something isnt off a little here or there.

game-over

another one i can keep up with ... i love the info guys

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

Whats the verdict? Any updates?

sako

sorry for the lag guys. I did not get a chance to take some measurements before I took off to China for a business trip. Im sitting at the Hong Kong airport waiting for my flight home. Can wait to get back and get busy on the car. I will take some measurements first after i pull the engine out. I think the first thing i will do is order some new stands from OER.

bmf5150

I look forward to more updates!

sako

ok, more bad news. I did some measuring and it looks like the body and the frame seem to be square. Thats not the bad news. After I flipped the plates and mounted the engine mounts upside down, drive train is still off. The engine went in easier this time with the plates flipped and looks so much better than before. But looking at it from the bottom, the end of the transmission is still off towards the driver side. The problem is that the drive shaft is not going to line up straight with the rear end. Does anyone know if they line up perfectly or if its ok to be off a little bit. It seems to be off about and inch or so. If anyone have clear pictures of a straight shot of the tranny sitting in the tunnel please post it up or send it to me. Thanks.
The good news is i got the ATS cross member in there and it fits like a glove
My next move is to order some new engine stands from OER and see if that will
fix the problem. I dont think it will and i feel like im going to loss about $80.
If that does not work, the next move will be to unbolt the engine stands with the engine mounts attached to the motor and tranny, line everything up, bolt on the tranny cross member, then weld on the engine stand to the cross member. The last option was suggested by my brother who thinks everything can be fixed with a welder....lol. He built a bad *** CJ7 from the ground up with a Chevy 350 so i think he knows it will work.
I dont feel like rushing into things but Im at the point where i just want to get this thing done.
Anyways, if you guys have anymore suggestions, Im all ears.
I know how much you guys love pics so here you go.
A shot from the front

Shot of the firewall clearance


Engine plates flipped and motor mounts mounted upside down

oil pan clearance

Tranny shot from the bottom of the car. The circled part is touching the side of the tunnel and there is about 2.5 in of space on the passenger side.

Shot from the inside. The pink line is where the shifter is sitting and the blue line is where i think the shifter should be. Please send me pics of your shifter location if you have any.

sako

Here are some more progress pictures so i can feel like Im getting somewhere.
Here I am welding up all the holes in the firewall.


Shot of the firewall before the bondo work. I still have a **** load of work to do as soon as I get this engine lined up right.

Here are some shots of the wheels and how the car sits so far.

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

Bad news on top of bad news, sorry, but the clutch master adapter is not going to work. Trust me I know. It appears to be the same one I bought off of Ebay. I ended up having to heat it up and rebend it. I will dig through some pics and see if I have any of the tunnel with the trans in place. It appears that your shifter location would be about where mine is now. Hold tight on ordering the stands. You might be ok where it is located now. Glad to see you back at it. That is one slick Camaro you have!!! Love that color!!!

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

I looked back over my pics and I do not have a defined pic of the tunnel at this time. I will try to get you one by the weekend. I have an idea, What if you slightly opened the holes in the mounts to allow for a little fudging? You could also open the holes a little where the engine stands mount to the frame. just a thought!!! No more than you are off a little here and there would make a big difference. Two inches over the entire length of the engine/trans is not alot.

sako

Thanks tsnow. I hear you on the bracket. I do remember looking at all the work you did to that thing to get it straight. I dont have the tools and hardwear to bend that thick *** metal. I was thinking about getting the ATS bracket. When i mocked it up, it did not seem that bad. I wanted to make the clutch master adjustable so i can get it just right. What if i also build a bracket welded to the pedal to get the right alignment?
I told my brother about slotting the stands so they can move a bit to line up the drive train but he thinks it will shift around and might come loose.
Too late on ordering the OER stands....lol
I place an order couple of hours after i posted on my thread. I also ordered the Lokar throttle cable while I was at it.
I would really like to see some pictures of other peoples shifter location.
Looking at the location of the 4 speed, im thinking maybe its supposed to be of a little bit to the side.
Dont know man...lol. Kind of getting pissed. I have no patience.

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

Detroit Speed has the clutch master bracket for around $25.
Your probably in the most trying times of the swap! I can't tell you the times I just had to walk away from my car. I actually have several things that need to be done now and I just cant stand to go down there to work on it. I am working on everything else at the moment. Thats sad huh???!!!
Here is a shot of the shifter in its final location. It is in fact a little to the left.

[IMG][/IMG]

sako

Tsnow thanks for the pic. By the way, did you get that new engine yet?
From your picture it does look bit off center but not as much as mine.
Here are some pics of a 69 camaro I found on DSE site. The shifter looks kind of off to the driver side.

tsnow678

iTrader: (3)

No engine yet. I haven't pushed the issue yet as I have a ton of stuff to do before the 408 will be holding me up. And yes mine is off to the left a little. Yours being a little off from mine is not too terribly bad but I understand you want it straight. I would!!! Your so close that why I suggested you open the holes a little here and there but not enough to weaken any metal. I also understand about doing it right the first time. Are you planning on keeping the car or are you still going to sell it?