LQ4/T56 into my 69 Camaro
08-17-2011, 04:15 PM
#901
Vintage Air will be here Monday at the earliest. By the time you add tax and freight the total was closer to $1600. I told the wife she owes me $800 for her half of the air conditioning. Or I could just order the left side air for now until she has enough money for her side. Or I could order the complete kit and block her side off and charge her a nominal fee each time she rides with the A/C on. She almost bought it. You know them blondes!!! Going to the garage right now, pound a few beers, and start unwiring the old harness.
08-17-2011, 08:55 PM
#905
Steve- yeah I bit the bullet and decided to go ahead and do the A/C while my dash was already apart. Not much work has been getting done on the old girl lately.
BMF- I will document everything on the install as I progress, good and bad!
Well I managed to undo the entire wiring harness from the car and all the left over wires such as the tach, OBD2, oil pressure, water temp etc are all labeled and hanging. I will try my best to mount the PCM tomorrow and start rewiring the new on in. It should be alot easier than the last as most wires are incorporated within the existing harness. Looking at the two harnesses side by side its amazing how there could be so few of wires in the new one. Goes to show who knows what they are doing and those who dont. I should have done this from the beginning. I will post up some pics tomorrow when I have time to lay everything out.
BMF- I will document everything on the install as I progress, good and bad!
Well I managed to undo the entire wiring harness from the car and all the left over wires such as the tach, OBD2, oil pressure, water temp etc are all labeled and hanging. I will try my best to mount the PCM tomorrow and start rewiring the new on in. It should be alot easier than the last as most wires are incorporated within the existing harness. Looking at the two harnesses side by side its amazing how there could be so few of wires in the new one. Goes to show who knows what they are doing and those who dont. I should have done this from the beginning. I will post up some pics tomorrow when I have time to lay everything out.
08-18-2011, 04:04 AM
#908
I really need to install my ac too, but I think my converter might get in there first. If we don't hurry up we may not even need the ac by the time we're done.
Futureuser and Bmf- Have you guys noticed a drop of the front suspension after the swap? My car seems to have lowered itself in the front. I would have thought the swap would have been a touch lighter than the old setup but looking back at it all the block and tranny is for sure heavier on the new stuff. I figure with aluminum heads, plastic intake, and no carb surely that would have offset some of the poundage. Guess I am in the market for springs and possibly adjustable coil overs.
08-18-2011, 10:49 AM
#910
Futureuser and Bmf- Have you guys noticed a drop of the front suspension after the swap? My car seems to have lowered itself in the front. I would have thought the swap would have been a touch lighter than the old setup but looking back at it all the block and tranny is for sure heavier on the new stuff. I figure with aluminum heads, plastic intake, and no carb surely that would have offset some of the poundage. Guess I am in the market for springs and possibly adjustable coil overs.
My big drop is because I stripped my subframe and changed all my suspension parts.
08-18-2011, 05:33 PM
#912
I didnt measure the ride height prior to the swap but there is a 3" difference from front to back now. Maybe its an illusion but I did notice the rear shocks are fully extended as I could hear them stretched to their limit. I thought the trunk lid wasnt shut thats how loud it was just driving from one end of my house to the other. I will throw it on the alignment machine and see how much my camber and toe has changed since I just aligned it prior to the swap. If either of these specs are changed I know something happened and it prolly is the drop in the front. The springs I have on the front were brand new 15 years ago and when I installed them it looked like it was going to take off to the moon so I cut one round out of them and it sit purty after that. Damn the luck!!! Headin to the garage for some Camaro lovin be back later.
08-18-2011, 08:40 PM
#913
I managed to get a few things done today. I changed out the spark plugs from the older factory AC Delco's to the new NGK TR55's. I checked and rechecked the gap and it is .060" according to NGK's website. I put on the new plug wires which included modifying the numbers 5 & 7 cylinders to clear the Dynatechs. This time I got the length right on both of them. I layed out the new harness and began plugging it in. The only plugs I havent plugged in are the O2's, VSS, and the reverse lights. Even though this harness fit like a glove it is still a pain in the *** to lay everything out. The connectors tend to grab every bracket, wire, hose etc. etc. Once I got the drivers side done everything fell into place. I cannot say enough at what a difference this harness does to the overall fitment and appearance of the engine. I am not going to take a picture until I get everything plugged in and routed the way it should be. I did take a pic of the old versus new. The amount of wires going from the main harness to the PCM was at least cut into half. I routed the main harness over the inner fender so it is out of sight. You will only see the main harness as it exits out of the rear of the fender and along the firewall. I should have done this prior with the old harness but I didnt give it much thought at the time. Hopefully if all the stars line up I can have this thing running by weekends end. I have a wedding reception on Friday to go to, lake on Saturday, and pick up my sons new/old truck. I bought him a 1972 Chevrolet stepside short bed 4x4. It currently has a 350 4 bolt main, bigger cam, 4 barrel, aluminum intake, headers and dual exhaust. Thats about the best I can say as it will need several days of body work and a ton of tear down. I can see a 5.3 in its future once the Camaro is complete. This truck will be his outlet and one day he will look back at it and realize how important a hobby such as this is worth. He wanted a mid 70's Camaro/Firebird and thats just not my thing. Since I am footing the bill he got a truck!!
Here is a shot of the old versus new harness side by side.
[IMG]
[/IMG]
Here is a shot of the old versus new harness side by side.
[IMG]
[/IMG]
08-18-2011, 08:48 PM
#914
The new harness looks great compared to the old! I'll be looking forward to the finished pics once you get everything routed. Good call on routing the harness over the inner fender and out of site. That's how I did my fuel lines on the passenger side and my lighting harness on the drivers side. I'll bet the boys truck is cool....and will be even cooler with a 5.3!
08-18-2011, 09:42 PM
#916
Your son is blessed to have a dad like you. My dad and my son have absolutely no mechanical inclination, but they are probably both smarter than me. My maternal grandfather and uncle did, and I never new them. It's kinda funny how I inherited this stuff from my mom, but she can't work on cars and how this stuff skips generations and goes sideways. I gotta love my folks for letting me drag motorcycles and cars home starting at age 12.
Last edited by futureuser; 08-18-2011 at 09:50 PM.
08-18-2011, 09:51 PM
#917
Yeah I hear ya on that. My son is by no means mechanically inclined either. He is book smart and has a vivid imagination but not the normal gear head. He is in early college and will graduate high school with an associates degree in science/engineering. He is going to pursue a career in engineering after he earns his masters. Oh great another know it all engineer, like I dont deal with enough of them where I work. LOL!! He has taken an interest in the hobby so we will see where it goes. Worse case I sell the truck and make a profit or keep it and make it into something I want. Of course I will be steering this truck in that direction a little at a time anyways. I told him he has a blank canvas and its of no real value so lets do it up like we want it not the normal all original style. My Dad was a road tractor/diesel mechanic and a good one but rarely showed me a thing about cars. I read magazines by the dozens each month and today I can tackle most issues. Its amazing the information you gather over time. I am not the best teacher as I am particular in how things should be done. Not saying my way is always the right way but I do try to use some logic in each task.
08-18-2011, 09:59 PM
#918
[/IMG]
[/IMG]
08-19-2011, 04:06 PM
#920
Lol! Yeah he has seen the business end of a belt, switch, or whatever else I could grab at the time! He was a royal pain in the *** from around 9-12 but 13 on he has become a young man and listens most of the time. Of course he hit puberty at the age of 9 so he was a little easier to deal with during his defiant days. Now if I can keep his mind away from the "V" we will all sleep better at night.