1995 Firebird 4.8L Street/Strip Turbo Project
 

In the Winter of 2007, I decided that I wanted to purchase another Firebird to build into a Street/Strip car. Something that was a little more of a dedicated race car than my 2000 Trans Am. In March of 2007, I found a 1995 Firebird V6 car on Ebay for $1,000. It had over 157,000 miles on it, still ran, was a hardtop & came with a rebuilt title. Since I knew I was going to be gutting the car, this was the perfect candidate. The car was in the Louisville, KY, area, so I got in touch with a transporter service to pick up and deliver the car to me in Central Indiana. For just over $200.00, they picked up the car and delivered it straight to my house on March 23, 2007. The delivery driver unloaded the car, and I drove it to the entrance of the alley behind my house where it died on me. The battery was not holding a charge just like the delivery driver said, but I thought maybe it would have just enough juice to get it into my driveway. Luckily, a couple of my neighbors came over and helped me push it the 50 feet I lacked from making it to the driveway. That is the last time the car ran under its own power until November 2010.

The car was originally sold new at a Ed Martin Pontiac-Buick-GMC in Carmel, IN. Somewhere along the way in its early life, it was wrecked & received the salvaged title. It also made its way out of state to Kentucky where the person I bought it from had owned it for the previous ten years. When they purchased the car, it only had 5,240 miles on it and already had the wrecked salvage title. They used it as their daily driver & as a maid service vehicle. The decals were still on the doors when I bought the car. The interior was in great shape, but it had an overpowering clean smell to it. Both airbags had previously deployed, and were never replaced. I assume they were never replaced after the first crash that deemed the car salvaged.

Photo #1-3 & 6: These are the photographs that the previous owner had posted in the ebay auction for the car.

Photo #5: The evening of March 23, 2007, when the car arrived at my house.

Photo #6: The photo on the auction was "Tweety Bird floor mat free". Not sure why they sent them along with the car (see more on that later on).

Photo #7: I took this photo the morning after the car arrived at my house.

Photo #8: Obviously a red Firebird was the source of the headlight after the accident.

Photo #9: The car spent part of its life as a maid service vehicle.

More photos from the car's arrival....

The car was assembled on the St. Therese, Quebec, Canada, assembly line on August 8, 1994.

Photo #1: I know...I know...the first thing you see in this photo are those ghastly Tweetie Bird floor mats.

Photo #2: Deployed airbag "reinsertion" into the steering wheel by a previous owner.

Photo #4 & 5: The transformation from plain ol' "Firebird" to Firebird "Trans Am" begins....

The first major change I made to the car was to convert it to a 98-02 "Trans Am". I never was a fan of the front end styling on the 93-37 Firebirds & Formulas, so
I knew even before the car arrived at my house that the front end was going to be swapped. I sourced all of the components used on Ebay except for the front
bumper cover. I tried several salvage yards & got the same answer as well. Nobody had any used front bumper covers because if you think about it that's usually
what gets destroyed on the car in a wreck. So, I coughed up the dough and bought a new one from GM. The front driver's-side fender & both headlights came off of a
base Firebird. I know this because I had to drill the holes in the fender for the ground effects. The hood was a used on that I bought online (and later replaced with
the original one from my 2000 Trans Am). The passenger-side fender was a taiwan knock-off, and it fits like crap. The front license plate cover & ground effects
came from a silver Trans Am, and the rear bumper cover came from a Pewter WS6 Trans Am. I bought both LS-era honeycomb tailights from two separate sellers on
ebay. The plastic fender vents and "Trans Am" door emblems were new GM pieces.

I was able to reuse the plastic wheel well liners & the plastic under the front bumper cover after redrilling new mounting holes. A few of the body panel mounting
brackets were reusuable, but all the other brackets I sourced new from GM.

I was able to find a buyer for the factory 1995 Firebird front end through Ebay, and even threw in the back bumper cover. He drove up from Southern Indiana & met me
halfway to pick it up.

More front-end conversion pics...

One of the hardest things to get right was the alignment between the hood and the two headlight doors. It was a very time-consuming process.

Photo #5: The packaging did an excellent job of hiding a hood that was in poor shape. In December 2010, I ordered a flat extended pin-on hood from VFN Fiberglass. I already had deleted the wipers when the cowl was trimmed, so this will make a sleek appearance.

Front end conversion pics continued....

Photo #1: Deleted the antenna hole while I was at it.

Photo #8: That little black plastic vent piece got tossed in the trash....weight reduction.

Photo #10: The pewter metallic rear bumper cover came off of a WS6 Trans Am. I know this because the residue from the WS6 emblem was still on the bumper cover.

For the record, I think the stock Firebird wheels that came on the car look horrible. I have never liked them. (Summer 2015: Sat the wheels/tires out for the "alley rats" to pick up.)

The last of the front end conversion pics...

Photo #1: The only new body panel that I bought was the front bumper cover. It came in the big box. Hell, I ordered and paid for it a day before the car arrived at the house. The GM part number is #12335523 and cost me $481.63.

Photo #2: This package leaves little to the imagination....maybe a fender perhaps?

Photo #3 & 4: I drilled holes in the rocker panel for the Trans Am ground effects. Before pushing the clips into the body, I applied silicone to help hold them and seal up the bare metal. I still ended up drilling through the front of the ground effects in a couple of places in order to get a better fit. Then I just applied bondo over the screw heads.

Photo #5: The "Trans Am" door emblems were new GM pieces that I purchased on ebay.

While I gathered the many new parts I would be installing on the car, I also began removing & reselling parts that I would
no longer need for the project. I did the major interior gutting in May 2007. My town has an annual "city wide clean up"
in May of each year, and that's the time to get rid of all the stuff that you can't sit out at the curb for regular trash pick up.
The seats were still in good shape, but their size, weight & shape detracted from me attempting to sell them on the internet.
This was either before Craigslist became big or before I'd heard of it, or I might have tried to sell them there. Anyway, they
went out with the trash. The carpeting had that overpowering cleaner smell & had been damp near the driver's-side window
due to a poor-fitting seal, so that got tosses too. This was also a fantastic time to gut the dash of all the HVAC components,
airbag components & all the associated wiring that I would no longer be needing. It's amazing how much stuff can be tossed
from these cars. I filled up the bed of my truck with all of it. What's crazy is this still isn't all of the stuff that I'll be removing
from the car.

I know you're wondering, and the answer is YES! The Tweety Bird floor mats got tossed too.

Photo #1: Almost all the yellow in the photo is air bag wiring that got tossed.

Photo #7: There is certainly a lot of stuff related to the HVAC.

MONEY SAVING TIP: If I had known at the time, I wouldn't have thrown all of the wiring away. Later on in the build, I discovered a nearby scrap place that would purchase the wiring. I know I've gotten over $20 back from the wiring that I have taken to them for scrap. I know it's not a lot, but every little bit helps when you're on a budget.

More interior gutting...

Photo #1: I sold the factory center console either on here or ebay.

Photo #7-10: All stuff that got tossed.

Last of the interior gutting pics...

Photo #1: Both the radio and HVAC were sold on ebay. If I remember correctly, they both went overseas.

Photo #2: HVAC ducting from behind the dash. It went in the trash.

Photo #3: A box full of HVAC components from behind the dash that also got tossed.

Photo #4: Everything that is sitting on the ground in this photo went to the trash.

Photo #5: I made a scrap run to a scrap place nearby my work, and netted $90.00 for all of the stuff shown in the photo plus the V6 engine & transmission. I had over 500 pounds of stuff.

Photo #6-8: I'm thinking this stuff along with photo #5 might have went to the landfill rather than the scrap place. The reason I say that is because I remember hauling the steel gas tank to the city wide clean-up, and I left it on top of the pile in plain site. They didn't question it, so I got to toss it.

Photo #9: The interior trim for the hatch. I kept it around for a very long time & tried a few times to sell it. After being unsuccessful at doing that, I tossed it out during a cleaning episode in the house :)

Photo #10: The air box & ducting, the belt tensioner & the throttle body were all sold off of the V6 on ebay.

Money Saving Tip: Keep anything that you can't resell that happens to be metal. I'm sure you can find a nearby scrap place in your area. The one I go to isn't close to home, but isn't too far from work. I load up the truck and haul it with me on my way to work, and then stop by the scrap place on my way home. I threw away a lot of metal that I could have sold for scrap....Live and learn as they say.

Since I'm doing this build thread a few years after the build started, I will apologize in advance for anything that is out of order chronologically. I
took the time to photograph all the progress, but didn't really jot down the dates on everything I did. Some of it I remember, and some of it I
don't.

Since I knew I was going to be redoing a lot of the suspension components, I contacted Ryan at UMI Performance. He set me up with almost
everything I needed for the project. Subframe connecters with integrated body mount torque arm, panhard bar, lower control arms, upper A-arms &
even valve cover spacers (more on that later). At the time of this install, they didn't offer a drag bar. Therefore, my drag bar is a BMR piece that I bought
used on ls1tech. Since I was swapping for V8 power and not using a modern transmission, I went with the body-mounted torque arm. At this
time I was considering going with a basic Chevy 350. Later you'll see I thought better of it and went with an LS powerplant.

Photo #3: This literally scared the crap out of me. While compressing the spring, it made a sudden move and ended up being very close to slipping out of
the spring compressor. Not only was I worried for my own safety, but this is a few feet from where my '00 Trans Am is parked. Luckily, it didn't and I was
able to swap out the springs. The springs are used Eibach pieces that I bought on ebay. Might have been due to the low-buck Harbor Freight compressor that
I bought for this project. Later I needed one of the threaded rods for another project, so the rest of it hit the scrap pile.

Photo #8: This is a used RPO J65 10 bolt that I bought in July 2009. It's got 3.73 gears in it, and the previous owner had it gone through for his 2001 Trans Am Drag Car.
It was too good a deal to pass up, so flame me for keeping a 10 bolt in it if you want. The factory 93-97 RPO J41 rear end out of the car was just an open rear end....I don't
wanna do no one wheel peel! :)

Photo #9: This photo shows the ground clearance difference between my stock height '00 Trans Am versus the '95 with the Eibach springs.

Photo #10: As of December 2010, this is a current photo of my rear suspension.

More suspension pics...

The rear transmission mount bracket (V6 one shown in photo #10 below) that I used for the TH400 Transmission is just a factory LT1-era T-56 transmission bracket. Other than the 1" spacer that I welded onto it, the mounting hole lines up perfectly with the TH400. I sourced this bracket used on ebay.

Photo #7 & 8: I needed these Adjustable UMI Performance Upper A-Arms to correct the camber on the car. The factory adjustment "slots" on the lower A-arm bolts were not enough to correct the severe toe out.

Photo #8: The car still had the factory upper ball joints which are riveted on. The upper A-arm and factory ball joint had so much rust on them that there was no way they were going to come off without a fight. I deemed it not worth it, and picked up a new set of upper ball joints at a nearby O'Reilly Auto Parts. Factory A-Arms will probably be tossed for scrap.

Photo #9: The thought occurred to me while installing the subframe connectors that I might run into alignment issues regarding the bolt holes. With the car having been in a wreck well before I bought it, I thought I might have difficulty somewhere during the subframe connector install. Luckily, no major issues to report.

UMI Performance parts list:

#2310-R: 93-02 GM F-Body Upper Front A-Arms (Rod Ends)-Red
#2302: 93-02 GM F-Body Upper A-Arm Hardware Kit
#2016: 82-02 GM F-Body Single Adjustable Lower Control Arms
#2023-R: 82-02 GM F-Body Tubular Double Adjustable Chrome Moly Panhard Bar-Red
#3003: 82-02 GM F-Body Rear Torque Arm Bolts
#2203-R: 93-02 GM F-Body Tunnel Mounted Torque Arm-LT Headers w/ Loop-Red
#2011: 82-02 GM F-Body Lower Control Arm Relocation Brackets (Weld In)-Moser
#2004-R: 93-02 GM F-Body 3-Point Subframe Connectors-Bolt-In-Red
#2111: 1999-2004 LS1/LS6 1/2" Aluminum Valve Cover Spacers

Last of the suspension pics...

Photo #5: The stock shocks were a huge treat to remove. One side came out like a breeze, but the other side was pure hell. The nut was fused to the shaft on the shock, and the shaft was turning instead of the nut when I put a wrench to it. I tried clamping vise grips onto the shock shaft without much success at first, but once the shaft started getting chewed up from the vise grips they started to bite. I still ended up using a reciprocating saw to cut the shaft. That was the only way to free the shock from the car.

I have the Competition Engineering 3 Way Adjustable Drag Shocks set on the 50/50 setting. After researching the subject on here, that was the hands-down preferred setting.

Photo #10: This is a good shot of the UMI Performance body-mounted torque arm mount. Just to the right of it in the photo is the driveshaft loop.

Just some random bodywork shots. I'm by no means a pro at it, but this "low-budget" build allowed me to practice the techniques.

Photo #2 & 6: The passenger-side fender was a Taiwan knock-off. You definitely get what you pay for as it fit like crap compared to the used OEM driver's-side
fender.

Photo #4 & 5: I trimmed the cowl back to the windshield to make working on the engine a little easier. It was also very helpful when I dropped the engine
in the car.

Photo #8-10: I deleted the factory gas access door on the driver's-side quarter panel. Fuel is now put in by popping the hatch and accessing the fuel cell.

More bodywork pics....

Photo #2: I decided to use the original hood that came off of my '00 Trans Am for this car. When the '00 Trans Am caught on fire, the hood was up. That still didn't keep it from scorching the paint on the hood and causing it to bubble up. I took it back down to bare metal, and fixed it with bondo.

Photo #5: The exterior door handles weren't yet body color in '95, so I primered over the black paint.

Photo #7: For the "finger hump" on the gas door, I cut a pie shape out of it. Then I hammered the hump flat & riveted it to the car after slathering the back with JB Weld.

Photo #8 & 9: Off comes "Firebird" and on goes "Trans Am".

I did this paint job in March 2009. I wanted to do it before the bugs started reappearing for the year.
Plus, the temperatures are somewhat decent at this time of year....not too cold & not too hot.

In the July 2007 issue of Hot Rod Magazine, there is an article entitled "The $98 Paint Job". I had
forgotten about the article until being reminded of it in the April 2009 issue of Hot Rod.

Following the article, I sanded down the entire car with 300 grit sandpaper. Then it took three quarts
of Rustoleum Gloss White paint and Ace Hardware Mineral Spirits (paint thinner) to paint the car.
The Rustoleum was thinned down with about 40% Mineral Spirits, and that made the paint very thin.
The paint was applied with a 4" paint roller and high-density foam rollers. I used a new roller for each
coat of paint. For some of the hard to reach areas, I used small foam brushes. With the paint so thin,
it took six coats to finally get complete coverage. After every other coat, I wet-sanded the car with 500
grit sandpaper. The final wet-sanding of the car was done with 1500 grit.

I spray painted the door jambs, mirrors, side marker pockets, "Trans Am" script on the doors, "pontiac"
script on the rear bumper & the door handles with Wal-mart Color Place Gloss White spray paint. I will
also be painting the aluminum spoiler with the same white spray paint.

The rear CETA mod was painted with VHT Red Engine paint because I had it on hand from a previous
job.

I had about $35.00 invested in the three quarts of paint and the jug of mineral spirits. Around twenty bucks
in the paint roller and foam rollers. The tape I bought on clearance at Meijer, so I probably had about five
bucks in tape. All the paper I used to mask off stuff were old Harbor Freight ads. I think the drop clothes
were about three bucks too (I cut one in half to lay underneath both sides of the car).

Prices for some of the supplies:

Foam Rollers $4.29 X 4 packages (8 rollers)--Meijer
300 Grit Sandpaper $4.99--Harbor Freight
500 Grit Sandpaper $2.59--Harbor Freight
1200 Grit Sandpaper $2.59--Harbor Freight
Foam Brushes $3.99--Harbor Freight
Disposable Paint Tray Liner $1.99 Harbor Freight
Disposable Paint Tray Liners $.99 X 3--Ace Hardware
120 oz jug of Ace Brand Paint Thinner (100% Mineral Spirits)--$8.49--Ace Hardware
Quart of Rustoleum Gloss White Paint $9.99--Ace Hardware
2 Quarts of Rustoleum Gloss White Paint $7.00 & change--Meijer
3M Polishing Compound $21.78--Napa
2 Rolls Masking Tape $.71 (clearance--regular $2.39)--Meijer

More Rustoleum paint job pics....

More paint job pics...

Paint job continued...

Photo #3: Freshly wet-sanded & ready for polishing.

Continuation of paint job pics...

Photo #5, 5 & 10: There was some over spray and leakage behind the tape in some spots. Nothing that can't be touched up though.

Photo #8: You'll notice that I didn't paint the underside of the hood. I did that later on when I modified the underside of it. I kind of passed over that modification since I'm swapping the steel hood for a fiberglass VFN hood. Maybe I'll add a post later on of "past mods" that are no longer a part of the car.

Last of the paint job pics...

Photo #1: Ok, so I didn't get the paint coverage done well in every area of the car. This area isn't too visible from a standing person's viewpoint, so it's not that big a deal to me. Besides, it's not a show car anyway.

Photo #2: There are a few paint dribbles like along the bottom of the headlight doors on a few other areas of the car. They aren't right in plain sight, so they're no biggy either.

Photo #4: The door handles and door locks were both black from the factory. I wanted body color door handles like the 98-02 'birds had, but didn't want to leave the door locks black (since the passenger-side lock was sprayed white during the accident repair). So, I just shot them with white spray paint too.

Photos #6 & 7: This issue of Hot Rod Magazine containing the "$98 Paint Job" article was the basis for my paint job.

Photo #8: Paint is polished and ready for decals.

I really never had plans to add a spoiler to the rear of the car. Then one day I stumbled across this
aluminum spoiler made by Ed Quay for the Firebird/Formula hatch. I wasn't sure I really liked how
it looked initially, but spent a few days thinking it over. I decided to get one for the car & paint it to
match the body color.

Photo #3 & 4: I added white reflective tape to the spoiler to help make it more visible in the dark. I
don't want anyone to walk into it.

Photo #8: I attached my wing supports to the hatch. I've seen other 'birds with them attached to the
rear bumper cover. That way doesn't look like it would be as sturdy, and it doesn't allow you to pop
the hatch without undoing all the supports first. By putting them on the hatch, I don't have to worry
about undoing them. UPDATE TEASER: This will change once the Trans Am hatch is installed on the car. The
wing supports will then be relocated to the bumper cover.

Since the headlight mechanisms for the pop up headlights are rather heavy, I decided to remove them. Plus, that's just one less thing
to go wrong mechanically with the car. I removed the headlight doors from the mechanism, and reattached them to the car in the factory
closed position with the use of some long bolts. I welded them to the car & to the backside of the headlight doors. Since some racing
sanctioning bodies require "headlights" to be operational, I picked up some lights at Harbor Freight and installed them in the factory driving
lights position. They are wired into the factory headlight switch on the dash as if they were the regular headlights. I don't plan on driving
the car at night any more than I absolutely have to, so these should work just fine.

Photo #1: Once upon a time, the only place to get replacement sockets for the DRL/turn signal lights was GM. They were over $60.00 a
piece. Thankfully, you can now get knock-offs at AutoZone & O'Reilly Auto Parts for $7.99 a piece.

Photo #2: The "headlights" are on :)

Photo #3: The small oval-shaped lights in the lower vent openings are no longer on the car. I had them wired into the "high beams" so they'd
come on when I clicked for brights. Now I no longer have the factory turn signal/cruise control/washer fluid stalk in the car, so the "high beams"
went away.

Photo #8: I slathered the welded-in bolts with POR 15 to keep them from rusting through the white paint.

Photo #10: Some paint burn from the welding penetration....easy fix.

One more headlight door pic since I reached my maximum for attachments in the previous post...

And now for a few photos of the V6 & factory transmission being removed...

I had a rather unorthodox way of removing it from the car. I undid the motor mounts and removed the rear transmission brace. Then I jacked the car up as high as I possibly could get it and pushed the engine out through the back of the engine bay and onto the ground. Then I drug it out from under the car with the aide of my truck :) Please do not try this at home!

The HVAC delete plate that can be easily seen now is from Speed Inc. If I were doing that today, I'd just fabricate my own panel. I believe most people install their panel on the inside of the car, but I didn't like how far back it sat. So, I installed mine on the engine bay side.

Photo #2: I disassembled the engine down as far as possible to make getting it out of the car easier.

Photo #3: I made a wood dolly to pull out from under the car with the engine & transmission sitting on it. I used my truck to pull it out.

Photo #5: Well I made one hell of a mess on the driveway.

Photo #9: I ended up tearing the engine and trans completely apart, and sold all the metals for scrap.

Photo #10: The engine bay was so nasty when I got the car. At this point, I was getting excited about cleaning it up.
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IMPORTANT NOTE: Please DO NOT try this method of engine removal. This is by no means the safe or correct way to do it. I ended up pulling the car off of the jackstands while trying this because the wheels on my homemade dolly would not support the weight of the engine/trans and broke. That is the reason for the huge mess of oil on the driveway as well. Drop the k-member and raise the car up with an engine hoist before attempting removal from underneath.
================================================== ===============

Cool project man keep up the good work!

Thanks! It's pretty far along now....just need to post all the stuff here now :)

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Photo #1 & 2: The windshield had rather deep scratches on it from the wipers, and I finished it off by cracking it when I trimmed the cowl back. Therefore, I had to have a new windshield put it (was going to anyway).

Photo #3 & 4: I found it really odd that GM used a 2-piece driveshaft on the V6 cars. No big deal to me since it was going to need a new driveshaft anyway.

Photo #5 & 6: The Wheels and tires came along early in the build as well. The front wheels & tires I bought used on ls1tech. The price was too good to pass up on the wheels. The tires that came with them were cheapos but they worked good for rolling the car around the driveway. I'll be replacing them with Mickey Thompsons to match the rears in January 2011. The rears are Mickey Thompson 325 ET Street Radials, and the wheels are new that I purchased from Summit Racing. (Note: These wheels & the rear tires were sold in March 2018 and replaced with Jegs SSR Spike Wheels & 275 M/T ET Street S/S Rear Tires).

Photo #7-9: The driver's-side door guard had a kink in it that I couldn't get straightened out. I'm not sure if it was hit hard at some point, or just from being installed crooked for so long it took on the shape permanently. Anyway, I picked up a used door guard off of a 98-02 era V6 Firebird at a nearby salvage yard. A roll of 3M Emblem Adhesive stuck it on the car in the correct location.

Back in the Winter of 2008, I was out of work & tried my best to keep busy. I spent many a day outside in the snow & cold working on the car. This was before I had a welder, so when it came time to mini tub the car I had to get creative. I used a reciprocating saw to cut out the metal. The metal I used came from a spare sleek beak hood & a tool box cabinet that I wasn't using.

Photo #4: I cut metal out of the wheel well that was rubbing against the tire. That also included the factory bump stop.

Photo #9: The metal arch that I have installed for the mini tub is actually a portion of hood skin off of a spare hood (see last photo in next post).

More partial mini tub pics...

Photo #2: This lower portion of a tool box became the majority of the pieces used to make the tubs. Thanks to a former fiance for the "donation" to the project :)

Photo #3: Posterboard templates were made in order to cut the metal panels.

Photo #4: Yep, it was cold and snowing the day I started this project. In fact it got dark before I was ready to quit for the evening, so I fished my trouble light out there and closed myself up inside the car with my tools. I'm sure my neighbors thought I'd lost my mind. :)

Photo #5: A lot of cuts were made to turn the bent lip into a curved lip.

Photos #6-8: As you can see, a lot of rivets were used to attach the metal to the car.

Photo #9: Installation complete & primered. Ready for seam sealer.

Photo #10: The metal for the passenger-side partial mini tub came from here. I used a metal blade in my jigsaw to cut that out.

Last of the partial mini tub pics. Thanks to Burkhart Chassis for the inspiration via the pics they have posted on their website.

After riveting the tubs into the car, I used automotive seam sealer to seal all the seams. Flat black paint made it all purdy again :)

Disclaimer: Any horrible welds you see are the result of me using a crappy welder & not having a lot of practice. Now I'm able to
lay a weld bead down with the best of 'em! I have plans on building on to my existing garage, and then I will have the space to
disassemble the interior and make the cage right. Until then, this will just have to stay this way :)

I went with the S&W Race Cars 10 point cage (part #11-1530TD) because of their proven history within drag racing. I prefer the fit of this cage much
better than some of the other options out there. The cool part was it was on sale for $249.95 (regular $312.44). I put this in the car in September 2008.
(Note: This cage was removed and replaced with another S&W Race Cars 10 pt cage in January 2018. See Post #286)

More cage pics...

Photo #2: The MSD 6LS box was installed when I thought I was going to build a carburated LS motor. It has since been removed and sold to a fellow in Canada.

Photo #4: I fabricated my own rear seat mount from some metal that I purchased at Menards.

Photo #5: The driver's-side forward cage bar needed to pass through right where the lower bracket for the dashboard was located. I bent it down and tacked it to the cage.

Photo #9 & 10: The cage was shipped right to my house for the painful price of just over $100.00.

Looking good!

Thanks! :)

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With the battery in the hatch area along with the fuel cell, the rear firewall/bulkhead was necessary. I originally purchased a Wolfe rear bulkhead for
the car, but didn't like the way it looked once installed. So I ordered some aluminum sheet from a seller on ebay per NHRA thickness requirements, and made my
own lower bulkhead. I did use a portion of the Wolfe bulkhead for the top of mine. The rest of the Wolfe unit didn't go to waste though...I used it on
the lower portions of the dashboard.

Photo #6 & 7: I wanted to keep all of the spare donut tire area as accessible as I could since it was to be the new location for the battery. Therefore, I built out the
bulkhead around that area.

NOTE: Later on in the build, I make drastic changes to the rear hatch area of the car. An entire new floor was built along with a new rear bulkhead. This change is documented later on in this build thread (post #117, page 6).

More bulkhead photos...

I first painted the hatch area with fleck paint that was commonly used in trunks in a lot of cars once upon a time. The can of it was rather costly, and it didn't go far enough to paint everything. So, I used some flat black paint that I had already stocked up on for the car.

Photo #1: I painted the Summit Racing Fuel Cell & the attachment straps that I purchased from them.

Photo #4: The taping off took quite some time since I didn't want to remove everything.

Photo #9 & 10: I used cardboard to make my patterns based off of the car, and then transferred the shapes to the aluminum with a permanent marker.

Last of the bulkhead photos...

Photo #8: This is the plastic from the hatch area interior panels that was cut off. Since the bulkhead runs the entire width of the hatch area, the interior panels just butt up against it.

Most of this is self-explanitory from just viewing the photos, but I have made a few changes that I did not post a pic about.
My first alternator shutdown was the smaller Painless unit. Realizing that it would be too small for the LS alternator, I
bought the Painless 80 Amp unit. The battery kill switch is from Summit Racing. The battery box came from a seller on
Ebay. Currently, I have a Duralast battery in the car. I have recently raised the floor where the battery sits, and will post
pics of that at a later date.

The battery relocation required running a heavy gauge wire from the front to the back of the car.

Photo #4: I have a distribution block mounted in the passenger-side front seat footwell area that ties all the connections for the battery together.

Photo #5: One of the items that ties into the battery distribution block is the fuse box that I mounted in behind where the factory airbag would have been installed

Photo #6: The battery charging posts that I ordered from a hot rod shop exit under the passenger-side taillight.

Photo #7-10: These are the NHRA Edition emblems that I purchased on ebay. The company that originally manufactured them for GM was selling sets through their ebay store. Since they were an option on 2000-2002 'birds, I thought it would be cool to have them on my car as well. I put them in the same locations as done by GM.

I sanded off the factory Firebird emblems on the factory taillight center section, applied the emblems, then shot it with clearcoat.

The carpet is Ozite in the color "Graphite Gray" that I purchased from Your Auto Trim Store. It's 80" wide, and I bought
four yards of it to do the entire car. I installed the carpet in September 2008. I used Dap Weldwood Contact
Cement that I picked up at a nearby Menards to glue it to the floor of the car. I will say that this carpet doesn't wear
very well, so make sure you have a floor mat or something similar under your feet if you wish to protect the carpet. I
just cut another piece of Ozite in the shape of a floor mat for my car. The glue works well as long as you are patient
and allow it to dry properly. I used items to weigh the carpet down while the glue was drying. The carpet conforms to
shapes very well, and I'm pretty pleased with it. At some point it will be ripped out so that I can reweld the roll cage.
Thankfully, the carpet is only about $70.00. (Note: This is the first of 3 carpets I have installed in the car. As of
2018, the car has an ACC Custom Carpet installed)

More carpet install pics...

The dashboard is full of Auto Meter guages that I bought used from ls1tech. The rocker switches were sourced from JC Whitney & Autozone.
I built the wiring harness for the dash from scratch during the Winter on my living room floor (being single has its perks). The Steering Wheel
is a Grant steering wheel that I painted red to match the other interior accents. I have a custom center cap decal to apply to it later. The lower
aluminum portions of the dash were cut from the unused Wolfe bulkhead that I mentioned earlier.

ADVICE: Don't build a dashboard wiring harness like I did. Take the time to build it without all the extra & unnecessary wiring like I did. DON"T wrap it with electrical tape like all the "shadetree mechanic" type television shows show you. It makes for a nightmare should you need to make a repair, add or remove any wiring. Use plastic split-loom convoluted tubing if you're worried about the wiring rubbing or being exposed to possible damage. Further on in the build, you will see that I redid all of the wiring in the car. It's one of those things that you learn as you go. I didn't really know what I was doing, but advice and experience from coworkers have helped me tremendously. Post #181 of this build thread is a good place to jump ahead to if you're interested in the rewiring.

Note: This factory dashboard eventually finds its way into the garbage, and is replaced by a VFN Fiberglass Dash.

More dashboard-related pics...

1) I thought by siliconing the plastic trim surround back onto the dash, that it would prevent it from rattling. The factory plastic dash pieces get really brittle over time (especially if exposed to the sun a lot), so this dash was a disaster waiting to happen. No worries, it is eventually replaced with a VFN Fiberglass dash, so keep on reading :)

Some of the items visible in the photos are no longer used as this build progresses. The great thing is there's this place called ebay, and I was able to get a little money back to put back into the build.

Last of the dashboard-related pics...

Steering wheel swap...

NOTICE: Driving a car originally-equipped with an air bag (in the steering wheel) on the street with the air bag removed is against the law. You have been forewarned!

I did the following on April 2-3, 2010:

Removed the Summit Poly Pro Seat from the driver's-side location. I then removed the S&W Race Cars seat mount from the Summit Poly Pro Seat
and bolted it to the bottom of the Jegs Pro Seat II. The Jegs seat replaced the Summit seat on the driver's-side. When I bought the Summit seat in
March 2007, that was the only style of poly seat offered at the time. Sometime later they came out with a revised version of the poly seat with better
shoulder openings for the five point harness. The new seat offered individual slots for each shoulder harness rather than the single slot on the previous
seat design. Both Summit & Jegs sell the same seat under their own brand names. I ended up buying the seat from Jegs because overall it was
cheaper to purchase it from them than it was Summit at the time. I think they might of had either the seat or the cover for it on sale.

So with the Jegs seat in the driver's-side location, I began to install the Summit seat in its new location on the passenger-side. Since joining the
Maintenance Department at work in October 2009, I've been afforded the opportunity to fabricate a few items for the car as time permits using the tools
& supplies in the shop. This time I needed two seat brackets for the passenger-side seat. I used a piece of scrap steel from the scrap bin and along
with the bending brake & welder fabricated my own seat brackets. The passenger-side foot well area has the lovely catalytic converter hump, so the
brackets had to be made to fit around that. I used the overall dimensions of the S&W Race Cars aluminum brackets to build the steel ones for the
passenger-side.

The overall exterior dimensions of both style of seats are the same EXCEPT for the mounting base. The Jegs seat is about 1/2" longer than the Summit
seat, so I ended up having to enlarge the bolt holes I'd drilled on my brackets in order for the Summit seat to attach to them. That was no big deal since
they're out of view anyway, but I guess I should have known better than to base the specs completely off of the newer Jegs seat. The only reason I used
the Jegs seat for my dimensions was due to the fact that the Summit seat was still bolted in the car.

With a seat now going on the passenger-side, the mounting location of the fire extinquisher had to be changed. Instead of having it on the passenger-side
of the driveshaft tunnel, I moved it to right in front of the passenger seat on the floorboard. That location is in easy reach from the driver's seat, and doesn't
require me to bend my arm & elbow around like I would of had to do if I remounted the extinguisher back on top of the tunnel in between the seats. That
location was the very first location for the extinquisher, and it was an "elbow hazzard".

I also installed the RCI 5 point harness onto the Jegs seat. At this time, I'm not 100% sure what I'm going to do restraint-wise on the passenger seat, but
eventually I will probably try to get a harness similar to the one I will wear when driving. (Note: during installation of the second rollcage, I added a factory
shoulder belt to the passenger-side seat along with a 5-point harness)

More photos from the seat install/swap...

3) Unhappy with the way the window net looked when mounted, I later on ordered a custom window net from S&W Race Cars. They have a template that you fill out with your particular dimensions, and they take care of the rest.

4 & 5) The driver's door glass leaks along the top and front edge, so rain heads straight for the lowest point on the floorboards. POR-15 will hopefully slow the erosion process down.

Lookin good. I always liked the White TAs, especially in a race car its much cheaper to buy one like you did and convert it. My car is purple...not the most popular color but its hard to find, ill have to start a build thread now that im finally getting off my ass to work on it lol.

I have always liked white as a 'bird color too. The color I used, Rustoleum Gloss White, is actually a little brighter than the original factory color. You're right, they didn't make too many purple 'birds. I think it's cool you're modding one :)

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I went with the 12 gallon "Pro Street" fuel cell sold under the Summit Racing brand. At the time, I didn't order it with a fuel level sender. Later, I realized my mistake. By that time, it was already installed into the car, so I just added a fuel level sender later on. UPDATE: Later on in the build, I upgraded to a 16 gallon fuel cell that included the fuel level sender. Since I will be driving this car both on and off the street, I wanted a few extra gallon capacity. The new fuel cell isn't added to after the floor is redone starting in post #181. FURTHER UPDATE: in 2017, I upgraded to a Speedmaster Aluminum Fuel Cell. My Poly Fuel Cell got the typical pucker along its top.

My Dad has always drag raced small blocks. He has a 60-over 283-powered '67 Camaro that he bracket
raced for several years. Since Dad always liked to run the small engines, I thought it would be cool to do
the same but in a modern way. When I came across this 4.8L engine (out of a 2004 Chevy Truck) with just over 53,000 miles
on the odometer while surfing performanctrucks.net, the idea was hatched. The engine was in Monee, IL,
so on a July afternoon back in 2008 I went up there to pick it up. It sat in my garage for almost another
year until I dropped it into the car in June of 2009. I swapped all the accessories to f-body components
(water pump, alternator, crank pulley & related brackets for the alternator). At the time I dropped the
engine into the car, it was still completely stock other than the Edelbrock intake & Trick Flow timing chain.
I installed the timing chain before I put the engine in the car because I didn't want to have to worry about
loosening the motor mounts later on. Later on in June 2010, the engine got a Comp Cams Cam, valve springs
& pushrods along with Harland Sharp rocker arms (Dad runs those on the 283).

Chevy TH400 Transmission was found on Craigslist in January 2010. It came out of a 1989 C20 3/4 Ton Chevy Van with a 5.7L engine. I installed it in the car in August 2010. I didn't need the stock torque converter, but took it anyway because the seller couldn't use it. I'm using a Hughes Performance flexplate & adapter to mate the "old" torque converter to the LS crankshaft. I swapped in a new B&M Torque Converter along with a Taiwan transmission pan & flexplate cover (both purchased on ebay). My local GM dealer ordered me new bolts to mount the transmission to the back of the engine block. Since my Silverado also has a 4.8L engine in it, I just ordered the bolts for it. That kept me from having to go into great detail as to why I needed the bolts for a "non-stock" application.

Photo #1 & 2: Since it was January when I bought the transmission, I had to reorganize my "winter weight" in the truck bed so that the transmission would have a place to ride.

Photo #4: I bought a new B&M Torque Master Torque Converter through Jegs. It's made for a "first generation" 350. I have a Hughes Flexplate & Adapter made for adapting the LS engine to a TH400 & torque converter. I purchased both of the Hughes Performance parts through Summit Racing. The Summit part numbers are #HUP-HP4004 for the flexplate & #HUP-HP3795 for the flexplate adapter. The adapter attaches to the back of the crankshaft and allows the use of a "regular" TH400 torque converter rather than a custom one specifically for an LS engine (since the snout would need to be longer).

Note: I kept the Hughes Flexplate and Adapter, but both the transmission and torque converter have since been removed, sold for scrap and replaced.

Love the build history here! Whats the latest? :)

Thanks for the compliments! I'm still playing catch up on the build history, so there will be many more updates...

Scott

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Those of you that have swapped a V8 into a 'bird or Camaro that was originally equipped with a V6 will know that the factory k-members are different between the two. Still keeping the "budget build" in mind, I decided to stick with a factory unit instead of a tubular version. This k-member came out of a '99 Trans Am from Missouri. I purchased it here on ls1tech. I was surprised when it arrived to see that it still had the engine mount pedestals attached. I'd purchased a used set of engine mounts on ebay that contained the pedestals, so I left the ones on the k-member and tossed the others.

More k-member install photos...

I also had to swap the steering linkage. The V6 steering linkage (shown in photo #4) would have be right in the way of the driver's-side header. Therefore, I had to source a 98-02 steering linkage from a V8 f-body. From my research, the V6 linkage was the same on all 93-02 f-bodies & the 93-97 LT1 f-bodies also used the same linkage. Also shared amongst the same three but not the LS f-bodies is the steering rack. The angle causes the steering linkage to be in the way. I sourced a used LS1 steering rack out of a 2002 Camaro from Trans Am Creations.

The last two photos are of the HVAC Delete panel that I purchased from Speed Inc. Since the time of purchase, I've acquired good fabrication skills thanks to my job. If I were to do it all over, I'd just fabricate my own panel. In fact, I might have just welded on in and smoothed the area out.

Since the V6 radiator was in pretty bad shape, I decided rather quickly to not use it. Besides, I wanted an LS radiator anyway. I purchased this one used. It came from the same '99 Trans Am that the k-member came out of down in Missouri.

I'm going to try and use the V6 fan since it still works just fine. I guess if I run into cooling issues I'll have to address that. I have it hooked up via a Painless Fan Relay Kit.

The radiator support structure of the 93-97 differs from the 98-02. Therefore, in order to use the LS1 plastic radiator support modifications to it are required.

The second to last pic of the B&M Transmission Cooler was originally purchased for my '00 'bird, but I ended up putting it on the '95 first. I did treat the '00 to one at a later date :D

Note: I ended up swapping out the V6 fan for an LS1 Dual-Fan Setup in the Spring of 2018. The B&M Transmission Cooler has since this post was made as well.

Here we are in June of 2009, and it's engine install time! :)

I bought a engine hoist from Harbor Freight, and I'll be damned if the boom wouldn't extend out far enough. It still wouldn't extend out far enough when I used it positioned at the side of the car. I ended up using a 1" x 6" piece of treated lumber that I had laying around to "slide" the engine down into position. I propped it along the driver's-side inner fender well, and then slowly slid it down into place with the hoist. I still had to use the floor jack to get it into the engine mounts,. but at least it worked!

The other photos are of the Edelbrock intake & elbow along with their fuel rails. I purchased them as a kit from Summit Racing. The coil packs were purchased used, and I painted the f-body coil brackets Chevy Orange to match the engine block. The oil pan is an f-body piece that I purchased new on ebay. The odd thing about the pan is the fact that a standard "f-body" oil filter would not thread onto the nipple. After doing some research online, I discovered that others have had the same problem. The fix is to use the oil filter for a 2008 Hummer with the 5.7L (part #PH10060).

Speaking of engine painting...

1) Yes, I'm ashamed to say that I bought the Taiwan headers you find all over ebay. They went on rather easy, and only one small place on the driver's-side header required some massaging with a hammer. At some point I'd like to buy a good set of American-Made headers. UPDATE: Adding a Turbonetics Turbo to the car at some point, and going back to factory truck manifolds (reversed of course).

Notes from my 08/21/09 install:

I had to beat the floor in and use the floor jack to get the driver's-side header up into position. They tuck up in the car very nicely. Looking at the space I had to work with, I was really worried about the passenger-side header not going up into place. Surprisingly, it slid up in with almost no trouble at all. I did, however, have to raise the car with a block of wood on the jack. Otherwise, I couldn't turn the header up enough for it to slide into place.

Notes from 03/06/10:

I took one of the bung bolts and used it to plug the ABS Sensor opening in the top of the rear end. It is sealed with gasket sealer. The other bung bolt was used in the wide band port back in September 2009 when the exhaust was fabricated.

Notes from 10/17/10:

When I finally tightened the motor mounts, the clearance issue with the driver's-side header collector (it was touching the underside of the floor) corrected itself. Both sides are very similar now.

At least the freezing cold weather in Indiana sure gives ya some free time to do the write up on the car. This thread inspired me to order the last of my suspension parts today:)

Man, you ain't kidding! It was brutal outside at work today! Glad I inspired you to get those parts :)

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December of 2008 I ordered a stand-alone engine wiring harness from Tech Rods through ebay. Since I didn't have a factory harness to modify, I decided to go this route.

Here's a little back story to help out....Back in July of 2007, my '00 'bird suffered an engine fire. I spent the next year replacing all the parts that were destroyed along with the entire engine wiring harness since it was badly melted at the back of the engine. It took some time to get it all sorted out, but I eventually found all the bugs and got it running again. Anyway, during all the trial and error I ordered a new pcm from the nearby AutoZone just to rule that out. The VIN was required so that the correct computer and programming would be sent to the store. The original pcm ended up being just fine, so I was left with a spare. When it came time to wire up the 4.8L engine in the '95 'bird, I already had the computer. Therefore, my '95 Firebird "thinks" it's a 2000 Trans Am :)

The Tech Rods wiring harness couldn't have been any easier to install. Everything was clearly marked, and since I'd had experience with the factory harness on my other 'bird it was even easier for me. The one snag I did come across was with the starter wiring. The Tech Rods stand-alone harness doesn't include wiring for the starter circuit, so you must either recreate your own or use the existing circuit on the car. I had already removed and tossed the factory wiring not thinking that I would ever need it again, so I had to create new.

To make the engine bay a little less cluttered, I mounted the pcm for the engine inside the car. It's
right where the passenger-side airbag used to live, and is easily accessed by lifting the airbag cover.
I cut a slot big enough to slide the pcm plugs through in the HVAC cover, and then made a plate to
cover the excess space after everything was installed.

The stand-alone engine harness didn't come with an attachment for the electric fan, so I had to purchase
a stand-alone fan relay from Painless Wiring. It runs the fan via a thermostat that is threaded into the
rear of the passenger-side cylinder head.

June 2009-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I finally got around to cleaning up all the wiring in the engine bay. I was waiting to add the Painless
Wiring Alternator Shut-off & TH400 Kickdown Switch wiring before wrapping everything in black convoluted
tubing. Before wrapping the wiring, I painted the ABS Module, Brake Booster, K-Member & Steering Rack
all black.

I also installed a proper rubber coolant hose to the coolant overflow container. While the container was
back off the car, I also took a Sharpie permanent marker and highlighted the coolant levels that were
embossed on the side of it.

Note: The car is now running off a Holley EFI Terminator 4.8 System.

Miscellaneous Stuff....

Professional Products 85mm Throttle Body (bought new on ebay)
B&M TH400 Kickdown Switch (bought new through Summit Racing)
Speedway Motors Proportioning Valve (relabeled Wilwood unit)
Air Lid (no name brand bought used on ls1tech)
Used alternator & brackets from f-body bought on ebay (shown before brackets modified)
Aftermarket Coolant Overflow Container (mounted in factory battery location)
Spectre Intake Elbow (bought new from Summit Racing)
LS1 f-body throttle cable without traction control (bought new from Penske Chevrolet)
Thunder Racing Belt Tensioner (bought used on ebay)
Biondo Line Lock (new via Summit Racing)

None of this stuff is on the car now. It has all since been replaced or changed.

Comp Cams Cam, Valve Springs & Pushrods

Cam part# 54-412-11
Grind # LS1 XR265HR-14
Gross Valve Lift: .522 intake / .529 exhaust
Duration @ .006: 265 intake / 271 exhaust
Lobe separation: 114.0

Valve Springs & Pushrods kit part #54050

Harland Sharp LS1 Rocker Arms (part #SLS17)

I ran into some clearance issues with the rocker arms near the pushrod. I used my "dremel" tool to grind away the cylinder head...no more than absolutely necessary. I also had to do similar clearancing on the UMI Performance Valve Cover Spacers.

The last 5 photos show the results of the clearancing.

Photo #1-5: The first 5 photos are of my "Short Belt Mod". Since I'm using an f-body water pump on the engine, I also went with an f-body crank balancer pulley. The water pump was purchased used on ebay, and the pulley was purchased used from Billy Graham's Camaro Salvage.

I initially tried to use the factory truck engine balancer pulley, but it was not spaced correctly for it to line up with the f-body water pump pulley. Therefore, I had to switch to the f-body pulley.

Photo #5: I purchased this Thunder Racing Belt tensioner used on ebay in August 2009. I installed it on the car 08/14/09.

Notes from 10/18/10:

I spaced out the belt tensioner with two red anodized washers left over from the bolt dress-up kit that I used on the 2000 T/A. One washer on each bolt spaced it out the 1/8" difference that I needed to make up in order for the tensioner pulley & crank balancer pulley to line up.

Photo 6-8: The next three photos show how I modified the factory f-body front alternator bracket. With the short belt mod, the top pulley on the front bracket needs to be removed. That leaves the mounting portion for it sticking up like a sore thumb. I took it into work and cut it off with the band saw. Then I ground the remaining part smooth. Some black spray paint finished it off. The very last photo also shows how much of the lower bolt head had to be cut off in order for the serpentine belt to clear it.

I also used a couple of washers on the two alternator bolts to space it out evenly with the crank balancer pulley.

UPDATE: The Alternator will be moved to the driver's-side cylinder head using a bracket from Speedway Motors. This is necessary to give adequate room for the exhaust piping necessary for the upcoming Turbonetics Turbocharger.

I just read it all up to this point. You have been on keeping on it man. I hope to see you running it this year..

Jeremy, I think we must have both gotten our cars around the same time...I hope to have it running well enough next year to hit a track or two with it :)

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I found a decent RPO J65 10 bolt w/ 3.73 gears for sale on ls1tech that I picked up for the car in July 2009. It came out of a 2001 Trans Am. I added an LPW Racing Products diff girdle & minimum depth brace kit. I have the brackets welded to the housing for the braces, but haven't yet cut them and welded the rod ends on at this point. UPDATE: February 2012 I purchased a Moser 12 Bolt used from the ls1tech classifieds & drove up to Knox, IN, to pick it up. Once it is installed, the 10 bolt mentioned will either be for sale or taken to the scrap yard.

You will also notice that I had a Speedway Motors rear disc brake conversion kit installed on the housing. It came with LT1-era rear discs, and the voices inside my head told me that they would clear the rear wheels once the brake calipers were installed. As you can see from the last photo showing the housing, I ground & ground on the rear caliper until I didn't feel it was worth the risk.

Since the disc brakes didn't work out, I cut the brackets off that I had welded on & swapped out the drum brakes from the factory rear end. My local AutoZone sold me some of their Chinese-made brake drums & a rebuild kit along with some of their made in Mexico brake pads. Guess I'm keeping it "global" whether I like it or not.

No more "one wheel peel" outta this car!

Update: I did find a proper rear disc-brake kit to install on the car, and did so in the Summer of 2018.

More drum brake install pics...

This was my first hands-on experience with drum brakes. Once you get the proper tools, it's not that hard to rebuild. Thankfully, AutoZone also has a low-buck drum brake tool for removing & reinstalling the springs.

Photo #9: Since I removed the emergency brake system from the car, I had two holes on the backing plates for the drum brakes that needed to be covered. If you look closely, you can see the copper-colored nut, washer & bolt that I used to cover the hole.

Last of the drum brake install pics...

Front disc brakes (purchased from JC Whitney) & ARP wheel stud install pics (purchased from Jegs). These are just wheel stud install photos from the front wheels. I did the rear studs at the time of the new rear end install.

I converted all the brake lines from metric to 3/16" lines from Speedway Motors. The brake lines on the rear end were changed over to 3/16" lines at the time of the new rear end install. Right now the only metric part of the braking system is the LS1 master cylinder that I bought used on ls1tech. The factory V6 unit was missing the lid, so the brake fluid wasn't any good when I bought the car. I just ordered a manual brake master cylinder from Midwest Chassis that will be going on the car next Spring.

With the "new to me" rear end in the car, I was now able to properly dial in the BMR Drag Bar (also bought used on ls1tech).

The last five photos are just some miscellaneous engine shots...

In January 2010, I ordered a Spohn driveshaft for the car. It was made specially for my longtail TH400 & factory 10 bolt rear end. When it arrived, it was clear that the slip yoke spline was much larger than what the transmission would accept. So I asked questions & did lots of research on here, and found out that I needed a 27 spline slip yoke. I ordered one from Denny's Driveshaft & swapped it out. In the process of the swap, I damaged some small plastic rings that were on the U-joint. That was a costly error as I had to buy an entire U-joint from my local Napa in order to get those two little pieces....it was a little rough on my wallet, but what's a guy to do? I did this installation on August 31, 2010.

Before I installed it into the car, I shot it with some low buck flat black spray paint.

Tow hooks, Open-ended lug nuts & Summit Racing fuel line

Photo #8: This photo shows the Summit Racing fuel line going into the Aeromotive Fuel Pump (part #11106)

Looks good man. I like the budget theme and it looks like everything has come out pretty nice so far!

Thank you for the kind words!

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My brother is really good at costuming & making props and such, so I had him order an extra piece of polystyrene plastic that he uses in his vacuform machine for me. I made a pattern right off of the inside of the door, and then transferred it to the plastic with permanent marker. It's very lightweight & also very inexpensive. I used sheet metal screws that I sourced from my local Ace Hardware. UPDATE: I will be installing carbon fiber door panels that I purchased from a member on another drag racing-related message board.

Then I purchased 2 yards of Sierra Promo "Charcoal" vinyl from Your Auto Trim Store to cover the panels. I still had plenty of glue from installing the carpet, so I used it to glue the vinyl down.

Photo #1: One sheet of plastic was big enough to do both door panels.

Photo #2: I used sheets of tracing paper that I taped together to make my pattern.

Photo #3: This is the panel for the passenger-side. I marked the areas to be cut with a permanent marker along with the marks indicating where I wanted to drill holes to attach it to the car door.

Photo #6: The opening for the door latch is a little ragged, but sandpaper took care of that. The opening also allows access to the door locks, so I can still lock both doors easily. I just removed the factory lever (with the florescent square) from the rod that unlocks the door. You just reach in and press the rod back to lock it, and use the door key to unlock it.

Photo #10: I attached the armrest panel that houses the power window switches to the lower part of the driver's-side panel. The openings for the power locks were just filled in with plastic cut from part of the hatch area interior panels that I'm not using.

More door panel photos...

Photo #1: Close up of the relocated armrest panel. The armrests were later cut up and tossed in the trash.

Photo #4 & 5: A perk to being single...I used the kitchen floor to glue the vinyl to the plastic panels. Masking tape held the tabs down that I cut so the vinyl would stay tight until the glue dried. Once the glue dried, I then drilled the holes to attach it with.

Photo #6 & 7: These two photos show how I cut the plastic for the power window switches.

Photo #8-10: The completed panels. The Pontiac decal that is behind the door latch was later removed.

Three more door panel photos. I really don't miss the armrests since there is a good lip at the top of the door to grab onto to close it. At some point, I will be installing some metal trim along the tops of both doors. I've got it started, just need to finish them. When I do that, I may invest in some door pulls. Also of note in the first photo...I currently have a B&M Megashifter installed in the car, but next Spring that is coming out & being replaced with a Hurst Quarter Stick Shifter (which to my disappointment is made in China).

And now for the exterior graphics...

I created the artwork in Adobe Illustrator 10 as full-size art. My brother has a vinyl cutter, and he is cutting the decals for me. With Winter upon us, it will be Spring before I can finish them up. He has already cut a few of them for me, and I have most of those already applied to the car.

Photo #4-6: These are actual photos of the car with the graphics applied with my computer.

Photo #7-8: The vinyl, tape & other supplies. The colors are Saffron, Tomato Red & Black

Photo #9: I pieced the large multi-colored decals together in my art studio. This way made it easier & quicker since everything was applied in one shot. The American Flag decal is a pre-printed decal that I bought at my nearby AutoZone.

Photo #10: The start of applying the door decals to the car. I worked with vinyl for many years at a former job, and I enjoyed it. So, this was fun for me!

More decal images...

Photo #1: This isn't the time to be rushing....I make sure the decal is hanging exactly where I want it before any of the backing paper is removed.

Photo #2: Cutting the decal after it's been taped onto the car makes applying it so much easier.

Photo #3: The finished product! My brother also cut the UMI Performance decal on the lower door, my name on the glass, my Open Comp number & the Robinson Family Racing decal on the roof halo.

Photo #4: My logo since 1994.

Photo #5: I thought this was a cool place to put my website address.

Photo #6: My take on the "WS6" logo that gives credit to my brother for the vinyl work.

Photo #7: I even have decals on the inside that he cut for me.

Photo #1-5: Aeromotive Fuel Pressure Regulator (part #13301) mounted on a bracket that I fabricated...

Photo #6 & 7: Short belt mod updated from SLP balancer to factory f-body crank balancer & new Dayco Poly Rib belt (sourced from AutoZone). Belt part number is #5060525. Installed 10/16/10.

Photo #8: A REALLY dry-rotted tire :D New front tires coming in January 2011. I aired this tire up when I rolled the car out of the way in December 2010 for Winter hibernation, and I am so surprised that it didn't pop.

Photo #9 & 10: The threads in the end of the crankshaft for the balancer pulley became so stripped out that I couldn't get a metric crankshaft bolt to grab hold. So, I tapped it for a 3/4" bolt. In order to do that more efficiently, I took the 3/4" tap and welded a 1/2" socket to it so that I could stick a ratchet on it.

Factory LT1 T-56 Transmission Crossmember that I purchased used on ebay. The mounting hole lines up perfectly with the TH400 transmission. I added a 1" spacer to it to take up the space between the trans & the crossmember. I used a leftover piece of rollbar tubing, and welded several washers together before welding them into the end of the pipe. Then I welded the pipe to the crossmember.

Photo #7: This is how the car looks as of December 2010.

Photo #8-10: When I purchased the Duralast battery, it was a side-post battery. The previous battery was a top-post. That presented a small problem with attaching the battery cables to the new battery in such a low location. So, I fabricated a "sub floor" and raised up the battery box. I also modified the battery box to accept the side-post positive battery cable. To the make the sub floor I started by taking a cereal box and creating a template. Then I just transfered that over to the metal I wanted to cut.

The last of the battery photos...

Photo #5: So it's November 2010, and I have a few things to finish up before I can try firing the car. I get the last of the wiring done, and prepare to turn the key over.....and I get nothing. So I retrace all my steps and know that I've done everything correctly (or so I thought). Since all the wiring is correct for the starter circuit, I decided to check out the starter since it smelled a little hot.

The starter was used when I bought it, so I am assuming that it is in working condition. I drop the starter and realize that I screwed up the wiring to it. That really urks me because it's only two freaking wires...how could I screw that up? So I get that fixed with new wiring, and thought I'd better have the starter tested while it's out of the car. So I make the 10 mile trek to the nearest AutoZone, and have them test the starter. I stood there and watched the guy punch in all the info & then hook my starter up. He runs the machine, and up comes "PASSED" in big letters on the screen. I take it home and put it back on the engine...turn the key and still nothing.

By this time I've started a thread in the Conversions & Hybrids forum explaining my dilemma. The wiring is right, the started "passed", so then I'm thinking maybe I should just bypass the factory ignition. So I pick up an aftermarket ignition switch from O'Reilly Auto Parts, and hook it up. Now it should start I say to myself as I turn the key.......but I was wrong. By this time I'm a little aggravated because it's just not making sense. Everything is wired correctly & all the components work (or so I thought). The last straw is to jump the two terminals on the starter to see if it'll do anything at all. With a long piece of rubber hose and a screwdriver stuck in the end, I touched it across both starter terminals. Then I rubbed it across both terminals. I couldn't get it to do anything at all. Alrighty then....I dropped the starter once again & bought a new one at O'Reilly Auto Parts.

I hooked the new starter up, and turned the key......and this time it started! So now how in the world did the machine at AutoZone "pass" a bad starter? hmmm....inquiring minds want to know :bang:

Photo #4: Old starter versus new starter

Photo #5: Aftermarket ignition switch is in the area of the factory HVAC.

Photo #6: The new wiring that I put on the used starter thinking that would solve the no start issue.

Photo #7: Exhaust I fabricated using Summit Racing components. New exhaust will be fabricated as soon as the weather gets nice again.

Nice job!

Thank you!

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With the cage in the car, the interior panels were gonna need some massaging. After it was all said & done, the only panel that wasn't modified in any way was the passenger-side rocker trim. If I didn't just remove it with no plans to replace it, then I did some sort of cutting on it. The knock-off dremel that I have came in very handy for this process. I accidentally ran across a photo that a member on here had posted of the cutout they made to the sail panels. The cutouts were made in order to allow the sail panels to sit properly around the mini tubs. I liked how it was done so much that I copied it.

I cut out aluminum panels and riveted them in place of the speaker grilles since I thought keeping the speaker grilles would look funny without a radio in the car. Then I just spray-painted them black.

The upper dash panel had to be cut where the front cage bars come through.

The hatch area panels end at the rear bulkhead.

The A-pillar panels used to continue on back to the sail panels, but I had to cut them because I fit the cage to the roof as tightly as I could.

Photo #1: The upper dash panel required a couple notches in the ends to clear the forward cage bars.

Photo #2: One of the sail panels covered up so the aluminum "block off" panels can be spray-painted black.

Photo #3-7: Installation of the modified interior panels. I had to be very careful to not scratch the painted roll cage.

Photo #8: Summit Racing Helmet Hook

Photo #9 & 10: I relocated the third brake light since I was afraid the factory location would be hard to see for some vehicles with the Ed Quay spoiler installed. I ordered the brake light from JC Whitney.

cool thread, nice job!:D

Since GM never intended for us to modify the hell out of these cars, there are a few "short cuts" they took for mass assembly that stick out like a sore thumb after certain modifications are made.

When I fabricated the door panels, I discovered a section of the passenger-side door that had primer on it. Since the primer was gray and not body-colored, I assume it's from the collision repair work done early in the car's life. So to fix it I just masked off the area and shot it with some white spray paint. There was a similar unpainted area on the driver's-side door too.

At the front of the door, there is a section that is open for access to the mirror wiring and attachment bolts. Since my door panels don't wrap over the top of the door, this area stuck out. I bent up a couple pieces of metal & shot them with white paint. They are made in such a way that the door panels screws hold them in place.

The plastic piece that covers the mirror screws doesn't extend far enough down for my tastes after removing the factory door panels, so I made some extensions out of cardboard, and fiberglassed over them. Once cured and trimmed to fit, I sprayed them with a textured spray paint and then a top coat of black spray paint.

Photo #9 & 10: This was the first paint scheme idea that I came up with for the car. I've wanted a vehicle with flames on it for a very long time now, and doing my own version of the Firebird hood decal worked in my favor. So, the color scheme changed to white, red & orange.

Thanks!

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Since I did get the car to fire before Old Man Winter hit, that made it easier to cover the car up for it's Winter Hibernation. I had this car cover last year, but waited too late to get it put on. This year I've got the car cover on & a battery tender to take care of the new battery. These three photos were taken December 17, 2010.

Here is a collection of stuff that was gutted & gotten rid of in some fashion...

Are you gonna run it with the 4.8 stock first? That would be interesting.

It's no longer completely stock. Camshaft, rocker arms, valve springs & pushrods have been upgraded.

This is the very truck that my engine came out of.....the owner pulled the 4.8L and swapped in a 6.0L. The truck is a 2004 Regency RST Silverado.

To come up with the paint scheme, I took a charcoal pencil and sketched the flames down the side of the car. Then I took detailed measurements of each section of flame, and then used those measurements to make full-size computer-generated artwork to use with a vinyl cutter.

(UPDATE: The most up-to-date versions of the decals installed can be seen in Post #287)

I thought I'd post some photos of the modifications that I did to the underside of the hood. I wanted to make sure it would easily clear the Edelbrock intake elbow.

As I've already mentioned, the steel hood is being replaced by a fiberglass version.

Photo #1: This is the original hood that came on my '00 Trans Am. That scorched area is from the engine fire the car suffered in July 2007. I found an exact replacement for that car from a guy in the Chicago area, so that left this hood for use on my '95 'bird.

Photo #5: After cutting the center section out of the hood, the structural integrity was lost, so I welded a piece of steel rod along the inside of the hood. That strengthened it up quite nicely.

Photo #9: Since the exterior of the car was already painted at this point, I wanted to protect it from overspray. I used low-buck white spray paint to finish the underside of the hood.

Photo #10: The finished product. I'm very pleased with how this turned out, but can't wait to have the extended pin-on hood on the car so I can ditch my modified windshield cowl panels. More on those later...

UPDATE: Using a modified VFN Fiberglass Hood on the car now.

Installation of Aeromotive Fuel Pump (part #11106)

Photo #1-3: The fuel filters on either side of the fuel pump are Russell brand that I purchased from Summit Racing.

Photo #4: This photo doesn't show the return fuel line that is now installed on the car. At the time this photo was taken, the AN fitting on the fuel cell was just capped off.

Photo #5: This is a 24" pre-assembled Jegs braided hose. I'm not good at making my own hoses with AN fittings, so I purchased pre-assembled lengths whenever possible.

Photo #7: I made this guard out of heavy gauge aluminum & made it removable for access to the fuel pump.

Santa dropped off new front tires, electric exhaust cut outs & an SLP air lid today :)

Scott, those primer area's you see inside the doors are factory. It is very common to see that. They do not need to spray behind the door panels. It will not rust. Saves paint.

I like how you made caps for the hood brace. It boxes it in. Does it flex when you open and close the hood?

That makes sense about the spots behind the doors.

The hood was pretty flimsy until I welded the piece of round bar to the edge. I cut it as long as I possibly could, and still be able to snake it inside the open ends. I did put a slight curve in it. Then I put some tension to it when I clamped it in place. I expected some flex to it, but didn't end up with much at all.

Just read entire thread! Nice man!

Have you made passes with the 4.8/single plane?

Thank you!

Nope, I just got the car to fire late last month....it's hibernating right now. Next Spring I'll go back at it.

wth that intake and cam, how high do u plan on turning the stock 4.8?
wonerding about rod bolts....

Nothing big to update the thread with since the car is outside and under a snow-covered car cover.

I do have new interior panels & a upper dash pad for it.

The new VFN extended hood is at the freight terminal. I just need to go pick it up. Then I'll have to start planning the fabrication of the dzus fastener rails.

Update: Went and picked the hood up on January 24th.

check out racecraft inc... for the rails

I have previously. They only offer them for Camaros. The Firebird fenders arch up more, so the Camaro versions won't work.

I can easily fabricate them much cheaper than buying them.

Fabricated dzus rail fasteners for my car this week. I used the mounting pads from two Jegs kits. The fender rails mount using the existing fender bolts. The mounts for the front edge of the hood will need to have holes drilled & tapped for mounting. I have a mount in the beginning stages for the rear of the hood, but chances are I won't be able to complete it until after the hood has been trimmed & test-fitted.