I have always been into 4th gen f-bodies but this is by far the biggest project that I have ever taken on. This is also going to be my first turbo car so I have a lot of learning to do and I am hoping everyone on here will be able to help me along.

A little background on the car, it is a 2000 SS that a friend of mine had owned since around 2002. He and I used to run around back in the day in it when it was a cam only nitrous car. As we grew up, I went off to college and we lost touch. Unfortunately, he hurt the motor and the car was stuffed away in a barn and he lost interest in it. The car sat for 4 or 5 years until we got back in touch and he asked me if I’d be willing to try and sell it for him if he got it running again. Over the next year or so I started showing some interest in it as turbo LS cars were really started becoming more common. Well, we struck a deal and now I have a pretty heavily modified/caged roller SS.

The car has:
6 Pt Wolfe Rollcage
Moser M9 9” with aluminum center section
Every suspension piece that BMR offers
Willwood brakes up front and back
HAL QA1s
Amongst boxes of other parts.



So the plans for the car are:

Motor/Trans
Stock (99) 5.3 with Stock 241 Heads with PRC .650 Springs
ARP Head Studs
LS9 Gaskets
Custom Pat G cam
LS7 Lifters
LS6 Intake
4L80E with Jakes Parts
Not sure what stall?

Turbo Kit
Huron Speed T4 A/C Kit
Turbonetics 7575 Billet Turbo

Fuel
ID1000 Injectors
Squash Performance Hat with Dual Walbro 450’s
-8AN Feed/-6AN Return
Holley Fuel Rails

I'd like to make around 650 and I am probably going to be running 93 Oct.

Here are some pictures of when I went to go look at the car before I bought it:












Then here are the pics after a quick wash the day I brought it home:





I washed and buffed a small section of the fender just to see how the paint was going to come out. Not bad.



I started picking up parts pretty quickly:

I sold the cowl it had on it and found a black VFN Sunoco hood locally.




Had to get a different k-member for the turbo setup.



Ive always loved the look of these headlights on black cars.



The home for the camaro is going to be about 45 minutes north of where we live. My father in law had a barn build up on their property.



Once I got the camaro up there what better way to move it around than with a tractor!



My first drive in it, LOL



Tucked away inside the barn.



Got my oil lines tapped into my oil pan thanks to Jon at Huron.



Assembled my 5.3 after having it cleaned. New bearings, crank was cleaned, new rings, LS9 head gaskets, 241 heads, new oil pump, timing chain, all new gaskets.



My huron kit came in!




My wife and I had our first child! What better way to welcome him into this world than next to a turbo?



Got the intercooler mounted up.



And where I am today, front bumper cut.



So, if you've made it through my pictures, I hope that this thread will keep me going on it and provide a place to ask questions. As of right now I am trying to figure out what to do with my coolant cross over lines. I've seen so many different schools of thought on this that I'm not sure what to do. What do you guys think?

 

This is gonna be an awesome street car man, can't wait to hear it spool up next to the buicks window

 

Should be a very cool build. Thumbs up for saving it!

 

im building my own cross over kit with a 4 port vacum block and billet adapters on the heads with the barb fittings. should work pretty good.
the plan is to join the back and front ports and plumb it to the top radiator hose. if you want send me your phone Numbers to send you a picture of the set up.
David

 

Got the gas tank dropped today in preparation for my squash performance dual 450 setup.

 

David,

I would like to see that. Could you email me?

dbaker1016 @ comcast . net

 

sure thing, I will do that tomorrow man, I am working right now. keep updating your posts, I am following this until completed. Looking good.

 

My squash performance order came in yesterday.

Billet Hanger with 2 Walbro 450's, Wiring harness, and hobbs switch. Everything on here is top notch!




I also got my rails in.



Now I need to order my lines, fittings, and fuel pressure regulator. Any recommendations on the FPR?

 

What type of headlights are those? Mine are starting to look dingy on the outside and I have been looking at something a little different than OEM to try.

 

Depo lights from Amazon.

 

Awesome, thanks!

 

You will have a blast with it. Might be tough to get THAT dyno number your wanting with that set-up. Especially on pump/no meth. We have a car at our shop with a nearly identical size turbo, rear end, and a built 60e stall and unlocked at 15psi-ish he is at 565.The important thing is that it will RUN hard. So don't sweat the dyno numbers.

 

Good point! What sort of traps are you guys seeing in the 1/4? That will be the main thing I'm looking for.

 

Great buy on getting the car, looks nice man. Defiantly following your build.

 

I had a few minutes tonight to mess around in the garage and I came up on a few snags.

First off, I am using the stock 241 heads from my NBM SS on the 5.3 for the black SS and its been 4 years or so since I took them off. I went to bolt my turbo manifolds on and I have a broken header bolt stuck in the head.



So I only got the passenger side bolted on until I can get that out.

I also got new gaskets for the front and rear covers and I was having trouble getting the old one out. Whats the best way to do this?



I know it isn't much of an update, but I wont be able to do hardly anything with it the next 2 weeks because of work and travel.

 

Looking forward to this one coming together! Be sure to let me know if you need anything along the way and I'd be happy to help however possible,

Jon

 

Thanks for all your help so far Jon!

Any recommendations on Steam ports?

 

1st off, congrats on the "barn find"!! I wish I had some barns around me with a treasure inside like that. On the timing chain cover crankshaft oil seal, I use a tiny crow bar that has a 90' hook on it. The other option is to grab two 2x4's, place them on the ground with a space in the middle for the seal to pop out. Put the cover on them face down, with the oil seal in the gap. Then take a screwdriver and hammer, and lightly tap it out from inside the cover going out.

 

Looks like the beginning of a great build. Congrats !!!

 

Thanks for the advice, it sounds like I wasn't using enough force! I will give this a go tonight.