Hello friends, A friend of mine just bought a LT1 WS6 Trans Am, and after hearing it and driving it, I am really considering putting one of these cars in my drive way. however, instead of a Trans Am, I am thinking about a 1992-96 with either the LT1 or LT4 (if i can find/afford it). A big deal for me is the ability to work on it. I asked he same question about LS equipped cars and now im wondering the same about the LT motors. I know that the LS motors perform better and wont have the optispark issue but I figured they are cheaper and still worth looking at. so my question is how easy is an LT1/LT4 corvette to work on when it comes to spark plugs, heads, cam, intake,etc. Any help would be appreciated.

 

Lt1's are not too bad to work on. Having owned both, lt1 and ls1. I prefer working on the ls1. It's a simplified setup. Especially when dealing with corvettes, I prefer a c5 to a c4 anyday. The lt1 follower are dedicated so the lt1 vs ls1 is very sided but I have had both and the ls1 is an upgrade. Also if you do plan on modifying the engine, the ls1 market has a larger following which provides more options.

 

Most people can agree the the LS is a step up from the Lt setup. Most people.... Although the reverse block/heads cooling works excellent if you plan on running boost. IMO. Staying Lt though, I would go for the 94-95 because computer tuning is a breeze comparatively.

 

Long tube headers are a pain on an lt1 fbody. Changing the plugs is somewhat a pain as well since some/most of them are easier to reach from underneath the car, others from up top. But I would imagine a Vette would be a little bit better due to the whole hood lifting away from the bay? Of course changing the distributor, or even working on it for that matter is a chore. Front of block, BEHIND the water pump, new seals required if removed and improvised installation tool required. But you said you knew of the opti woes. I'm sure some c4 owner will chime in with better details.

 

Everything about WORKING on them goes to the ls1. No distributor, no emissions (on some), plugs and wires are easy to access, easy water pump access, easier header installs, easier cam swap, bullet proof ignition system, no water pump drive seal to leak, easier to remove intake and fuel injectors, all aluminum engine, better flowing heads from factory, higher lift heads with an overall higher lift potential, endless aftermarket parts selection. I'm sure I'm forgetting something.

 

LS1 is definitely easier to work on, as far as what you get it all depends on what you have to spend and whats most important to you. As for the Vette I agree if you could swing it get a C5, it was a clean sheet build over the C4 model and does a lot of things much better. Also like the others have mentioned the LS market is much more supported. Though Ive owned 2 LT1's in the past and it is hard to beat that sound and low down grunt.

 

4th gens suck to work on. There is just no room under the hood to make it "easy" to work on. Easy to work on to me would be a 1969 Camaro or nova. A 3rd gen is much easier to work on then a 4th gen especially for modding.

As said above, the LS cars are much easier to work on then the LT cars. Headers, spark plugs, wires, opti, etc are all more work on the LT cars.

 

I have a 1995 Z28 and a 2002 Z28. If you are looking for a daily driver car get the LS1. It will cost more but its faster than the LT1, about mid to high 13 seconds in the 1/4 in stock form. The LS1 engine is also easier to work on than the LT1.

 

Agreed!!!!!

The 96 & 97 LT1's aren't too bad to work with, and the 92 & 93 years are somewhat primitive and logistically speaking, almost impossible to find good support.

But the 94 & 95 model years are, as mentioned, a relative breeze to work with. I would strongly advise that you aim at those years.....and completely strike the 92 & 93 models off your list unless you find one primo condition that you will NEVER do any changes to.

KW

 

94-95 LT1's will have "stall wall" issues with the automatic trans if your making real good power.. It can be tuned out but good luck finding someone who know how to get rid of it.. My vote goes to a 96-97 LT1 with the upgraded opti and if you ever get a check engine light you can use any hand held code reader to see what's going on.. The LS1 is nice if you can afford it..

 

My first car was a L98 1987 trans am GTA, then came a 1994 camaro z28 6 speed I had for a few years. Then later a 1994 Trans am auto, and now a 1995 corvette 6 speed.

I pretty much started working on cars with my lt1 fbody (94 z28). I did pacesetter long tube headers to it and some other exhaust mods, the rest was done befor me. My 94 trans am I did a cam swap, long tube headers, ls1 lid, valvetrain...did the lifters twice.

As far as working on them I am used to it. I like my Lt1's, Ive never had an opti failure either. Even if it does fail its not really THAT hard of a job to change it, its just the process is a bit more in depth compared to a distributer or coil packs.

The corvette has its plus and minus's over the fbody's. The engine isnt under the cowl, so you can easily access everything thats a PITA on a fbody. The minus is that they crammed a lot in there! I did the clutch master/clutch slave and a new braided line. The zf6 has advantages over the t56 in the fbody in that area since its all external on the transmission.

Things like a tune up should be easier for the corvette, since you can see all the plugs lol, some of them on the fbodys just blow, it seems something like 7 plugs will take you 30 minutes and the last 1 will take you an hour. I remember one SUCKING with stock manifolds.

The intake is old school compared to the LS engines, requiring gasket sealer on the front and back, prone to leaking. But its all fairly easy to take apart. not sure if its been mentioned but shbox.com is extremely helpful as well.

I love my 95 corvette, its said out of the 92-96 the 95/96 are the ones to buy. They come with larger front disc brakes standard and a few other amenities have had the bugs worked out. But things like the HVAC unit may need contacts cleaned, weather stripping is starting to rot as well on these older cars.

Corvetteforum.com has a great c4 section that is very active, way more then this lt1/lt4 section so there is a lot more going on over there. Most problems have been solved, and they like to help out over there with telling people what to pay and what to look for in a used c4.

I just did a 970 mile trip, got back yesterday. corvette didnt miss a beat and got 27.3mpg! bone stock except for muffler eliminators. I have changed all the fluids myself as well, very easy. I prefer the access under the hood compared to the fbody, but some things are more cramped. You can put on front shocks with the front wheels and tires still on the car, I installed speed bleeders on the brakes with the wheels still on. All in all its been the more friendly car to work on so far compared to the fbodys. Kyb shocks are cheap as hell, about 130$ for all 4 but they are a great road shock. Bilstiens are a bit more at around 330$ but thats still fairly cheap.

The downfall to the corvette is its IRS. A fbody will smoke the tires with its single axle, the corvette grips and goes, but donuts in the rain/wet are super easy and crazy fun since you are at the back of the car getting flung around. Its a toss up, you may find the c4 doesnt fit you as a person/driver. I barely fit in it at 6'3 and I hit my head all the time on the targa top lol, people say I look like I shouldn't be able to drive it since the roof is so low. If it were a 6 speed fbody vs a automatic corvette id get the 6 speed for sure. Btw all Lt4 corvettes are 6 speed. I love how driver orientated the car is compared to the fbody. The radios suck though, most with a bose system will be junk and thats a major pain. I literally built a box for a radio and put it in the hatch because the interior is so small it sucks to do anything inside the car! the bose needs an amp integration harness, the one you buy is 17 ft long (**** you not, its mass produced for cadillacs and big sedans..and the corvette) but the corvette only needs it to be run 3-4 feet so you have like 14 ft of wire in your way while trying to do it! I gave up lol.

Anyway sorry for the novel but yea, if you find one you like you should post it up if you are unsure if its a good deal or a good car

 

As much as it sucks to work on lt1 fbodies, I always find myself saying "I wish this car was an LT1 f body" when working on a different car. Once you get used to it, it's actually pretty easy and simple to work on.

I think it's one of the last simple muscle cars of our era as far as electronics and mechanics goes if you compare it to the old muscle cars days.

 

Bone stock any v8 in a tiny car will give you scars on your hands and wrists. Take off the emissions and HVAC crap and all of a sudden it's the easiest car to work on. Once the front shroud is off and the radiator is out, and long tubes and no HVAC, you can get to anything in no time and no blood.

 

Once I installed my Hooker long tubes, removed the A/C, power steering, lowered my alternator, removed the brake booster, and anti lock brake crap, there is plenty of room!

But seriously, having built several LT and LS cars... it would be LS all the way if you can afford a little more. In the end, you will be running quicker for less money. It all depends what you want out of it.

Good luck on your search!
Jon

 

All the oil leaks on my lt1 have been a pain. Literally replaced every external engine and transmission gasket as a winter project.

 

And it will still leak. Haha I had my engine rebuilt and it still leaks after I replaced every single gasket and seal. I hate lt1s.

 

Getting rid of stall wall is easy, simple as setting the 1-2 shift mph to 0 and making it shift solely based on rpm. All it is, is the vss temporarily losing signal and going to limp mode.

 

When I got my 95 Z28 the oil pan was bone dry with no oil leaks anywhere. It still doesn't have any engine oil leaks. I am pretty sure the engine was replaced at some time since the LT1 engines are known to have the oil leaks for high mileage.

 

So that's why I bleed. Goodbye then emissions crap...