Broke&Stupid

Hello All:

I'm a new member and new to third gen camaros. I bought an 87 Iroc-Z and am looking to document the restoration. My goals are:

• LS1 and T56 swap
  • I've been reading posts on this site for a while now, and I've gotten a ton of good info from the stickies, so thank you to everybody that wrote those.
• Supercharger
  • It seems like a lot of people on here are fans of Procharger kits, so I was thinking of going that route unless there are better options available
• 12-Bolt rear end
  • Based on reading this seems like the common choice for cars making considerable horsepower\

My goal as of right now is something around 600-700 horsepower. I am looking to build a good handling street car that doesn't shake itself apart when I stomp on the gas.

Now here are my questions for now (I'm sure there will be MANY more):

• Do I need to do anything besides what is listed above to stiffen up the body? I'd read that people have installed 2 sets of SFCs (Spohns and Alstons). Is this a common thing that people do or is this overkill? Again, from reading it sounds like I need SFCs, a wonderbar, a strut tower brace, and potentially a 6-point roll cage to stiffen up the unibody.
• What other aspects of the car do I need to be worried about breaking with a supercharged engine?
• What parts are worth investing in to maximize the reliability of the engine? I'm looking to invest in a F Body LS1 and T56 complete takeout assembly so I'd like to freshen up the setup when I get it.
• Are there any transmission upgrades to beef up a T56? Coming from Cummins engines there were a million companies that beefed up Dodge transmissions to hold power. Is it the same thing with these engines and trans?
• As far as suspension, are there portions worth upgrading? I see Hawk's sells a bunch of different tubular A-arms, LCA relocation brackets, etc. Are these parts needed for a street car or are they mostly reserved for strip cars?
• K member: if I don't want to keep the A/C (I don't. It's a T Top car that won't leave the garage unless the weather is nice) can I use the stock K member or is it worth the money to get a tubular K member from Hawk's?
• What engine, fuel, air upgrades are needed to run a supercharger to achieve my horsepower goal? Injectors, fuel pump, etc.

Thanks in advance for any help on this. I'm looking forward to documenting this. Pics of Day 1 are below. I'm all ears for any and all advice on this. Thanks again!

ShiftyCapone

iTrader: (7)

Welcome aboard. Here are some answers for you in no particular order. Take some time to search and dig into each of the topics below. You have a very big goal for your car but you might want to break it down in stages and do a little at a time. I'll assume you haven't won the lottery or are friends with Royalty so unless you have $50k+ to drop into this car, you will have to build it in stages.

Chassis
Since you are basically starting from ground zero I would go directly to the Detroit speed sub frame connectors. They are the best option for these cars as they truly tie both sub frames together. There is considerable fab work but well worth it in the end.

Suspension
There is nothing really magical about tubular A-arms and or k-members other than they reduce weight and increase clearance (exhaust, ext). At the minimum you are going to want to fully rebuild your front end from the steering system to all bushings and struts/shocks. A wonder bar (steering brace) and strut tower brace help a lot with stiffening up the front of the car.

Brakes
You left this off your list but you must address the stock brakes. Stock 3rd brakes are garbage and are even more garbage when you have 600+ hp. Refer to Scott at Big Brake Upgrade. For that power level I would skip any 4th gen or basic stock vette set-up and go right for Z51, CTSV, or Z06 brakes. Your life depends on it.

Fuel System
Injectors will depend on your final engine combo. It is more than likely that your stock tank has seen better days. I would invest in a new replacement tank with at least a 340LPH in tank fuel pump. The factory wiring will not provide enough juice to run this, so start looking into rewiring your system with thicker gage wiring and or look at hot kits. You could also skip that and buy the Aeromotive tank system for these cars along with their wiring/relay kit.

Engine
To get 700hp out of a stock LS1 will take a decent amount of boost (unless you go turbo). You might want to research various builds/dyno results of members on LS1Tech.com. An LS1 might not be the best choice, whereas a cheaper truck 6.0 LY6 might be better. Get ready to read, and read, and read. LS engines come in all shapes and sizes and each have their pluses and minuses. You might want to invest in a built shortblock to ensure longevity of your motor.

Rear End
No doubt the 12 bolt is strong, but it is better suited for an automatic car. I would skip all rear ends and go right for the ford 9 inch. Its double pinion bearing support takes the abuse of the way a manual trans delivers power (shock loads). Refer to Midwest chassis and or Brute speed.

Trans
The T56 is a great platform but not really suited in stock trim for your power level. I would look into buying (or send yours out) to be rebuilt and beefed up, or just buy a T56 Magnum from Tremec. The cost of entry is high, but if you lack a trans now it could be the cheaper route. Don't forget a clutch, a twin disk will be in your future.

This is a lot to digest and you will spend the next forever reading and reading. Its honestly my best advice, whether it takes months or years. If I were you, I would get the little things fixed on the car in order to get the platform ready. Forget the engine for the time being. You will overwhelm yourself with what you want. Start small. Work on the chassis, suspension and brakes. Fix the crap that is busted now. While you are doing this stuff which is bolt on in nature (no need to figure out complex swap stuffs) you can read up on various LS combos and what makes them tick. 700hp is very doable with the LS, but there are 3859359375835873 ways to do it. Some of those ways are stupid, and some are well thought out. When you finally decide on an engine, don't be afraid to add boost later. Get the swap running before you add more variables to your equation. A 400hp driving car is a million times more fun than a theoretical 700hp car.

Broke&Stupid

You are THE MAN. Thank you! This is exactly the kind of starter info I'm looking for. I am banking on this taking several years to complete, so it'll definitely be done in stages. I'm thinking if I can knock out the suspension/chassis and maybe pick up an engine and transmission it would be a successful year. Next year would be freshening up the engine, and so on and so forth. Unless it's an obvious waste of money I don't plan on going cheap for anything. This has been a goal of mine since I was a kid and I want to make everything as perfect as I can.

This is my first attempt at a full blown restoration but I've always preferred fixing something myself rather than buying new. I feel like I have a better feel for something that way.

So far taking all the information in on this has been like drinking from a fire hydrant but I'm looking forward to the challenge and I'll do my best to keep up to date with this thread.

ShiftyCapone

iTrader: (7)

It will start to come together the more you read and the more youtube videos you watch. It can be a lot to chew so focus on one part of your project at a time. You won't master it all at once, none of us do. Pick one thing at a time on your project and stay focused on that. Read about it until you see trends and truly understand. You will save time and money. There is nothing that you will do to your car that isn't covered on this site. We are hear to help, enjoy the ride!

Broke&Stupid

Some progress has been made on the 87. A buddy and I were able to get the interior pretty much completely ripped out a couple weekends ago. Everything was pretty well destroyed and needed to be tossed. I kept the plastics for the most part but all the carpet is goneski.




Progress on yanking the engine is a little more painstaking. We have all of the parts taken off under the hood and should be able to pull the block out this weekend or next.



Before I keep going, I was wondering if anybody knew if there are any parts/accessories off the original engine that were worth keeping as long as they aren’t junk to begin with?

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

Depending upon what engine mounts you do, the stock clamshells can be used on the LS with adapter plates.

The power steering hoses will hook up to the LS power steering pump with some minor bending.

Other than that, not much else will be useful.

You might consider unbolting the K-member from the frame and lifting the body off of the engine/transmission/K-member. The LS will go on the K-member much easier that way. Doesn't make much difference if you're going with a tubular K-member, but if you're going with a tubular K-member, you might as well drop out the factory K-member now...

Broke&Stupid

I appreciate the heads up! What I'm hearing is that basically nothing is useful. Good to know because we were NOT gentle removing parts lol

As far as the engine removal goes, we are officially done with the drivetrain! We pulled the transmission crossmember off and pulled everything out over the front bumper. Having a skidsteer and cherry picker made it much easier.




I'm ready to start buying some parts I believe. I'm looking at SFCs, and there's a dozen models to choose from. I'm going for weld in models, but that's about all I know. I know the first post recommended Detroit Speed, but there looks to be a ton of cutting on the floorpan involved, and I'm wondering if the Detroit Speed parts are going to be stronger than the ones that don't require that much cutting. Can anyone weigh in on the subject?​

dixiebandit69

I used UMI subframe connectors.

Here's my SFC install thread.

Broke&Stupid

Alright, some parts have finally been ordered for this car. I'm finding out just how quickly I can put myself in the poor house. In the next couple of weeks depending on the weather we should have Detroit Speed Subframe Connectors installed as well as the Hawk's front end service kit. My goal this year is to have the suspension completed. I know a Ford 9-inch rear was named as a potential rear end, but digging a little deeper it seems like several people with cars similar to what I'm looking to build have put in Dana 60s. I've read a dozen or so forum posts, articles, etc. and people seem pretty split between the 2 rears. Can anyone weigh in on which one may be better suited for my application? I'd appreciate any input.

As far as building the suspension, the parts list I'm starting to put together looks something like:

• Spohn front and rear sway bars
• Hawk's Non-adjustable wonderbar
• Hawk's adjustable panhard bar and adjustable LCAs
• Ground Control front and rear weight jack kits with Koni shocks/struts
  • I'm not sure about a spring rate, so if anyone has any input on what that should be, feel free to throw it out there
• Spohn Pro Series Adjustable Torque Arm with Relocation Bracket
• Big Brake C7 Z51 front brake kit
  • For the rears, it seems like I'll need to find a kit that works with the Strange 60. Can anyone confirm what kind disc brake upgrade I can use that will work with their rear end?
• Detroit Speed steering shaft kit
• Hawks street style 6-point bolt in roll cage

I put this list together so I could ask the internet 2 questions:

1. Is there anything that is missing from the list that I should consider researching? Or are there any other options out there that I should look at for these parts? My goal is to finish the year by purchasing the rear end.
2. Is there any particular order that these should be installed? Obviously if I can avoid installing something only to find out it needs taken off to install another part, that would be ideal.

Thanks in advance!

ShiftyCapone

iTrader: (7)

What transmission are you running? If it's a manual the ford 9" is the way to go. Automatics are easier on rears and your choices are plenty.

scooter

iTrader: (11)

Big brake upgrade dot com has a lot of options on brakes for front and rear. If you're buying a new rear axle setup you can have them put what ever ends/flanges you want a buy the rear brake kit that you want to match the front

Broke&Stupid

I'm not questioning what you're saying, I was just hoping to find a unanimous decision from multiple people saying that the 9" is better. It seems like a pretty even split as far as I can tell on who says what is better. Also, I finally did some real digging on the brute speed page and now I'll have to give them a closer look since it seems like they build pretty stout equipment. Someone should definitely tell them to consider updating their website though.... but between them and Midwest Chassis they do seem to offer the most complete setups for the 9"

ShiftyCapone

iTrader: (7)

I asked because the 9" is different than all the other style rears. Its double pinion support design can take the repeated abuse and shock loads that a manual trans exerts on the driveline. It also allows you to run fixed rear break calipers using many various housing ends that can have brackets made for (Kore3, BBU). The center section can also be removed relatively easy if you need a different gear for the track. You can also get it in a "fabricated form" which costs a little more but provides better clearance and reduced weight.

I am not as versed in the other rear ends other than they are heavy, and are typically better suited or automatic cars. Many still have floating axles and you have to run floating calipers. Take a look at Quick Performance too. They too have a competitive 9" package.