Hello, I have an 1984 camaro berlinetta. Originally it was a 2.8 v6 but I went and put a fresh 355 in the car and now need to swap out the old 6 cylinder transmission and rear end for a rear end and tranny from a 1986 trans am(v8). When I do this I want to change all the nessesary mounts and bushings etc, including the torque arm insulator and rear sway bar bushing set. Can someone please advise me of what bushings etc I will need when I do this swap. Here we go, added a picture of my baby, looking forward to taking her for a drive when her alterations are all finished, please help me out if you can, thanks alot guys.ONTHEDOWNLOW

Will your budget allow you to install new & or rebuilt components? If not, and your trying to live within a budget (like most of us) then really the only upgrade you need to start with is the transmission. Even here you can be conservative with a reman unit. All the other stuff is fluff unless your ready to and can afford the upgrades. Here also with a little searching you can find better than your OE stuff by searching through wrecking yards for a good used 3rd or 4th gen limited slip rear end. The same is true with the sway bars harvested from TransAms or Z28's. You might even pickup an OE wonder bar if your doing this on the cheap. Otherwise, plan on spending some money on good aftermarket suspension components and a built transmission, if that's the ultimate direction of your plan.

Good luck and Welcome to TGO.

BTW, be sure to check out the sponsers on this site!

Welcome to TGO. Here's a start:

http://www.spohn.net/shop/1982-1992-...s-Accessories/

JamesC

First off thanks a ton for the fast responses guys, just amazing! To answer your question, I am planning on using the transmission from my 86 trans-am. The transmission and rear end are in good shape on the trans am, so I should be good to go there, more interested in making sure that I have everything when I go to do the job, preparation is half the job, not sure what transmission is in the trans am, I know it is a 5 speed standard and that the engine is a V8. What aftermarket suspension components are you referring to?? Are you speaking of the rear sway armn bushings etc? Thanks again for your help everyone.

ONTHEDOWNLOW

[quote=onthedownlow;4136950]What aftermarket suspension components are you referring to?[quote]

There are many pieces. Surf the Spohn site above and you'll have a better idea of what's available.

JamesC

Energy Suspension offers a long listing of polyurethane products. Prothane, P-S-T, MOOG and others offer poly products that might suit your needs. Check out their on-line web sites.

In addition to the Sphon products, also check out UMI and BMR. Open the link below to view & shop several great products.
http://www.lmperformance.com/

Many of these products are also available for purchase from Summit Racing.

But as for your swap, you might want to add poly motor mounts and skip the bushings for the OE lower control arms and simply upgrade to an aftermarket set. Replace the OE panhard rod with an adjustable unit if you plan to lower the car in the future and replace the wimpy OE torque arm with a Spohn, UMI, or BMR unit of your choice.

Have fun