Yeah, I know....who would want to, right? The 2.8 in my 89 firebird locked up. My son and I have the 2.8 out, and I bought an 81 Monte real cheap with a 267 and what I assume to be a TH 350. I would like to keep the 5 speed, but all of my buddies have told me either "there ain't no way" or it would be too expensive.

We've got the 267 & it's tranny hanging from the motor stand right now, but I guess I wanted to try one more time to find out for sure before we take the 5 speed out of the 'bird. I was thinkin' (yeah, a dangerous thing for me) that I ought to be able to find a bellhousing to make this swap, but no one around here knows for sure. (Like maybe out of an S10 or something?)

2 things that I know I don't have is enough money or know-how to pull this off with great success, but I don't have much choice....I've got 3 vehicles in my yard and still can't get to the grocery store. We've been without a car for almost a week now, so the situation is getting critical.

Thanks in advance for your help and for enduring yet another V6 to V8 question!

does the original engine have the 60* bell bolt pattern? i beleive it does. if the new engine has the same bolt pattern i don't think there's any reason the 5 speed wouldn't bolt up to it. make sure the crank is drilled for a pilot bearing and that it has one. the auto trans ought to be the th200, has metric stamped in the pan. i'm not very knowledgeable about anything and v6 f bodys in particular. you might want to ask on the v6 board.

The 267 is a 90* V8. The 2.8 is a 60* V6 they bellhousings dont interchange. I dont remember when I had my T5 out if they have a removable bellhousing. If they do, just find a V8 bellhousing for the 267, they;re the regular D pattern.

here's what to do:

(follow these directions exact and you will be happy with the results)

get a V8 T5 bellhousing> YES they do have a seperate bellhousing

get the correct flywheel for the engine, there is a limit though on how big of a flywheel you can fit with the bellhousing.........so just get a flywheel for a 2 piece rear main seal (83-85) T5 Small Block Chevy

get the pressure plate to match

get this clutch from McLeod:

10 inch clutch, 14 spline 1 inch hub

(thats the key part in the swap)

and a V8 pilot bearing

all in all about $400 worth of parts

That's exactly what I needed to know, thanks so much for your help!

I'm gonna have to do some diggin' and scraping to get it all together, but at least now I know what I need.

Just in case I can't pull it off, is there anything I need to be aware of if I end up having to put the automatic that came with the 267 in my car? I think it is a TH350c (has a big MV4) stamped on it. I am wondering about driveshaft fit, etc.

Again, thanks so much! If I knew where ya lived I'd bring you a big batch of cookies or a home-made apple pie for helping me out!

hehe no problem

glad i could hep


if you have ANY questions, please feel free to ask!

heres one

2

me with the old wheels

and heres one of my 87 Z28

SWHEEEEET!
I had an '80 Z....she ROCKED! (A moment of silence as I bow my head................May she rest in peace.)

Here's an update on the V6 - V8 swap: Severe lack of cash (gotta buy the kids' school supplies :0 ) pretty much limited my options. Put the 81 Monte 267 engine and auto tranny in the Firebird today. Got it lowered in and the motor mounts secured......The driveshaft I have is too short. Which should have been obvious to me, with the engine sitting more forward.

And when the engine was finally dropped off the other day, it seems to have lost it's carb somewhere. I would say it is a pretty safe bet it's sitting in the ex-boyfriend's new girl's car.

So, looks like I'll be walking for a little while yet while I get everything gathered up. Going to check out a wrecked Formula tomorrow. Maybe it will have what I need.

Thanks again.