First off, if there is any website that's got good info for LT1 swaps, I'd appreciate it. I've already checked out the stickies too.
Ok, I picked up an LT1 out of a 9C1 today....it came almost complete (minus the optispark, intake, and wiring harness), but I've got the '96 computer. I just have some questions...
1) What's the part # for a Painless harness for the 9C1 LT1?
2) I want to keep the A/C, power steering, and all the other accessories that are currently on my LO3...what's the best way to do this?....a March serpentine set??
3)Would porting the iron heads be worth it?...or should I invest in a set of AFRs??
4)I bought a powdercoated intake off ebaymotors.com....is there a part # for just the fuel rails and injectors?

I'm sure I'll have many more questions, but I'd appreciate any input. Also if those of you who've done the swap, have a website or a good reference book or something...I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

 

1. Don't think there is a different part number. Shouldn't be anyway, the engine is the same, just different heads. I think.

2. I'm pretty sure you can't do that. You said the engine came complete, use the LT1 accessories if you have them.

3. Sure, anything will help. Depends on what you want to do with the engine.

4. Can't help you there. My try the GM website.

 

Where do your current fuel supply runs on your car? If they run on the passenger side of the engine, I have a spare fuel rail that has the supply and return lines turned toward the passenger side. If they run on the drivers side, you'll need an F-body rail. You can find them on Ebay or the for sale section of www.camaroz28.com Also, I used the Painless harness. There were 2 or 3 different style of harnesses available I believe. If you are using a T56 or T5, you can get the cheaper harness. If you are using the 4L60E, then you need the more expensive one. I got the standard length harness when I did my swap but should have bought the longer one since it's easier to trim wires down if necessary rather than keep extending them. When I was searching for the harness...www.musclemotors.com had them the cheapest. You have to supply them with the part number. Just go to Painless' website and you can contact their tech support to help you out. They also have a 1-800 #.

 

The engine didn't come with the accessories...i wish though. Can I use the accessories off my LO3?
Trans Am #5, I don't know which side the fuel runs on the LO3, but I'm guessing it's the same as all the others. Or if you're talking about the LT1..I don't have the intake yet, so I don't have any fuel rails or anything.
Does anyone know of a good LT1 install site?..because I think I'll have too many questions for the board. lol

 

If you don't have accesories already on the Lt1, then the Corvette setup seems to be a little easier since there is no notching of the frame necessary. If your car is carbed, then the lines should run on the passengers side of the car along the frame. There are no sights that completely detail the install of the Lt1 into an F-body step by step. There is probably not a thing that hasn't been covered here though and there are a lot people very willing to help. You may want to search for some Corvette forums if thats the accesory route you want to take and see the for sale stuff there. You may get lucky.

 

I'd like my engine to be reliable enough for a daily driver, yet be able to make ATLEAST low 13's on slicks. Would AFR heads, a Hotcam, and some underdrive pulleys get me anywhere near this?....I might invest in a nitrous setup for maybe some 12 second passes. I'm open to suggestions too. TexasLT1 and Trans Am #5...what are your setups?

 

I have a 70,000 mile '94 Corvette Lt1, 93 Z28 T56 & '94 Z28 rear end. The engine is stock for now until spring when it will get a modified supercharger setup. Spray will be next year. Right now the car is getting painted, new weatherstripping and updated interior. I have 3rd gen TPI Hooker headers, a Catco high flow convertor and Flowmaster American Thunder exhaust. The T56 has a Pro 5.0 on top. I played around with it trying to launch it just right for over an hour one day and I realized drag radials are a must. I have some salad shooters that will get those. Currently, the 275/40/17 Khumos just aren't up to getting the power down efficiently enough. PCM tuning was done by Ion at www.madz28.com I haven't been to the track, nor have I g-teched the car but I would bet on being in the mid to high 13 second range. My goal is 12 flat by next the end of next year. Money may not be there though due to the body overhaul.

 

Cool..what kind of gas mileage are you getting with the LT1? Also...is there a particular year or kind of wiring harness that would be easier than another? What's the best rocker arms? I heard that 1.6 are good....anyone know what I have on mine?

 

'95 F-Body LT1 w/ 45K+ miles

LT4 heads, intake, Hotcam
1.6 Rockers
Heddman Headers
MSD 6-AL ignition
stock PCM and injectors
pcmforless.com tune
3.42 gears out back
stock T-5 with pro 5.0 shifter
stock GM muffler

So far I've run a best of 13.1 @ 109 at the track, but I've beat 12 second cars on the street. I get about 16 around town, but almost 25 on the highway. Oh yeah, and I've always run street tires, never drag radials or slicks, and gotten a 2.0 60'

 

'95 is the best because it is OBD1 and has the vented optispark. But any LT1 can be converted.

As far as rocker arms go, the best option is to get a higher lift cam instead of getting 1.6 rockers, it keeps the valvetrain geometry correct.

Yours has 1.5 rockers, they are stock.

 

So a LT4 hotcam would be a good cam choice, instead of 1.6 rockers? I have yet to get any accessories for the LT1. I work at a GM dealerhip so I can get discounts on prices. I know I'll need a vented optispark, will any of my accessories off my LO3 fit the LT1? So a '95 LT1 wiring harness would be the best to get? So, Painless is the best place to get it too?

 

don't know if this helps you, and I'm not sure if anyone said it above, but in engine bay, the fuel lines on the LO3 run along the drivers side I just took mine out

cheers

 

Thanks man!

 

Ok, I'm trying to get an overall picture of what my engine will look like when it comes together. Will the ported AFR heads at www.tpis.com flow as much or better as ported LT4's? I'm looking for as much power as I can get without any loss of streetability. Thanks, and and all comments welcome.

 

Well, the first thing I will say is do NOT order from TPIS. There are much better deals out there. Most of their stuff is way over priced for what you get.

IMO, I would think the best route to go would be to get either stock LT1 heads or some LT4's and get them ported pretty substantially, and back it up with a good cam, larger throttle body, and large headers. Depending on the porting and cam, that could easily get you 450+ crank hp, if not more.


Oh yeah, and the thing about AFR, a 6 week waiting period is not unheard of. I originally placed an order for AFR heads, but after 3 weeks, the company we ordered them from still couldn't tell us where they were. So we cancelled the order, called up GM, got brand new LT4's 2 days later. not a bad deal, and saved money in the process

 

Well, I've got the iron B-Body LT1 heads......should I go the LT4 route? Or would it be better to port the iron heads, instead of getting the aluminum LT4's?

 

Ok...I found these on ebay....whatdya think??
LT4 intake:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...category=46098

Ported and Polished LT4 heads:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...category=33617

Sound good?

 

Intake looks good.


Heads don't. The only thing I see on them is a valve job, I don't see a bit of porting in them. nothing around the valve guides or inside the runners. and they don't list any flow numbers. good price though even if they are stock.

 

as far as track times.. mine are down the forum a bit.. I went yesterday for the first time..

bolt on LT1 went 13.5 at 103.99 beat the M3 that was next to it..

details here..

https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=209540

those heads look good but have zero work done to them..

 

Well, I don't think I have enough $$ for both the intake and the heads......If the heads don't go above, say, $600...I'm thinking about getting them. Does this seem like a good/bad idea? Or should I get the intake first? I don't know if I'll see any more LT4 heads on ebay for those kind of prices tho. Opinions??

 

the caprice heads actually flow better than the aluminum LT1 heads.. the only problem with them is weight..

you could just save your head and intake money.. get a cam and some headwork and the 12s are there.. no probs..

 

But, if he wants more power down the road, the caprice heads are not the best choice.


I just went back and looked at the LT4 heads again that you posted and one thing concerns me. First, he says ported and polished, which they aren't. Second, he only has a photo of one head. Something just doesnt sound right there. I mean its an awesome price for those heads, especially since they're only at $405 right now. But I dont know.

I think if it were me, and I were on a tight budget, I'd probably stick with the caprice heads, go ahead and get a good cam, maybe get a little work done on the heads but don't spend too much, and save up for something better.

 

I saw the question but not the answer:

Can you use the LO3 accessories on the LT1?

-Rippin

 

Lol, me neither Anyone know? So ya think I should go ahead and get the LT4 heads? Or would a cam and ported iron heads cost the same as the LT4 heads, and get good performance?

 

you can't, you might be able to salvage your alternator.. call streetandperformance.com and they will tell you what you need..

it will probably cost since you will need one of their march setups.. I got my full factory LT1 corvette setup from them for 950.00 expensive but worth it, to me anyway..

 

Damn, that's expensive...maybe I can score a used set from a 'Vette LT1. Do you think your setup is worth it J? Does the $950 include a new alternator, AC compressor, P/S pump and such?

 

the setup came with all the accesories on it.. ready to be bolted on..

If you can find one in a junkyard, so much the better.. the boneyards around here are pathetic for that kind of find.. The only accesory that is different is the A/C compressor, the rest is all bracketry..

I think it was worth it.. I had to have some custom a/c lines made but it took very little time to get my a/c back on line.. from a bolt-in standpoint too, since I didn't have to notch anything to fit it..

There are differing views on this though.. It does'nt add any horsepower and isn't cheap..

 

Well...$950 for all accessories, that doesn't sound too bad to me. It's still a lot of money...but some accessories are expensive and since my LT1 didn't come with accessories..I might look that up. Do you know where the best place to get the 'Vette accessories set?

 

I ordered it all from street and performance.. look up streetandperformance.com and give them a call..

I believe Les is the one to talk too..

 

As for a heads/cam package. I've been talking to the guys on CZ28.com. They tell me that with Lloyd Elliot (NightTrain66 on cz28.com) ported heads, GM847 cam, slightly ported intake, headers, cai and a good tune I'd hit 11's. Just something to think about...

-Rippin

NOTE: It'll be about $850 for getting the heads worked (LT1 heads, Idk about your B-body heads).

 

Yep, I am shipping a set of heads to Lloyd Elliott this week.. larger valves, full port and polish, new springs etc.. about 1000$..

Gonna use an XE 230/236 cam to move everything around.. should be good for 385-390 rwhp.. *** bless the LT1.. Gotta give Texas a run for his money

 

Why not something a little bigger, like the 847 or CC306?

 

230/236 is plenty big.. especially with the XE grind, for a daily driven car..

the other two, well, quite simply they are a bit too much, and peak higher than the 230/236.. I didn't want to have to spin past 6500 very often.. it is funnily enough one of Lloyd Elliots favorites..

 

Haha, I've got more on the way too good luck

 

Well guys, go ahead and give up....you can't beat KITT
Are the heads you mentioned better than some, say AFR heads? I don't know all of the details about picking the right heads, so please bear with me. Also, would it be worth it to port the B-Body heads, or should I just get some AFR aluminum heads or another aluminum head?

 

the heads I am talking about are LT1 castings worked over by hand and customized to your needs.. in my case I have him porting and polishing, installing larger valves, and larger double springs etc.. that runs about 1000-1200$ with your own core supplied..

He will just port and polish for 400$ I believe...

He is the budget route.. with agressive cams people are putting down high 300s for rwhp..

Can you do better? yes but you will pay more.. if you are interested in quality for you dollar and good work.. then you could get a set of used LT1 aluminum heads for like 250 and then send them to lloyd..

Depending on your time frame I will have my 50k mile set of aluminum heads for sale in the next month..

if you search cz28.com you can find nothing but praise about his work..