Im going to go look at a 1992 Firebird with a 5.0 this saturday and hopefully ill get it, and would like to know if their are any shops, preferably in the Virginia area that would be able to do a swap to an LT1? And i dont need the a/c, so how much do you guys think it would cost for all the parts and labor? Besides the needed basics i would prolly end up getting a full exhaust and a new cam. So if you guys can help me figure out what i might want to get and where to get it done at, that would be great. Thanks, Tim.

 

Welcome to TGO. Did you purchase the car? Do you also have an LT1 motor?

If it were my car / project and I didnt already have the LT1, I'd be certain that I liked the car well enough to purchase it. If so, take it home and drive it for a few months. Then, research engine swap options and all of the necesarry variables and costs that go along with non-OE swaps. You may choose to change your mind and go another route?

Another suggestion is to contact the folks at Hawks, they do complete turn key swaps, ask for their estimate.

Good luck

 

Thanks for the quick response. And saturday im going to go take a look at it and work out a price for it. Its in pretty good condition except the interior looks pretty worn. It only has 40,000 miles on it, so ill keep it stock at least for the rest of winter. No i do not have an LT1, but since the car has only a 305 i figured i would just save my money and put an LT1 in it as well as a few other things then call it quits as far as upgrades go. I hope to also get a 2001 or 2002 Trans Am in the not to distant future, so I cant be pouring tons of money into a 3rd gen, lol. Would getting a 350 that was offered for the 3rd gens be a lot cheaper then an LT1?

 

You can almost alway assume that buying a put-together car will be less than buying a car and making modifications to it. That is doubly true if you pay a for-profit shop to do the modifications for you.

Any particular reason you can't do the engine swap yourself?

 

Were you thinking LT1 swap because they're cheaper than say an LS swap? Do you need to be able to pass emissions? If not, a carb'ed crate motor might be something else to consider. Give it a lot of thought before you go for the motor... There are a lot of other mods that you can do while you're deciding what you want to do with the car.

Have fun

 

I cant do it because i lack a lot of the tools needed, and ive never done anything like that before. Plus this car is going to be my daily driver, so i cant have it out of commission for a long period of time. They had the car listed on craigslist with 40,000 miles for 2900$, so if i can get it for that, i consider it a good deal.
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Well I was gonna go with the LT1 because it dident look SUPER expensive and appears to be cheaper then the LS1's. It does need to pass emissions and here in Virginia we have some pretty strict emissions standards.

 

Which 305 is it? If they listed the VIN, get the 8th character. E = LO3, F = LB9.

 

Its E, is that better or worst? lol

 

Where at in Va are you?

 

Northern, Prince William County. Why do you ask?

 

What I expected, and not as good. Not much difference as far as the LT1 swap goes, but not as good if you want to do a Gen I small block Chevy.

 

Is it the throttle body injection?

 

Yes, LO3 = TBI or throttle body injection.

 

If i do decide to go the LT1 route. Could I sell the TBI engine?

 

About $25/ton here.

 

So its just scrap?

 

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/ltx-...questions.html
Try this it might give you a better ideal of what you will run into

 

Thanks for the link. That answered most of my questions, but im sure i will have more if i decide to go with the LT1.

 

Pretty much - you could sell it as a running engine, but don't expect more than $100 to $200 - its a 305, it didn't get any sought after parts (good rods, heads, etc), its got one of the lamest SBC cams there is, and its got TBI to boot. Its not worth a whole lot to anyone, compared to a TPI engine, or a 350.

 

Well its only got 40,000 miles on it, so if its in good condition and runs good ill just keep it i guess. Never know when I might get some 200$ car that needs an engine?

 

Well I heard back from Hawks, they said it would cost about 10k, which is way more then i want to spend. So it looks like if I do it, im going to have to do it myself with the help of some of my friends. Hopefully I can do the swap for less then 4k. Anyone have any idea about how much it costs if im cheap about it? And if I get the car for 2900$ is that a good deal for the 305 TBI with 40,000miles on it? Because i dont want to get ripped off on this car. I did a carfax report for the car and it all checks out, no accidents, no nothing. Ill add a picture of what it looks like.

 

I tried to tell you. . .

Check eBay for what LT1 engine transmission combos have gone for. Add shipping (usually $400+, depending upon where it comes from). Double that for the incidentals (exhaust, hoses, cables, belts, etc.), and you'll have a pretty good idea what it will run you.

$4k will probably be close if you can avoid paying labor.

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/96-Co...QQcmdZViewItem

Would an engine like that be good? For that price it doesent seem bad and seems to come with almost everything.
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Yeh, I should have listened, lol. But ive never done anything near the complexity of swapping an engine. I just hope me and some of my knuckle headed friends can figure it out.

 

Why a vett motor they only have a few more hp and 6 or 8 extra bolts. Here
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/95-IM...nameZWDVW.This dose too and the iorn heads flow better but on the down side they weight a little more.

 

ohhh, thanks. If its only 1,000$ for the trans and engine it doesent look so bad. But really just how difficult is the engine swap? I have never done anything beyond basics on a car and i dont want to get into something WAYYY over my head.

 

Just swapping the engines is the easy part. The LT1 has the same exterior dimensions and attachment points as your 305, so it will literally bolt right into the car without a problem.
Its making everything work that is the tricky part.
Dave

 

Well is it something that I could do with my minimal knowledge? I dont need A/C or anything like that, just for it to be reliable and run good.

 

If you get the impala motor, you will need an a/c delete pully, the corvette one you won't. The corvette is 295hp 4bolt main block, the impala motor is 260hp 2 bolt main block. Middle of the road would be an f-body motor, 275hp 2 bolt main block. F-body and corvette had different cams (bigger) than the impala/caprice engines and the f-body/vette have aluminum heads vs iron on the impala/caprice. Depending on which one you get, I would recommend getting shop manuals (not the haynes books but the ones from Helmes) and using them to wire with, it will be alot easier. Also iirc the TBI cars have the fuel lines coming on the passenger side of the car, so it would be best to change those out to TPI fuel lines and you will need to replace the fuel pump as well to get the 45psi of fuel pressure, would be best to go with the 255lph walbro which can help with any future upgrades.

 

Thank you. Sorry for my ignorance, whats the difference between 2 and 4 bolt main? But this information is very helpful. Like is 2 bolt better? or 4 bolt better?

 

The 2 bolt main refers the the number of bolts on the cap for the crank. 2 bolt means there is a bolt on either side of the crank and 4 means there is 2 on either side. 4 is going to be stronger, but 2 is fine unless you are making an extreme high revving race motor.

 

Ah, i get it now. Thanks. Ive read online and it says the Corvette engine is a little easier to install because of the location of the fuel lines. Would the Corvette LT1 be the best bet?

 

In my opinion the only advantages on going with a corvette LT1 are the acessory routing and the 4 bolt mains. Everything else can be dealt with easy enough.

 

Well since the 22nd was my 18th birthday my mom decided to pay for almost half the car. [we ended up getting it for 2700$ total] Before we bought it we had a pre-purchase inspection done, and everything on the car is in tip top mechanical state, all it needs is new window wipers and an oil change. Its sitting in my drive way right now. It drives very good. The car was an old mans and he passed away, so his kids were just trying to get rid of it. 38,000 original miles.