I have been researching for sometime about doing an LT1 swap in my 92 Camaro RS. However, financial issues with getting an LT1 and the t56 and swapping them in have made me think i may be better off just swapping in a l98 out of a 91 vette. Can the wc t5 handle the power of the l98 and is it worth it financially to do this swap over the lt1 t56 setup? I am working on a really tight budget right now, but would like to upgrade from the 305 tbi that I have now. Again, I would prefer to do the lt1 t56 setup, but my budget is like 2k for everything!

 

if you beat on it, no. The torque handling capabilities are that of what the L98 puts out, thats why they switch to the T56 in 93 with their 5.7L 350. There are many people that are using T5s on thier L98 and i think a couple with their 383 crates, it's just you need to be gentle, but eventaully it probably will give way.
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my suggestion is that you seem like you are leaning towards wanting a LT1 more so. I would suggest if your 305 is still running sound and your not dropping $100 a week on it, then i would suggest to continue to save to get ultimately what you want, either L98/T56 or an LT1/T56. Just my .

 

Thanks, right now the 305 is running pretty strong so maybe I will continue to save up for the Lt1 t56 combo. What is a realistic price for the lt1 t56 combo and installation?

 

can't vouch for that but my suggestion would lead to if you were willing to put the time and money into it...why not go LT1 with better fuel economy it will pay for your work just about tenfold. Just a thought.

 

It's the "and installation" part that's going to cost you. You can get LT1/T56 complete for between $2500-$3000. A for-profit shop is going to have to charge at least that much for install, if they know what they're doing. For one thing, the entire exhaust system is going to have to be changed.

 

You could also do an LT1/T5

 

i have an l98 w everthing and only 49k on it all to get rid of.

But i would just keep the 305 till you do the swap you want. But change the intake to a performance carb style and put and adptor for the tbi on it for now. But if your for sure going to an lt1 start changing things like the exaust and such, get the trans in there and then do the motor, at least you can start saving gas w the 6 speed

 

I am glad I found this topic. I am debating on weather I want my next firebird to be a LB9 w/ T5 or an L98 and do a T5 swap. Now that there is a company (Astro performance warehouse) that offers a rebuild kit for WC T5's that is rated pretty high torque wise (500ft-lbs), it seems like a no brainer. From what I understand, the T56 is heavier than even the 700R4. Since the 305 and 350 blocks pretty much weigh the same, installing a T5 with the update kit (which only adds 2 lbs to the T5) seems like a good compromise b/t $$ and performance for the 350 TPI setup. Of course, I am still researching things, so I hope many more will add there .02 cents!

 

The T5 will never be as strong as a T56. You are still dealing with the weaker case that will ultimatley prove its failure.
I was doing the same debate before swapping in my LT1. I was going to try and use my T5, but i decided it wasnt worth the headache of possibly breaking the T5 and not being able to drive the car till i found a T56. I was fortunate enough to find a complete T56 locally for $800 bucks to make things simpler on myself.

I wouldnt recomend using a T5 behind anything other than what it came from the factory with. You have to baby it to keep it from breaking.(except the rare freak) Its just not meant for the kind of power these other engines produce.

To the OP: I would save my money. You would be much happier in the long run if you went with the LT1/T56 cause thats obviously what you want to do. Dont settle now so later you can complain to yourself for not waiting.