Sorry everyone. I read the sticky, but there was alot of words that I didn't exactly understand. I have an '89 Camaro RS no engine(from what i gather it came with 2.8L v6 manual transmission) and i also have a '90 Camaro RS (but it came with the 5.7L 350, automatic transmission)

I want the 350 in the '89 with the manual transmission. Will there be any huge boundries I will have to overcome? Don't worry I wont be doing the work, but i will be buying parts.

I guess i'm asking will i need any more parts since i have both cars? If so, what kinda parts? lol.

Oh and will the transmission hold up?

 

If I were you, I'd leave well enough alone ... but if you really want to swap, be prepared for about a $3,000+ bill since you won't be doing the work alone. The labor will be the bulk of it, but there will be all kinds of little parts to change, etc.

What language did you not understand?

Oh, and welcome to TGO!!

 

For that kind of money you could probably buy a half decent third gen with a 350 already in it, and save your self a lot of swap related headaches.

 

The V6 manual transmission is a very poor choice for a V8 car. First, the bellhousing is different - you need a V8 bellhousing. 2nd, the input shaft is smaller (fewer splines), so a V8 clutch won't work, and it's much weaker (and T5's are weak enough as it is). 3rd, the internals are different, different ratios, and again, it's weaker than the V8 T5.

If you want a manual transmission, find a V8 T5 or LT1 T56. The 4th gen V6 T5 is basically the same as the 3rd gen V8 T5, but I'm not completely clear on the details of using one of them behind a Gen I small block Chevy.

Is the manual transmission in the '89 the part that is driving you? Or, is the '89 in generally better condition? If it's just the transmission, do a manual swap in the '90.

 

The automatic transmission in the '90 is going out, the electrical is all screwed up, and the body is trashed. the '89 was well kept, only cosmetic problem ive found on it is a 1 inch tear in the driver's seat.

I would definitely like to have the power of the v8, but if the transmission wont hold up then would it be cheaper to buy a v8 tranny or a v6 motor?

 

Sorry about the multi-post and thanks for the welcome. I wont be paying a mechanic to do the work, my cousin, uncle and a good friend will be doing it for me, they are just all hesitant, and now i know why lol.

 

Just find you a used or rebuilt T5 and swap a new motor/tranny combo into the nice car. Still going to be a lot of work, but it will be worth it since you won't have labor to pay for.

 

You might want to check that 1990 motor again - unless someone swapped it in, I didn't think the RS cars came with a 350! The RS auto's came with a 305 V8! Might not be worth the trouble to swap in a 305 at all - if going to the trouble, you want a 350.

 

I'm not going to say with 100% certainty that it is a 350, but everyone i know says it is, including a friend who works at O'Reilley's. But if he knew everything I wouldn't be here lol. To be honest, every since the first day i popped the hood i thought the motor looked to clean to belong to that car.

Anyone know anything about the special edition logos on the '90?? Is it something actually special or just another gimmick to get you to buy a car?

 

Camaronewbie is right ... RS's didn't come with 350's. But that doesn't mean that someone hasn't already put a 350 in there. Only way to tell is by the casting numbers on the back of the block. Or pull the cylinder heads and somehow calculate the volume of the cylinders.

 

Would that explain why the speedometer and tachometer don't work correctly? There is also quite a few "extra" plugs under the steering column, and lots of spliced wires. The transmission acts like its slipping when you go from reverse to drive, i've heard of people having to get shorter/longer drive lines when they change transmissions, maybe this one needed it, but didn't get it? If i sound sarcastic at all, i don't mean too, I'm just trying to make sense of everything.

 

Yeah I don't think the RS came with a 350. Probably a 305 with TBI. Hopefully it is a 350 someone put in. just convert everything from the donor to the 89. It will be much easier if you use a standard carb and distributor.

Swapping the auto-to-5 speed isn't all that difficult. You already have a lot of the parts you'll need. Swap the pedals, master/slave cylinder and console plate and so forth from the donor. There's a bit of wiring to do also relating to the neutral safety switch and back up lights. You WILL need a v8 flywheel, clutch, tranny, shifter, and torque arm mount (although the torque arm mount from the v6 car MIGHT work) The v6 trans could be adapted to work but it is weaker and you have a lot to do in this project already and your friends/cousins/helpers brains might explode if you go to far!

Try to break it down into sections like "what does it take to do a v6 to v8 swap" and "what does it take to do an auto to 5 speed swap" and blend them togerther. Yes, it is all in the stickies or covered many times in previous posts. Sometimes I have to search many different ways to get the info I need. This is a fairly extensive project and although it's a pain to find and understand the details, it will pay off in the end if you chose to do it.

 

I think i'm just going to try to find a decent v6 to put in the '89 and throw the '90 on a dirt track or something until the transmission or something blows up, then scrap it. Someone might find a good use for the body or something.