LX_SS

Here is the brief update before the big one. Enjoy

New updated instrument cluster, sooo much nicer and bolt in :-) Also new gauge pod for center console to house my 2x Aeroforce Dual Green Gauges arriving this week. And the big one that everyone wants too see, THE STEERING RACK.

Abs light is on , functioning as it should because abs is disabled, no errors.
Brake light is cause handbrake is up.

Ok so here it is in the pics, Cluster - Cluster illuminated - Gauge Pod - Console - GPS Bezel (1 of 2 only spares left in Australia, will have to color match it) - RACK AND PINION CTO Steering Rack (front of vehicle view) - Undershot of the CTO Mount

LX_SS

Ok so i have managed to get some time to have a tinker and start templates for fitment.
See Photos Below.
I have the steel to being fabrication of the brackets. Should start sometime this week.
It will have to have a custom drag link / mount fabricated to house the tie rods + rack connection. It just hits too many things with my ls1 in the way. Mainly sump (and yes i still need to chop the bottom of the pan).
Booster is still a bit away sadly.

LX_SS

peterc005

Are you going to glue or weld the cardboard steering rack mounting brackets?

At least paint them black before sending the car for an RTA inspection!

Only joking, looks like a cool approach to designing the brackets. How is the steering shaft clearance?

LX_SS

Haha, that made me laugh. a rarity but always good.
I think the rta might want 3m tape for adhesion however. nitto is a no no :-P

There is plenty of room for steering shaft, have to run a universal straight off the rack to put it out of the water heater hoses, but thats usual on the hq conversion(that is what the rack is mostly used in conversions), i might have to sacrifice some room on the headers tho, however i am really trying not to and get the steering shaft on top of the drivers side chassis rail. I got laser cut ls1 flanges + lots of schedule 40 pipe, however it will make the headers have a decent amount of weight in them but they arn't long tubes, they will be shorties using a factory style y pipe.

Edit : The material for the mounts is mild steel, 10mm thick. The now passenger side will use a 51mm id thick wall pipe machined out to 52mm and use a small rubber dampener to mount the lhs. The driver uses a d shackle similar to the swaybar + bushing.
Also the strangest thing, since i did the climate control conversion on the vy ss manual heater vehicle i had, i needed to get the bcm linked to the pim and it threw an engine error code. The aeroforce twin gauges (as this was the only change) seemed to somehow link the bcm/pim together, i have checked it out all out, with gauges not connected, and tech 2 diagnostics and everything check out ok.
Ah well another positive, the lcd startup says chevrolet - system OK ! which is nice touch.

I generally use cardboard (paper is too flimsy) for most of my templates, the firewall i did, extremely handy and disposable + cheap to boot, Unless its crucial point, so these mounts will next be made in thin gauge sheet metal just to confirm the positions and overall mounting, then final mounts made in 10mm mild steel.
The mounting points i know are within 0-1mm from each other, the bolt holes however are different heights, the drivers is 12mm higher on the frame rail than the passenger. This is from when they did the original rhd conversion as messed around with the drivers side. Love the old standard it was built too, 25mm out of track + 12mm steering height difference left vs right.

Lines, another issue tho with such a cramped engine bay, like its extremely full now. However they arn't in the way drastically unless you retain the standard drag link.

LX_SS

Quick one, ls1 tank has arrived, ls1 firebird (4th gen) sender reads exactly same as my vy/gto sender, so no need to change the units.
Booster is also on its way, should have it early next week.

Edit :
Another interesting fun fact, the pontiac power window setup, i believe i can work some frankenstein magic and adapt the vy/gto power window motors to fit out power regulators.
Why would you do so ? the motor itself hasn't suffered 30 years almost of oxidization, the motors are stronger, more reliable and also more compact, i dont have to source new pontiac connector plugs and finally i believe with the diagnostics i can actually measure mm of travel and other various measurements.
The end result will be you can use either pontiac or vy/gto motors on the pontiac reg.

Plenty of other things i haven't spoken about yet, especially the rhd power electric mirror conversion (it doesn't use pontiac or gm mirrors).
All in due time :-P

tvc 15

This cool as hell, I wonder if there is any LHD versions of that rack. It looks like it should work well.

LX_SS

There probably is, the rack was sourced from the usa by the supplier in aus.
Side note Ls1 Fuel Sender + Pump 100% compatible, wired and tested. All working correctly. Just need to measure the resistances at capacity. The calibration requires varied resistances, i.e. 2L, 5L, 10L, various other amounts, but they arnt equal between them, so will just fill up the empty tank and measure the specific amounts.

LX_SS

Had some time available so i decided to fab up the temp brackets to test the rack position and fitment, pretty happy with it, has decent amount of clearance on most items. The temp brackets will next be made in 10mm thick mild steel, once these are complete i will add the piping to the passenger mount, still need a proper D shackle for the drivers side, so this bottom plate will remain un-drilled till it arrives.

Brake Booster arrived today, so i re-drilled the mounting holes, (slightly larger to suit new bolts), anyway its in, and its quite a bit longer than i originally planned, so long infact the strut tower is a minor issue on the front port (rear brake outlet).
To counter the issue with the strut tower, that side still requires welding so at the same time on the small area in question i will gently massage it in and give an extra little bit more room, also using banjo bolts to compensate for it.

The master is a Chevy S10 03-09 unit with the ports on the LHS vs the RHS like the vy/vz, notice the brake line outlets are not near the header, otherwise they would suffer some heat soak.

The power steering lines are not simple no more, The lines will run as follows
high pressure outlet from the P/S Pump -----> high pressure inlet of booster,
high pressure outlet booster -----> high pressure inlet of rack,
low pressure outlet from rack -----> T piece return fitting port 1
low pressure outlet from booster -----> T piece return fitting port 2
T piece return low pressure outlet port -----> Low pressure return P/S Pump / Bottle.

With all these lines and fittings + the new water heater valve and rerouting + radiator hoses + overflow bottle hoses(its a high pressure unit), then fitting a wonderbar and everything else, room is a luxury that is no longer fitting to the old carb 350 chev.

I've got a few more parts to order, some i can afford currently some i can't. So i have a few months of work to do in fabrication/mounting etc.. so that should hopefully give the funds jar a refresh.

Overall i've never ever thought i'd attempt a rhd conversion let alone something of this nature, its been a huge task so far to get where it is, also very tiring do it all yourself, somethings are just incredibly difficult to do yourself and sometimes without the right equipment (hoist especially), and even then its a lot of research and development, trial and error but i am please with how its progressing, it may take a bit longer than i hoped to be where i wanted to be at by this stage, but the overall conversion and what it transforms the car into is well worth the wait.

peterc005

Any update on the project?

LX_SS

I've been pretty distracted lately with everything else but the pontiac.
I had a month long saga when selling my bmw, but after that was finally done i went hunting for a new vehicle, then had to sort a reverse camera and stereo/screen for it which would you believe i went through 4 units to get one that works correctly. First 2 were Clarion units that had terrible fm radio then the 3rd wouldn't play any cd/dvd's. Terrible luck but finally sorted that issue.

So ontop of this the past 3 months i've been waiting for my 3d printer to return from being majorly overhauled. Got it back was so excited, and after the eventful unpacking i find 2 of my glass beds have been broken/smashed in transit. Another month of waiting for parts to replace. I just recently go the new beds, so i've also spent a lot of time working on the printer and getting that back upto scratch.

Also had a few other things on the plate and currently need to clean out the garage, as its been used as storage lately, so over the next coming months i'll slowly update the thread, i've done little things since the last post but nothing worth updating. Also allow me to re coop some funding for this and the kitty has run dry.

I've got the fuel system worked out, just need to order it all now. Will be using 3/8 aluminium lines with AN fittings. Retains the Firebird LS1 Tank/Pump Assembly and uses the VY Fuel Filter. You can get quick connect AN fittings which are double o-ringed to suit both plastic/metal lines that are on the sender/filter.

I'll post some pics tomorrow of the new vehicle i got, least it has a ls1 in it :-P

LX_SS

Here it is, the new daily vehicle with a ls1.

LX_SS

Wow its been a while since i've posted on this here.
There is some things to tell, and also not so much, over Winter there has been little progress however there has been lots of organizing/planning as well as replenishing the kitty that was much much needed.
Since we are starting to get into Spring/Summer expect a lot more updates.

I recently purchased another Borg Warner 9 Bolt LSD 3.07 Disc Brake Diff, the downside was it had the delco-morraine calipers.
This gave me the opportunity to fit the rear VY SS / GTO brakes to the spare diff that's a direct bolt in (torque arm etc..).
To do this the VY/GTO rear discs don't fit straight onto the axle hubs, the locator on the hub for the disc rotor needs to be machined down to suit.
So the axle was cleaned and prepared, then set up in the lathe for machining.
Once complete, the VY GTO backing plate was then modified to fit over the axle flange to mount on the backside due to the depth of the rotor(and the backing plate also houses the rear drum park brake assembly).
To get this precisely aligned a template was made via 3d printing (technology makes things lots easier) to locate on the VY/GTO backing plate centrally and give the location of the original Pontiac BW Axle Flange Bolt Pattern. This then allows the VY/GTO backing plate to bolt up on the rear side of the axle flange.
The backing plate also needs spacers on the inside to give the rotor a little more clearance, as the rotor is not fully sitting on the hub. Also the drum adjuster hasn't been fitted yet, as the spacing needs to be worked out correctly, the drum adjust will be machined to suit the correct spacing (im guessing its 6-10mm) and only the top will require a spacer.
The brake upgrade on the rear gives a 286mm rotor(vs 266.7mm standard), solid, with a pad surface area of 78.6mm, thickness of 16mm (min rated 14mm), 70mm center bore, 5 x 120pcd bolt spacing with a single piston caliper. The disc bolt spacing isn't 100% suitable to our original pcd however the holes are over sized and suit us quite fine, no need for re-drilling and still allow some slack(the hub is what locates the disc). All the Disc Rotor, Drum Shoes for the Parking Brake and Brake Caliper are unmodified from standard, the backing plate is modified. This also allow for future multiple upgrade paths from AP Racing to Brembo to HSV / VZ SSV brake upgrades varying from approx $750-$3k and all direct bolt on fit.
This option was chosen for locally sourced parts and also the cost of the brakes for this so far has been $0 since its all from the donor vehicle.
Here is a couple of pics so far just to give you the idea.

First 3 are Setup and Machining the hub in the Lathe.
The original disc rotor/caliper setup, the new setup mocked up, the area inside the hub, Backing plate mounted after mods, The alignment with the rotor and backing plate, Backing plate from behind, can see mods to allow it to pass over the axle flange since it sits on the backside rather than the front of it(the holes will be covered by a small cover plate on backside).





Here is an example of brake upgrades from AP Racing.
Front Brake Upgrade AP Racing 6 piston calipers / 363mm rotors.
Rear Brake Upgrade - AP Racing 4 piston calipers / 343mm rotors

midias

Your posts are always full of great ideas, hard work and eye candy. Keep it up

LX_SS

So i've calculated the correct amount of thickness for the spacers, it sits nice and the rotor is flush on the hub now. The main two items left are modifying the drum adjusters and mounting the calipers.
However with the calipers i'm partly in 2 minds which way to do it, the easiest way is to use the axle flange bolts to mount the caliper via a 12.5mm(1/2") thick plate that bolts onto both axle flange / caliper, this is more or less how its done factory, however with thinner material and it utilizes all 4 bolt holes vs 2 on the 12mm plate.
I've got an idea on how to fix this and give the 2 bolt caliper axle bracket a bit more strength and stability. Worst case, i can flip the rotors/calipers and have more area to work with.

Here some more pics : Rotor Off/8mm of spacers, Thin Cover Plate For Modified Backing Plate,Flush Mounted Rotor, Closer View of Rotor/Hub Flush.

peterc005

Keep us posted.

LX_SS

Just a small update.

I've had a little off time here and there to spend on the rear brakes, the spacers are done but these need to be welded to the backing plates, they are just too fiddly to insert whilst trying to get the axle flange bolts in from the rear otherwise. The drum brake adjust has been ground down to clear (just) but it will still be need to be setup in the mill for final clearance machining then cleaned in the parts washer and re-greased/re-assembled.
The only other part to be finished for the park drum assembly is the drum return spring mount, which only need to be shorted and re-drilled(an easy job).
From here it will be caliper mounting/brackets. I have decided not to use the axle flange bolt locations as from the rear i cannot utilize all 4 bolts which greatly weakens the mount in strength.
It will use a plate mounted near the spring mount/panhard bar mount that luckily the calipers mounting bolt width/spacing is just wide enough to be able to insert a bolt on top and below the spring/panhard bar mount. Driver side (US Passenger) has plenty of clearance with a smaller spring mount.
This plate will have locators installed on it to locate the calipers centrally, and use a second plate that's has its own threads to lock the caliper in place, the caliper is an aluminum body/mount that is not threaded and to insert a thread in the caliper's aluminum body would just be too weak.
Will update in a day or two when i get it sorted.

LX_SS

Another small update,

The backing plate modifications(cut outs) has been cleaned up on the mill for a cleaner finish, the spacers have been welded to the backing plates to make for easier installation, the drum adjuster still needs to be machined (cleaning up) & the brake drum spring plate still needs to be shortened.
The diff was turned manually from the centre and the rotor with the parking drum brake assembly mounted turns freely without any binding or abnormal noises and the park brake lever tested by hand locked the disc rotor solid. So far so good :-)

Here's is the fastener set for both left and right sides.
Axle Flange = 8 x 3/8" 24tpi unf/50mm long bolts + 8 x Flat Washers + 8 x Nylock Nuts.
Brake Caliper = 4 x 1/2" 20tpi unf/50mm long bolts + 2 x Spring Washers + 2 Flat Washers.

LX_SS

Here's an update on the brakes.

More so i just painted all the areas that have been worked on and also painted the drum adjuster in hammer finish silver as well as the axle seal spacer.

As you can see the spring mount needs to be shortened, however it does fit as it is (still too long in my opinion).

The original backing plate unmodified(rhs), The modified backing plate(lhs), Modified backing plate sitting in front of axle flange, Step 1 - lift up and over so the top half are behind the axle flange, Step 2 - turn clockwise and allow axle flange to pass thru backing plate cut outs, step 3 - insert top bolts thru axle flange, step 4 - fit axle seal spacer, step 5, insert drum brake onto adjuster, clip it into the bracket in the top and rotate the brake adjuster behind the axle flange in front of the backing plate. step 6 - fit drum spring and axle flange nuts with axle in place. Step 7 fit rotor. Shot from behind showing the park brake cable lever point at the bottom (also without the rear cover plate fitted).

LX_SS

Working on the bracket caliper mount currently, its interesting, there is 2 options to go with, and 1 is over-engineered vs the other is possibly not going to cut it. To fit the over-engineered design it will require the axle flange bolts to be reversed and the nuts end up placed on the backside vs the wheel side. Its no biggie as you can still easily get the bolts in.

Will update when i have some pics to show. Atm its just sheet metal templates.

peterc005

Will you use the Brake master cylinder and booster from the F Body or the VY?

LX_SS

Uses a hydraulic brake booster and a American version of the vy/vz master.
The VY booster doesn't allow for the steering column shaft to run above the rail or along side it, If you can find something like a Ford XA-XB Booster, then you can have the bolt pattern changed and a adapter setup to use the VY master cylinder, Thats what the Black Trans Am has done.
The VZ Master has a funky chunky piston on the end where it normally sits in the booster.

The only remnants of F-Body parts are mostly the body(not all is F-body) and suspension, The rest is either VY/Custom with the fuel tank being a 4th Gen Ls1 Plastic with matched resistance fuel sender as the VY.

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/fabr...ml#post5732532

peterc005

One reason I wanted to change to a VY or VZ master cylinder is because on the F Body master cylinder the lines exit towards the right, and there is a very tight bend in the hard lines against the body.

A VY or VZ unit exits the other side and should have better clearance.

LX_SS

The VY master has a funky bolt pattern, its not a horizontal, its closer to 45 degrees but it allows for a adapter plate.

If i remember correctly there was a brake mob in Echuca which was one of the most helpful guys you could come across. I'd have to wait till Vin is back to ask him who it was exactly.

This was the XA Booster modded for the VY Firewall and adapter plate to mount VY master. You could use a similar adapter plate to suit your booster.

Edit : I think my current setup is the same as your saying, the outlets are close to the tower, however my tower will have a recess to clear for the lines, reason i wanted them here was to get them away from the exhaust / steering shaft area.

OzCamaroz28

Any update with this build...? I'm about to attempt a resto-mod on an 86 Camaro Z28 including an LS1 or LS2 swap but I've never rebuilt a car and I'm trying to get any help I can... I've been trying to get onto anyone on this site from Australia that has done this in a RHD Camaro but it's not getting me very far... I don't want or need someone to hold my hand through the process just trying to network with other people that have done it and know what kinds of problems to lookout for, where to go for parts/mods, rough financial outlay etc... any help at all would be greatly appreciated

LX_SS

I've had quite a few real life delays, some which aren't good but the project is still going.
I know the feeling with trying to find people in Australia to even just chat about the cars, however we aussies that like our third gens are a rare breed.
If you speak to van454 i think it is, he has an ls1 in his third gen that he drives daily. He would be able to advise on a lot of the process, where as mine is a bit more out there with the project that has been undertaken vs a straight ls1 swap.

Generally with the ls1 swap, if you do engine + trans (ls1 donor) with spohn mounts/sump, engine wiring harness, relocate the torque arm mount (or if you feeling like a little adventure swap the rear housing of the auto), custom headers to fit best(you can mod some like ls1 firebird minor mod) and last but not least to make it even more simple and easy, bolt in a 4th gen firebird tank (its the same system as the vy/vz).

Anyway if you want shoot me a pm with your mob, and i'll txt ya mine if you wanna chat about them all.
I run a very small fab shop, so if you ever need some help or assistance, just hit us up also.

OzCamaroz28

Hey, thanks for the reply. Yeah, I recently sent van454 a message, still waiting to hear back... I think I might have scared him off with all my questions. I'll PM you my mobile, if you'd be keen to chat it would be awesome. I'm about 1 week away from taking a month long break from work (thank god) so I'm going to use the time to start formulating a plan, phone calls-a-plenty and writing many lists... Thanks again...

LX_SS

haha yeah, it never ends. the research etc...

ls2 dude

iTrader: (2)

awesome project man, keep it up

LX_SS

Here's a little update to show, i've still been super busy with everything but the car, and i still will be for quite some time, but every now and then i get the chance to work on the car and do a few things here or there.

The Fuel Tank Inspection/Testing Cover, This is mostly to make sure there is no problems with the fuel lines, and to be able to test the fuel pump. To change the pump you will still need to lower the fuel tank down but that's acceptable for me. Its not as if you change a fuel pump every week or anything. If you wanted to do this, you would have to place the panel horizontally and going across multiple ribs of the floor pan.

The trim ring is made from 3mm mild steel plate, just some off cuts i had lying about as i didn't want to waste a new sheet for. It was a little more work but again just as easy to do.

The Inspection cover has been made from an excess cover panel out of a scrap vehicle same as my ute (on the inside of the tub), cut down and made to suit the firebird spacing.

Showing the mark/cut out in the car - The Trim Ring inner to be cut out marked - The opposite side is the outer edge to be cut out - Trim Ring roughly positioned - Welded to the car with multiple angles and the fuel inspection cover sitting on top (multiple angles)


Till the next update, enjoy.

PAFORM350

Wow

LX_SS

Short update.

Fuel pump has been refitted, with the addition of a simple tool to allow for no damage(by using hammer etc..) to the pump by using an old wheel hub, cut and some metal rods welded to it. The tool works both ways, lock and unlock. The rods arn't straight, as the bolt pattern doesn't line up 100% with the fuel pump flange. You can also use a 1/2" socket extension bar (300mm + in length) to both ends of the bar to allow for more leverage.

Along with this the new -6AN (3/8") Fuel lines with Push Lock fittings. The hose is rated 250psi and suitable for any oils/fuels including ethanol and methanol.

The blue connectors on the tank are quick release.

Hopefully i should fit the tank over the weekend, then i should be able to put the old rear end back up(as its only lowered) for the moment, so if i need to i can still roll/move the car out of the way.

Ozz1967

iTrader: (4)

Is it required that you have to convert to RHD even if it's from out of the contry originally?

LX_SS

Yes, The 2nd gen you can leave LHD. I Believe the early 3rd gens can be left lhd depending on state.

If you were to bring the 5th gen camaro here, as we dont have them locally, you must convert it to rhd which most places charge upwards of 30k+

Here is the extract of the Victorian rules/regulations of LHD Vehicles.

"The Standards for Registration specifiy that the steering wheel of a vehicle must not be located to the left of the centre line of the vehicle.
However, vehicles over 30 years old with a Gross Vehicle Mass(GVM) of less than 4.5 tonnes are exempt from this requirement. These vehicles must still comply with the Standards for Registration applicable at their date of manufacture and be fitted with headlights which are suitable for Right Hand Drive (i.e. dip to the left).
All other Left Hand Drive vehicles may not be registered in Victoria except in the cases of : -
(a) vehicles approved by VicRoads for registration as Engineering or Market Evaluation vehicles;
(b) vehicles primary built for special purpose that have to be Left Hand Drive or Dual Control to fulfill that purpose;"

There is other details like those that qualify for LHD Registration must be labelled in the rear of the vehicle with Left Hand Drive, etc...

LX_SS

Here's an old post that i thought i put up here but didnt seem to do, so here it is, better late than never.

Dash level and bonnet line, don't think you can do much better than that, also the front windscreen has been tested and fits.

Dougy89

This build is very ambitious, i love it! Being a vy ss daily driver with a recently aquired thirdgen to restore you have me thinking... Nah just going to restore my 305 auto Bird..

Cant wait to see this finished!

LX_SS

The main reason my ute is a vu ss rather than vy or vz ss, i didn't want the same interior in both, as a daily driver it wouldn't feel much different between them. There isn't much different between vu / vy apart from dash/front end panels.

LX_SS

Couple of comments regarding the fuel tank inspection plate.

Since i now have the fuel tank fitted, it was a bitch to do yourself, under a car with minimal height clearance, whilst holding with 1 hand the tank and the other to fit the strap, put the rubber on the strap and then bolt it up, but its DONE thankfully.

I'm glad the inspection cover trim ring is place ontop of the boot sheetmetal rather than underneath as clearance for the fuel tank is bare minimal. If it was underneath i would think that there might be issues with lines and/or electrical fittings touching the body, as it sits now, everything clears, just like a modern day car(as they are tight mostly also).

LX_SS

Once i had the fuel tank in, i had many thoughts about the emissions control side of things and after doing a lot of research on the 4th gen system and how it operates vs the ls1 donor vehicles setup i found some minor differences.

The 4th gen uses the purge valve located on the engine and the vent valve on the tank independently controlled by the Firebird ECU.
The donor vehicle (VY/GTO) doesn't use a vent valve at all, however it does still retain the same purge valve on the engine.

So i retrofitted the VY/GTO charcoal canister to the 4th gen firebird tank. The 4th gen tank still vents as it normally does into the charcoal can and the charcoal can naturally vents to atmosphere without the use of a vent valve.

In a situation like this i would have retained the 4th gen charcoal can however my LS1 ecu doesn't allow for an evap vent valve control. The ecu pin for this is vacant/missing so this wasn't an option.

The tank still runs a 5/16th emission line to the front of the vehicle and the 3/8" fuel line.

Pictures to come of the updated setup. Lines have been color coded in the rear to determine which line is which, Black = Fuel, Red = Emissions.

LX_SS

Some more snaps, Fuel Filter and Mount - Tank Pressure Relief Hose + Charcoal Canister Vent Hose with joiner so they both point downwards.

LX_SS

Torque Arm section is done.

Keep in mind, primer is to stop things rusting from oxidization.
I still have lots of grinding and such to do on the whole car after every part fits before stripping down for proper painting.

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

I definitely enjoy reading about this project. It is very interesting and I enjoy seeing the fab work. I have followed it for a long time but never posted

evilstuie

Wow!
Now I feel really lazy LOL
That is just above and beyond as far as mods go.
I was surprised to see how many other aussies there are on here just from this thread.
I think we should start an Australian mods thread to catalog all the changes and mods people in OZ are doing, and maybe set up a shipping container group buy for any parts we need from the US

SolarGoldRaptor

Are you still required to RHD mod all cars under 25 years down there ?

evilstuie

Yeah, I think it varies state to state, but Queensland is 25 years and older and you can leave it LHD.

pontiacyoyo

top stuff , its great to see a following for the 3 gens , here in down under , go to utube and glance at my black t/a , under heading "trans amming down under" . keep up the awesome work , we need more 3 gen followers down here , people are to scared to be different , driving" john brown " , dime a dozen commodores and falcons , "ONLY THE BRAVE SHALL SUCEED" , luke / mandurah , west australia , cheers

Dougy89

Yup there are quite a few of us here now! I started a FB group called Pontiac Firebird Owners Australia for those interested in interacting with other Aussie owners. Set it up so we had a specific place to discuss our "challenges" keeping these things on the road over here.....

getting parts / workarounds/ mod info can be the difference between a garage car and a driver

Oh and it is 30 years or older in QLD can be LHD, if less than 30 must be RHD

Gtroc86

I would like some advice on the fire wall conversion part you did ... I am about to start this on my 86 iroc. Car is already striped down to bare bones and have just purchased the gto dash fire wall and trans tunnel... so my question is how exactly did u do the fire wall cutting did u cut it out and graft together the gto and camaro firewall and cowl or did you remove each pice of sheet metal individually by drilling the spot welds ect. Mine is a US car so left hand drive... any advice would be extremely helpful! I still have to go cut up the gto and stuff should be done this week depending how busy work is ... so I should be ready to measure and cut in about 2 to 3 weeks... also what modules/computers did u need to get the ac and cluster to work as this will prob be the only gto electronics I'll be keeping... oh and the gto I'm using is a 2006...

LX_SS

I would suggest having a think about the entire project, what your going to do and what is required. Reason being is a lot of the items require other items to work, and you cant run it all with say a 350 chev or an lt1.

However if your still persistent, this is the advice i will give on doing the transplant.

The firewall was removed from the gto with it entirely intact and unmodified. From here you will need to measure the width and then mark your existing firewalls center, from here this will be the minimum amount required to cut out. Do not worry about trying to peel out the existing firewall and spot welds. Since mine had been replaced during the RHD conversion i have no idea where they are meant to be.

When the firewall is out of the gto, you need to fit the heater system to it, and measure it from a point on the underside to the lowest point of the heater. This will give you the absolute minimum required before you cannot fit the heater, even then you want ideally at least 1 inch if possible but sometimes its not.

The trans tunnel isn't required from the GTO, its simply too far off to suit our floor pan.

You will have to make a jig before you cut out your existing firewall, to go where the hood hinges bolt to and go to the existing lower windscreen mounting to replicate the curve. if you dont and you exceed this, your windscreen simply wont fit. The angle isnt too important as if your too low on the bottom, you can bend that edge out quite easily.

You will also have to tack weld the new firewall in position at the top, and do lots of dash/console trial fitting to determine the best fit so everything lines up mostly straight. You will probably find it will favor one side more than the other.

You cannot just use the climate control system and gauges system, you have to use the entire GTO wiring harness, BCM and GTO Engine ECU. Everything is tied into everything else and requires all parts to work, minus the ABS system. This includes matching BCM/Key/Steering Column/ECU,etc....

You are far better off using a GTO Vehicle as the donor, rather than buying parts as there are many different parts required and wiring harnesses. Depending on vehicle value over in the states.
Make sure all your donor parts are off the same GTO, do not use 04 parts with 05 stuff etc... it doesn't work (im sure the same applies for the US models), i think 04 is ALDL which is what all my stuff is and the 05 stuff is Canbus. All different electronics. I would suggest using donors from i think 05-06 gto models. As they are the same and probably more easy to access.

If your not willing to do as such, then don't bother with the conversion as nothing will work for you and you would just be better off using the dash as a template to create a new dash for your existing firewall.

Go over the entire thread before you consider doing it and then ask any specific questions.

Gtroc86

Ok well my doner is a 06 gto (already paid for just need to cut the entire mid section out...) it comes with the entire interior harness with bcm I already have a 5.3l ls motor(will be single turbo) that will be going in so I'll be runing a ls ecu which I don't have yet I could run the gto ecu if needed... only issue is I think the 06 ls2 ecu runs the 58x crank trigger I'll have to check what my 5.3l has its from an 05 silverado... I am fimilar with the can bus system I was looking for the older 04 05 gto (so i wouldnt have to deal with can bus)but I got the 06 gto for a hell of a deal 200 bucks ( no motor trans or rear end,suspension, seats)... so I am for sure going through with the swap ...thank you for the advice on the firewall I will have to do some more searching to see what I'll have to do to get the electronics working.