Well, two years ago the 82LT1 span a cam bearing.. With getting married, getting my masters, moving, new job and new baby the car sat for two years..

Though I collected parts. Built one engine only to sell it, but went back to the roots so to speak and made a high revving LE2 based on my old parts but refreshed and improved with some of the new technology out there..

Some folks I hope took a bit of inspiration on occasion from what I have done with the car as I have from them so I figured you all would be happy to know she is about to breath again..

New mods are:
custom powdercoated firehawks
complete brake redo with baers and 1le lines/prop valve and 4th gen cylinder
complete fuel system redo with hard lines and braided stainless
complete electrical redo
Jegs torque arm
shortblock with 6inch scat rods, mahle pistons, and 1518 pac springs on my reconditioned LE2 heads, new high lift LE2 cam..

Can't wait to get her back on the road, lots of other fun stuff to do also but for now I figured I would share a few pics.

She is dusty from being outside but was stored inside for the two years and slept nicely rodent free..

I am subscribing to this thread because I want to see the progress.

Well engine went in today.. put it in with the tranny by myself.. took a while. No pics cause I was on my own.

Some info that may be worthwhile.. the Canton LT1 oil pan fits a 3rd gen just fine, from what I can tell it will NOT clear a stock type exhaust, longtubes only.

Hedman Longtubes cleared the t56 in mockup no problem.

Now the todo list:
jegs torque arm
put in panhard
put in driveshaft
hook up everything
cut new braided lines for overflow, steam, and power steering.

Jeez.. getting old and will feel this tomorrow. will have it done just in time to put her in winter storage and do the interior and front suspension.

Which Hedmans did you go with? They have to be easier than the Hooker 2210s.

Looks like it has potential and a great project and shows how great the 80's cars are glad your not turning it into a ugly kitt car.

Thanks, it was already was running and a nice "non-kitt" car the first time it was completed in 2003, this is just buildup phase 3 (bit more engine, better interior). Have yet to see if it will survive long enough for phase 4. Kind of sentimental about this car my dad bought it in 1981 when I was nine.

The headers are the hedman 66469, long tube coated, d-port.

Those rims look awesome. What's the black thing thats next to the PS resourvair?

thanks, I had Ronal do them right before they stopped making the firehawks again, I have some nice 60's pmd centercaps that I am modifying to fit the ronal covers also.

The black thing is a pcv catch can, it is sold through thunderracing for LS1's. On tear down I noticed that the engine was sucking too much oil through the intake so I got a filter for the passenger side vent and the catchcan for the PCV to make sure.

I am doing final connections now and taking friday off for the first fireup.

Hoping to post audio/video clips when it is running again..

EDIT: Well after working all day I am down to making the braided overflow line, braided steam line, and installing the radiator..

The hedman longtubes took much longer than I thought..Installed both from the bottom, I have a/c.

I had some common trouble. Drivers side, I pre-notched the rear a-arm mount to clear, after fitting I had to dent the #3 primary which was a bummer, it was hitting the k-member.. other than that drivers side slide right in.

Passenger side was a pain, had to remove the starter (no biggie) but no matter what I could not get the flange to clear the firewall, ended up lifting the engine on the passenger side but still wouldn't clear, so I took a bfh and shaped the firewall a bit and then whacked on the rear of the header flange from under the car and it went in..

All in all nothing too surprising, but I envy the folks that say they "slipped right in". I thought I might have fewer troubles since I have poly mounts but that was not the case.. Oh and clearance to tighten the bolts SUCKS, the tubes are not dented to allow any socket clearance.

NO clearance issues with the t56 and the hedman longtubes at all..

I feel a bit guilty but I am putting my two year old in daycare tomorrow to get this thing done and started.

Jay,
It's nice to see your car again. Do you have any more pics of the r-15s I have been thinking about painting mine black. Also some info or pic on the custom center caps would be great they sound cool.
Thanks,
Kory

I don't have any close-ups yet.. I will take some pics tomorrow if I have time, nothing is quite ready for prime time yet, it is still dirty and in progress everywhere! But will get some up asap.

Thanks, I look foreward to seeing them.
Btw what kind of power are you expecting from the new combo.
Kory

Can't wait to see pics.

Got stuck with family time, so no pics, I will post some soon..

old combo was in the 373 rwhp range, I am expecting 400-410rwhp out of this maybe more, differences are the higher lift cam, better springs, rotating assy lighter, ported intake, zero deck and the long tubes.. I am expecting good gains, the engine was wheezing through the edelbrocks.

Witch long tubes are you going with?

Good to see another LT1 3rd gen!

What wheels are those? They look like mine.

The wheels are firehawks with custom powdercoating.. working on custom centers since I hate the white ronal emblem..

the best update ...ITS ALIVE...! after two years, open headers sounds like nascar. Oil pressure at 50psi cold idle, tps good, IAC good, no overheating and no leaks..

It helps that I had this as an LT1 already, the only bug I had was getting the wrong knock sensor and tripping a code.. replaced that and good to go..

Has to get the rest of the exhaust put on and the seats put back in etc.. I expect it all together by Tuesday.

I apologize to those waiting for pics, work on this is fast and furious. But next time I post later in the week I will host a vid and some pics.

Ok, I felt bad so I went out and popped the hood and snapped off a few quick ones..

excuse the dirt and the like, the car is never this dirty unless it is build time..

I notice you are running without a MAS. Any reason for this decision? I was considering it, but everyone talked me out of it.

I am running a MAF, I am guessing you ment MAF? It is an LS6 version just black you can see it in the pics..

Yes I see it now. My fault. Are there any advantages to that style over a factory one? Why did you decide to ditch the ram air box?

The other maf flows more but N/A not needed, it was a buy I made when I didn't know much about LTx's, granatelli makes one calibrated for lt1s and it is cheaper than the other versions, bonus is that the 4inch intake bolts right up.

I didn't like the look of the RA2 hood and thought a flat hood went more with the total idea of the car, I did think about going RA1 but decided that flat or a harwood cowl was the way to go, just can't decide which..

Jay
Thanks for the pics the car looks great. Nice work.
Kory

Well an update.. first I took it to the shop to have the exhaust hooked up and a suburban backed into it.. not too bad, but not nice either.. got the insurance money though..

Second, I broke it in, the thing pulls to 7k rpm.. much stronger than the old setup.. but man that spintech chambered muffler is LOUD..

brought it home and changed the oil only to have NO SPARK.. hmmm.. tightened connections and tried it the next day it turned over.. No trouble codes were stored..

Went to autozone and got back in only to have it not start again.. It has fuel, voltage, no blown fuses and no trouble codes.. I replaced the module and coil in the parking lot and it still didn't start.. going back tomorrow to pick it up, either it will start and I will drive it home or a tow truck will bring it back for me..

I am guessing the opti, though am just not sure.. The good thing is when it runs it is an animal.. the bad is that I am chasing gremlins now

Any progress on the problem?

just latching on i might bo a lt1 swap in my 82 soon

Ok, fixed it up.. The main problem was that my nice new aeromotive fpr was blown.. it was leaking through the vaccuum port.. what a waste.. went back to a stock one and she runs fine!

I also had a blown module and thinking it was an ignition problem upgraded to delteq at the same time.. now she runs like a champ.. just in time for the snow!!

two things to fix:
my wiper motor is not working and I cracked the power steering supply hardline working on the ignition.. one is an easy fix but I have no idea how to access and fix the wipers that is going to suck..

I had problems with my aeromotive regulator as well. After only a couple of thousand miles the diaphram ripped and it was sucking fuel in through the vaccuum line as well.I would never buy another reg from them.
Glad to hear that you got it running.
Kory

Yep, it is a (insert suitable expletive here)..

Fixed everything else today.. So running but in time for snow so maybe I can drive it to work, uh, once..

Where do you live?? Man, you've got to be living up North to be getting snow already. Update us on the drive to work.

I am in Idaho.. temp is dropping into the 10s here now overnight.. If you see the brake board there is another problem I had to deal with there but with that fixed I did get to drive it on the interstate today.. it runs well, I need to clearance my exhaust a bit it hits the crossmember and drives me nuts.

The exhaust is LOUD, too loud, I am going to have to quiet it down some..

I am super busy with job, family and getting another masters but I do plan to post a pic and some audio when I get a chance..

It may just be me, but with the longer stroke, lighter pistons, ported intake and improved springs this thing is just plain scary.. before it was strong at 373rwhp.. now it revs to the moon extremely fast and just feels right on the edge of daily driver sanity.. I will dyno it soon but I am guessing over 400 to the wheels now.

Man can not wait to see the vid on this beast!!!!

hey, nice job, that engine looks really good in there.. how did you solve the headers smaller D-port?

I got a set of pacesetters for the LT1 and they didn´t fit, now I have a set of hedman HD66469 but the port is way smaller, did you put them in just the way they came?

here is a pic of the pacesetter gasket over the hedmans

Try and use these from summitt hedman # 68479

those look like small D-port also, and 1 5/8 so, its the same, but shorties

the 66469 are LT and ceramic coated,

I´ll try to port-match them and see what happens..

I didn't have any problem with shrouding so I put them in the way they came.. I noticed you are using the gasket as a template, not to be insulting but have you matched the actual header up to the cylinder heads to see how it fits there? If not just get a piece of paper and press it into the cylinder exhaust port and compare it to the header port, that is how I made sure. We have the same model headers so I shouldn't think there would be a problem..

I also didn't use the hedman gaskets, I used percys new black carbon gaskets.. it all fit well with no trouble.. my experience has been that the gaskets that come with the headers aren't the best.

So I had no trouble with these lts and percy's gaskets on stock ported LTx heads.. Now I had a set of trickflows that were ported and the exhaust port was considerably bigger and would of been a problem.

If there is indeed a problem with the header flange being too narrow, a little grinding will open them up enough.

As an aside I know i owe the board a soundclip, unfortunately the snow is still deep and the car is asleep when it wakes up I will get one.

you where right, ... the pacesetters gaskets are WAY bigger than the ports, I´ll try to install them this saturday..



thanks..

but if someone (me) want to install aftermarket heads with larger ports then what? which headers? or is that a custom thing?

Glad to hear it worked out, in the heat of a build lots of stuff can happen so no worries..

With regards to the aftermarket heads, the trickflows I had were ported by lloyd elliot and were pretty big in the exhaust port. I would think that any 1 3/4 header should swallow it, if not then I you could port them a bit or find a good shop that would weld on some bigger header flanges for you. I would try TexasLT1, he is making a forced induction engine and may have the trickflows.. but I am not sure.

Been a while since I updated anything with the car, so I apologize for not keeping anyone up to date.. But there is a good reason! The car is sleeping and being stripped and painted by the advanced autobody class at the school I teach at.. The same teacher that taught my friends 18 years ago is now using my car to show the "new kids" how it's done. Pretty cool in my book.. It will be ready for the school/community car show in march.

Cool. Why did you go for the LT1 in the first place when they dont make too much more power than a TPI? I am not trying to insult you, I am just curious. I have thought about an LT1 swap on my next project, but I am not too sure after looking at the #'s..

i know for many people its budget it was for me, and i think lt1s make more power than tpi's do. just my opnion. my lt1 with heads/cam/intake will make around 400 rwhp hopefully, not many tpi's like that around i dont think? at least that havent been bored/stroked...

LT1's as a motor dont make more ho than stock tpi....

BUT in the eletronics department the lt1's are far superior. from sequential firing(lt1) to tpi's(batch firing)

the computers are far easier to tune(no chip crap after 93)

the obd1 lt1's are awesome to tune


i one day will go lt1

The lt1 has better heads and intake as well as the much better ecm. Ported stock heads and intake have made 500whp in the right hands. and 400 whp is extremely common. My new motor should be around 440whp when tuned in spring. It's not an ls1, but I have never seen a na tpi car come close to that.
Just my .02
Kory

I don't know where you're coming from with that, either, unless you're talking Caprice/Roadmaster LT1's. Even then, they made as much with a lame cam as the best TPI 350.

what im sayng is the lt1 makes more hp than the tpi.....but the tpi makes more tq...its been proven due to the odd tpi long runner intake design. I love lt1's....hell i owned a 95 trans am 6 spd car for a while.

my 95 layed 290(gm est)hp to the crank

car was good for a 13.6 at track(stock minus CAI)

The car is an 82 and was carbed LG4 when I started, since I was converting to fuel injection anyway LT1 was a better choice than tpi. I would of gone LS1, but when I did the swap there was only one or two LS cars on the board and only a handful of LTx cars, there really was no good guide or info on LSx swapping then, but there was info for LTs.. So I went that route.

This is the third version of this engine and the engine is NOT stock, so a comparison between tpi, lt1/4, or LSx is moot. What is important is that it makes over 400rwhp over 400rwtq, and is driveable..the true list of mods for the car is more than a page and it is a hoot to drive..

It has been one crazy 26 year learning experience and I am already planning the LSx engine combo to replace this one when it gives up the ghost, my main reason for this is simply that at 400+ rwhp without forced induction LTx's start to run at the edge of true driveability..

I will update this as the car improves (again) and the new interior goes in, I am starting to think a racepak dash would be cool to fab in there.. and will certainly post the car show pics as the thing was never meant for show (only go).. This is a real thirtysomething adult build on a budget sorry for the slow going.

Bumping this once more.. the car is in final assembly this week, car show on the 25th I will take a lot of pics.. the car looks like it was dipped in oil, the grille covers, wing, and mirrors are done in matte black for some contrast.. pretty psyched the local paper came by and took pictures with the car and the kids that worked on it, funny it is no longer just my car, they have a stake in it and smile every time it starts up to move The autobody teacher also had his 67 camaro there for the shoot we both did little burnouts since the kids were egging us on..

I am using the shop after work to put the interior pieces together etc.. I did try a racepak dash but it simply was too tall to make fit. It finally looks the way it should, even better than it did brand new.

That's a sick looking car. Looking forward to more pictures

looking good. can't wait to see the finished car

thanks folks, it is ***** to the wall this week.. the car was never meant to show so it is funny for me to worry about polish. If you look real close in the second pic the autobody teacher is lying on the ground putting the door handle back in, you can just barely see the side of his hat

kory-88 your engine almost sounds like mine 355, light weight piston, stock crank, long rods, good heads/cam, ported intake..

Did you document your custom rear build-up?