Keith27

I have a chance to buy a 92 Caprice police car dirt cheap(missing body parts)

Im thinking this will be a good start for my 305 to 350 swap in my Formula. The car has 137,000 miles on it and runs good.
My questions are...

Are the 350's just LO5's,and does anyone know the factory specs on them?
And do I need to change the whole ECM or just the prom?

I looked for a police car web-site but can't find anything on the motor specs for a 92 model??

Thanks

kevm14

Yes, the 9C1 350 is an L05, roller cam just like your L03.

Factory specs:
9.8:1 compression
205hp @ 4400rpm
300lb-ft @ 2400rpm (some sources say 2800).
The 92 and 93 had a 3" Y-pipe with a 3" cat, if that matters at all (probably wouldn't fit so I guess not).

You will need a new PROM to run the 350. Going with the 89-90 PROM would be a good start (assuming your ECM is the same). The 91-93s used a 6965 ECM that isn't the same...

kdrolt

92-93 TBI LO5s from the 9C1 police package Caprice were rated at 205 fwhp @ 4400 rpm and 300 fw ftlbs @ 2400 rpm, running through the factory intake (restrictive) and factory exhaust (very restrictive).

As used on those cars, opening up the intake (Caddy elbow atop the TBI, sewer pipe, remote cone air filter, and possibly a cold air box), opening up the exhaust (big single muffler, retain the 9C1 Ypipe) and raising the fuel pressure via the quarter mod, results in approx 230 fwhp and 350 ftlbs. The cars then go from low 16s to 15.6-15.8 in the quarter mile. If you dropped the same motor into an Fcar, similarly modified, it would high 14s just due to the weight difference alone.

The 9C1 LO5 engine uses the same cam as the L98, so you could just add a set of 1.6 rockers and be done with it. You should also use the ECM from the Caprice since it's suited to the engine, at least as-stock and it will still run fine with the slight mods suggested here.

The biggest weakness on the 9C1 LO5 are the heads... but if you can live with mid 14s performance they're fine for now. HTH.

Keith27

Thanks for the info..

For 300.00 Im gonna buy the car...

Im gonna do a budget rebuild on the motor. Ive got a 454 TBI that Im going use with 350 injectors. And as of now Im going to get the Holley TBI intake.

What would be the best cam to use for some MILD performance with this motor ? (didnt know these were roller motors..thanks Kevm14)

And will the ECM work on my firebird, just plug in?

I plan on doing this over the summer with my 12 year old son so he can get ready for his 1st car in a few years( a 3rd gen Im sure)
But Im still learning alot about F/I myself, being the old-school carb guy. So Im sure I'll be asking alot of questions.... once again THANKS FOR YA'LL HELP........

Peace

kevm14

Good deal for $300.
A great mild performance cam is the LT1 F-Body cam. It's very TBI compatible, and with the proper calibration, should be good for 240-ish flywheel hp.

I don't know enough about your ECM. The 6965 does NOT use a mem-cal deal, just a regular EPROM (the calpak is soldered on the ECM somewhere). I think your car uses the '8746 ECM, which means it's the same as tne 89-90 TBI Caprices. So find an 89-90 L05 9C1 and take the chip out of it...It'll get you much closer than your L03 chip would.

BPA

Go for it i love the LO5 compaired to the lo3 i used to have Definatly a little more power there not a huge diffrence but still noticable Btw im still using the 305 chip and it runs fine but im sure more power is to be had with the 350 chip.

kevm14

Even more info:
http://9c1.capricess.com/brochures/index.html

Then info about the 92 9C1:
http://9c1.capricess.com/brochures/1992/92_9c1.pdf

In case anyone is still curious.