Here's what I've got and what I know about what's wrong.
I've got an 88 firebird trans am L98 with 700R4.

I've also got 5500 bucks cdn available for repairs.

I know the car needs transmission work as it won't shift from 2-3 at WOT anymore after it's up to operating tempurature and shudders horribly at hwy speeds in 4th and starting to do so in 3rd.

Also know that it needs a new head gasket on driver's side because I have a constant seepage of coolant from the bottom of it all down the side of the block. As well I have a loud metal on metal tapping noise and a sound of a missing exhaust pulse from one of the cylinders on the driver's side #1 or #3. Cylinder #8 on passenger's side needs all new valve guide seals as I pulled the plug on that clinder during my last 30000mile tune up and it was caked in ash. Not a pretty sight to see really.

Last summer had the bottom of the engine rebuilt due to oil starvation in cylinders 1-5(never going to full synthetic without doing it gradually ever again, expensive lesson $3200)

Anyhow, I know I need the heads rebuilt or replaced on both sides, the transmission could more likely use an overhaul or build up, and I have looked at an entire engine overhaul for both the stock 350 with a cam/heads package, and a 383 with cam/heads.

I'm tired of fixing one problem only to fix another 1000 miles later so I want to almost start from scratch(keeping all the same major parts, block transmission housing etc).

What I want, is to keep all the main parts for numbers purposes, fix what's wrong, and get a little more power out of it than what it had before. I also want to be able to do some weekend racing here and there for fun and still have the car not blow up on me going to the dairy queen for some ice cream or the weekend car shows up here in Toronto.

What kind of advice would you offer with this budget in mind.

I was quoted 2500(incl tax and r&r) for building up my transmission for ~450hp
And I have yet to recieve quotes for the engine overhaul.

Ideas, suggestions, types of parts, anything that can be suggested as I will be getting this done more likely by agostino racing engines in Toronto.

Thanks!

 

definatly get the tranny rebuilt, then i'd get the heads refurbished (seals valves etc, possibly add a port job as well, new timing chain is a must, aswell as upgrading the ignition system, if the bottom end of the motor is still good, look into a new cam.

3000cdn won't build you a complete 383 but it would get you close, but it will get you a very nice running 350 that can be beefed up

 

For ignition system would that include a new dizzy and coil? I just put in all last weekend the following: NGK Iridium plugs, Taylor 8mm wires, new MSD rotor and cap, checked timing, changed oil, and new rad the weekend before. The original one from March 88 split on me after a car show when i started it up and had to take it to an all night mechanic to install the rad i bought from Canadian Tire so I could get home afterwords(i never carry tools to a car show, looks tacky otherwise I woulda done it right in the parking lot !)... A real pain in the *** if you ask me

Last summer was when I had the bottom of the engine done(the expensive lesson in synthetics), but didnt have anything done with the top or the actual pistons, rods, cylinders or valve train. Just main bearings, crank remachined, high volume oil pump installed, every rubber hose and vacuum line possible in the car replaced, double sprocket vortech timing chain and cogs were installed, a new O2 sensor installed, all the fluids were changed at that time as well (diff, transmission, oil, coolant, break fluid, A/C recharge). Also the intake manifold, runner and valve cover gaskets were changed at this time.

The transmission rebuild is a must, I agree, so i've allotted $2500 for that. $3000 left for engine work.

Whats the take on rebuilding iron L98 heads? Is it worth it with a port job or is it better to go with something better flowing to begin with that is new?

And staying with a 350, I can still produce gobs of power with it which is great, but I like toying with the idea of a 383 as it was suggested to me back when i had the bottom of the engine redone.

thanks for reply!

 

do you know what the casting numbers are on the heads? you might want to upgrade to some aluminum heads, there are some good choices out there, but your looking 2 grand canadian for a decent set, if your planning on going bigger down the road, you might want to upgrade to an hsr now

i think the biggest thing you want to do right now is get a better cam and freshen up the heads

 

Not sure what the head casting numbers are, they are the stock ones whichever came on the L98 in firebirds. Im positive they aren't the aluminum ones as I read quite a few times that the firebirds and camaros came solely with the cast iron heads. I did have the valve covers off to put on some chromed ones but I guess I should have looked at the casting numbers while I was in there!

So if that is any indication of what they are??

 

i believe they are the 083 casting, they are good heads to modify, but if you are going to be wanting good power you would probably want to upgrade to an aluminum head

 

Iron L98 heads are #083, aluminum L98 is #113, and LB9 (305) heads are #081.

The L98 heads are good heads to rebuild. They already have 1.94/1.60 valves which is good, and they have 64cc combustion chambers. That makes for a good compression ratio, as I'm sure you know. I'd rebuild those.

 

The L98 engine doesn't really lend itself to drastic alterations in hp unless you inject drastic coin of the realm

However, port and polish those 083 heads and you'll really feel a difference. Follow the link at the end of my sig.

Headers and 3 inch exhaust are also fundamental to the solution.

I don't think you need to spend $2500 for a tranny rebuild. Ought to be able to get a good rebuild with TransGo Shiftkit for around $1500.

You are really at the point where your 3rd gen is going to start costing money repeatedly. It is easy to get $20,000 into your ride and not see a lot for it from the outside. Cars just have a certain lifespan and then you almost have to rebuild them from radiator to rear end.

Basically, you can get an L98 to run high 13s by doing what I just outlined. That is a decent and eminently DRIVEABLE car. If you want much more than that, you almost have to change the entire induction system to a carb or something more scaleable to the hp you want. You can get larger flowing runners and plenums for the TPI system but it gets expensive right away.

Also, get a 2500 rpm stall torque converter for your tranny while it is out. That can knock a half second off just like that

PS Get a tranny cooler, as well, and your tranny will last twice as long. No kidding

 

I have a B&M transmission cooler already, just haven't installed it yet(still trying to figure that out). For the stall converter, I was looking at a corvette stall from the same era (new) i believe it's a 2100rpm stall. Was recommended this by 2 transmission shops(Alliston Transmission and Barrie Transmission) in favor of an aftermarket one due to cost, bolt on compatibility and suggestions on not going super crazy with the stalls. Is there a big difference in performance/streetability between the 2100 and 2500 rpm? I have read on here that higher stalls take more to get the car moving from a stand still for just casual driving but offer better launch times because you can get into the power band faster.

Is there any way to upgrade the induction system without changing the over all look of it? I like the way the TPI system looks. It really accents the engine bay and looks like great when it's cleaned up and polished.

I know you can remove some of the casting pegs inside the intake plenum but I wouldn't do it myself. I do want to keep the TPI system because I know what im doing with it and I don't want to complicate matters more when I have to relearn something like a holly stealth ram or other induction system. Carb is not what I want due to my wanting to maintain a decent amount of mpg(yes i know it still sucks gas like its going out style :P)

I have also looked at some ceramic coated SLP 1 3/4" shorty headers w/y-pipe to go into the stock system for now as I haven't really done much in the way of planning for a cat back system. I do already have a 3 inch pipe between the cat and the stock muffler (had the original 2.5inch replaced when the car was safetied, weld seam on it split and safety mechanic suggested the 3" pipe).

 

A QJet will probably give you better mileage than a TPI system. They are very accurate air/fuel mixers

 

I agree that they are very accurate A/F mixers, however, I don't think i'll be going that route simply because I like the computer controlled aspect of EFI and besides, I really like the look of the intake runners and upper plenum. Mine are all polished up nicely (lotsa work to do it but rewarding for compliments!).

So it's a good idea to have the heads checked and if they come out OK, have them ported/polished and rebuilt. I'll pick up a set of the 1.75" SLP headers and have those installed at the same time that the engine is out. Will also look at getting the cam and the intake plenum ported and will look at the cost of extrude honing the intake manifold.

Agostino racing has an amazing setup thats for sure and Im looking forward to having them do all the work for me since it will be a very neat process to see through the stages. They will take pictures of things along the way if you request which is really nice to know what's going on and to know what was wrong/worn/broken etc.

Well, I like the answers and i'll see what it will cost me overall.

Any more input would be great as I haven't finalized anything yet and im still waiting for a few more prices from locations around my area.

Thanks all who replied so far!

 

merc3065, I am doing the same you are. Didn't have the time to search on the shops to do the work yet. Can you list (pm me) all $ estimates and shops that gave you $ estimates on work to be done? Thanks.