Hey Everyone.

Well, ill start off pointing out, im 16 years old. My car is an 89 iroc-z with an LB9 sporting 145 000miles. The engine, how ever, has been well cared for, and everything is clean.

Here is what i would liek to do:

I have an LT1 cam (.447 lift), and LT1 Lifters.

I would like to swap these into my car, i have read the LT1 swap thread, i beleive i have the mechanical ability do do the swap itself, but now im worried about setting things up incorrectly and paying for gaskets.

Has anyone else done this swap?
Was it easy?
What did you pay in gaskets?

Have alse been thinking, that if i have the engine stripped down for the cam off, and exhaust off for headers, i may be easier to pull the engine, so i can make it look nice, and make sure i get everything perfect.

Also might make it easier to modify my y-pipe for my headers.

Now, my father is in control of my funds, so "while its out, i might aswell..."s wont happen.

What is your take on this?

I know summit make a complete re ring kit for this engine (piston rings, gaskets, bearings), but the i would be pulling the engine right apart. I know i would also need a TPI Gasket kit. If i pulled i were to get that kit, i may concider replacing bearings, replacing piston rings and pulling heads off for some minor porting. (this kit is $180)

Let me know what you think, in the sence that this car is my daily drive, and this engine will need to last 1 - 2 years.

Thanks for the input!

Sheldon

 

You don't need the LT1 lifters. Re-use your existing ones.

You need the complete intake gasket set, and the timing cover set. Should be around $40-50 of gaskets. You'll need oil and water, and a gallon of lacquer thinner.

A few "might as well" items would be wise. Re-ring and that sort of thing is WAY beyond the scope of a cam swap, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. Certainly a new water pump could be considered. Maybe popping the heads off and getting a valve job, but if all that was OK before, it's not a big deal. Belts, hoses, vacuum lines, spark plugs & wires, dist cap & rotor, would be great things to replace.

The whole job should fit within $200 or so.

 

valve seals are a good one to consider. Especially if you get a nice little puff of blue smoke when you start it up.

Yea, don't re-ring it, you're digging in deeper than needed for sure.

Having the engine out of the bay won't make it any easier to mod your Y pipe, since you have no frame of reference with respect to the rest of the exhaust. Do you have the tools to modify a y-pipe to fit up with your headers? (MIG?). Not sure what headers you've got, but i'd just as well get the y-pipe from the company that makes the headers. In the end it'd probably cost the same.

 

Incidentally, I don't recall that any of the LT1 cams have that exact lift figure.

However, a certain other well-known cam does; the old "375 HP 327" cam. The legendary 151.

If that's what you've got, DON'T PUT THAT IN YOUR CAR!!!! There are few cams that GM, or anybody else, has ever made, that are less suited to what you're doing, than that one.

What cam is this, exactly? Where did you get it? (Brand, part #, markings on it if it's used, etc.)

There are no headers that require "modifying" the factory Y-pipe. They either come with their own Y-pipe, or they require that a totally "custom" one be fabricated.

What headers are these?