I just got my motor back from the machine shop today. Among other things, I had the LT1 intake machined so the bolts will sit flush against the intake and aluminum added to seal better over the coolant ports.

 

Looks really great. You just wanted to be really safe or was there a little of the water port showing?

The flush fitting bolts look like alot of work for an appearance mod since it has no bearing on the final tq of the bolt.

 

On the rear driver side head and the front passenger side head, there was a hairline opening of the coolant port, so to be on the safe side I had this shop weld some aluminum to better cover the ports. It was just a peace of mind thing. I'm using those Pro Topline "Iron Lightning" heads. The coolant ports appear to sit just a smidge higher (almost not noticable) than the stock heads.

They had a hard time adding that aluminum. I was told that because it's cast aluminum, it's very hard to weld to. The appearance isn't perfect, but on the mating surface it's a solid seal.

About the bolt angles. I had noticed that they didn't sit flush against the intake. Since the shop had to do some other work to the motor, I figured I'd ask if they'd get the bolts to sit flush. It wasn't a big deal to me if they didn't...I knew torque values would still be the same. They also had to redrill the center two holes because I changed my mind on the heads I was going to use.

John - I'm trying to get an email out to you about those polished fuel rails. I'm out of town this weekend and can only receive email as the SMTP (outgoing mail) server is not located or accessable in Erie, PA. The reply is in my outbox and will be sent when I get back to Cleveland this evening.

 

The flush mounted bolts look good. I tried to take off some material on mine, but I was getting sloppy with the sander/grinder, so I quit. My machine shop said they didn't have a machine would get in between the bolt holes.

Looks good.

 

Yeah, the shop said they had a tough time with a few holes. It turned out much, much better than I had expected. It's pretty much just a cosmetic change.

 

Mine's not as neat as yours, but I did the same thing:
I wanted to make sure the bolts had a good bite into the head. Pocketing the manifold gave me a few more threads.

 

Amazing the money people will spend to avoid getting a Mini-Ram.

 

LT1 Intake with injectors, rails, misc: $125
John's modificatons: $200
Remote thermostat and misc hoses: $80
93 Throttle Cable Bracket: $20
93 TV Cable: $40
Machine work for better coverage on coolant ports/bolts to sit flush against intake: $60

That's $525 right there. There may be a few misc parts I left out. That's less than half of what the mini ram costs.

The money I saved by using the LT1 intake got me a new set of heads.

Amazing what people will spend on a mini ram for the same performance.

 

ROTFLMAO !!

 

It's not about that dood. It's about trying something different and seeing what you get out of it. That's what hot-rodding is all about. I see that someone has a conversion for using the LT1 heads on an older block. Also I might try the ford 8.8 rear end swap myself.

 

If two cars are sitting next to each other at a show, one has a miniram and the other has the LT1 conversion, I'll probably spend a lot more time checking out the LT1 motor.

You see one miniram, you've seen 'em all... but LT1s are unique.

 

EXACTLY!!!! Glad I have an intake sitting here for mine. Now I just have to quit being lazy and finish this thing. later!

 

I was thinking about puting the coolant hoses on all four corners of my LT1 intake. I seen some race cars have coolant lines coming from the back corners as well as the fronts to give more even coolant flow through the cylinder heads, resulting in clooser temps between the rear of the heads and the front. This could improve tuning between the front and rear cylinders.

What's your guy's take on this?

 

Looks good

 

Lookn good!! I dont know about the MiniRam, but I know the LT1 intake would be a good choice for me because strut tower braces designed for TPI cars will clear. Let us know how it turns out WildSide!

Also, just wanted to say Wasap. I remember you from the Sportruck.Com boards. I used to post over there as Hawaiian97s10. I had the green s10 with the poopy 4 cyl motor. I remember seeing your conversion with AWD and all and I thought it was so cool. How is your project going now? You still planning on moving everything to the 94+ body style? Are you going to keep the AWD?? Looks like you're building a monster of an engine there.

 

I'm going to keep the same body, frame (1995 4x4 frame), and all wheel drive components. The motor is almost ready to go back in. I'm currently going through my wiring harness and removing wires I don't need while converting to a speed density setup. My transmission went in for a rebuild last night. The shop called me to ask, "did you drive your vehicle with that transmission?". Turns out I busted it to pieces inside. He was surprised it worked. It should be running within the next few months. My new website is http://www.s10wildside.com

That Camaro is looking good...gotta appreciate that V8!