well i finally got to pick up my project: I was told it was a black 85 bird,8 cylinder..when i went to pick it up it was a faded red 86 with a 2.8. I'm not complaing as I got it completely free from a friend ( he's got it free from a friend and offered it to me). Only problems so far is :needs exhaust (gonna get headers), 2 tires, and theres water in the trunk well (weatherstripping or where spoiler bolts to? anyone?)and 1 small dent. I'm totally new to the six cylinder world as I've always had cars with small blocks. my questions are:

were there non a/c 2.8's ?,, I want to bypass the a/c to free up the motor some

will an aluminum driveshaft from a 8 cyl. work on the 2.8 cars?(i know the trans have a different bolt pattern, but wasnt sure if the cases were the same length?

Is 5w-40 the best oil to use,,,or 10w?

Theres no other throttle body in gm's inventory thats larger than stock?(for more airflow)

Anyone think a throttle body spacer will do anything?(like the tbi spacers,old carb spacers, etc. I did one on my efi 2.5 jeep and it helped a minor bit.........

any help appreciated

They sell a/c delete pulleys and non a/c air boxes if you want to clean up the engine bay. As for the leaky hatch.... peel back the carpet a bit to keep it from sopping up water, and have somebody sit inside while you hose her down... you should be able to find the leak then. While you're down there, do a thorough inspection of the tire jack compartment for rust. Those always seem to rust out.
I'm pretty sure an aluminum driveshaft will fit.... (correc me if i'm wrong)
Congrats on your find!
-Brendan

i'm leaning towards leaving all the a/c junk there but just not having the belt around the compressor,,,this way if it gets too hot out i can put the a/c belt on .................i figured some blazers and f-bodies had to come with no a/c, but wasn't sure ,this way when i go into auto parts store i just ask for that year/make,,,,,,,thanks for the help so far....................anyone else?

you have to get the delete pulley, theres been some posts on this before. you will not be able to just bypass it, it wont clear.

im not sure on the driveshaft

5w30 is whats recommended for our engines

no throttle bodies OEM or aftermarket available yet, although a couple are being worked on by people on this site. nor are there spacers available, and it probably wouldnt help.

as for exhaust, if you live in a state that doesnt have emissions testing, get the pacesetter headers through summit. they bolt right up and are only $220 to your door and come with a y-pipe. then a highflow cat, almost like not having one, and a dynomax catback is the most popular. do a search for "mods" and youll find a ton more than you ever wanna know on these engines. welcome aboard!!

The Pacesetter headers have a CARB E.O. #... they're 50 state legal for '85-89, possibly '90 due to a mistake made by pacesetter.

the A/C not on, does not take anything away from the engine. Like maybe a Hp or two. And to install the delete pully, you need to remove the compressor, which means you have to unhook the lines, and lose your R-12. So to have it running again, you would need to have your lines cleaned, reinstall the compressor, and refilled. Is it really worth all that to gain 1-2 Hp...

The drive shafts in an f body are the same. The U joints I may be different, verify with a parts store. I also think the yolks are the same. I have read about a few people switching to the 4th gen aluminum driveshaft as well.

Throttle bodies, no such luck.

Oil, depends on the stable weather it sees. Oil cap says 5-30.

The leak detection has already been suggested. Though most the time, a good cleaning of the two drains is all that is needed. If it still is a pisser, weather stipping replacement.

To drain what is there, pull back the carpet and there is a metal oval tab that can be removed and then reinstalled.

A first thing to do is look up Tomp's tune up, and go over the car doing all the general maintenance and once over inspecting everything.

thanks for the input ,,,,,,,gonna go out in a bit and look for the two drains ,,,,,,,,hope they are obvious because its freezing out................guess the only real lingering question is the driveshaft,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,but thanks,,,i didn't know the 4 gen lengths were the same as 3rd gens,,,,,i assume the yokes are the same (4l60/700r4,,,,,,),,,anyone out there do the swap?

thats right, thanks tech, i was thinking of all the 3.1 guys who were asking about them for a while,