My husband just got a Camaro. It is all Original. Don't judge me cuz I'm female. lol I have worked on cars since I was little. Anyways We need a little advice. The car cranks but has no power like when u floor it... it barely moves. So We only cranked it to put it on a tow dolly. We was told the car overheated and the guy kept driving it until it actually died. Here's what we've found out so far.

Note: I'm use to working on imported cars. Not American.

Oil:
Milky and smells like gas.
Oil might be overfilled. It comes up about 5 to 6in on the dipstick.
Lots of Gunk down under the valve cover.


Hoses and Vacuum Lines: Mostly dry Rotted. But they seem to all be there.

Radiator: Rusty colored inside, Also almost empty.

Things we want to do:
Change Head Gaskets
Change Intake Manifold Gaskets
Flush Milky Oil
Flush Radiator
Pressure Test Coolant System for Leaks
New Vacuum Lines and Hoses

Should we check the water pump/gasket and thermostat?
Do you guys know if these motors have Aluminum Heads?
Should we just replace All gaskets considering its 31 years old?




Our goal is to keep it Original as possible. Do you guys have any suggestions as to what else really needs to be done?

Thanks in Advance

 

I'll add a quick few notes from what I can see in your info: Milky oil sounds like a blown head gasket. Possibly needs a rebuild if it bearings are damaged.

I'd check all parts of the engine.

Also, fill out your profile and let us know where you are, someone nearby may be able and willing to help! If you're near me, I've even got a rebuilt 2.8L V6 out of a 1982 Berlinetta for sale with 0 miles on it! Much easier to swap out than to go through a water damaged engine.

 

Thanks for the reply. I was really hoping we wouldn't have to rebuild it. I have never personally rebuilt one. Never been into the bottom end of a motor. I've heard it's not to bad. But if/when we do tear it down we will check everything. I wish we could afford to buy a newly rebuilt motor. We just don't have that kind of cash right now. We have no patience either. Sucks to just see it sitting there broke. lol

We have a 400 Small Block in a S10. We thought about doing a swap. But then we read the section on swaps. lol Looks like it would be a big headache trying to do it. So we figured we would try and fix the v6 and keep it original.

Once we start on it I'm sure we will have tons of questions if we can't find it on the forum. Thanks again

 

Well, there are a couple specifics about that engine you should be concerned about:
1. Oil looks like milk. Water or whatever in the oil causes MAJOR damage. And that could just be the beginning of your issues.
2. That engine is the weakest of the 60* V6 engines. The crank journals are smaller than 85+. Those engines have been known to snap the crank in STOCK form. And the valves in the cylinder heads are smaller.

What I would do are 2 things:
1. Get onto eBay and look for a factory service manual. Haynes is trash and Chilton's isn't much of an improvement. Or you can order one from Helms for around $80. You're going to need this as there aren't that many on here who have anything older than 85, specifically relating to the fuel system.
2. Start looking for a replacement 85+ engine as you may need it. Everything above the heads and the accessory parts will swap over directly, and you will get the advantage of having the stronger crank AND bigger valves in the cylinder heads.

 

if the cars been sitting for a long time with coolant in the oil , the bearings are probably trashed. ur best and cheapest bet would be to get a 3.4 v6 out of an 93-94 camaro/firebird

u didnt mention what year the camaro u have is but if its an early carbed engine u just swap the intake and carb and also the front cover and oil pan from ur original engine to the 3.4 and it will drop in

the same goes if u have a fuel injected engine swap over the original oil pan timing cover and intake and it drops in

most 3.4's can be purchased for 50-350 $'s
the 3.4 is the best bang for the buck engine replacement also giving upto a 60hp boost depending on which engine ur cars has

when swapped properly u cannot tell the 3.4 apart from the stock engine as they are identical

 

If I understand, you want to drive your car ASAP, yet you want to keep it close to original. First, Maverick knows his stuff and you should carefully consider his observations. Project89 also makes sense if you want a lot more hp. Our V6 engines are weak on horsepower, but have an amazing amount of torque.

However, I see another option to consider that meets your twin goals of being able to drive the car soon & end up with it being close to original with matching numbers.

To start, as Maverick noted, it would be much easier to replace the engine with a newer 2.8 L. You could get a used one locally or see if you can sweet talk Odie into making you a great deal. Driving from TN to NY to haul back an engine is not that far if you have a pickup truck, trailer, etc. There are also a lot of engine rebuilders on the web that will ship to your home or you can go pick up. Some have very good warranties.

You would have a drivable car much, much, much faster than the time it takes to rebuild the original and reinstall it. Then, if you want to rebuild the original engine, you can take your time and buy parts/services as you save up the cash. Of course, you would also be able to put stronger parts into the rebuild. Once it is rebuilt, you can put the original engine back into the car and resell the non-original engine. However, if you find that rebuilding the original engine is more challenging, time consuming, or costly that you can accept, you can stop at any time on the rebuild and still have a drivable car. They are a lot more fun to drive than to watch one sitting in a garage for a couple of years while you rebuild the engine. Just my two cents.


And, Wrencher87, trust me, even if you decide not to rebuild the original engine, you will have ample opportunity to use your wrencher skills diagnosing problems and making repairs to your third gen.

 

Wrencher, even if you were to need/get a crank kit (costs about the same as a replacement J/Y 2.8), you would need to at least have the cam bearings inspected at a machine shop. Chances are, they would need to be replaced. When I priced the cam bearings a few years back, those ran about $100 (GM recommended SBC cam bearings, GM parts) and the machine shop will charge you through the nose to replace them. Crank and rod bearings are one thing, but the cam bearings require special tools and need to be aligned properly and are best left to the machine shop. And you would still have the weak crank.

I can understand wanting to keep the car numbers matching, but you need to figure out how much the repairs will cost and weigh them against a replacement engine. Since the RWD 60* V6s are so cheap (if you can find one... Most junkyards around me have been busy crushing anything older than 1996 and RWD 60* production ended in 1993 in the S10), it won't take much to determine whether or not to keep the engine you have or replace it.

Since I finally read the entirety of your original post... I would begin by doing a full gasket kit. Definitely replace the thermostat if the engine is worthwhile because it may be useless by now (who knows, it could also be 31 years old!). You plan on tearing the engine down anyways, so you might as well. While you have the heads off, turn the crank until each pair of cylinders is at TDC and inspect the cylinder walls in the ones that aren't. And don't just replace the head gaskets and throw the heads back on the block... Soak the heads in a mix of Purple Power and water for a couple of days before hitting them with a strong stream of water so you can inspect the chambers and such for cracks and other damage. This will also save hours of scrubbing the oil debris out of the valve cover areas. Better yet, soak everything above the engine block in this mixture and get it nice and clean (except the carburetor!).

Specs:
Firing order is 1-2-3-4-5-6, driver's front being #2
Externally balanced small journal crank (will require flywheel/flexplate replacement if you need an engine and get one built after 1988)
Cast Iron cylinder heads... RWD never got aluminum heads until they started making them again not too long ago. Smaller ports compared to 85+

Oh, and all of the fasteners are METRIC. So if you don't have any metric sockets, you should probably stock up.

 

Wow lots of replies. It is very appreciated. Don't think I am not listening. I would really love to do all these things you guys suggest. One day hopefully we can. This is going to be a quick fix until it fails again. And I'm sure it will. lol

From what I am hearing from you guys. This 2.8 v6 is not the best option. And is in really bad shape. Not sure I wanna put a lot of money into a weak and unreliable motor. We was wanting to leave it all original but by the sound of it. That's super expensive.

My husband just has v8 on the brain lately. So our goal when we got the car was to just put a v8 in it and throw the v6 in the s10. But we are going to get the v6 running and drive it till it quits. And in the mean time be finding a decent v8. I think we are leaning towards a 350.

My husband bought the head gasket set yesterday. We are going to tear it down and check everything out fully before we decide to go through with the simple head gasket change. I know its probably not wise to just do this quick fix. Don't yell at me lol

It really sounds like you guys know your stuff. And once again we really do appreciate all of the advice. So when we do get the money to get us a banging motor. Then we will take the time/money and do it right.

So I have a few questions...
Should we reuse the head bolts?
Should we replace the valve stem seals?
Whats the best way to clean all the milky goo out of the block?
(He pulled the oil drain plug and nothing happened lol)
I'm guessing there is a ton of crud on the bottom of the oil pan.

I plan on giving the heads a good scrubbing but as for the top of the block maybe just a rag with some wd 40 after getting the gaskets off. Scared to get any more water down in there.

Just know that we don't have alot of experience with rebuilding these V motors like most of you. So the main goal of all of this is to learn from it and enjoy doing it. So I have to sit and wait for my hubby to get off work then we get to start on it.

I'll try to post up some pics for you guys.

 

Hey, if you can get it running, who knows how long it will last. These are really tough engines.

In the mean time, you can start looking for a new model, used 2.8. Or you can start looking for a used 3.4L. If you get a 3.4 L, you can consider adding some power goodies (cam, ported & polished, aluminum heads, etc.) before installing. A stock 2.8 has 135 hp, 3.1L has 140 hp, & 3.4L has 160 hp. That extra 25 hp is a significant increase increase.

My car has 149,000 miles on the odometer, and I've put over 40,000 of those miles on my third gen V6, 140 hp. If I had another 20 hp, I think I'd be a state of excitement while driving that would border on excruciating.

For future planning, you might want to read or re-read the "How to get the most power/speed out of your V6 car" sticky at: https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/v6/5...ost-power.html

If my 3.1 dies, I'll definitely be looking for a stock 3.4L replacement.

 

I'm going to assume you have an engine hoist if you already have done a swap in an S10 and plan on doing so again...

The ONLY way to get the oil pan off of the engine is to lift it off of the mounts. There isn't enough clearance between the pan, crossmember, and block any other way. When you do get the pan off, you should go through the crap in the bottom of the pan to make sure there isn't any bearing material in the sludge. The material will look like long, thin metal slivers about half an inch wide.

The head gasket set may or may not have come with bolts. With the age of the engine, I would highly recommend spending the extra money for new bolts. Valve stem seals are up to you, but if you're going to tear the engine down that far anyways, you might as well. Especially if you plan on soaking the heads to get the crud off (may damage the seals).

And, IIRC, the carbed 2.8 is in the 120 HP range... Which may be why it feels weak if you're used to 400 HP...

 

what u can do is get 1-2 gallons of diesel or kerosene and dump that in from the top of the engine onece the intake and heads are off,while the drain plug is in the oil pan.

let it sit for about an hour then pull the drain plug and let it drain out, then while the plug is still out pour the rest of it into the engine to further flush out any crud


if that dont get it all out u can flush the engine with water , but i recommend that directly after u spray tons of wd40 into the engine , and then fill it with oil right after and then turn the engine over a few times with a racthet on the crank bolt.

the oil pan will come off without lifting the engine on a 2.8 , but u have to have the crankshaft in a specific spot drop the pan pull it out 2 inches and then rotate the crank 60-90* and it will slide the rest of the way out

 

Well we got half of it done yesterday. We are freakin exhausted. lol

First off is there some kind of trick special magical tool to get the last bolt out of the exhaust manifold on the back passenger side? On the bottom. It is in the worst spot. Can't get a socket short or deep well on it. And we thought about leaving that manifold on and pulling the head but you can't get to the 2 exhaust bolts either. We are tempted to get out the sawzall.

We got the intake and driver side head off. It looks pretty rough meaning tons of crud. And someone has been there before us. There was a ton of Orange gasket maker not just on the intake but on the heads as well.

So after all that work. We are feeling like it might be a lost cause. I am a bit optimistic that we can get it running decently. But It needs extensive cleaning just to see if it is salvageable.

We bought the s10 and haven't heard it run yet. He is a good friend of my dads. And wouldn't screw us over. We jumped on it when he told us there was a 400 small block in it. And the goal was to put it in the camaro. But we think it needs a distributor. We got it turning over but no spark is getting to the plugs. It's just a one wire dizzy. Numbers show it is from a 64-66 Chevelle. Still aren't sure it is truely a 400. Can't find anything to prove it. No externally balanced harmonic balancer. But that's all another story/headache. lol

Maverick-
We don't have a cherry picker. But we do have tons of lumber. lol I was gonna build a motor puller with some 4x4's, big bolts,chain, come along and hillbilly riggin. Anything to get out of paying for a cherry picker lol.

Stewie That is some funny stuff man. lol I will try to talk the hubby into keeping it a V6. One because of gas prices these days. And 2 the V8 swap will be more of a pain than the v6.

Thanks for all of the tips. We will use the diesel and hope it makes it shinny and new again lol. We haven't even tried to take the oil pan off yet. Glad to know the easiest way is to pull the motor.

I think our next goal is to pull the 2.8 and try to clean it up and check it thoroughly. Then go from there. I really want to try and fix it up even as a back up motor. I can't stand to see it sitting in pieces.

Also I been taking tons of pictures while disassembling. Just in case we need a reference.

What is this? I know the coil is on the bracket. But half of it goes to something with a pulley that wasn't hooked up.


Anyone ever seen this before? Know what it means? It was behind a bracket on the head.


And here is a pic of the Camaro

 

Thanks for the pics. You guys have made great progress.

 

V8 5.7L 80-85 2 or 4 bolt main 4bbl-
I know we have jumped back and forth on deciding what engine to put in the Camaro. We found out over the weekend that the S10 actually has a 350 in it with a TH350 Tranny. So now the hubby is all for putting it in the Camaro.

Distributor -
We need some recommendations for a Distributor for the 350. Right now it has a 1 wire points distributor and I think it is fried. Not sure the v6 Wiring harness or ecm will work for an electronic distributor.

Starter -
Starter was working fine until it started grinding. We noticed the gear on the starter was staying engaged on the flywheel. So we turned the crank and it disengaged. Then it started just clicking like it wasn't getting power. It only works when u tap on the solenoid. This starter weighs about 20 lbs. and It looks like its 40 yrs old. lol So we want to replace the starter and solenoid. Recommendations?

Also the starter bolt hole is stripped out next to the flywheel. Thinking about getting a heli coil tap. We've never done it. Any tips?

I'm guessing the 350 has a 153 tooth flywheel. I have never had to try and match up starters to flywheels. Any help will be much appreciated.

I definitely want the 350 running before we do the swap. I read on the forum we will need a new wiring harness and ECM from a V8 Camaro. I'm not sure if the cross member from the s10 will fit the Camaro. Lots of stuff to check out before we swap.

Parts List 350 Swap
Distributor HEI? With built in coil?
Starter Mini Maybe?
Heli Coil Tap Maybe?



V6 2.8L-
He doesn't really want anything to do with the v6 except taking it out of the Camaro to make room for the V8. So I am going to take my time with the v6 and clean it all thoroughly. Tear it down to the block and check the bearings,crank and everything. It will be a really good learning experience for me. I've always loved taking things apart to see how they work.

Got one of the heads soaking and the intake and valve covers. It's gonna take awhile to get them cleaned up. So while my hubby is at work this week. That's what I'll be doing. Would be nice to paint the motor Hot Pink and Black.

Sorry to put all of this in one post. I might of had too much coffee this morning. Hence all of the rambling. I can't tell you how much we appreciate all of the expert advice. We take note of each of the suggestions. So Thanks again in advance.

 

Wrencher, you might want to start a thread on the Tech/General Engine section for your questions on the 350 swap. There are a lot of owners on the V6 section who also know V8 stuff. But, the other sections mostly focus on V8s. They will love to know and help someone who is swapping from V6 to V8.

However, as you tear down & rebuild your 2.8L, feel free to ask questions and post your progress in the V6 area.

There is sometimes a little friendly rivalry and teasing between V8 & V6 owners. Not me, but the minute your husband gets the 350 in your Camaro, I'd love to race him up a winding mountain road. <grin>

 

the v6 to v8 swap isnt just remove and replace the v6 , u have the added cost of the front suspension, moving the front brake line, new engine mounts etc etc etc

also unless that th350 has a 9inch tailshaft u will have to get a new driveshaft made to fit , besdies that u need a 700r4 to th350 conversion kit to mount the tq arm and also for the trans to bolt to the crossmember

it also sounds like the 350 is a bone stock engine somone just decided to dump in the truck, was it just rebuilt? or is this some old and tired sbc that aint going to do nothing but make ur gas millage really bad


if u need me to go more into detail on what a v6 to v8 swap in one of these cars takes let me know and ill type up a pretty good list for ya

 

See, I told you there were V6 owners on here who know this stuff.

Project89, I wish you hadn't told her about beefing up the front suspension. Now it's not going to be as easy beating her husband through the curves once they get that heavy 350 swapped. Still easy, just not as easy.

 

Hubby says he will race you in the Toyota Corolla S. lol And its just a 4 banger.

I don't know whats in the 350. I know it has a edelbrock Preformance Intake and carb on it. Not sure whats going on inside of it. It's gonna be like Christmas morning when we start that thing. It might start singin and dancin lol.

Project89 Thanks for all of the tips. This is all new to us. When we bought the truck the guy talked highly about it being built. So I know its not bone stock. They had a chevelle dizzy and a corvette starter. I know the TH350 is not stock and I'm not sure if they had to put in all the stuff you mentioned to make it work on the truck. So there aint no tellin what its got going on. Who knows. We haven't gotten that far yet. We still have alot to look up and see if its compatible.

Feel free to write up a list for us. We will still have to run the numbers and compatibility for everything. But it would be nice to have something to go by since it sounds like you have been there before.

 

Ill race ya
I really like the style of the hood. A fresh paint job down the road any youll have a sharp thirdgen.

 

Hey! You're in luck! I happen to have the exact driveshaft you would need to put a TH350 in a Camaro!

Let me know if you are interested in it.

Wrencher87, I'm glad to see you are making progress! Keep up the good work and feel free to ask lots of questions!

 

Thanks fasteddi We like it too.. When we get it running then hopefully it will get some paint.

OdieTurbo, When we get that far then we will know if we need it or not. lol Shipping on that would be outrageous but we will definitely keep you in mind.

I still need your alls thoughts on some stuff. Payday is coming up so we can get more parts lol.

Any of you used Heli Coils to fix a stripped hole? Anything I need to know about them?

I'm not sure on what distributor will work. We definitely want one with a built in Ballast Resistor. And we want one with a built in coil depending on the price. Any thoughts on this guys?

Still haven't decided on the starter. They have mini's but we are leaning toward a stock replacement so we won't have to worry about shimming. Suggestions?

We have also been looking at headers. We seen some Flowtech ones on ebay. Anyone ever used them?

Update on the V6:
I've got 1 head, intake and valve covers pretty clean. Gonna get some oven cleaner and spray on it to finish it off. The deck's all sanded up real nice and flat with no cracks.

The other head is still on the car. I tried again to get that last exhaust manifold bolt out with no luck. This weekend hubby will probably cut the heads off the bolts where the exhaust meets the manifold.

The goal this weekend is to get that 350 running in the s10. After that we will be building an Engine Hoist. Then we will be pulling that v6. Not sure on how much we will get done. But that's the goals.

 

If you have to cut off the exhaust manifold bolt, cut it so that there is still some of it there if you can. Depending on which bolt it is, you may not be able to.

If you can, you can either put a pair of vice grips on there and heat it up with a torch to try to get it out, or put a notch on it so that you can get a large flat head screw driver on there and use a good cresent wrench on the metal shaft of the screwdriver(if its one that has sharp sides on it not a round shaft one) and be sure to heat it up first. Its at least worth a try so that that the threads are still there when ya get the bolt out.

Heli coils work pretty well. I had to use a few the other month on some aluminum heads on a gen 3 3100 V6. The threads on the heads for the rockers were shot. I just used the drill bit that is with the tap for the heli coil, it worked great and was pretty straight forward.

 

Another trick is to weld a nut on the bolt. Welding on the nut won't weld it to the block because it is cast iron. Read that on one of the posts. Made sense to me if nothing else works.

 

I wouldn't worry too much on the cost of shipping a driveshaft. I got an LS1 aluminum driveshaft shipped from the US to Canada and I think the shipping was only $20. Less than $100 shipped in the end.

 

Been doing some more research. Found out the Camaro has a stock THM200C Tranny with 8 Teeth on it. And from what I have read online... It might be a direct swap to a TH350. Maybe this pic will help yuns explain it to me. lol I've never messed with Transmission swaps before.
Do I still need a cross member and a drive shaft?


Haven't got to work on the Camaro yet. I don't have a welder or a torch but we do have a saw zall, some vice grips, and PB Blaster. I'll let yuns know how it turns out.

I think we have decided on a HEI Non Computer Controlled Distributor. Maybe Accel Brand. That way we won't have to do a wiring harness or ECU swap.

I'll keep you guys updated.

 

Just found a very useful post on this forum. https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/faq-...ngth-info.html Thank You Randy82WS7!

Our Tranny Swap should work perfectly based on that guys post. Stoked!
Any input will definitely be helpful though.

 

Well we bought a Hei Accel Distributor with a coil monting on top. I think it will work well.

We had alot of trouble finding a starter though. Ours has a straight bolt pattern on the starter. Every starter they pulled up has staggered mounting starters.

So I got to reading online and I reckon you have to go by the size of the flywheel. So now most likely we will have to unbolt the transmission to see what size flywheel is on it.

I am really missing working on my Hondas right now. Finding parts was never an issue. Never again will I buy a vehicle that someone else has altered. So now we spend the weekend trying to match things up. :/

So far we know the motor is from a 80 to 85 sbc.
64 to 66 Chevelle Dizzy
Manual Transmission starter for an automatic.

I just hope there is no more surprises. lol

 

If you're needing a cheap welder, you can get a 90 amp flux wire welder for $90 plus $7 shipping or an 80 amp arc welder for $150 plus $7 shipping at Harbor Freight Tools:
http://www.harborfreight.com/90-amp-...8887-8494.html
http://www.harborfreight.com/80-amp-...der-91110.html

BTW - Honda parts may be easy to find, but driving a nice looking Camaro, you'll hear people yell "nice looking car, lady" as you drive by. Never hear that driving a rice burner. LOL. Seriously, it happens often to me when I'm driving my red Firebird down the street (except they yell "hey mister").

Do you guys plan to pull the front suspension off a V8 Camaro from the bone yard to replace the V6 suspension? There are some good posts on here about safely removing & installing springs - very dangerous if not done right.

 

any sbc chevy starter with the stright across pattern will be right .
there are 2 different size flexplates one is used with the stright pattern starter , and the other with the offset patern

this starter will fit either flexplate if somone put together an oddball combo and is highly recomended starter/brand on the hotrodding forums

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CHEVY-305-350-454-MINI-STARTER-SUPER-TORQUE-SERIES-SBC-BBC-/360401289438?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr&hash=item53e99740de

 

One day maybe we will get us a welder. When I say us I mean my hubby. I'm not a fan of sparks, high voltage or gas lol.

Lol yea I never got hollered at while driving a Honda. I think this car would definitely turn some heads. If I can get the hubby to let me drive it lol.

We bought a staggered bolt pattern starter and it didn't work. So we had to exchange it for a straight bolt pattern Starter. It worked perfect with no shims. We would of liked to of gotten a mini starter but they don't sell them around here. We wasn't patient enough to order it. lol

Buttttttt Today we got the starter and Dizzy on and fired it up. It ran like a beast. Tomorrow we are gonna yank that v6 out and if we have enough daylight/energy yank out the v8. Will try to post up some pics soon. The neighbor came and gave us some pointers and plug wires and is also going to let us use his Cherry Picker. We are so super excited.

Any recommendations for a set of headers? Preferably some that will clear the stock starter. But still give us some more HP. I think we have to get a exhaust to fit it too.

Stewie we aren't sure if we will change the front suspension or not. Is there that much of a difference from the v6 and v8 suspension? Should we do this before we put the motor in?

 

The difference between the v6 and v8 suspension is the sway bars and front springs. At minimum u should replace the springs. The sway bar don't matter that much. But a v6 car with a v8 swap. And the v6 springs left in will not handle correctly.


The springs can be changed before or after the engine swap. Or while the engine is or out

 

We got both motors pulled over the weekend. We are so sore lol. Our neighbor has been a blessing. He let us use his cherry picker and helped us pull them both. Not many people would do that.

We got the motor mounts off and decided to get some new ones. The 82 Camaro already has bolt holes for a V8 Mount. We still need to pick out some headers. Our neighbor talks highly of the ceramic ones because they don't rust.

We are going to use the V6 Springs for now. But if or when it starts acting up we will replace them too.

After looking at the v6 and seeing the crud and all the water that came out of it. We think it would be a waste of time and money to fix it. Especially from what you guys say about it. Weak Crank and could have bad damage to the crank journals. So we are going to scrap it. But we will keep the TH200 Tranny as a spare.

Also the s10 came from NY. The bottom of that truck is so rusted out, We wouldn't feel safe driving it. So we are going to scrap it too.

Here's some pics.

Having an Operation. lol

Empty Engine Bay Camaro

V6 out of the car.

V8 Out of the truck.

Motor Mount holes.
Driver Side

Passenger Side

 

that brake line on the crossmember has to be moved foward before u put the v8 in.
other then that u just bolt the mounts in place and drop the engine in, u are still going to need the torque arm mounting kit though

 

Really don't want to pay 300 bucks for a torque arm. I found this but I'm not sure it will work. http://www.jegs.com/i/B-M/130/30299/...oductId=748060

Brake Lines :/ I would like to move them but we were thinking about adding some washers below the mount so it won't be pinched. If that don't work then we will replace them because we don't feel safe bending them by hand.

The thing is we don't want to keep the Cherry Picker for too long. Trying to get the v8 in the Camaro as soon as we can.

We noticed the TH350 tranny has a slight leak. We want to replace the front and rear seals along with Tranny pan gasket and filter while we have it out of the car.

 

sorry should have specified that is the mounting kit u need for the tq arm

honestly i would move the brake line , either go buy some tubing and a bender which is cheap few bucks for a piece of the tubing and 10-20 bucks for the bender

or i belive classic industries sells a pre bent from brake line kit


i dont know if i would trust putting washers under the mount to shim it up to clear the line , could be asking for serious problems down the road

i just had a front caliper blow out on my twin turbo iroc , front brakes are not something u want to go out as the rears only do about 15-20% of the actual braking

 

That was a lot of engine for a light S10.

You can get brake line sections from any auto parts store that are designed to be bent by hand; no tube bender needed. Also, it you go that route, make sure you get the right fittings specifically for brake lines. If you don't have one, the only tool you'll need is a tube cutter (I'd get the smallest tube cutter you can find, cuz you may need to cut lines in some tight places). Had to replace several rusted brake lines on my son-in-law's junk heap. Worked really slick.

When you are ready to get springs, check out Moog & other brands from Rock Auto; $40/pair and up.

 

Yea I don't know what they were thinking putting that big of a motor in a rusted up tiny s10. If anything, it would of sat there and spun in circles cuz there's not enough weight in the rear end.

Well I been working on the Camaro and stuff while the hubby is at work. We was trying to get out of buying that torque arm kit So we was going to use the 200C Tranny on the 350 Motor. Put new seals and filter in the 200C Transmission. Got to looking at the shaft that the drive shaft hooks into and it is mega loose. I don't think that is a good thing. Also the tiny v6 torque converter won't bolt up the the 350 flexplate. So now I believe we are back to using the TH350. It's always something....

I moved the brake lines by hand. Luckily it was super easy. The brake lines had these spring like coils around the tube. So it was super easy to bend. Also mounted the new motor mounts. I used Sewing Thread and pulled the bolts into place lol. Now I just hope the bolts sticking up won't interfere with the clam shaped bracket on the motor when we drop it in.

Also took off the Wiper Motor so it would be easier to drop in the 350. Now I guess I get to wait on the hubby to get off work and go from there.


Will try to post up some pics soon.

 

u cant use the 200c on the v8 the bellhousing pattern is different u have to use the th350 or go buy a 700r4 from an fbody

the v6 is a 60* bellhousing pattern and the v8 is 90* pattern , not even close to matching up

 

btw the coils around the brake lines collect dirt and moisture , while they are east to get at clean them out with some degreaser and a hose/presure washer, this will help prevent the lines from rotting out/rusting threw down the road

 

We just like the torque arm bracket and we can put the motor and tranny in. I reckon our neighbor is going to weld a bracket. Hopefully by next week it will be running. We still like some small stuff after that. Electric Fans, Radiator, V8 Tach, Extend gas lines, Headers, exhaust, New E-Brake Cable, New Battery. I'm sure there is more. But that's where we are at right now. Right now we are at a stand still. Sucks waiting. But we are determined to get it going.

 

the trans cross member is easily modifiable so the th350 mount will bolt to it, but i highly suggest u buy the trans swap kit, if u try to make ur own bracket for the tq arm and u dont get it perfect u can throw off the pinion angle on the rear which will cause for bad traction/handling , and also could cause u to eat up alot of u joints in the drive shaft.

in the long run it cheaper to get exactly what u need the first time around, then to try to make something work and having to repair/fix it later

 

We are going to weld it exactly where it was on the TH200C Tranny. So factory position should be fine. We are welding it to the cross member. We didn't want to pay 400 bucks for that cross member. Or buy a bracket to mount to the tail shaft and risk cracking it.

 

Looks like you guys know these V6's pretty darn good. I'm currently replacing a '85 2.8FI block to replace my original '82 2.8 carbed block. Will everything hook up to the '85 block ok including the mech fuel pump or will I have to do some mods? Also, any of you guys have a good working fuel sending unit for an '82 V6 carbed car for sale?

 

dont think the mechanical pump will work , never paid that much attention to it on my blocks.

u can buy a cheap low presure fuel pump and mount it in the tank or in the fuel line somewere though.

the efi engine will run beter then ur original engine as the heads are a bit better then whats on the carbed version, u will also now have the stronger/block and crank

as far as the sending unit its an f-body lol out of the 13 ive owned/own i think only 3 of mine ever worked right

 

Thanks, I found the sending unit. Looks like i will need to hook up a low pressure fuel pump. No big deal, glad to have the better motor though. Thanks for the help!