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LT1 swap in 3rd gen camaro


superchevy72

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That would work, what are your goals for the car? If drag racing is your main consideration I would suggest an automatic transmission. You could put a 4L60E in that would be more capable of holding the power. The five speeds did not go on the 350 engine for a reason. Also was the computer for an auto or manual car? Again the most help that I can give you is to look at the engine swap section on thirdgen.org.
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the motor, wiring and computer is out of a 96 impala ss. its the 260hp with iron heads but id like to find some camaro or vette aluminum heads to put on it b4 the swap. I think im gonna go more towards street/strip and i definitley want to keep a manual tranny setup. i did look at some stuff at thirdgen.org and it was very helpful but i couldnt find any c100 or c207 diagrams that you said. thank you for the advice.
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Those are the diagrams that you will need for the power to get from the 96 computer to all the accessories on the dash etc. You cannot just put the harness into a third gen, there is A LOT of splicing that will be required for you to be able to get anything beyond it cranking. The C100 connector is on the driver's side bulkhead and the C207 is on the passenger side where the old computer was at. If you do not have the harness from donor vehicle it is going to be a very headbashing experience (have dents in my forehead to prove it).
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painless wiring harness.

Yeah, what's an extra $300 to $400 dollars, it's just money, right? I guess to me the painless is like the easy way out, you do not have to figure out anything on your own, and in some respects the engine swap is more about learning than anything else. Well, that and don't forget some of the accessories will not work since the painless harness is not exactly going to work for all the various configurations that the thirdgens had.

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Check the opti and make sure it is in good condition and it's prolly not a bad idea to replace the waterpump since you have the engine out. Will save you some time and hassle down the road.

 

Thanks i will definitley do that. do you know if there is any aftermarket performance replacments for the optispark dist.?

also, i opted to not go with the painless wiring altho it would be easier to hook up the motor, im also putting 4th gen dash, console and seats in. everything in dash should be plug in with the lt1 harness... so ive heard.

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Thanks i will definitley do that. do you know if there is any aftermarket performance replacments for the optispark dist.?

also, i opted to not go with the painless wiring altho it would be easier to hook up the motor, im also putting 4th gen dash, console and seats in. everything in dash should be plug in with the lt1 harness... so ive heard.

 

Yes there are: MSD, Summit Brand, Accel, and of course GM. There might be more but I'm not positive. FYI: Be careful though, some are just cap and rotor replacements and others include the sensor and degree wheel.

 

Personally I went and did the LTCC (LT1 Coil per Cylinder) conversion. This converts to an 8 coil ignition system. This system uses the sensor of the optispark but keeps the high voltage out of the opti. This greatly prolongs the life of the opti and you can completely seal off the opti so no debris/moisture can get in. This kit also has added features like a couple different timing retard maps for nitrous and a user selectable rev limiter.

 

The LTCC kit is $400 plus you have to get 8 LS1 coils (can be had cheaply). I went with it because of the infamous high rpm miss known on LT1's, that I had (even with the 96+ vented style opti). After the install, I could feel the difference, much better fuel combustionn, the rpm's could pull much higher, and better gas mileage.

 

Took me about 2 full days to do, but I am novice/beginner for working on cars. The hardest part was actually just getting plug wires off and on, and routing everything. The wiring is very easy and straight forward.

 

If you want more info on it, I can get you all you need.

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the motor, wiring and computer is out of a 96 impala ss. its the 260hp with iron heads but id like to find some camaro or vette aluminum heads to put on it b4 the swap.

I have a set of HEAVILY worked over aluminum LT1 heads for sale. They have been freshly cleaned and decked, just need reassembled (can be done before the sale).

 

PM me for details, but they aren't going to be anywhere near the cost of set of stock untouched castings.

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That brings up another big thing since you mentioned that it is TBI. You will need to replace the fuel pump with a TPI as you need the 45psi. I would go with a walbro intank if I were you since the stock TPI will give out when you get the mod bug.
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The hard lines will work up to the engine bay, but you will have to move stuff around. The LT1 fuel rails have hookups at the firewall and the 3rd gens have hookups at the front (TPI) and (TBI? not sure) or by the carb. The LT1 also has GM fuel line quick disconnects as well that you will either need to get or find a way to custom plumb.
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i have gm fuel filters at work that be used with the quick connects or regular lines, could i use one at the motor to join the lines? also, i just noticed today that one of the plugs for a injector was missing and the wires cut. why would it be cut out like that, and could i get it from anything else or just lt1?
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The injector plugs are standard, I have some off a TPI motor that you could have. In fact I replaced one on the LT1 that I have with one from the TPI harness and the wiring is actually a little more heavy duty on the TPI motors than the LT1s. Have you looked at how the fuel rail is oriented on the donor car and on the LT1 engine yet? That should give you an idea of where you may need to adapt from.
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If you use the painless harness it will only take care of the fuel injection problem. You stated that you have the dash wiring so you shouldn't have any other issues. Just PM me and I will let you have one of the connectors (ie free). If you have the wiring harness from the TBI I think that those connectors will also work, but I am not sure on that one. What stage are you at right now? Have you removed all of the wiring from the chassis?
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nah, right now im doing some stuff to the motor before its ready to go in. the camaro is kinda my daily driver, i got a bronco also but its a pos. im doing cam right now, while i have it all off im changing the water pump and givin it an msd opti, new plugs and wires. i also hafta hunt down the acc. bracket for the P.S. a/c, alt. becuz it was broke at the top and a a/c delete pulley from the dealer. should be ready soon, im hoping to yank the 305 and get started on the swap sometime in the next week or two.
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