BUILD THREAD 87 Cutlass EFI build: 9/13/23..NEW STUFF!

[Injectedcutty]

I was going through some old pics last night, and found this video i completely forgot i had! Took my dad for a little cruise and he filmed it because he was excited lol!

Unfortunately, this was a few weeks before the motor died (rip).

 

[Injectedcutty]

I'm gonna try to make this somewhat short and sweet, try anyway. It's been awhile and haven't been able to get much done on the cutlass because life has got in the way a bit. Over the past month I've been putting in quite a bit of OT and it's paying off.

First off, unhappy with the paintjob on my new door handles, i said screw it and called my powder guy. They will match my trim and picked them up earlier.

Oops, a little dusty but they look great!

Continued...

 

[Injectedcutty]

Next up....I've been doing some serious contemplating over engine build ideas for awhile. Then i had a lightbulb moment. My dad is swapping a sbc into his jeep, he needs a bunch of parts, i have a bunch of top shelf parts.....so i pitched the idea for him to buy my parts at the family price. He quickly agreed and my plan was put into motion.

I've been thinking of going LS, but keeping the efi since i love efi and have been running obd1 style for 10 years. I really wanted a 6.0L but keep missing good ones. Then i stumbled across one last night that seemed to good to be true!

Low and behold, the CL ad was legit and i drove home with this in the trunk of my mazda lol!

Freshly rebuilt LM7 5.3L short block with new crank, bearings, rings, wrist pins, new hardware, torque plate honed, etc etc! Got a harness that's already been converted to standalone (i will double check everything!), ecu, intake with rails, f body h3 oil pan, and more.

It needs heads, valvetrain, oil pump, water pump and accessories which are readily available! The guy i bought it from builds LS's and came across an LSA so he didnt need this. Out the door with everything listed for $360!!!!!

Looks like i caught the bug finally, but I'm super pumped to upgrade to more modern efi and tuning capabilities! If i play my cards right i might boost it, if not it will be a healthy street motor!

Stay tuned!

 

[TURNA]

Awesome score!!

 

[shawn1112]

Sweet deal, looking forward to your build

 

[Injectedcutty]

Sweet deal, looking forward to your build

Thanks man. I kept saying i wouldn't convert to LS....but tuning my stealth ram efi the old way was a real PITA!!!! That motor died a couple years ago so I've been doing research on the best bamg for the buck! Pretty sure i found it!

 

[Opie Knievel]

You got a good price on that 5.3 Scott. You can make plenty of power with it. I can't wait to see how it looks in the Cutlass. Your small block looked great.

 

[Injectedcutty]

You got a good price on that 5.3 Scott. You can make plenty of power with it. I can't wait to see how it looks in the Cutlass. Your small block looked great.

You know how bad I've been hunting for one lately....spent quite a bit of time scouring yards, web, etc looking for a good short block at the minimum! All of the extras that came with this one were an added bonus!

I've got some ideas floating around this noodle of mine of how to effectively put lipstick on this pig! The LS in stock trim isn't very attractive, but the aftermarket has opened some doors.

 

[Texas82GP]

Nice find Scott! Does it have a cam in it? I have a bare 6.0 block on the garage floor to build a 408 for my 08 Sierra RCSB. That was my project when I bought my GP and I got distracted. I've probably put another 40k miles on the 5.3 since. It's a great engine. It's amazing how much power a little 5.3 will put out. I really enjoy how easily it will wind up and might miss it when I eventually replace it with the 408. Mine was 315 HP stock so I'm guessing with 'full bolt ons' its north of 400. That will feel great in a much lighter g body. What are you going to do on the transmission?

What's the latest on your car getting painted?

 

[Injectedcutty]

Nice find Scott! Does it have a cam in it? I have a bare 6.0 block on the garage floor to build a 408 for my 08 Sierra RCSB. That was my project when I bought my GP and I got distracted. I've probably put another 40k miles on the 5.3 since. It's a great engine. It's amazing how much power a little 5.3 will put out. I really enjoy how easily it will wind up and might miss it when I eventually replace it with the 408. Mine was 315 HP stock so I'm guessing with 'full bolt ons' its north of 400. That will feel great in a much lighter g body. What are you going to do on the transmission?

What's the latest on your car getting painted?

Thanks Jared....I'm pretty happy with the deal i scored! It needs heads, valvetrain, oil pump, water pump, acces drive and some other things. I will hopefully compile a "parts needed" list in the next week. Hoping to find a decent set of 243 heads unless there is a better budget option out which i don't believe so. I'm not sure on what cam i want yet, any recommendations?

I plan on keeping my Tci 350 unless i can get back to the local yard and yank the 4l80e i saw the other day. If i can get it, it's only $100!!!

The paint process is still on hold as my bodyguy is finishing up a 62 cutlass convertible. Then it will be back full time on my car finally!