Chevy noob here

[gbodss]

Hey guys, i was pointed here for some good info on the gbodys. I'm going to get my first chevy this weekend. Its an 86 MontecarloSS with 52k on it. Has bucket seats and some misc stuff done to it. But Ive never had one before so can anyone give me some stuff i need to look at it before I drive off in a "mistake". ive been a ford guy all my life, and i just sold a Notch back 306stang I built and want to try something new.

What rear ends(and gears/posi?) and what trannys do these use? Has anyone swapped in a Ls1 in these yet? or is this like an anti-christ swap on here? I have a ls1 available to me cheap with all the wiring and ecm and such, and i figured this would make the car a little more fun to drive/not have to deal with a carbed car's "mood swings" from time to time.

Thanks for any help guys, I appreciate it.

 

[Blake442]

Welcome!
Your Monte will have a 7.5" 10-bolt rear with 3.73 gears, and they don't really like to handle a whole ton of power or abuse, so if you plan on making some big power, you'll probably want to consider upgrading to an 8.5" 10-bolt out of a Turbo Buick/442/H-O, a 12-bolt, or a Ford 9".
The trans is a TH200-4R, and although they are a good trans, they need some expensive upgrades to make them reliable behind higher horsepower motors.
LS1 swaps have definately been done, and are awesome. You should do one.
Hope that helps