first post/Monte SS Easy budget Swap?

[cpt87gn]

hi fellas this is my first post! I Have a stock 1988 Monte Carlo SS and want to swap my 305 with a 350.I'm on a small budget and I'm not into going to the track or racing. But I do like the extra horse power..I will eventually add an after market cam intake demon carb headers exhast etc .my ? Is what is the easiest donor car to make a swap I'm looking to get a used engine from a junk yard craigslist ect... What parts besides the motor will I need from the donor car or truck ..I read post on here about the Lt1 or vortex 5.7

 

[DRIVEN]

I would probably base the swap on a Vortec. Donors will be '96-'98ish pickups, vans, Suburbans, Tahoes. Aside from needing a special intake manifold, which you said you'll be replacing anyway, it's a bolt-in swap.



...and welcome.

 

[jerry455]

My previous 1986 Grand Prix had a 1994 350 from a Cadillac Fleetwood ( same as Caprice) with 1896-1991 Corvette alum. heads, ZZ3 cam, Edelbrock 3701 intake and the stock electronic carb and distributor. I had a 350 H.O. prom from the Camaro ZZ3 engine swap kit that worked great. These 350's had roller cams not sure about the trucks.

 

[cpt87gn]

should i get the trans from the donor car or truck or will the 350 work with my stock trans

 

[85GPLef41]

if it's a 2004r i would rebuild it and upgrade it to withstand the additonal hp. Just make sure you adjust the TV cable right. I swapped my old 305 to a crate targetmaster 350 and had zero issues and got it cheap off of craigslist. I wanted to do vortec heads but the cost of the manifold then was $$ and i still had to pass a visual :|

 

[DRIVEN]

Your transmission should be fine for a while if you don't abuse it. Like 85GPLef41 said, it probably should be upgraded.

 

[cpt87gn]

I'll stick with stock transmission for now since I only plan to drive it like once a week and more of a cruiser..but if a good deal pops up on a beefed up 200 or 700r4 I'll jump on it..

 

[cpt87gn]

I'm leaning on getting a vortec 5.7 out of a truck. Do all of these come with the vortec heads or what year? I'm looking to get the newest like 99 or 2000 in hopes of it being in better condition

 

[DRIVEN]

L31 applications:

1996–2003 Chevrolet Express/GMC Savana full-size vans
1996–1999 Chevrolet/GMC C/K full-size trucks
1996–1999 Chevrolet Suburban/GMC Suburban full-size long-wheelbase SUVs
1996–1999 Chevrolet Tahoe/GMC Yukon (and 2000 Tahoe Limited) full-size short-wheelbase SUVs
1999–2000 Cadillac Escalade