I'm currently in the process of restoring an 86 monte carlo ss and one of the first things I'm replacing is the engine. The engine is a stock 305 and I'd like to swap it out for a 350 preferably for an LT1. Is this a straight forward swap or is there anything else that I'm going to have to replace?
LT1 swap for an 86 monte carlo ss
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http://gbodyforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=3148&highlight=lt1+swap
the swap will be a bit more difficult than a regular sbc.
the swap will be a bit more difficult than a regular sbc.
personal opinion: don't bother with the LT1, it's a royal pain to do tune ups and other work on. since it only existed for a few years parts are harder and more expensive to get. and it's not especially powerful. i would try and do a junkyard LS1 swap. you will need special engine brakets, but ATS sells them.
i agree LS1 engines rock, and you are going to have to do all the pain in the butt wiring any way, so i would defiantly go with a LS series engine.
Well, I will say "It all depends on...". What you intend to do with it, what you intend the car to be used for, how much you can get the swap for, etc. You can do a carburated LT1 with an HEI distributor for relatively little money if you don't plan on running too many accessories. All you would need is a belt to drive an alternator and a GMPP carb intake in the most minimalist form. Plan on more complications to run A/C or P/S. EFI adds a whole new degree of pain and cost if that is part of your plans.
well one of my main concerns is that I'm going to be building this car on a very limited budget...I'd love to obtain a ls series engine but all of the ones I have come across are out of my price range...i guess my biggest question is what type of engine would you recommend getting with a budget of between 600-1000 dollars? this cost does not include doing the actual swap, only for the engine. what I would like to do is find a reliable engine in that price range that would not be an incredibly difficult swap. Thanks for all of your opinions and help.
I wouldnt ditch the LT1 idea so quick. There's plenty of them, complete and running with the transmission that can be had for less than $1000.
There's a Roadmaster here locally, they're asking $650 for the whole drivetrain. I don't know the mileage but for complete engine, transmission, acc, wiring that's a good deal.
But for me, I would probably save and put the effort into an LS1 when I could afford it since they aren't a whole lot more, plus there's more support for that swap.
There's a Roadmaster here locally, they're asking $650 for the whole drivetrain. I don't know the mileage but for complete engine, transmission, acc, wiring that's a good deal.
But for me, I would probably save and put the effort into an LS1 when I could afford it since they aren't a whole lot more, plus there's more support for that swap.
The LT1 has a number of pitfalls in stock configuration that can add up to a lot of money quickly. The ECU requires a chipped ignition key and must be reflashed to ignore that. If it is a 96 or newer, you need to run a post cat O2 sensor as well as a pre cat o2 sensor. The Opti-Spark is failure prone and expensive. The catalytic converters are bolted to the exhaust manifolds and have a unique output flange stock. Now, you can avoid some of this if you run a stand alone ECU or all of it if you run an HEI and a carburetor. Run a used carb and a junkyard distributor on a GM conversion intake and you have all of it handled except for the accesory drives, which hit the frame (or come damn close!) with anything but the Corvette accessories. I am by no means an expert on this, and have not actually done it myself. This is all based on what I have read over the years. I believe it is a sound hypothesis, but it is up to you what you want to do.
For my $1,000, I would consider finding a good used 96+ light truck L35 Vortec 350. You get good heads, roller cam, somewhat decent compression and upgradability. All you need for that conversion is the intake manifold and a roller cam distributor gear. You can always upgrade the cam and valve springs in the future to make some decent power. Also, the Vortec heads are basically a Gen I version of the Iron LT1 heads used on the B bodies. They are well known for their flow numbers and efficiency.
For my $1,000, I would consider finding a good used 96+ light truck L35 Vortec 350. You get good heads, roller cam, somewhat decent compression and upgradability. All you need for that conversion is the intake manifold and a roller cam distributor gear. You can always upgrade the cam and valve springs in the future to make some decent power. Also, the Vortec heads are basically a Gen I version of the Iron LT1 heads used on the B bodies. They are well known for their flow numbers and efficiency.
I have an 85 SS with an LT1 swap and I love it. Motor is stock and im running high 13's. With some good heads intake and cam that would easily drop to 12's. Same with a supercharger. I have found parts are not too hard to find and the computers are fairly easy to program. All you need is a $50 cable and $100 software (and a laptop). I think you could easily make as much power with the lt1 as with and ls1 for about the same amount of money. It all depends on your prefrence.
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