[oldtempest]

I know this is not a good place to ask these question,but i will anyways.I have a 99 yukon and a 99 van,both with the vortec 350,and they both run smooth and have plenty of power for what i'm wanting.The yukon is a loaded 4wd and its still hauls ass and when you drive it normal gets decent gas mileage.
My thinking is it would be a perfect swap for my 65 tempest.The car is going to be driven alot,local and on long trips.Our plan is to take a vacation to route 66 , vegas ect in it from tenn.
With the pontiac engines getting harder to find and prices people want for them,good god,this seems the way to go with the car.Has anybody used this combo in their car and if so,how do you like it?How do you like the drivability?Enough power stock?Gas mileage?What gearing did you use?Does the caprice gas tank fit in the 65?
Before i get the crap I've read in the other post here,yes I have read them all.I know most say to keep it pontiac powered.But this is not a rare gto,its a tempest.It will stay a tempest.It will be driven all the time,its not going to be a drag racer.I love the old cars and I'm almost done with the frame off resto of the body,getting ready for paint soon.An old car with modern running gear seems to me would be a great daily driver/family car instead of the usual bubbles everyone else is driving.
Hopefully i can get a few good responses,if not you can boo me off the board and i'll go else where.

thanks
jason

[Mr_GTO]

A EFI Chevy is cake to install in a A Body. Everything is available for them, kits are easy to install, etc. More of a challenge would be installing a LSX engine.

www.pro-touring.com is a great board for these kinds of swaps.

[Skip Fix]

Figure if it has enough power to push a 5000+lb truck around a 3800 Tempest would be a piece of cake.

The electronics would be the biggest swap. There are companies that make stand alone using the GM computer, like Howell. The Vortec spider injector intake can anly support a moderately warmed over motor, actually GM now has a replacement Vortec 383 to swap in them for a litle more torque. There is also a marine intake that uses "regular" injectors and fuel rail externally that can be used.

[oldtempest]

I really liked the pro touring link.Thanks,lots of useful info there.The lsx motors are a little more than i need right now.The vortec 350 would be fine power wise,it moves the yukon along fast enough.The pro touring guys are changing their cars a little to much for my tastes.I want to keep the car looking original as possible,inside and out.Just want modern stock running gear and a few upgrades like disc brakes,A/C and better sway bars.driveability is important.
My first car was a 68 skylark,had a few nova,a couple venturas,73 grand prix,a volare and a duster back in the 80s.I love old cars,but,after driving newer cars for so long then jumping into an stock old one its not the same anymore.I want a little comfort and reliability,a/c and stoppings nice too.I have built a 350 monza and a 84 thunderbird for speed in the past.God were they fun.But I cant have a fast car and not push it to its limits all the time.So i have to keep the power down,for now anyways.
Thanks for the howell link.I havent thought that far ahead on what efi system to go with.Have you used the howell system before?
Also thanks for not bashing me.The tempest has been sitting in a field sense 1977 rusting away.Baddly.Not many people would have even saved this car,it has taken a ton of metal work to get it solid again but its looking good now.At least my wife doesnt think i'm nuts anymore.

Thanks
Jason

[BR57]

Originally Posted by oldtempest

I Also thanks for not bashing me.The tempest has been sitting in a field sense 1977 rusting away.Baddly.Not many people would have even saved this car,it has taken a ton of metal work to get it solid again but its looking good now.At least my wife doesnt think i'm nuts anymore.

Thanks
Jason

There are also plenty of posts here linking GMC's and Pontiac lineage so all you are doing is taking a GMC truck engine and putting it in a Pontiac, originally they took a Pontiac engine and put it in the GMC, it is splitting hairs for those who would argue about it.

I always buy GMC because I figure it is a Pontiac Truck or as close as it gets, they sell them with Pontiacs here. I think that engine transmission choice is very good and I would say that I have only ever owned GM products and the Vortec 5.7 has to be one of the strongest motors I ever owned. That thing with a 3.73 rear end can get my 6,000 lb. 99 GMC Suburban up to 60 mph in about 9 seconds from rest so I think you are going to have a very respectable LeMans. My son and I have often joked about putting the Suburban motor in my 73 LeMans so I'd be interested about knowing how it turns out.

[oldtempest]

After reading up more on the pontiac history,I just cant bring myself to put the chevy in it.Used to think a GM car was just a GM car.
I bought a 77 grand prix on e-bay with a rebuilt 400motor/400 tranny.It has 9.5 compression and a cam.Hopefully it will have some ass to it.Its not he 389 i should have for the 65 but at least its pontiac.Going to pick it up thursday.

Thanks
Jason

[72blackbird]

Jason,
I have a '96 GMC K1500 Sierra ECSB w/ the 350 Vortec- overall it's a reliable motor, but IMO no better maintenance and performance wise than a classsic Poncho V-8. The Poncho 400 is a far better choice- more torque, easy bolt-in, and no harassment from the faithful Pontiac masses.

The harness for the Vortec is where you'd definitely run into more cost, and even a Vortec crate motor would run about $3-4k, about the same as a nicely built Poncho motor. You made a good choice.

Geno

[oldtempest]

When I first bought the tempest it was a basket case.I was just going to try to fix it up a little and drop a 350 chevy and 700r4 I have laying around in it.Then I got thinking about doing a better rebuild and going with the vortec to make a nice driver.

Now its a total frame off and coming along better than I would have ever thought.Its going to be a damn nice car.I got lucky with the 400 I bought.The guy I bought it from spent some money rebuilding it,when I got it home and fired it up she ran real strong.If it moved that big old grand prix that well,it should fly in the tempest.Can't wait to slap it in and see what it'll do.

Jason

[72blackbird]

Pre '68 A-bodies are getting hard to find- even base models Like your Tempest. If you do a frame-off resto, build it up clean, it can still be worth quite a bit. The Poncho V-8 goes a long way towards adding value, as opposed to a SBC or BBC. We build them to drive them, enjoy them and keep them, but it's always nice to know you can at least recoup your costs and make some profit if you have to sell it.

The mods that are typical Pro-touring (upgraded suspension, big wheels,new rubber, A/C, O/D trans.,fresh gauges, detailed motor w/ serpentine pulleys, etc.) help your car drive and handle more like a modern performance machine. I think if you keep the body and most of the interior stock the car will still have it's classic lines, but be able to run with the new musclecars (I hate it when these new cars outperform our classic rides!). Restored and stock is nice, but I'll run 18" rims, wide rubber, and a 600 hp Poncho V-8 to show these guys my taillights anyday!

Geno