[Nicks67GTO]

I have a few questions about the install so far

1. Did you have to hack anything up, floors or otherwise, to get he LS3 or the auto tranny in there?

2. Are you keeping track of parts, part numbers and expense for this conversion? If so would you please share them with us?

[CFster]

1. The only thing I had to do was elongate the frame mount holes downward about 1/4". That and we made a hole on the bottom of the firewall where the harness for the trans controller had to go through (controller is under the passenger seat). Other than that it all dropped in no problem.

2. I can post any part numbers you ask for. I don't really want to post pricing though.

[Nicks67GTO]

I guess one would need the obvious engine and tranny combo of their choice. After that headers and exhaust, radiator, engine mounts, tranny mount, assorted hoses and the correct fuel system.....what other major parts go into this??

[CFster]

The transmission was installed before when we had the 400 in it, and as I recall we had to shorten the driveshaft. There's a company called Shiftworks that makes a kit so the His & Hers shifter will work. The trans I have has a tailshaft with both electronic and mechanical speedo outputs, so that takes care of the factory speedometer and the signal going to the Compushift controller.

I just made new downpipes to go to my existing Pypes exhaust. I used shorty headers from Street & Performance because I'm looking for maximum ground clearance.

You'll need some kind of accessory setup for the front of the engine. I chose a C5 accessory kit from GM, which mounts the alternator up high. I also used a bracket system from Kwik Perf to mount the a/c compressor up high as well. The stock locations for these parts will interfere with your steering box and crossmember. You also need to chose the right oil pan, as the stock pan will interfere with your steering linkage.

You'll also need an engine controller of some kind. I used a modified GMPP harness and ECU, but you can order a standalone one right from GM. Plug it into the engine, mount the ECU somewhere and find a ground, power and ignition power. It's that simple. We chose to mount it under the hood for two reasons. 1. We didn't want to cut a big hole in the firewall for the harness to go through. 2. This particular ECU is mounted externally on many modern GM cars anyway.

The hardest part was making the factory gauges work. Fortunately there are places on an LS motor to put the factory temp and oil senders, but you have to use some adapters. I used a little black box from Dakota Digital to get the tach to work.

Power steering lines were a bit of a chore. The pressure line is actually a C6 line, cut on the end and reflared for the older fitting that goes into the steering box. This took us a while to figure out.

You can use your stock radiator, but have to make a provision for the "steam line" that comes out of the right side head. Needs to go back into a radiator, upper radiator hose, or some people drill and tap a fitting into the water pump housing. I chose to have a radiator made with a fitting in it. Obviously you'll need to use an electric fan (preferably with a shroud).

You have to come up with some kind of intake. There are companies that make tubing and elbows. All I did was a 4" silicone elbow, then straight tubing with a K&N filter on the end in the RF of the engine compartment. That is actually open to fresh air underneath so it's a good location. I had a bung tig welded into the tube to accept the MAF sensor.

We're fortunate enough to have the funds to buy all new parts etc. However, there are lots of guys out there grabbing engines out of junkyards, and harnesses as well and they work fine. This is one reason I don't want to post pricing. Doing it my way cost a lot of money, and I don't want to scare people away. There are much more cheaper ways of doing it.

I have a gallery here with more pics --> http://cfster.smugmug.com/Cars/Resto...14341461_HiK2F

[CFster]

Oh, also I'll be weighing the car shortly. I weighed it before (with the 400 and 4L60e in it), so I have a baseline.

Should be interesting. Shipping weight for the LS3 is 360lbs. I've heard a 400 with accessories on it is over 650lbs.

I can say the front end came up when we pulled the old motor and didn't go down at all with the new one. I wasn't sure it was resting on the mounts until I looked - I mean the car didn't move at all.

[andrewb70]

Originally Posted by CFster

Oh, also I'll be weighing the car shortly. I weighed it before (with the 400 and 4L60e in it), so I have a baseline.

Should be interesting. Shipping weight for the LS3 is 360lbs. I've heard a 400 with accessories on it is over 650lbs.

I can say the front end came up when we pulled the old motor and didn't go down at all with the new one. I wasn't sure it was resting on the mounts until I looked - I mean the car didn't move at all.

I wouldn't be surprised if you have an overall drop of 300 pounds when all is said and done. That is what my GTO ended up loosing after going from an aluminum headed BBC to the LS engine.

Andrew

[CFster]

Got the suspension done.













Next comes the paddle shift.

[drailed]

Looks great, Do you think you might make it to the Lake George car show in a couple of weeks? I would love to check your car out.

[Ollie]

In post 15 above, You stated got the fuel system plumed. What modifications to the fuel system did you make?

[Mr_GTO]

What brakes are those?

[b-man]

Originally Posted by Mr_GTO

What brakes are those?

According to post #15 they're C6 Z06 brakes, they look a lot like the ones I bought for my Tempest except my calipers are painted red with the Corvette logo and my rotors are slotted, not drilled.

Colin,

Congrats on your tasteful and spectacular build, they just don't come any nicer than this one.

Inspires me to get back in my build and get it finished up, unfortunately my project had been delayed for quite some time due to some unfortunate family issues but I'm just about ready to dive back into it again.

Bart

[CFster]

Originally Posted by drailed

Looks great, Do you think you might make it to the Lake George car show in a couple of weeks? I would love to check your car out.

What show do you speak of? Is it a Pontiac show?

[CFster]

Originally Posted by Ollie

In post 15 above, You stated got the fuel system plumed. What modifications to the fuel system did you make?

Initially I put in a Spectra GM37HFI tank I got from Rock Auto. Includes a GM in-tank pump. Mistake. I have issues with fuel starvation under 1/4 tank while cornering. Come to find out this was a common problem and Spectra has since revised their tanks. I happen to have another oem style tank, so I've ordered a Walbro PA Series pump from Tanks Inc. to use with it - benefit being it's a Walbro pump, and it comes with a tray to eliminate starvation.

As for the rest of the system, the LS3 doesn't have a return line coming back from the engine, so that made things a little easier. All that's needed is a Corvette style fuel filter, which acts as a regulator as well. I mounted it close to the tank itself.



I ran Aeroquip TFT (teflon lined) fuel hose throughout - meaning all the way up to the motor. In the above pic there's still regular braided hose being used for the return line (red/blue fittings), but that's because I ran out of TFT. It's since been changed. I've also since built a heat shield for the filter assembly and used some heat wrap on the lines in that area. Pretty close to the exhaust.

Other than that it was just a matter of running the one wire from the ECU harness back to the pump.

One word of caution though, watch out for those Russell fittings. I had the pressure line pop right off the fuel rail on me while I was driving down the highway. Sprayed fuel at 60psi all over the hot engine. Way to go. I'm still here and so is the car so I guess we got lucky.

Turns out this is another common problem I've stumbled across --> http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=351873

[CFster]

Originally Posted by Mr_GTO

What brakes are those?

As Bart said above, they're Z06 brakes. Well, technically they're Grand Sport brakes, which are the same, but they're silver. They turn them red for the Z06's later on the assembly line, as well as putting the logo on.

Got all four from Tobin at KORE3. He knows his stuff. Nice kits, nice brackets etc. Hawk pads. http://www.kore3.com/ He's considered the brake guru over on Pro-Touring and Lateral-G boards.

It took a few tries to come up with the right master cylinder/booster combination (1" Corvette master with 9" dual diaphragm Corvette booster), but once I did boy oh boy let's just say the tires are the only limiting factor.

[drailed]

The Adirondack Nationals. I believe its the second weekend in Sept Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Heres the link. Its a large show with some cool vendors and they close the village off to the cars Saturday night. There is usually a thread here on it in the show section.

http://adirondacknationals.com/home.htm

[CFster]

Colin,

Congrats on your tasteful and spectacular build, they just don't come any nicer than this one.

Inspires me to get back in my build and get it finished up, unfortunately my project had been delayed for quite some time due to some unfortunate family issues but I'm just about ready to dive back into it again.

Bart

Thanks for the kind words Bart. We were fortunate enough to have a completed car (body wise) from the outset. From that point on it was a matter of bolting parts on. I'm mostly impressed by those build threads showing people welding quarters on or fabricating brackets, and nice finish work - especially when they do it in their driveways.

I'll be sure and follow your build when you get back to it.

[CFster]

Originally Posted by drailed

The Adirondack Nationals. I believe its the second weekend in Sept Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Heres the link. Its a large show with some cool vendors and they close the village off to the cars Saturday night. There is usually a thread here on it in the show section.

http://adirondacknationals.com/home.htm

Huh! Didn't know about that one. Is it judged? I like the cruising part. Hmm, I was thinking of doing the Falmouth show on the Cape on Labor Day weekend, but this seems more accessible (Cape is a nightmare). As a matter of fact I was just up in Saratoga a few months ago when we did the Hemmings Great Race (but that was a different car). Nice area.

I'm going to see if I can make it!

Edit: Whoops! Looks like vehicle registration is sold out...

[stobin]

Really nice wheels on the GTO. It really makes the car. I am in the process of doing an LS7 swap into my Grand Am, and have been following along on your posts for good information. I will be starting my own build thread in a few months as well.

[CFster]

Thanks stobin! Look forward to seeing your thread.

[CFster]

Added some lettering and Pontiac Vibe fender emblems to the coil covers: