Re: Upgrade on a budget !

by REVINKEVIN / Mr. 600+HP Sun Aug 26, 2018 10:58 am

GM started in 2001 using a he LS6 intake. My ‘01 SS has it. You have the good stuff already. Just a few quick questions: how much do you think your car will weigh when completed? What rear gear ratio will you be running? Do you have a converter already (if so what type and stall speed), will you be using the GM mass air or going speed density? I would guess since you have the LS6 intake that you will be sticking with the stock TB and mass air. Oh yeah, are you still going to use the A/C? The cam in my 6-speed SS with .390 gears is .600 lift and 228 degrees advertised duration @ 50 with a 112 degree lobe seperation. Nice lope and pulls hard to 6200rpm. Doesn’t like to idle in Houston traffic with A/C on sometimes. You will want one a little smaller with a heavier car and auto transmission.

by Hs1973 Sun Aug 26, 2018 2:36 pm

Sorry i havent gotten back to you before now, but life happens. Im not sure how bad my rims are, but the tires are defenently out of round. I had the Road force balanced, and the tire guy Said both the tires and rims are not good. My problem is that i live in Copenhagen Europe, and we dont have alot of places to buy wheels for us musclecars. And they are wery expensive to buy, due to the import taxes and shipping. So i have to make the best of what i have. And its not as bad so its impossible to drive it. Its just annoying to buy a set of expensive wheels that are not perfect. The dealer i bought them from is not helping since he is sure i caused the imbalance from hitting a curb. So i need new wheels some day and kind of liked the ones you Got, but i would hate to get into the same problem again. So good to know yours are good. Thank you for info

by NOMOREWORK Sun Aug 26, 2018 6:14 pm

My pleasure Henrick.

by NOMOREWORK Sun Aug 26, 2018 6:20 pm

My car weighs around 3800lbs, will be running 3:42 gears, will be using stock throttle body and mass air. AC is a definite, haven't decided on torque convertor yet, don't want anything crazy this car will be basically for cruising.

by REVINKEVIN / Mr. 600+HP Mon Aug 27, 2018 6:34 pm

If you want to keep the stock converter this MTI cam looks good. Idle to 6000 rpm with auto and stock converter. It will show some gains. If you can step up a little with the converter you can open up the HP a good bit. But, with a heavy car, stock converter, A/C, and 3.42 gears the MTI Stage 1 cam might be the ticket.

http://www.mtiracing.com/mti-racing-stage-1-camshaft-for-ls1-ls2-ls6-1064.html

by NOMOREWORK Mon Aug 27, 2018 7:49 pm

I will be upgrading convertor for sure just don't know which one. Believe it or not last LS build had a convertor from an Astro Van. Worked real well with the combo I put together, and I had a small cam in it.

by NOMOREWORK Mon Nov 12, 2018 1:39 am

Well after some careful consideration I have decided to scrap my plans for an LS swap, a project like this is way beyond my limited mechanical ability and resources(work space/hoists/ power tools) so I was becoming more and more dependent on a shop to get things done, which in addition to the parts was increasing the costs to push me outside my comfort zone. I am retired so I have to spend my pennies wisely! I am now researching performance parts for my original small block( I am being told a Buick 350 is some what rare) and have put myself back in a position of being able to do more of the work myself. With the upgrades already done, a little added performance and an overdrive tranny, I believe I can have what I set out to do, a fun cruiser/driver that will still turn some heads. Hell with the few things I have done so far and the addition of some modern wheels and tires I have gotten plenty of waves and thumbs up ! Not too many survivors from the 60s and 70s out and about in my neck of the woods so it stands out ! Well what say you ? Very Happy

by thatfnthing Mon Nov 12, 2018 10:39 am

I agree -- stick with the Buick 350 if you can find the parts for it. It's another thing that makes it unusual and will therefore make it stand out more.

by bigredlaguna Mon Nov 12, 2018 10:59 pm

If you do the Buick 350, research everything you can on how to upgrade the oiling system. It is the achilles heel of this engine family, but do it anyway. People will look thrice to try to figure it out since chevy is so common.

by Zaptiah Tue Nov 13, 2018 3:23 pm

I agree also. I considered an ls build at first but now i have the original engine built and back in i think it looks much better amd it will have plenty of power for fun. Stick a cam and get some head work done and you should see a big reward for not a lot of money. The first hundred extra horsepower is relatively cheap and easy and still very streetable. Love the build keep it coming 👍

by NOMOREWORK Tue Nov 13, 2018 6:52 pm

The problem with developing power with the Buick is there is very little aftermarket support. There are no cylinder heads, iron or aluminum, limited camshafts and intake manifolds. Even header choices are few and far between which is why the LS swap made so much sense. There is one company out there that has been specializing in Buick big block/small block aftermarket parts but mostly big block for over 20 yrs. I called them yesterday and was informed that they have been developing aluminum small block heads for a while and still need to do some testing, if all goes well they might have them ready in the spring for $2500 a set. I asked about porting a set of iron heads and they said it's too labor intensive. I'm not looking to make 400hp just a little more performance from stock 140hp that I have now.

by bigredlaguna Wed Nov 14, 2018 12:17 am

Here is an article on building up a Buick 350. Pretty basic stuff, just higher compression pistons, clean up the ports on the iron heads (easy to do yourself- basically removing flash and blending sharp bends/machining), a perfectly streetable cam, aluminum intake, 600 cfm 4 barrel carb, and headers for the cherry on top.

The dyno charts are reverse order for the comparison between factory exhaust vs. header, but 300 hp will make your car fun to drive. I think you could do this for less money than you think. More than a chevy, perhaps, especially if you need to replace the front cover- but not outrageous.

https://www.hotrod.com/articles/gs350-buick-455s-little-brother-deserves-due/

by bigredlaguna Wed Nov 14, 2018 12:32 am

This article shows the oiling system upgrades and things to watch for.
https://streettechmag.com/2015/08/04/buick-350-engine-build/

by Zaptiah Wed Nov 14, 2018 9:24 am

X2 on the above posts. The biggest thing i think we all can do to "wake up" our cars is a cam swap. The factory cam in this era of cars were pretty flat. Even a mild 220/230 ish duration cam with something like 460 to 480 lift will be a huge difference in performance but streetable like a modern engine. Add in the above suggestions ... Especially the point on pistons ... Bump your compression up 1 point with a better cam and a little home head work and it will be like driving a whole new car. You can do it ... Just go for it lol

by NOMOREWORK Wed Nov 14, 2018 9:49 am

Thanks for the info !

by NOMOREWORK Wed Nov 14, 2018 12:14 pm

Going to have to sit down and weigh out the costs to see which way makes the most sense, already invested $2500 in the LS1/tranny combo which I know I can sell. Also have been reading up on LS swaps and there are a ton of inexpensive part options available, plus the motor is complete. Decisions, decisions, decisions !!!

by NOMOREWORK Sun Nov 18, 2018 12:35 pm

Decided to get moving again on my project so I installed the Bell Tech shocks that match the springs, big improvement on the ride!

by Zaptiah Mon Nov 19, 2018 12:10 pm

Well i guess i need to read more lol ... Didnt realise you already had an ls and tranny combo. That really changes the picture. My opinion would if you have it and decide to pull the trigger which isnt a bad idea ... Pull your front body work off .... All of it. It will help greatly lining up the nee engine package. There are a bunch of really affordable options for new engine mounts to put an LS in our cars. Difficulty wise compared to what i just finished doing its not really any harder ... Just a little more time to pull the front end off to make the job easier ... For what its worth 😀

by NOMOREWORK Mon Nov 19, 2018 10:02 pm

After reading the Hot Rod article that bigredlaguna sent me it appears that after hot rodding the Buick I would be at the point I am starting at with the LS1. In 04 Car and Driver claimed 350 hp and 365 ft lbs of torque, the Buick would be 320 hp 362 ft lbs of torque,plus LS is complete and ready to drop in.
I have to admit I think I panicked a little because I was pricing all the things I needed to do the swap but after talking to the shop that is helping me with this their approach is just get the parts to get the motor in the car and running and then see what I might need after that.

by bigredlaguna Tue Nov 20, 2018 11:05 pm

Yeah, at this point for you, finishing up the ls swap would be cost effective going forward from here. Except you got me reading more stuff about the little Buick, and I really want to see one done up now! Cool

by NOMOREWORK Wed Nov 21, 2018 8:52 pm

LOL !!!

by Zaptiah Thu Nov 22, 2018 9:55 am

Ooohhhh ... Peer pressure ...

do it ...

Do It ...

DO IT ...

LOL

by NOMOREWORK Wed Nov 28, 2018 4:25 pm

Well Zaptiah the decision has been made ! I ordered my stand alone wiring harness and engine/frame transmission mounts for the LS1 ! Researching torque convertor next. Smile

by Zaptiah Wed Nov 28, 2018 5:02 pm

Awesome!!

👍👍👍

by NOMOREWORK Wed Sep 18, 2019 7:59 pm

Didn't realize how long it has been since I last posted anything here. Car has been at body shop to have lots of work done,removed vinyl roof and found quite a bit
of rot, plus lots of damage around rear window. Here are a few photos of what has been going on.

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