For anyone new to my channel and is working on an ls swap! Im planning out a new video that hits on all this stuff and more with extra detail. Pretty much anything I missed thats required, including stuff in this video, will be touched on. Basically a full dry “walkthrough” on how to ls swap a thirdgen. Be sure to subscribe!
I’m thinking about a 4.8 with a few performance parts in my 86. Just can’t wait to get the build started. And I also can’t wait to paint my Camaro and it’s going to be blue too.
This has to be one of the best 3rd gens I've seen. I bought a 4th gen to swap my first car that is a Maui Blue '87 IROC. The 4th gen turned out better than expected, so I kept driving it, and after going to car shows I got hooked on the Impulse Blue Metallic on the newer GTO's. I don't have build questions or idea's, just admiration for how awesome you made your car. It started as a cast off V-6 and turned into this? You sir, are a 3rd gen Wizard that made real things happen after I listened to the stupidity of "that won't work".
1. Clean she is a beauty! 2. Subbed. 3. I know Ray Ramano was a sports writer and sports guru. But I just learned he is a subject matter expert on all things LS! 4. Awesome job Matt.
Have to admit im not an LS Fan but this video makes me want to do the same to my car. Great video and explanation on what you did...your thorough and it shows how much you know. Great job Matt...keep it up!
I've got a 82 z28, first year of this body style of car, mine has a Lt1 in it came out of a vette, got the Holley 4 on it, the reason I like this Camaro very close on interior and body style, they didnt really change much in the 80s and mid 90s, this is a beautiful example of a Camaro, great color, only thing I'd do different is get a three piece louver to go on ths back window, but glad to see a guy 15 years younger than me fall in love with what I did in 94.
The hardest part of my swap because I have a 84 berlinetta was the dash conversion it has all the gauges from a a 2002 Tahoe now looks great but a lot of work
Batteries go in the back very nicely on 3rd and 4th gen cars. Relocation is usually one of my first mod's. Cleans up engine bay room to put the air box on the passenger's side, also, which helps with routing. I noticed his upper rad hose and intake are very close to belts.
sweet car!!! u box the cross member after u cut it for the oil pan? i hope so.. i bought my 82 for $600, sat for almost 15 years. lil over 100000 mi. (v6 4 speed ) put a 82 4 bolt main 350 carburated motor in it, with a 350 turbo trans. early 80s 4 core vet rad. home made straight pipes .. used the stock gauges. welded in the eng mounts. and built a mount bracket were the old one hooked up to the old stock tran from the rear end.. ran it to the cross member. cut n welded the hood . car still looks stock . best daily driver ever....
FYI, with regard to PCM connector "colors", Red & Blue PCM connectors cover (most) 1999 to 2002 4.8/5.3/6.0, Red and Green cover (most) 2003+ 4.8/5.3/6.0. As for harnesses go, I pin-out the stock one, takes about an hour and a half. That $500 would get a guy a GT45 turbo, waste gate, intercooler & piping
I think this is by far the best explanation of putting a ls in a 3rd gen camaro. Thank you for such a informative video. Car looks beautiful by the way.
Idk if you still have this car or monitor this channel, but thank you to the moon and back. Swapping an ‘01 Vortec from a Tahoe into an ‘84 Berlinetta.
Here is a list of what I did to mine. Volant CAI, Crank bolt, valve cover gasket, head gaskets, head bolts, front cover gasket, oil pump and seal, 102 mm throttle body, custom ECM and TCM tune. 46 lb injectors, 2600 stall torque converter, Match port polish existing heads 2.02 intake, 1.57 exhaust. Johnson roller lifters, Texas speed cam 600 lift, 220 duration. 111LSA. JBA long tube ceramic coated headers, high flow cats and resonators. FAST 102 intake. My goal was to make the LS2 be as much as it can be without forced induction or nitrous. Setbacks are altitude (a mile high) and drivetrain loss. I figure 30% at least. The car dynoed at 420 torque and HP. At sea level it would be close to 500 hp to the wheels on motor alone. I feel adding forced induction things will start breaking. Trans, axle halfs, driveshaft, etc. 06 Pontiac gto.
fantastic presentation.thank you.i bought a 82 4 cyl camaro 10 years ago.and it is being up dated since.found a 99 pontiac formula smashed from behind to front of doors. took eng .trans and dash and front end and wireing transfered it to my car very labor intensive.but worth every min of labor.sold it to son in law.
Very nice car! I love the color. It's classy. I have an 83 Z-28 H.O. with an iron Vortec setup, a 91 Formula with the factory 5.0L, and planning an 87 T/A build for an aluminum LS. Thanks for giving the tip about the PSI harmess!
Beautiful third gen. They’ve always been one of my favorite Camaros, and it looks like you did a fantastic job with your car. I’d get one with t-tops since I’m partial to them, but you’ve definitely got better chassis stiffness with the fixed roof.
Best thing to do is buy a 2000-2003 5.3ls with the whole truck or car running and use everything and use the 480le trans the 460le will not last and use the oil pan from elebrock
Dude I’ve watched this time and time again! (In the process of ls swapping my 92 camaro) and oml your set up looks soo good I literally looks factory! Great freaking job man I would love to see in person some day!
This is awesome man and very much appreciated.. The money saving solutions you provide along the way puts our poor folk minds at ease about attempting this.. All 3rd gens deserve an ls I think and I've seen similar vids and read some summarized ls swap material but its usually sponsored content or someone with enough bank to buy a solution for everything.. But your run down seems to cover everything and I'll def be sharing it to anyone looking to do this.. Car is gorgeous btw.. Metallic blue is my favorite color on these and that 6th gen color takes it to another level especially with the black vette wheels... Mmhhmmm.. You've even got my small cowl hood.. You've got good taste for sure.. Thanks again man.. My son and I will def be referring to this later
I have a complete 05 Chevy 1 ton van with 6.0 (out of an Avalanche) and 4 speed auto to swap out to an 88 Camaro. Hoped to use virtually ALL the electrics and components out of the van, except the air con, due to location.
Oh yea as long as you have everything, you can make it work no problem with the truck harness. I got my motor separate so I went with a retrofit harness instead.
Appreciate your vid and all the info. I am replacing the van (740,000 miles for work) and the body on the old one is shot, but eng. and trans are good, so wanted to do a 3rd gen for a while, so here we go. Thanks again.
Man , u did a excellent job with ur LS swap and explaining the steps u did to get it done also the parts u used and on ur choices wish I had u around this wood be easy I’m doing a 1985 IRoc z28
Awesome car, the only changes I would do is, change that steering wheel, remove LSX emblems on outside and dash and put IROC emblems or Z28 in those places, and put the big IROC Z emblems on it , put them to the rear of the doors, those decals are bad azz! A lot of people don’t know what Z28 stands for Z is Zoom, 2 is 2door, 8 is V8!
Thank you so much for this video, I am in the middle of LS swapping my 91 trans am and this was extremely informative! I subbed and am looking foward to more info on this swap you did!
Depending on what motor mounts you use you won't have to modify the k-member. I never had to modify the k-membet. I used a factory LS1 throttle cable and just made one single loop on it and it made a perfect tight fit to the throttle body to pedal.
I used to have a generation 3 I wanted to do something like this , but didn’t had the money nor the knowledge or experience. Beautiful vehicle machine. I had a 1990 RS.
I love what you've done with your car! This is all very helpful. I do have a question about the brakes though. When you put the new engine in it did you also upgrade the brakes? And if not, with the new engine would something like an ABS upgrade be possible? I've heard some people upgraded their Camaros to disc brakes all-round by using the parts from Corvettes from the same era, but no one ever mentions if they were able to carry over ABS as well. I am very much looking to make a daily out of a classic in the next two years and am doing all my homework now, including weighing up all my options when it comes to implementing more "modern" safety features. If you've got any input that would be awesome. Enjoy your ride!
I'm gunna start a 6.0 swap on my s15 when money allows due to the oil pump dying out in my 2.8 I plan on getting everything before I start the swap I just want everything cleaner then stock and bring the truck up where it deserves to be I plan on backing it with a 4l80e but I wouldn't mind a 6 speed auto just for the extra gear.
Hey man I just wanted to thank you for posting these awesome videos. I got a v6 third gen myself looking to swap it for an LS but I got a long road ahead of me.
I tried skimming the comments for an answer, but couldn't find one. You link two types of headers, the e-bay set and the Hooker set, the Y-pipe you linked from Hawk's says it ONLY fits their headers. Specifically which headers did you use in your swap and I imagine the Y-pipe bolted right up, or did you have to modify it? By the way, this video is insanely useful, I'm a member on TGO as well and its kinda annoying digging through 50 threads to get 80 different answers on what parts to use and what not, so thanks for making it easy on us budget friendly guys!
Thanks for the support, and no problem! Those headers I used with the hawks y pipe. They are literally just Chinese copies, they fit the same way. The hawks y pipe fits them with no problem. I actually just ordered a new y pipe from hawks and some 1 7/8’s Ebay headers. I’ll have a video on the install in a few weeks.
Good job and a great looking car. I swapped an LS1/T56 into a 1991 that had a 305/700R4 back in the day before there were swap kits. Not a bad swap and well worth the effort, but it has its share of thorns. once I swapped the hard brake line to the front of the crossmember, the oil pan cleared with no problem, but I had no room to run the exhaust. Mine hung even lower under the car. That LS1 is better than just about anything one can do with the old small blocks and the T56 is a world better than any transmission they came with.
I took the cylinder and made a paper template of the mounting surface bolt and cylinder holes in the center, leaving the outside the full sheet. I took that and trimmed the outside to fit that diagonal line on the firewall from the outside, then taped that in the same place but on the inside of the firewall. That made for perfectly locating the two mounting bolt holes and the hole the cylinder goes through. The cylinder itself bolts flat to the firewall. While the factory used a sheet metal bracket that attached to the brake booster to mount the clutch cylinder reservoir, I just used a vacant bolt hole on the firewall that a lot of people use for the same thing. It’s in exactly the right spot for that.
I love my '73 Camaro RS , I love my '99 Camaro Z28 , you sir have exactly what I would want if I owned a 3rd Gen Camaro. Great work , fantastic vid , and I tip my cap to you.
My pan is from an 02. The motor fit without the notch, but under hard acceleration it would touch the k member and vibrate the whole car. Notching makes it waaay easier to drop the motor in too.
LsxMatt Thanks a lot for the clarification. I still have to take out the 383TPI and T-5, and find a motor and trans. (Going with the camaro but 4K for motor&trans pulled out is $. Will definitely take your video for help and thanks again! -Matt
I'm looking to ls swap a 92 firebird with either the 6.0 ls2 or the 7.0 ls7, the plan is to do a twin screw supercharger and a 754 transmission and a ford 9" rear end and reinforce the frame with aluminum tubing and adding a steel roll cage. I don't know very much about cars, this is just stuff recommended to me by my coworkers so I'm not sure exactly how viable this is. I found this video while doing my own independent research so I wanted to ask someone who has ls swapped a third gen if this sounds like a good plan, and what else I would need to do to the vehicle? The goal is to get 700-750hp at the wheels, and to be honest I don't know if this setup achieves it or what else I should do along with it.
Nice camaro , im in the process of doing the same thing but im using my stock rebuilt 700r4 and a holley terminator computer and harness. your car looks clean a lot nicer than mine.
Hello, just watched your 30min or so video covering motor and gauges, and transmission, fuel, wiring to stock gauges and a few other things, do you have a different video that covers your suspension swap/modifications Thanks 🙏, Matt
I just bought a 88 model with a v-6…. Same as yours, thanks for the info but what did you do for a rearend? Surely you didn’t use the factory set up with all this power?? Thanks
Hey brother nice build I’m doing a similar swap to yours it’s got a 5.3 cammed with a t56 I was wondering what did you do to make the transmission torque arm to fit the t56
Looks good. My question is when did swapping LS motors into everything other than what they came in become a thing? I'm just now getting back into the car scene as my boys are getting old enough to be into it and man things have changed. Turning a 350 into a 383 stroker was thing to do back in my day.
I keep coming back to your video here, lots of info. Bare with my ignorance, and maybe I missed something. You mention your "roller parts car". What year was that? I am thinking since mine is an 83 and not digital, it may be better to find a good used 91 - 92 complete digital higher MPH gauge set, and simplify my swap with PSI wire system. Lastly, I have a complete running 2004 LQ9 in my old van that I plan for this swap (van goes like mad, amazing power). However, the height and possibly front rotating assembly may be too tall / big to fit, thoughts. Thanks for your time, hopping to finally start this swap this spring.
I've had my 88 Camaro for 12 years now(first car) haven't driven it more than 500 or so miles in the last 6 or 7 years(total, not each year lol) but here soon I'm going to start collecting parts to do a 5.3 swap. My first item to hunt down is going to be an ls1 t56 since thats likely going to be the most expensive item. I'll be shickled titless if i can find a complete one for 1500
I’m just now doing the same swap in my 88 Firebird but you really didn’t go over in detail about the speedo? The Firebirds were cable less so what exactly do I need to do to make it work? Thanks I’ve been watching your videos to learn.
I don’t want to notch the k member for the AC so I’m looking into the bmr tubular k member . What’s the difference between the k member factor steering and the pinto rack mounts?
For anyone new to my channel and is working on an ls swap! Im planning out a new video that hits on all this stuff and more with extra detail. Pretty much anything I missed thats required, including stuff in this video, will be touched on. Basically a full dry “walkthrough” on how to ls swap a thirdgen. Be sure to subscribe!
Hey thanks for the info
Could you tell me what paint color that is?
ToolmanHenderson wa388a, hyper blue metallic.
I’m thinking about a 4.8 with a few performance parts in my 86. Just can’t wait to get the build started. And I also can’t wait to paint my Camaro and it’s going to be blue too.
Also, an actual question, can you use the stock cold air intake with this or do you need something bigger?
I'm thinking of swapping my third gen so looking forward to the new video
Nice camaro ray ramano
This has to be one of the best 3rd gens I've seen. I bought a 4th gen to swap my first car that is a Maui Blue '87 IROC. The 4th gen turned out better than expected, so I kept driving it, and after going to car shows I got hooked on the Impulse Blue Metallic on the newer GTO's. I don't have build questions or idea's, just admiration for how awesome you made your car. It started as a cast off V-6 and turned into this? You sir, are a 3rd gen Wizard that made real things happen after I listened to the stupidity of "that won't work".
Nice clean swap. In my opinion I think the IROC Z is the best looking Camaro ever!!
You mean the third gen and yes i agree sexiest camaro ever made
I prefer the berlinetta starship
Definitely 3rd gen done right is the meanest lookin ride ever
I like the 94 body
But not the catfish model
1. Clean she is a beauty!
2. Subbed.
3. I know Ray Ramano was a sports writer and sports guru. But I just learned he is a subject matter expert on all things LS!
4. Awesome job Matt.
Thanks for providing links, engine bay is looking good btw badass third gen you have there
Have to admit im not an LS Fan but this video makes me want to do the same to my car. Great video and explanation on what you did...your thorough and it shows how much you know. Great job Matt...keep it up!
I've got a 82 z28, first year of this body style of car, mine has a Lt1 in it came out of a vette, got the Holley 4 on it, the reason I like this Camaro very close on interior and body style, they didnt really change much in the 80s and mid 90s, this is a beautiful example of a Camaro, great color, only thing I'd do different is get a three piece louver to go on ths back window, but glad to see a guy 15 years younger than me fall in love with what I did in 94.
The hardest part of my swap because I have a 84 berlinetta was the dash conversion it has all the gauges from a a 2002 Tahoe now looks great but a lot of work
Gorgeous car and perfect blue and clean engine bay with a bright green battery to throw it off
Fabsmith yea i need a black and blue delco battery when that one goes south.
Batteries go in the back very nicely on 3rd and 4th gen cars. Relocation is usually one of my first mod's. Cleans up engine bay room to put the air box on the passenger's side, also, which helps with routing. I noticed his upper rad hose and intake are very close to belts.
You’re insite is incredible. Thank you for the detail!
Just in love with ur thirdgen bro its so clean i cant wait to make my iroc ls swap a reality! Thanks for the great info!!
Just wanted to let you know I absolutely think this is perfect.
Very nice informative video! I have a 1991 Trans Am GTA that I'm contemplating on LS swapping.
sweet car!!! u box the cross member after u cut it for the oil pan? i hope so.. i bought my 82 for $600, sat for almost 15 years. lil over 100000 mi. (v6 4 speed ) put a 82 4 bolt main 350 carburated motor in it, with a 350 turbo trans.
early 80s 4 core vet rad. home made straight pipes .. used the stock gauges. welded in the eng mounts. and built a mount bracket were the old one hooked up to the old stock tran
from the rear end.. ran it to the cross member. cut n welded the hood . car still looks stock . best daily driver ever....
Found a third gen that’s super clean but with a blown motor, never done a swap before. Sounds like a fun project just putting a truck LS in one.
FYI, with regard to PCM connector "colors", Red & Blue PCM connectors cover (most) 1999 to 2002 4.8/5.3/6.0, Red and Green cover (most) 2003+ 4.8/5.3/6.0. As for harnesses go, I pin-out the stock one, takes about an hour and a half. That $500 would get a guy a GT45 turbo, waste gate, intercooler & piping
Great video on the LS swap I have a 5.3 in my 86 monte Carlo SS
I'm wanting to do my 85 camaro like yours is glad you made this video man
This engine bay is beautiful, this is exactly the look im wanting for mine.
I think this is by far the best explanation of putting a ls in a 3rd gen camaro. Thank you for such a informative video. Car looks beautiful by the way.
your engine bay is so clean
Idk if you still have this car or monitor this channel, but thank you to the moon and back. Swapping an ‘01 Vortec from a Tahoe into an ‘84 Berlinetta.
Here is a list of what I did to mine.
Volant CAI, Crank bolt, valve cover gasket, head gaskets, head bolts, front cover gasket, oil pump and seal, 102 mm throttle body, custom ECM and TCM tune. 46 lb injectors, 2600 stall torque converter, Match port polish existing heads 2.02 intake, 1.57 exhaust. Johnson roller lifters, Texas speed cam 600 lift, 220 duration. 111LSA. JBA long tube ceramic coated headers, high flow cats and resonators. FAST 102 intake. My goal was to make the LS2 be as much as it can be without forced induction or nitrous. Setbacks are altitude (a mile high) and drivetrain loss. I figure 30% at least. The car dynoed at 420 torque and HP. At sea level it would be close to 500 hp to the wheels on motor alone. I feel adding forced induction things will start breaking. Trans, axle halfs, driveshaft, etc. 06 Pontiac gto.
fantastic presentation.thank you.i bought a 82 4 cyl camaro 10 years ago.and it is being up dated since.found a 99 pontiac formula smashed from behind to front of doors. took eng .trans and dash and front end and wireing transfered it to my car very labor intensive.but worth every min of labor.sold it to son in law.
Very nice car! I love the color. It's classy. I have an 83 Z-28 H.O. with an iron Vortec setup, a 91 Formula with the factory 5.0L, and planning an 87 T/A build for an aluminum LS. Thanks for giving the tip about the PSI harmess!
Very good, Just beginning to plan the SWAP but I didn t hear about the rear end. Thx enjoyed the show.
Beautiful third gen. They’ve always been one of my favorite Camaros, and it looks like you did a fantastic job with your car.
I’d get one with t-tops since I’m partial to them, but you’ve definitely got better chassis stiffness with the fixed roof.
T tops are nice till you bust it out twisting the body
I just got my 3rd gen roller very little rust I'm excited to get started
This has been my dream car for about 15 years and I’ve wanted to LS swap one as well
Everything you post is so informative it’s awesome
I just want to thank you and I have used a lot of your advice in building my 1992 Camaro!!!
omg, man, that car looks so good, the engine looks good in there
When i did my truck i bought a factory coolant sensor for the truck. Ground it down to the proper size and rethreaded it for that hole.
Honestly one of the best videos I’ve ever seen. Thank you for taking the time to do this.
Best thing to do is buy a 2000-2003 5.3ls with the whole truck or car running and use everything and use the 480le trans the 460le will not last and use the oil pan from elebrock
good video
lotta money and time ha ha
i'd ditch the stock steering shaft and strut mounts though.
stock ones are junk
Whats good struts for a 3rd gen camaro?
Dude I’ve watched this time and time again! (In the process of ls swapping my 92 camaro) and oml your set up looks soo good I literally looks factory! Great freaking job man I would love to see in person some day!
That is one of the nicest camaro's of that gen I have seen. Very clean and the color is killer !
This is awesome man and very much appreciated.. The money saving solutions you provide along the way puts our poor folk minds at ease about attempting this.. All 3rd gens deserve an ls I think and I've seen similar vids and read some summarized ls swap material but its usually sponsored content or someone with enough bank to buy a solution for everything.. But your run down seems to cover everything and I'll def be sharing it to anyone looking to do this.. Car is gorgeous btw.. Metallic blue is my favorite color on these and that 6th gen color takes it to another level especially with the black vette wheels... Mmhhmmm.. You've even got my small cowl hood.. You've got good taste for sure.. Thanks again man.. My son and I will def be referring to this later
I have a complete 05 Chevy 1 ton van with 6.0 (out of an Avalanche) and 4 speed auto to swap out to an 88 Camaro. Hoped to use virtually ALL the electrics and components out of the van, except the air con, due to location.
Oh yea as long as you have everything, you can make it work no problem with the truck harness. I got my motor separate so I went with a retrofit harness instead.
Appreciate your vid and all the info. I am replacing the van (740,000 miles for work) and the body on the old one is shot, but eng. and trans are good, so wanted to do a 3rd gen for a while, so here we go. Thanks again.
Very helpful thanks. Especially all the little "finicky" details.
Thinking of doing one of these after my Nova, you have a really clean car now great job.
Man , u did a excellent job with ur LS swap and explaining the steps u did to get it done also the parts u used and on ur choices wish I had u around this wood be easy I’m doing a 1985 IRoc z28
Awesome car, the only changes I would do is, change that steering wheel, remove LSX emblems on outside and dash and put IROC emblems or Z28 in those places, and put the big IROC Z emblems on it , put them to the rear of the doors, those decals are bad azz! A lot of people don’t know what Z28 stands for Z is Zoom, 2 is 2door, 8 is V8!
Thank you so much for this video, I am in the middle of LS swapping my 91 trans am and this was extremely informative!
I subbed and am looking foward to more info on this swap you did!
I have a 89 RS Convertible that I would love to do this to.
12:30 is that a first gen cavalier z24 steering wheel? Love it! Looks very oem for a third gen camaro
Depending on what motor mounts you use you won't have to modify the k-member. I never had to modify the k-membet. I used a factory LS1 throttle cable and just made one single loop on it and it made a perfect tight fit to the throttle body to pedal.
What motor mounts won’t result in contact with k member
I used to have a generation 3 I wanted to do something like this , but didn’t had the money nor the knowledge or experience. Beautiful vehicle machine. I had a 1990 RS.
I love what you've done with your car! This is all very helpful. I do have a question about the brakes though. When you put the new engine in it did you also upgrade the brakes? And if not, with the new engine would something like an ABS upgrade be possible? I've heard some people upgraded their Camaros to disc brakes all-round by using the parts from Corvettes from the same era, but no one ever mentions if they were able to carry over ABS as well. I am very much looking to make a daily out of a classic in the next two years and am doing all my homework now, including weighing up all my options when it comes to implementing more "modern" safety features. If you've got any input that would be awesome. Enjoy your ride!
I love this car! The blue is beautiful!
Very nice car. I love how you kept it looking like a 3rd Gen as much as possible.
Yes! Lmao I refuse to install those led or halo headlights😂
I used to have an '88 Iroc with a weak TBI 305. Then I got an '89 Firebird Formula 350 with TPI. Man I miss that car. Should never have sold it.
I'm gunna start a 6.0 swap on my s15 when money allows due to the oil pump dying out in my 2.8 I plan on getting everything before I start the swap I just want everything cleaner then stock and bring the truck up where it deserves to be I plan on backing it with a 4l80e but I wouldn't mind a 6 speed auto just for the extra gear.
Hey man I just wanted to thank you for posting these awesome videos. I got a v6 third gen myself looking to swap it for an LS but I got a long road ahead of me.
I tried skimming the comments for an answer, but couldn't find one. You link two types of headers, the e-bay set and the Hooker set, the Y-pipe you linked from Hawk's says it ONLY fits their headers. Specifically which headers did you use in your swap and I imagine the Y-pipe bolted right up, or did you have to modify it?
By the way, this video is insanely useful, I'm a member on TGO as well and its kinda annoying digging through 50 threads to get 80 different answers on what parts to use and what not, so thanks for making it easy on us budget friendly guys!
Thanks for the support, and no problem! Those headers I used with the hawks y pipe. They are literally just Chinese copies, they fit the same way. The hawks y pipe fits them with no problem. I actually just ordered a new y pipe from hawks and some 1 7/8’s Ebay headers. I’ll have a video on the install in a few weeks.
Looking to do this on my 85 firebird, let me tell you finding a 98-02 t56 is a pain and are not cheap!!!
I like how if you keep the stock power on an LS. It'll get good mpg too.
do you remember what fitting and sensor you used to get the Temp gauge to work?
Good job and a great looking car. I swapped an LS1/T56 into a 1991 that had a 305/700R4 back in the day before there were swap kits. Not a bad swap and well worth the effort, but it has its share of thorns. once I swapped the hard brake line to the front of the crossmember, the oil pan cleared with no problem, but I had no room to run the exhaust. Mine hung even lower under the car. That LS1 is better than just about anything one can do with the old small blocks and the T56 is a world better than any transmission they came with.
John Wilburn what'd you do for. A slave cylinder mount on the firewall?
I took the cylinder and made a paper template of the mounting surface bolt and cylinder holes in the center, leaving the outside the full sheet. I took that and trimmed the outside to fit that diagonal line on the firewall from the outside, then taped that in the same place but on the inside of the firewall. That made for perfectly locating the two mounting bolt holes and the hole the cylinder goes through. The cylinder itself bolts flat to the firewall. While the factory used a sheet metal bracket that attached to the brake booster to mount the clutch cylinder reservoir, I just used a vacant bolt hole on the firewall that a lot of people use for the same thing. It’s in exactly the right spot for that.
Correct me if I’m wrong but if you get an LS motor from a 98-02 camaro you won’t have to modify crossmember for the oil pan
I love my '73 Camaro RS , I love my '99 Camaro Z28 , you sir have exactly what I would want if I owned a 3rd Gen Camaro. Great work , fantastic vid , and I tip my cap to you.
Ok lm trying swap Throttlebody to Tuned portI have the computer with the wind wind look like spaghetti I mean can you help me out with some advice
This is old by now but I believe if you get an LS from a 98-02 camaro, you don’t have to notch the crossmember for the oil pan
My pan is from an 02. The motor fit without the notch, but under hard acceleration it would touch the k member and vibrate the whole car. Notching makes it waaay easier to drop the motor in too.
LsxMatt Thanks a lot for the clarification. I still have to take out the 383TPI and T-5, and find a motor and trans. (Going with the camaro but 4K for motor&trans pulled out is $. Will definitely take your video for help and thanks again!
-Matt
Thanks for the video! I’m about to swap my 92 RS and this video will help a lot
I have the same car 92 Camaro RS I want to change over, dud did you do your swap yet?
Please inform:rodneyrmiller8@gmail.com or 731.697.2027
Very Nice car, looks like it came factory with that motor.
I'm looking to ls swap a 92 firebird with either the 6.0 ls2 or the 7.0 ls7, the plan is to do a twin screw supercharger and a 754 transmission and a ford 9" rear end and reinforce the frame with aluminum tubing and adding a steel roll cage. I don't know very much about cars, this is just stuff recommended to me by my coworkers so I'm not sure exactly how viable this is. I found this video while doing my own independent research so I wanted to ask someone who has ls swapped a third gen if this sounds like a good plan, and what else I would need to do to the vehicle? The goal is to get 700-750hp at the wheels, and to be honest I don't know if this setup achieves it or what else I should do along with it.
Wish i had the money to swap my 350 sbc to an LS engine. I really like the stock look vs my 4inch cowl hood. Nice Job buddy...sweet sweet ride
Thank you for such a detailed walk around and the time explaining pretty much everything needed!!! Awesome videos as always!!
Damn that engine bay is open and tidy. I wish my stock engine bay was that open.
So clean that almost looks OEM!👍🏻
Ray Ramano!!! Great vid Ray.
There is so much room in your engine bay, compared to my 90 305 RS. You can actually change spark plugs without too much trouble.
Nice camaro , im in the process of doing the same thing but im using my stock rebuilt 700r4 and a holley terminator computer and harness. your car looks clean a lot nicer than mine.
Hello, just watched your 30min or so video covering motor and gauges, and transmission, fuel, wiring to stock gauges and a few other things, do you have a different video that covers your suspension swap/modifications
Thanks 🙏, Matt
Wow. Awesome build. Super clean and really mean.
What else would you need to use a t56 on sbc. Lt1 bell, an adapter plate to use ls1 input shaft? You need 4thgen pedals?
That's a really clean build. Very nice work.
I just bought a 88 model with a v-6…. Same as yours, thanks for the info but what did you do for a rearend? Surely you didn’t use the factory set up with all this power?? Thanks
I'd like to swap my Firebird to LSX too... Good work!
wow so awsome i have a 88 gta id love to do that with very nice job bro!
Sick build, i may be comming across a 3rd gen here soon also. This will all be useful knowledge
Is it possible to show us where exactly you had to notch the frame for the ac?
Hey brother nice build I’m doing a similar swap to yours it’s got a 5.3 cammed with a t56 I was wondering what did you do to make the transmission torque arm to fit the t56
Sweet ride man. Been looking for an iroc specifically to do a swap like this. Thanks for the video!
Looks good. My question is when did swapping LS motors into everything other than what they came in become a thing? I'm just now getting back into the car scene as my boys are getting old enough to be into it and man things have changed. Turning a 350 into a 383 stroker was thing to do back in my day.
super clean looking at doing a swap like this but turbo 5.3 street/drag use thanks for the plentiful information
You became true one of my biggest wishes, swap a Camaro of that generation with a Ls motor, congratulations.
I keep coming back to your video here, lots of info. Bare with my ignorance, and maybe I missed something. You mention your "roller parts car". What year was that? I am thinking since mine is an 83 and not digital, it may be better to find a good used 91 - 92 complete digital higher MPH gauge set, and simplify my swap with PSI wire system. Lastly, I have a complete running 2004 LQ9 in my old van that I plan for this swap (van goes like mad, amazing power). However, the height and possibly front rotating assembly may be too tall / big to fit, thoughts. Thanks for your time, hopping to finally start this swap this spring.
Good job, very well executed. I need a 3rd gen now
I've had my 88 Camaro for 12 years now(first car) haven't driven it more than 500 or so miles in the last 6 or 7 years(total, not each year lol) but here soon I'm going to start collecting parts to do a 5.3 swap. My first item to hunt down is going to be an ls1 t56 since thats likely going to be the most expensive item. I'll be shickled titless if i can find a complete one for 1500
not gonna happen,its easier to find a totalled 4th gen.3-4 grand will get you a t56 that needs a rebuild
Very well put together video I hope to own an ls 3rd Gen one day I have a lt1 4th gen now
Imo, the best way to do this is to buy a clean 3rd gen with any or no engine and a donor 4th gen LS1 car.
Looks beautiful. Great job on the swap.
Wow amazing job, I hope to build one one day, I will watch your video for the tips great Job, and great car 🚙 mad props!
dream 3rd gen build right there. so damn clean man nice work
Great video and informative. Do you happen to have a link for the low profile alternator/power steering bracket you would recommend?
I’m just now doing the same swap in my 88 Firebird but you really didn’t go over in detail about the speedo? The Firebirds were cable less so what exactly do I need to do to make it work? Thanks I’ve been watching your videos to learn.
You can use the lt1 t56 on a gen 1 you just have to buy a special flywheel
Awesome! But does that heater hose mess with the cold air intake and performance? Notice any sluggishness when it's hot?
Siiiiick 3rd gen.
How did you attach your torque arm? You said you have the hawks cross member and if I recall those don’t have an attachment for the torque arm.
I don’t want to notch the k member for the AC so I’m looking into the bmr tubular k member . What’s the difference between the k member factor steering and the pinto rack mounts?