4th Gen V6 to V8 Conversion...?

[Natebrod]

My brother has a CMC car and has no competition down here in SoCal so I have decided that I am going to build one and go racin with him.

 

My question is about a 2000 Camaro 3.8 liter that I already have. Can I trade in an LS1/5.3 and still be legal?

 

My family is a bunch of drag racers that built a gen 4 Firebird to go 24hr Lemons racing after my younger brother showed interest in road racing and when and got his SCCA lic.

 

The car was a 3.4 V6 that was reliable as all get out for 5 races and one of them was a true 24hr race. We wanted to go faster though and built an LS 5.3 3 races ago and have been having even more fun with the extra hp. So we have experience swapping in the LS on a V6 car and I am willing to do it agian to build a CMC car.

[FBody383]

My question is about a 2000 Camaro 3.8 liter that I already have. Can I trade in an LS1/5.3 and still be legal?

Assuming you're not a spambot... welcome.

 

Yes, you can use a V6 car as the platform for the CMC racecar. Read the CMC rules a couple of times.

 

Keep the dash - you'll need it. Keep anything you unbolt until you KNOW you don't need under the rules.

 

Did you read the CMC rules?

[Natebrod]

Thanks for the welcome. Nope not a spam bot. I did read the rules, a few times actually. I tried to search on this forum as well to check and see if anyone else has done this but came up with nothing. I know that the V8 and V6 cars are very similar and that this series intent is to keep the cars are stock as possible so what i should have written was;

 

I am going to build a 4th gen Camaro. It is a V6 car. Is there anything that I should be-aware of that is different and should be changed to be CMC legal?

[FBody383]

I am going to build a 4th gen Camaro. It is a V6 car. Is there anything that I should be-aware of that is different and should be changed to be CMC legal?

Find the California CMC remnant and look at their stuff and talk to the closest Tech guy/gal.

 

Swap info found in a lot of places:

 

LT1 into a V6 F-body '93 - '97 Parts needed:

 

LT1 and V8 Transmission (none of the F-body

V6 Transmissions will work behind the V8)

V8 Front Suspension Crossmember

(Each engine had different motor mount holes)

Engine compartment wiring harness

(different from the engine wiring harness)

Dual fan setup '93-'95

V8 Exhaust System

V8 Heater Hoses

V8 Fuel Lines (LT1)

1 piece driveshaft

Aluminum driveshaft

V8 Gauges

 

http://www.hpsalvage.com/

 

So you'll need a complete engine/computer with the Camaro stuff. Stock exhaust manifolds. Interior bits won't matter since most get pulled but again, keep the stock dash to put back in.

 

I don't know my CA geography but I can recommend parts and such from Alan Blaine: blainefab.com

 

Feel free to PM me if you have specific questions, which may actually be easier to answer.

[Den341548534727]

Natebrod

My CMC car started life as a V6 car and I installed a LS 5.3. So I did the exact swap you are speaking of.

 

Specifically the main parts you will need are:

-The K member is the same as the V8 except you will need the LS mounts. But there are no holes drilled for all the variations like on the earlier F bodies Gen 3 and 4. If I recall there is one bolt hole that is shared on each side. It is the lower rear hole. You will have to drill the others and ge a weld nut on the back side. It might be easier to get a LS1 K member as I have seen them on Craigslist for as little as 50 bucks. This is up to you.

- You will need a LS1 steering rack. the V6 rack is the same as the LT version but will NOT work with a ls1 engine. The angle of the steering column crashes with the alternator on a LS if you try to use the LT1 rack or a V6 rack.

- Fuel system. Your V6 has a return fuel system where as LS1s from 99 to 2002 had a return less system. Your primary fuel line should work with some minor and very slight rerouting in the engine bay. I used the GF22 corvette fuel filter / Regulator and installed that in the factory location where the fuel filter is commonly found on a F body. I am not sure if the V6 fuel pump will be adequate so you may want to get a LS fuel pump assembly. It should work in your factory plastic fuel tank. If you have the one year only LS 1998 metal tank I would ditch that and get the 1999-2002 plastic tank. The 1998 LS fuel pumps are very expensive for this reason.

- I could go into detail about the wiring but you stated you have done this before so you should be in good shape.

-You will need a one piece drive shaft and a rear trans mount.

-I am assuming you will be using a LS T56

-Pedal assembly. Contrary to popular internet belief, the LS pedals are NOT the same as the LT1 pedals. The location of the hydraulic slave connection on the pedal is about 1/8 of an inch different. The LT1 pedals will cause the hydraulic throwout bearing to cycle too far and the pedal will bottom out about half way down. You can drill a new hole and convert the LT1 pedals.

-For the 5.3 engine you will need a F body oil pan, PS pump, water pump, Alternator bracket and balancer/ pulley and intake manifold. The truck intake will not fit under the hood and the truck accesories stick out further and the alternator is mounted high and will not clear the intake / hood area. The truck oil pan will not clear the K member and will hang down too low.

These are the main hurdles. The rest is pretty straight forward.

If you have any other questions just ask. We all need to help CMC in any way we can.

Bob

[FBody383]

Sorry I missed the LS 5.3... you had it right there in black and white. Listen to Bob, he knows of what he speaks.

 

Good luck.

[Al F.]

Awesome! Welcome aboard!!!

[Natebrod]

Thanks for all the help guys! I'll let you know if I have any more questions.