whats up guys and gals, this is my first post on here due to the fact i was formerly a ricer (the dark side) after goin through a supra and a honda i finally figured out that if i want to go fast then i have to have at least 8 cylinders firin. So i looked around and this is how it plays together, i have a 95 camaro with no engine and i have a 402 bigblock out of a 70' model chevelle supersport, basically what ill im i gonna have to do to fit the bb in the engine bay because from the looks of it, it seems to be a tight squeeze for a smallblock, please dont flame me, reguardless of what would be better to do, im puttin the engine in the car. any help whatsoever would be great, preferably advice from peps who have put bb's in 93+camaros, thanks and i look the looks of this forum.

 

Do a search for this forum and in LT1 or LS1 and you will see a decent amount of posts that will meet your request.

Hope you have some pocket change to throw around and some time to get the parts you need.

 

ive got some $$$ saved back just for this project, just needin some advice, thats all

 

Do a search… It’s been done a few times and it can be made to fit, relatively easily. I think even someone posted some pics of a big block in a TA as recently as last week on one of the boards.

FWIW, if the big block that you have is in good shape you could probably sell it for more then what it would take to replace the engine with an LT1 (or even an LS1), which would be much simpler and in the long run probably a happier combination.

I recently picked up a complete LT1/A4/DS/ten bolt drivetrain out of a '95 TA with 48K miles on it for $1480...

 

that is what a majority of my friends tell me to do, i still would like to have brag'n rights to say i have a bb in my car, i did some research online and talked to some older guys who were in their racing days when that engine was in the chevelle, almost everybody's response was that it was a wicked engine, my friend is currently putting a 440 in his 98 dodge ram and it inspired me a tad bit also, i just wanna see the motor in somethin.

 

There’s lots of easier/more appropriate cars to put a big block in. in some ways it’s a shame to ruin a decent handling car to do a heavy big block swap where in most cases you could even build a 396ci LT1 cheaper (the 402 BBC is just a .030 over 396) and probably end up with better performance from the LT1.

But to each his own… Have fun

 

John Moss built a couple 512ci big block 4th Gens, so not sure how much "braggin rights" come with a 402. You could do a 409ci LT1 and have a fairly unique setup, more cubes, much lighter weight and not have to work on the issues of the tight cowl spacing, distributor issues, k-member swaps, etc.

 

Yea, but of course, a 409 gets you into a lot more money then a 396...

 

ok if i wanted to build a car for handeling i would have kept my supra. I already have the engine i have picked out, why go and put somethin in the car that was meant to be in the car, i want to be different, a 402 big block in a 95 camaro around these parts is different

But to each his own

 

Big block into a camaro

I would personally get a Tubular K member for the oil pan issues, You are going to need to trim the firewall overhang back over the motor and possibly remove the center wiper unless you do a custom low mount efi intake for the motor.

The bb in a fourth gen has been done quite a few times going to need headers prob custom but can take a look at lemmons or some shops like that.

If you need some pics I have some as i have been considering doing this myself.

Steven

 

Seems like a rather involved project, but I will give you a few suggestions/comments.

Yes it will fit, but with mods to the crossmember, cowl & possibly the hood.

Plan on major suspension work in both front & rear. I hope you are running aluminum heads. The extra weight on the front will also make it hard to launch. Smoking the tires looks cool, but will embarass you against a car that hooks.

If it is a strong motor with substantial mods, plan on a total new trans, DS & rear end.

You mentioned that it was in an earlier Chevelle & was suppposedly fast in its day. Do you have any documented time slips for proof? I ask because old tales get better with age & most of the mean 60's cars on the street were lucky to see 11's. It would suck to spend all this time & money to build a car that handles bad & gets beat by a stock ls1 car with a 100 shot on it. you would never hear the end of that.

I also assume from being a Chevelle motor that most likely it is a high compression motor. You will not run a 10.5 - 11:1 comp big block on pump fuel (EFI small blocks yes). Plan on the $4-5/gal stuff & expect poor mileage. A mild built solid lifter, rectangle port motor will have a hard time seeing 10mpg on a good day on the highway..... unless you are planning to spend a few thousand$$ to get a good EFI system for it.

I am not bashing your idea, as I love big blocks. I thought about building a 540 cube tubbed late Camaro myself as a low 9 sec low maintenance track car that could see some occasional street duty on weekends

I currently have a '68 Camaro that goes 10.90's, handles fair, gets 4-5mpg on 114 octane fuel & has poor street manners with a wicked 1500rpm idle. It was build when EFI was not popular & nasty uncivilized motors were the norm. Today it is not practical. My '95Z on OTOH went 10.6's with a stock block 383 & blower (10psi) on pump fuel, handles like a typical new Z28 & gets 16-18mpg on pump fuel. Guess which one I drive more? Just plan your attack before you start as cars that are decorations (or need towed to the track) are not that much fun.