I am sure it has been discussed before, but I wasnt sure of the terms to look up...so I decided to make a new post.
I am new to the F-Body scene, and don't even own one yet, but I have been on the search for soemthing Lt1/Ls1 powered ..and was curious What does it take to swap a 6 cylinder to an 8 cylinder? A 6 is more in my price range than an 8....but I don't want a big hassle later on.

Please let me know, what you know.
-jake

 

it can be a pretty big hassle, the only thing that makes it easier is if you have a donor car to pull parts from.

i would say just save up a little more, keep searching and you'll find an ls1 with decent miles for a good price.

and the lt1s are really low in price now, however they are getting hard to find where they havn't been beat on.

 

What is needed from a donor car to do this swap....or any swap (3.8T Buick, 396,etc) for this matter?

 

Engine, transmission, k-member, cross-member, y-pipe, air lid, engine wiring harness, pcm, steering rack, hoses (radiator and heater), gauge cluster (for tach), possibly fuel tank and lines or upgraded fuel pump and 97 vette fuel rail (for return line).

www.tacreationsusa.com has info on some swaps too....

 

Thank You!

Would you also happen to know what is needed for auto-manual swap?

 

I might consider the auto-manual swap if I really liked a car, but I'd never do a v6-v8 conversion without having a 100% complete running v8 donor car sitting there to transfer all the parts from. There are simply too many things to replace, it would nickle and dime you to death if you had to acquire the parts individually. You litterally need to replace every moving part in the car, minus the rearend housing. Earlier v6 cars didnt even come with positraction or rear disk brakes. The front springs will need replacing to, because the v8 is heavier. The entire exhaust from the manifolds back, crossmember, k member, PCM, engine harness, radiator, hoses, motor mounts, driveshaft....It would be a total headache.

I did it on a 1986 Camaro V6 back before the internet days. I had no clue... It cost me way more than I planned. It is the only car project I've ever regretted. The end product had rear drums, an open diferential, a poorly made y-pipe and it was a carburated motor instead of FI. I would had been better off selling the car and getting an IROC. Lesson learned.

 

I haven't done this one... At a minimum, I'd say it would include:
Pedals/linkage/fluid line, correct pcm and matching harness, tranny, crossmember, flywheel and clutch, pilot bearing.

 

yup..

transmission with shifter
flywheel
presure plate & disk
pilot bearing
throwout bearing
clutch housing with fork and pivot T
starter dust shield
master cylinder with hose
slave cylinder with spacer
pedal assembly
wire harness
rubber shifter boot
leather console boot/trim
transmission crossmember

I would recommend also replacing the transmission mount with a stronger one as long as you have it apart. If not, it is easy to replace later as well.

I'm not sure how the clutch safety switches for the cruise control and starter would wire up inside. You could reprogram your existing PCM.