I'm ready to drop some serious $$$ into my car. I'm wanting to do a complete top end package, mainly a full head swap and cam swap. I only have a budget set aside for the parts themselves, and some other goodies like special tools, etc. What I want to know is this: is it possible for the do-it-yourselfer to install heads and a cam with the motor STILL IN THE CAR over a period of time? I have a 1990 honda accord that is my daily driver, so time is not important. I was thinking of having Lloyd Elliott fully assemble a serious set of awesome bolt-on heads, but the cam is what's tripping me up. I also need to install a new opti, csi water pump, etc at the same time. Please help me from having to spend $1,300.00 on labor alone! That could be going toward my suspension instead! Any help is appreciated..

shoebox?...

 

Give enough money, time, research, and patience you can do just about anything to your car. Research and patience being the most critical to success.

 

Yes you can do the swap with the engine in the car. If you know about how engines work, can adjust valves, and are handy with tools, it really isn't that hard. It can be a little time consuming if you haven't done it before, but it is definately doable. Take pictures before, and document the process. It helps if you have a friend on whom you can rely for help once in a while. Use the guides for step-by-step instructions.

 

Yeah, you can very easily do it your self. Just research what special tools may be needed, have all the proper parts and equipment on hand, and be patient and take your time. Should be no problem.

 

If you have any kind of mechanical ability,patience,and determination,it can be done.It isnt rocket science,just nuts and bolts and a little sense.There are some guides,I know Shoebox has a cam install.Also do a search for street illusions.Good luck.

 

I would say if u feel up to it, go ahead.

-Like was said before, invest in a digital camera so u can document the whole process.
-Make a detailed checklist of every bolt u have taken off, every plug u have unplugged, etc.
-Buy a GOOD manual. My Bible is HPBooks "How to Rebuild Small Block Chery LT1/LT4 Engines" by Mar Mavrigian, EXTREMELY helpful for engine work.

 

1) make sure you have transportation to get to work, to get parts, etc.

2) Be patient, read, use this resource for questions.

3) Budget about 5 times longer than what anybody tells you. If someone says they did a heads/cam install in a day or two, that means they BUSTED THEIR HUMP for 2 days, and had ALL the tools, ALL the parts, ALL the sealant, and that NOTHING went wrong...

4) Keep in mind the "worst case" things that CAN and DO sometimes happen.... such as breaking a bolt, stripping a hole, finding broken parts that you need to replace......

I started my cam install 6 months ago, and I'm about 90% done, heh... I got tired of it after sweating over it for about 50 hours, and then the weather got really hot, so I sad f#@$ it until it cools down again... now it's cooling down, so I'm back at it. I can't see how anybody could do this in 1 day without a lift, air tools, lots of cool speciality tools, and at least 1 helper.... Doing it alone is frustrating at times.

Good luck man.

-Michael

 

It has taken you 6 months and over 50 hours and your still not done? the very first time i did a cam install i did it in 1 day completely by myself and it took about 15hrs. NO lift or air tools in my garage.

 

you need 5 things to do this:

1. Good friend/s (with some mechanical sense)
2. Good Tools
3. Time/Patience
4. Information Resources
5. Cold Beer

 

Most people do heads/cam with the motor in the car. No point in pulling the motor just for that. I have only done it on my friend's 93 Mustang GT though. Either way, patience, help and knowing what you're doing are the things you need to get through it. If you search through past posts you can gather all the info , parts and tools needed. Its actually pretty straightforward. My only worry is putting all the hoses and wires where they need to go, but thats not hard either.

 

wow, thanks a lot guys, you gave me the confidence I was lacking for this "big" project. Yeah, all of you put time as the biggest factor besides resources and tools. I really have the time part down. like I said, I have another daily driver, this car is my weekend warrior. I do thank you for your informative replies, and it's great to know I have this website as a reference/resource guide. Who knows, maybe eventually I can try to tackle building my own 383 stroker motor (minus the machine work of course)! looks like I'm on my way to go buy a torquewrench!

 

Yes. Snags as follows (not really in order, just as I am thinking of them):

1) Took 3 different tools to pull the crank hub, and in the process I destroyed the bolt and did some damage to the threads in the crank

2) Had to locate a new crank hub bolt.... 2 hardware stores later, I just gave up and bought it from a Chevy dealer.... Bye bye to 3 hours

3) Took two different auto parts stores to find a fuel line release that actually worked. None of the "rent-a-tool" ones would work. Had to pay $10 for some small pieces of plastic that worked to do it..... multiple trips to Autozone.

4) Had to order fuel injector O-rings when I realized they don't look so hot.

5) I was sent the wrong Opti seal, had to order correct seal. I have a '95. They sent me a '94 seal.

6) Nearly dropped a valve into the motor, because the crank TDC mark was way wrong.... Spent days evaluating what to do to get the valve back up without taking the head off....

7) While adjusting the valves, it took another hour and some cz28.com posts to figure out that "dot to dot" is NOT TDC on an LT1....

8) When installing virtually everything, it became apparent that very few places can actually fit a torque wrench. Decided to tighten with the "PFT" method.

9) Found out I needed to remove the TB in order to get the intake off (can't reach the bolt).... thus, had to order a TB gasket, after giving up on the auto part stores who never could find the right one.

10) Took 2 different valve spring compressors, and many cut-up hands, to change the valve springs... The first spring compressor (from SEARS), fell apart and sucked ***. The second one from O'Reilly was barely half-*** better, and both were very hard to use. More trips to parts/tool stores.

Potential snags that still remain:

1) I haven't figured out exactly how I'm going to get the crank hub back on..... what's the proper method?

2) I hope the crank threads aren't destroyed.

3) I need to rig something to block my AIR ports on my headers (not putting AIR pump back on).

4) Have to get radiator/fans back into the car and put water back in the system... I also have to replace a hose or two that had to be destroyed to be removed... (this could also go into the "snags" list above).

5) I've got no way to figure out TDC anymore. Timing cover is back on, and I've done a "test crank" to make sure it's gonna fire up before I cover up all the stuff that makes it fire ... so now, it's not at TDC anymore...

Other than that, I'm pretty close to bringing it back to life. Anyway, if you encounter any snags, you will find that it slows the process down dramatically. For me, I just get pissed off and leave it for another day.

-Michael

I guess that's all I can think of as of now....

 

i did my heads/cam install pretty much bymyself. its not that difficult, just do lots of searches and reading on this site, look at all the install guides. if you get stuck, ask the board.

i did my heads/cam and i had no experience with motor work, hell the only time i had touched a valve cover was to change oil.... and mine runs

i say just do it you will be glad you saved the money for suspension

Jesse

 

grendal...just tap your crank hub on slightly, and when you tighten the bolt, that will seat the hub.

 

You could also pull the threads out of the crank or damage the thrust bearing. To install the hub you need to buy or a harmonic balancer press