I know this topic has been beaten to death, but before I go through all of the hassle of possibly swapping in this Impala SS LT1, I just want to make sure I've got all of my info correct. I've been doing extensive searches here.

The LT1 in my Camaro has a blown head gasket, it came that way. I have an idea of about how long it has been that way, which is at least a few weeks. There is coolant in the motor oil, and it still has not been drained...so in otherwords, I am considering picking up the used Impala LT1 motor locally which has about half of the miles of the motor currently inside the car, and would have less of a chance having problems later due to the head gasket problem.

Basically what I am asking is, if I were to put my F-body aluminum heads on the Impala LT1, along with all of the accessories and sensors, would it be identical to an F-Body LT1 (with the exception of the VIN on the block)? I just don't want to end up having a lower compression ratio or any other issues that would cause me to have less power then what the F-body's LT1 began with.

I've also been reading about using the Impala SS head gasket with the aluminum heads to gain some compression...good or bad idea? If it came down to having less reliability but more power, I'll stick to the original F-body gaskets. Obviously I'm already tired of dealing with head gasket issues.

Thanks in advance for any advice or help.

 

I beleive the cam shaft design might be a little bit different also. So you might have to find an impala computer to go with it too. Maybe sombody else besides me will know more on the subject.

 

Yep! Forgot about that.

Maybe now would be a good time to throw in a CC 503...

 

You will have a different cam vs the f-body motor optimized for low end torque. The peak hp will be reduced by 10 or so.

You'll need to reuse the hub, balancer, accessory bracket and exhaust manifolds. You should definitely use iron head gaskets for more compression and better quench. Almost everyone (myself included) who put aluminum heads (ported) on Impala/Caprice engines uses thinner gaskets and I don't remember anyone having a problem.

 

Get the impala motor, put in a cam, swap on some aluminum heads and not only will you have a lower-mileage bottom end, but you just upgraded to a vented optispark in the process.

 

same motor, diff cam as long as u change heads and the opti pigtail to a vented one