Ok, here is the deal. I might be able to pick up a Iron headed LT1 complete with all sensors and wiring out of a 94 Impalla SS. He wanted 750 for it but I asked him if he would go lower and he said that the lowest he could go was 650. After I explain this you tell me if it sounds like a good deal.

He lives in Central IL, and he said that he took the impalla on a trip to NC. He said that on the way back it developed a slight miss. He said after he got to town he was driving it and it started to smoke. He parked it and ended up picking up a LT4 and put in it. He said that when he pulled it that they realized that it had a pretty good leak on the back of the intake. He said that it appeared that it had been running onto the catalitic converter and burning and that is where the smoke was coming from. It has 104,000 miles on it by the way.

I was wondering if this sounds feasable? He said that I can pull the heads and check it out and I plan to. Is there anything I should look for. He said that there wasnt water in the oil. Does it sound like something else happened to it or do you think this is correct?

Another question would be how hard to find/how expensive will accessory brackets and pulleys be? I doubt it has them since he was replacing it with another motor. I am not going to be using air conditioning since it tends to get in the way of putting it in a thirdgen. I was wondering how well the Iron heads are compared to the Aluminum that the f bodies came with are. I plan on porting them, but what kind of power will they support compared to the Aluminum. Does anyone know where I can get flow numbers for the 2 stock?

Thanks

Ben

 

blue smoke = burning oil
end of story
if its just on start up its valve seals

if its always doing it, its the rings or a variety of other things...
the miss is either opti, plugs, wires or coil.

it sounds expensive to me, but what do i know...

 

blue smoke = burning oil
end of story
if its just on start up its valve seals

if its always doing it, its the rings or a variety of other things...
the miss is either opti, plugs, wires or coil.

it sounds expensive to me, but what do i know...

 

Yes, I realize that blue smoke is burning oil. He seemed to think that it was coming from oil dripping onto the cat though. Is this a possibility or not. If not, how can I tell what the problem is without it running?

Ben

 

Maybe the exhaust is different on an Impala but if it's anything like a LT1 in a Camaro I would be hard press to believe that it was oil getting on any part of the exhaust. I'd side with Trey on this but if you're buying it with the intent of rebuilding it than go for it.

 

Replacement of an engine is not the answer to oil leaking on a cat. I would assume he looked at the tailpipe and saw the blue smoke and decided to replace the tired engine.

 

Well, he said he didnt realize that that was what it was till after he had the other motor being replaced. Like I said though he said I can pull the heads so what should I check for? Will the valves look a certain way. Will I be able to tell by the pistons or cylinder walls? What do you think would be a fair price for a motor in this condition? Do you think 650 is to much if it needs rebuilt?

Ben

 

there is no way an intake leak is going to drop oil INTO the cat.
biggest load of crap EVAR.
just buy brooks LT1 block for $200 in the fs section.
rebuild that

 

Yes, it may be a load of crap. I am not arguing with that, but if I just bought a block, then I am also going to have to buy all of the wiring sensors and computer, intake and heads and it woudl end up costing me more than just getting this one complete and rebuilding it. What do you think this one is worth with everything included if it needs rebuilt?

Ben

 

A bad intake manifold leak could very easily cause a miss. If enough oil is lost it can go everywhere at highway speeds and could easily get on the exhaust system and smoke.

If the motor is out of the car the quickest way of telling if the burning oil was engine related is to pull the plugs. If one of the plugs is fouled, it's a pretty good indication the engine itself has problems.

Sorry I can't really help you on the accessory brackets and pullys.

You may be able to do a search and get some good information on the Impalla heads.

 

whats wrong with your old wiring/accessory brackets?

 

Oh, sorry, this would be going in a thirgen. The car didnt start out with an LT1.

Ben

 

Thanks for the help, and I will check out the plugs. How long do LT1's usually last between needing a rebuild(new rings and such. The heads will probably be rebuilt either way and I will port them. I will also be replacing all the gaskets and seals, but I just wondered how long the rings and rotating assemly usually lasts? What kind of pistons do LT1's run from factory?

Thanks

Ben

Ben

 

I can speak from experiance. Yes, the intake can leak(common problem) and can leak onto the passenger cat of an Impala SS. I had this happened to me. Iron heads flow slightly better than aluminum heads do stock, and the iron LT1 is not know for bad seals or rings. I have 188K on my stock supercharged motor and no colored smoke out the pipes. Remember, these were built for longevity. As for his asking price. I cannot garuntee that his is honest and truthfull, but I would say based on that, 650 is to much. With those miles and that "don't know" smoke problem, I wouldn't pay over $500. There are better deals out there. Check the for sale section on Impalassforum.com.

Mav

 

So then out of curiosity what makes the f body make more power? I would guess it is a combination of compression and cam right? My friend has a 9C1 caprice so I know that they have a good amount of torque.

Ben