So basically, I hate my life.
Registered User
Joined: Oct 1998
Posts: 3,144
From: Jackstandican
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
Originally Posted by FastZinTennessee
Coming from experience:
Get some people over there who have done this sort of thing before, and/or are mechanically inclined. Fix this thing back to stock specs. Put a 160* thermostat in the car and have the fans reprogrammed AND FOR CHRIST SAKE LEAVE THE REST OF IT STOCK WHILE YOU'RE IN COLLEGE!
I messed with my car on and off when I was in college. It ultimately resulted in having to pay almost $3000 (taxes/cost of car included) to get a daily driver because the Camaro was not reliable at all. Now, everyone might not agree with me, and tell you to mod this thing to the high heavens. Do what you want. I personally spent too much time, money and effort on the car when I should have been focusing on other stuff.
Good luck with the repairs.
Get some people over there who have done this sort of thing before, and/or are mechanically inclined. Fix this thing back to stock specs. Put a 160* thermostat in the car and have the fans reprogrammed AND FOR CHRIST SAKE LEAVE THE REST OF IT STOCK WHILE YOU'RE IN COLLEGE!
I messed with my car on and off when I was in college. It ultimately resulted in having to pay almost $3000 (taxes/cost of car included) to get a daily driver because the Camaro was not reliable at all. Now, everyone might not agree with me, and tell you to mod this thing to the high heavens. Do what you want. I personally spent too much time, money and effort on the car when I should have been focusing on other stuff.
Good luck with the repairs.
Registered User
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 1,428
From: Boulder, CO -
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
Originally Posted by SS RRR
Good advice. NEVER borrow money you don't have to mod your car. It will bite you in the *** later.
yup there now- 5k on credit card still paying off -and trying to get started moving to a new city- and pay off college loans- sux having 5k just sitting needing to be paid ASAP -
plus car is a rough ride- for a while i was running a 150 wet shot on top and it was getting pretty rediculous- i actually sold a lot of what i did to help pay the bills, and make a more comfortable daily ride. but as is still dont have AC in the car and just had to reinstall all my interior
id give a vote for just rebuilding it for now - do a thermostat- and electric WP - headers if u really feel comfortable money wise..
no cam-
Registered User
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 416
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
don't try to port your own heads if you don't even know how to take them off yet... one bad slip of the dremel and you just wasted an expensive head.
besides, you could make the airflow worse if you don't do it right. its better to have stock ports which are smooth than a slightly larger port that is really chunky and turbulant...
besides.. porting heads is like a tedious 40 hour job... go work at a less tedious job for 40 hours, then take that thousand dollars and give it to a pro head porter like lloyd and have him make your heads flow a lot better than u would have on your own.
1000 for going out? why don't you buy stuff at the packy and drink with your friends at the dorms and whatnot? play some holdem? going to bars is usually a huge waste of money, at least in my experience, i've always been able to have lots more fun for lots less money just hanging out around campus.
i'd say get your heads done up good while they're off... put good valvesprings in, and decent lifters. you'll see gains just from flowing better. then add 1.6 roller rockers, some good pushrods, and a camshaft when you have more money. all those mods + intake and headers+exhaust should easily put you above 350rwhp.
Just don't be an idiot. Don't drink and drive!!! Don't put your car into a wall/pole/etc.
besides, you could make the airflow worse if you don't do it right. its better to have stock ports which are smooth than a slightly larger port that is really chunky and turbulant...
besides.. porting heads is like a tedious 40 hour job... go work at a less tedious job for 40 hours, then take that thousand dollars and give it to a pro head porter like lloyd and have him make your heads flow a lot better than u would have on your own.
1000 for going out? why don't you buy stuff at the packy and drink with your friends at the dorms and whatnot? play some holdem? going to bars is usually a huge waste of money, at least in my experience, i've always been able to have lots more fun for lots less money just hanging out around campus.
i'd say get your heads done up good while they're off... put good valvesprings in, and decent lifters. you'll see gains just from flowing better. then add 1.6 roller rockers, some good pushrods, and a camshaft when you have more money. all those mods + intake and headers+exhaust should easily put you above 350rwhp.
Just don't be an idiot. Don't drink and drive!!! Don't put your car into a wall/pole/etc.
Registered User
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 338
From: Prospect Hts IL
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
That really sucks. I feel your pain, because the same thing happened to me!
Now here is my advice to you. If you plan on putting heads, cam and headers on the car anywhere down the road, then do it now. Because let me tell you once you do all this work your not going to want to get in there again.
Now if you have school and need the car and can't let it sit, I personally would return it to stock. The more performance parts you throw at it the more performance problems it throws at you. Now granted I wish I would have put big heads and a wicked cam in my car when the gasket went down but by not doing that, I opened myself up to doing a 383 in the next year.
Cars are not cheap bottom line. A 1500 job can turn into a 5000 job in a day or two due to carelessness or lack of knowledge and tools.
I am all for people working on their cars themselves cause dealers and mechanics rape you! Get a GM manual and get the rebuilding LT1/LT4 engines book from summit and do it yourself. DO NOT BE AFRAID TO TAKE A LONG TIME. You will eliminate alot of causes of error if you just take your time.
Sorry for the long post. If you have any questions post them and I'm sure someone here will get it taken care of. Best of luck!
~Jim~
Now here is my advice to you. If you plan on putting heads, cam and headers on the car anywhere down the road, then do it now. Because let me tell you once you do all this work your not going to want to get in there again.
Now if you have school and need the car and can't let it sit, I personally would return it to stock. The more performance parts you throw at it the more performance problems it throws at you. Now granted I wish I would have put big heads and a wicked cam in my car when the gasket went down but by not doing that, I opened myself up to doing a 383 in the next year.
Cars are not cheap bottom line. A 1500 job can turn into a 5000 job in a day or two due to carelessness or lack of knowledge and tools.
I am all for people working on their cars themselves cause dealers and mechanics rape you! Get a GM manual and get the rebuilding LT1/LT4 engines book from summit and do it yourself. DO NOT BE AFRAID TO TAKE A LONG TIME. You will eliminate alot of causes of error if you just take your time.
Sorry for the long post. If you have any questions post them and I'm sure someone here will get it taken care of. Best of luck!
~Jim~
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Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 2,724
From: Oklahoma where trees are made of wood.
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
I'd put it back to stock until youre out of college, Then again I would put a turbo charger on it 
But just take your time, don't try to force anything unless its supposed to be forced etc. Be very very very clean you don't want anything falling into the motor and ruining the bottom end. As mentioned the day before you start go in and soak all the exhaust bolts that are to be removed with some lubricant like liquid wrench or WD-40 , and then soak them again before you go to bed.
After you get the exhaust manifolds off take some duct tape and seal off your exhaust pipes that they connected to, this will keep anti feeeze out of there and keep your cats from being completely ruined.
Oh and did I mention to keep everything clean.
But just take your time, don't try to force anything unless its supposed to be forced etc. Be very very very clean you don't want anything falling into the motor and ruining the bottom end. As mentioned the day before you start go in and soak all the exhaust bolts that are to be removed with some lubricant like liquid wrench or WD-40 , and then soak them again before you go to bed.
After you get the exhaust manifolds off take some duct tape and seal off your exhaust pipes that they connected to, this will keep anti feeeze out of there and keep your cats from being completely ruined.
Oh and did I mention to keep everything clean.
Banned
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 1,444
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
Heads/gaskets alone wouldn't be too terrible.
I'd hate to be alone and learning on my own.
Have a friend or neibor come hang out with you, preferably someone who knows what's going on.
I'm not sure where you are at, but there are
generally plenty of knowledgeable people floating around national
and local fbody boards who’d be happy to help in exchange for beer and pizza.
I learned to do heads in a parking lot with an old friend one summer.
We did my car and his at the same time, side by side.
Here’s a great book I bought the other day on the subject
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/155...lance&n=283155
Pieces of advice; (based on the assumption that this is a 1995 LT1 Camaro)
- Keep bolts and parts organized and labeled, so you know what goes where.
(I used small boxes and Ziploc bags my first time around)
- Don’t cut corners, use new gaskets (head, exhaust manifold & intake set) and head bolts.
(It would be a shame to have to redo the whole thing over trying to save a few $)
- Drain the coolant BEFORE you take the WP off.
(Sounds silly to say, but you’d be surprise how many people drench their optisparks)
DO NOT LET THE OPTI GET WET, rags and plastic bags are your friends here.
- When you are done, be sure to refill it with a water and coolant mix appropriate for your area
40/60, 50/50, 60/40, read the label on the bottle.
Also, bleed out any air trapped in the system, www.shbox.com has some great articles for this stuff.
It will overheat very quickly if you don’t
- Drench the exhaust manifold bolts in PBBlast or WD40 the night before to get em nice and loose.
(breaking a manifold bolt off in the head sucks)
- READ as much as you can before you start.
Having a solid game plan and not getting yourself into trouble is key.
- If you get frustrated, stop; take a walk, go do something else, and come back to it later.
Frustration leads to shortcuts, mistakes and potentially expensive repairs
Keeping it stock, or close to stock, is a good idea in college when funds are low.
Get the car running properly first, then if you have money later look into simple bolt-ons.
(cold air intake, cat-back exhaust, mail order tune, etc …)
Your car will be much more fun to drive if it’s running
You'll need a good ratchet set, a torque wrench and a lot of shop towels.
Box end wrenches help a lot in tight spots.
I'd hate to be alone and learning on my own.
Have a friend or neibor come hang out with you, preferably someone who knows what's going on.
I'm not sure where you are at, but there are
generally plenty of knowledgeable people floating around national
and local fbody boards who’d be happy to help in exchange for beer and pizza.
I learned to do heads in a parking lot with an old friend one summer.
We did my car and his at the same time, side by side.
Here’s a great book I bought the other day on the subject
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/155...lance&n=283155
Pieces of advice; (based on the assumption that this is a 1995 LT1 Camaro)
- Keep bolts and parts organized and labeled, so you know what goes where.
(I used small boxes and Ziploc bags my first time around)
- Don’t cut corners, use new gaskets (head, exhaust manifold & intake set) and head bolts.
(It would be a shame to have to redo the whole thing over trying to save a few $)
- Drain the coolant BEFORE you take the WP off.
(Sounds silly to say, but you’d be surprise how many people drench their optisparks)
DO NOT LET THE OPTI GET WET, rags and plastic bags are your friends here.
- When you are done, be sure to refill it with a water and coolant mix appropriate for your area
40/60, 50/50, 60/40, read the label on the bottle.
Also, bleed out any air trapped in the system, www.shbox.com has some great articles for this stuff.
It will overheat very quickly if you don’t
- Drench the exhaust manifold bolts in PBBlast or WD40 the night before to get em nice and loose.
(breaking a manifold bolt off in the head sucks)
- READ as much as you can before you start.
Having a solid game plan and not getting yourself into trouble is key.
- If you get frustrated, stop; take a walk, go do something else, and come back to it later.
Frustration leads to shortcuts, mistakes and potentially expensive repairs
Keeping it stock, or close to stock, is a good idea in college when funds are low.
Get the car running properly first, then if you have money later look into simple bolt-ons.
(cold air intake, cat-back exhaust, mail order tune, etc …)
Your car will be much more fun to drive if it’s running
You'll need a good ratchet set, a torque wrench and a lot of shop towels.
Box end wrenches help a lot in tight spots.
Last edited by user 647483; Aug 10, 2006 at 10:01 AM.
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 343
From: Orlando, FL
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
Whoa guys, i'm gonna keep it stock for now haha.
I'm eventually gonna put an exhaust (cutout) on and an intake, but that'll be it for a while.
I figure by tearing the engine down i'll know exatly what i'm doing if any other part breaks on it.
Does anyone have any good recommendations though on a step by step manual, and tools i'll need besides a standard ratchet set, torque wrench and open ended wrenches.
I'm eventually gonna put an exhaust (cutout) on and an intake, but that'll be it for a while.
I figure by tearing the engine down i'll know exatly what i'm doing if any other part breaks on it.
Does anyone have any good recommendations though on a step by step manual, and tools i'll need besides a standard ratchet set, torque wrench and open ended wrenches.
Registered User
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 1,428
From: Boulder, CO -
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
your bible
ha- i had my laptop in the garage walking me step by step through my cam install- Shoebox's site has amazing step by steps annce for just about everything.
other than that a chilton manual would come in handy -
another good link http://www.fierolt1.com/lt1_CamHeadinstall.htm
ha- i had my laptop in the garage walking me step by step through my cam install- Shoebox's site has amazing step by steps annce for just about everything.
other than that a chilton manual would come in handy -
another good link http://www.fierolt1.com/lt1_CamHeadinstall.htm
Last edited by kingman109; Aug 10, 2006 at 12:36 PM.
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 343
From: Orlando, FL
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
Oh yeah
I plan to get a compression test done tomorrow at another place just to verify the problem.
If there is a leak in the head gasket or a cracked head, the compression test will come back showing the problem....right?
I plan to get a compression test done tomorrow at another place just to verify the problem.
If there is a leak in the head gasket or a cracked head, the compression test will come back showing the problem....right?
Guest
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 0
Re: So basically, I hate my life.
The leakdown test is the best way to find a head gasket that is leaking into a cylinder. It uses compressed air put into a spark plug hole with the piston at TDC. The device that does this has (usually) 2 gages to compare the incomming air pressure to the cylinder pressure. You would be looking for the cylinder with pressure lower than the others since it would escape past the supposed bad gasket.
If the leak is to the water jacket, you should also see bubbles or even coolant pushed out at the radiator cap.
You could have a water leak from the intake manifold gaskets which is very common. My Vortec was doing that. Those gaskets in the Vortec suck. If that's the case, the problem is whole lot easier. You don't have to take the heads or the exhaust manifolds off for one thing. The leakdown test will pass on all cylinders if the manifold gaskets are leaking also.
If the coolant is leaking into a cylinder, you could possibly even see which piston has a cleaner top surface if viewed with a bore scope. It could even show evidence of puddling on top of the piston.
And if it is puddling, it could be possible to eject some of the water out of the plug hole if cranked with the plug out.
Be wary however, if it is leaking when it is not running, you chance locking the rings in the cylinder from corrosion or if the leak gets worse, bending a connecting rod.
If the leak is to the water jacket, you should also see bubbles or even coolant pushed out at the radiator cap.
You could have a water leak from the intake manifold gaskets which is very common. My Vortec was doing that. Those gaskets in the Vortec suck. If that's the case, the problem is whole lot easier. You don't have to take the heads or the exhaust manifolds off for one thing. The leakdown test will pass on all cylinders if the manifold gaskets are leaking also.
If the coolant is leaking into a cylinder, you could possibly even see which piston has a cleaner top surface if viewed with a bore scope. It could even show evidence of puddling on top of the piston.
And if it is puddling, it could be possible to eject some of the water out of the plug hole if cranked with the plug out.
Be wary however, if it is leaking when it is not running, you chance locking the rings in the cylinder from corrosion or if the leak gets worse, bending a connecting rod.
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