Hey everyone I hope you will read all of this becuase I really need some opinions on this, especially if you have done this swap before. Ok, about 8 months ago I bought a 94 Camaro V6 in great shape for only $1800. I planned on swapping the V6 for an LT1 and bought the V6 for cheaper insurance. Ive saved up almost $3500 since then and I went to the local performance shop to see about a block. When I told them what I was doing, they said to sell the car. They said the swap would cost a fortune and be a big hassle. They said to get an older car because it would be easier to work on. More specifically, they said to get an 80's Mustang. Then they pointed out that LT1 parts are expensive, the Camaros come with junk 10 bolt rears, cramped engine bays, and tight space under the car for a dual exhaust setup. Now I really dont know what to do...I dont know if I can afford insurance on a V8 car...and I thought of buying a different car and keeping the Camaro for a daily driver since I got such a good deal..should I sell the Camaro? Do the swap? Keep it as a Daily Driver and keep saving for another car? I know I sound like a total newbie now but Im not asking how to do the swap ( which there are a million threads about)...I am simply asking what you would do if you were in my shoes...I appreciate any suggestions...

 

Well, the mustangs do have some advantages, but the primary thing is it will take more to make the same power with a 302 mustang than with the 350 chevy car. Older cars typically have cheaper parts, but LT1 parts are very abundant, check the for sale section. Camaros may have weaker 10 bolts, but there are plenty of pros and cons to each, the first thing that comes to mind is the weak T-5 in the mustangs.

If you're gonna pay someone to do the swap, I'd just buy a V8 and deal with the insurance. If you're gonna do it yourself, then just do it.

It's a tough decision to make and you have to consider what your goals are for the car. Do you want a powerful DD or a street/strip car?

 

My Camaro only coasts me $90/month for full coverage... and I have a horrible driving record, if you can't afford that then you definitely can not afford to mod your car and afford all the little coasts that go along with it, you know like replacing broken parts.

 

Mark Summers Says.... "Go to another shop!"

Any shop that gives that kind of advice is probably just lazy as hell. I'd go to another shop to do the transplant. Common swapping out a K-member... rigging up a wiring harness .... allot of work? building a motor is alot of work... swaping and installing parts is just time consuming. WHy can't you do it yourself? foxbodies are okay... but they have their problems as well.

Seems like you just want a v8 under your hood. You can have one with a cherry picker...some friends... and sometime.

 

Insurance prices differ greatly on location.

 

You went to a Mustang shop...what else would they have said.

 

If you want to be a toady at the speed shop, get a stang.

 

you know when you think about it.... The LT1 is a pretty good bang of rthe buck... I mean with a set of mean ported heads and a cam... you can get into the 400hp range... try that on that 302... You seriously need to go to an F-body shop...

 

I'm assuming you're young, and I was 17 when I started driving my first Camaro, with a V6 to save on insurance, and to my surprise when I got my Z28 at 18, the insurance was the same as long as I had liability. Since I've changed over, it's dropped recently about 10 dollars a month.

I've always worked on F-bodies since I started working on cars and when that's your main thing to work on it doesn't seem that bad like the shop is telling you. Shops charge ridiculous amounts of money to do work on our cars cause they don't do it all the time, look up how much changing out the plugs and wires costs at a shop, that's an afternoon job the first time you do it. Shops are just lazy. It's one of those things where you hate working on it at first, but you gain love for it.

 

I agree with the shop. There are just so many "little things" that you need when doing this kind of swap that it just prohibitively expensive to have to pay someone else to do it. In the end it's much cheaper to just buy the LT1 Camaro once you can afford the insurance, if an LT1 Camaro is what you want. A 5.0 Mustang IS a better platform in terms of bang for buck mods, for sure. But the 4th gen. is a far nicer car in many ways.

I once did a somewhat similar swap - big block into a small block Corvette. But I had a wrecked donor car to get all the little bits and pieces from. Even so, it was quite a PITA and took about a year. My brother still has that car!

Rich

 

Yea Im only 16 and I plan on doing the work myself (with the help of my dad of course). I just went to the shop for parts..I know I couldnt afford to pay a shop to do the whole swap...that would be a ridiculous price...but Im leaning more towards keepeing the V6 as a DD and buying an LT1 or LS1 car after I save up a little longer...thanks for the help...and I have my dads mustang to keep me content for awhile

 

funny thing about insurance. is it not all ways cheaper for a v6 .i have a 95 firebird 3.4v6 and a 95 z28 ,and the rates a the same but i am with wife ,own my own house but am only 23

 

That is probably the route I would go, keep the one car as a reliable daily driver and save up your money for a weekend toy.

 

Better to have that V6 to get you good gas mileage, as well. Not to mention having 2 cars is really nice when one breaks down. You shouldn't have to save up much more before you can afford an older 4th gen, too.

 

oh your 18 hungh?


Stay with the V6... you'll shoot yer eye out kid.