Hi everybody, Im new here, was refered by a friend to get a little advice.

I bought my first car about a month ago. Its a black 86 camaro, with a LG4 305. The engine had about 172,000 miles on it. Well to make a long story short, that engine is done for, and I need a crate.

I want to get a 350, still carbed, from scoggin-dickey. Heres a link:
http://www.sdpc2000.com/cart.asp?act...id=128&pid=110

I called them up, and asked first iff that engine would smog in California. I was happy to hear that it did. They also told me that to get it in my 86 Camaro, I would need a new flywheel for the 85 model. No biggey.

My question is what else would I need? Also what general advice and tips can you give me, and is there better deals out there that what S-D can offer? I havent found any yet.

I want to put on this intake:
http://store.summitracing.com/partde...57#largerimage

What other parts will I need? My friend told me to go ahead and throw a new water pump in there, and I want to rebuild my Q-jet also. Im really not that good with cars, but I know enough to be dangerous. What other parts will I need to complete this swap, and what can I keep from the old 305?

This is a big decision for me, I really dont have enough money to do more after this swap, so its a big risk and I want to get it right. Thanks in advance for any help.

p.s.
Does anyone know anything about California's smog laws when dropping in a new engine?

edit:
forget to mention the car has a freshly rebuilt 700r4

 

Yes, there are a number of us with CA smog experience; myself, madmax, engineboy, and a few others.

That engine will disappoint you. It's identical to the old 170-180 HP 350s of the late 70s, gutless as can be. The reason for its higher HP "rating" is because as a replacement engine, it's rated with a good exhaust and air cleaner, as opposed to the restrictive stuff that is in a car (pr truck) chassis, which drastically reduces engine output.

I would predict no more than 175 HP out of it when equipped with stock LG4 exhaust and intake.

So, yes, it's cheap and will work, but you'll probably wish you had done something else when you feel the results.

They're right about the flywhel or flex plate.

You'll need belts, hoses, fluids, etc etc. etc. Figure on about $500 of "might as well" expenses; it always seems to work out that way.

 

I dotn really have the money to put into performance right now, I just need a good solid engine that will alst me a long time.

Can anyone help me out with the CA smog laws on new engines?

 

The law is, that you can put a newer engine into an older car, if that engine was available in the car in question, or in a newer model of it. Any other combination is supposed to be referred to a "referee" who decides if the swap is acceptable. And sometimes they do; for instance when I lived out there I had a friend who had a 80-something Jaguar with a LT1 in it, some guy in Temecula apparently does this all the time, and it got through the referee even though quite clearly, no Jaguar has ever come with a LT1.

That's the letter of the law. In practice however, when you go down to the local smog check place, if it's the right kind of motor (small block Chevy in this case) and it has all the devices on it that it's supposed to, installed, hooked up and operating; and it passes the dyno tests; odds are very high, they'll pass it, even though technically it doesn't meet the requirements. The beter of a job you do at getting all that other stuff on there and working, the less they'll look at the motor itself, they'll just go find each sensor and valve and solenoid and hose that their book shows the car is supposed to have, and if it's there, they probably won't notice that your block and head casting numbers don't match your car's original ones.

So if you don't care whether your new motor is really any better than the old one, you just want something cheap and reliable, then that's probably as good a way to go as any. Be aware though, the things that make an engine reliable are all those "might as well" things I was talking about: you'll rarely ever have a no-start condition in the morning because of a failed block, or be driving down the road and have a coolant explosion because the oil pan broke. All those failures that cause a car to be unreliable are outside of what you'll get in that crate, and if you don't bring all of that stuff up to like-new condidtion as well, the car overall won't be any more reliable than it is now. And all that stuff adds up big time; radiator, belts, hoses, water pump, fuel pump, carb rebuild, transmission as you mentioned, brakes, ignition system, alternator.... the list just goes on.

About the only thing I can think of that might not transfer over from your old motor is the flex plate, your block is the newer one-piece rear main seal design, while that motor IIRC uses the older 2-piece style. Ths bolt pattern on the back of the crank is different.

 

that's some good stuff to take into consideration. my question is this: i'm still not sold on the idea of the engine being 'overrated' with power. how might it perform with a 5.0 HO air cleaner, edelbrock t.e.s., and a 3inch catback (still with a qjet, the 'might-as-wells,' etc etc)?

i just need something new and reliable (since i've got 2 coolant leaks, burning oil, 170k miles). i'll want to upgrade the cam and heads later when the warranty begins to expire.

 

Well the heads still suck so that will dramatically limit its power potential.

 

It will be noticably better, but still pretty truck-ish. I know, I have one, with the HO air cleaner and a Qjet. The biggest problems with that motor are the pistons (very low CR), heads (882s, 'nuff said), and the camshaft.

 

take a look at this guys www.73-87.com/chp/gm350.htm

 

After looking at that article i have come to this conclusion... it still sucks. For just a lil more, u can get L98 long block, stick a tpi on it, and definitley pass smog. And while not the highest performing engine around, it is a better motor to mod in the future and still a lot better than that goodwrench boat anchor.