KnightPhoenix

@Strick1 . . . I wish I had a parts washer lol. I just knocked the grime off. . I'll probably not bother with making it perfect.

@Sabenott. . .Very Nice. I wish I'd have gotten the combo with T-56, but the only ones I could find were more than double what I paid for the engine + auto. I'm still hoping the old T-5 with hold up for a while, even though I know it's not meant for LT1 power.

Was just out trying to get my steering gear back together. . Unfortunately I tore one of the Teflon rings, so it's looking like I'm going to have to buy another rebuild kit just to get one Teflon ring.

I'm searching trying to find what the size is, to see if I can find an individual ring, but so far none of the kits list the size.

Sabenott

The T5 will do just fine as long as you don't dump the clutch or slam gears. I don't know much about the steering boxes so I am of no help. I do have a spare ws6 steering box if you need it.

KnightPhoenix

I hope so. . I don't plan on abusing it like that, but there is play in the input shaft. It does have like 190,000 miles on it. Once I have it driving fully I'll probably start looking for a good deal on a used T-56. My long term goal is still to drop in an aluminum LS, or Gen V LT engine, so that's why I'm trying not to do too much with this drivetrain. . . . and my suspension and brakes could really use some upgrades.

This is my first time tearing into a steering box, but it's not too bad. I did a partial rebuild on a 4L60e trans for my Blazer, so even with all the little parts the steering box is simple by comparison lol. Thanks for the offer, I'm going to just get another $15 rebuild kit. . .trying to keep with the original budget friendly plan if possible.

Strick1

I sure would like to discuss a few things about your swap....

CatmanFS

Yeah I had my 93 LT1 running great and fine in my other car but my suspension desires drove me to start over with a whole new car and I've got to say, it was well worth it. All new everything, ls1 brakes all around, ls1 rear, tires stanced out like I want, astro van steering link, slightly lowered, etc. I dont even know what to do with it, I've never had a new car and it feels smoother than I ever thought, like scary, slipping around corners with ease and it's just a first run without any adjustments since I put it all together. I'd like to get some weight jacks in the front and adjustable shocks in the rear. And just keep tweaking until I get what I want. The engine got some 1.6 rockers and a pcm tune lol. The suspension/chassis defines the feel of the car and without it any drive-train is going to suffer losses and wont be able to do it's job. You'll feel more confident building higher power with a rock solid chassis that can handle the abuse and ask for more.

KnightPhoenix

Holy crap. . .it's been another year already. . . .Where does the time go?

Unfortunately no real progress has been made on the Trans Am. I've gone through a couple of rebuild kits after tearing some of the teflon rings. I've tried several different times but for some reason I can not get the input shaft assembly to fully seat in the housing. After many attempts I've given up on getting the OE box reassembled, and just finally broke down and ordered a reman cardone unit from rockauto. About $120 shipped, including the $30 core, so not too bad.

The good news is even with old gas and the wrong tune it still fires right up. . .let it run for a few minutes last weekend to get the oil flowing.

Tracking says I should have the new steering box within 48hrs, so I'll see if I can't get that installed this weekend. . . fingers crossed that it works out better than the 2 cardone ps pumps I went through before.

Lol of course what finally got me back in gear was that my garage door broke. . . going to need a whole new garage door. . . .and that requires getting the Trans Am out of the way so it doesn't get damaged in the process. . .

@CatmanFS I agree. . .it's definitely worth upgrading the chassis, suspension, etc.. . .I'll get there one day. With the exception of the the 1st gen Camaro I have always thought the 3rd gens were the best looking F-body GM made. The TDS sub-frame connectors are high on my list once it's on the road again.

Strick1

Believe me I know about being amazed at how much time has passed. Yes, I'm still working on other projects and our Camaro keeps getting put on the back burner. We did get the front springs and hopefully will get this baby off the jack stands. Still thinking about the wiring. Just about the time I get it figured out, something else comes up and by the time I get back to it I forgot how I was going to do it. My computer was gravely ill and I lost a lot of my library of favorite sites connected to the build.

Keep after your Trans Am.

johnw999

Hopefully you'll be on the road soon. My swap took years (and that's with a shop installing the engine). It just takes time to modify the wiring, fuel system, and accessory drive connections. As I saw the light at the end of the tunnel, I got motivated to buy the remaining parts and finish up. I took my steering box to a local shop that offered rebuild service (they still exist). It was a run down shop in a shady part of town, but the dude did good work. The shakedown lasted another year. My power steering pump did fine, but my a/c compressor seized up and snapped the belt. It seems that Sanden compressors come prefilled with oil whereas the Sanden knockoffs do not.

I replaced my T5 with a T56. I liked the way the T5 shifted, and I sometimes wish I kept it. G-Force Transmissions offers a T5 with a stronger case.

Strick1

What didn't you like about the T56?

johnw999

It’s fine. My Trans Am is my toy, but I also bought it for the memories of my teenage years. I learned how to drive a stick shift on an ‘84 Z28. I would have liked to retain the nostalgia.

KnightPhoenix

Well I got out this weekend and installed the new steering box. . . .still having issues. After getting everything back together I had partial power steering again. It seems I have to give it some revs to get the power assist.

Of course before I really got anywhere with that the water pump started leaking, so I'm going to have to get some new gaskets for that. I'll get those this week. The coolant is obviously causing the belt to slip some so I'm really hoping that is the reason that power steering isn't working right still.

The only other thing I can think of is that I possibly put the belt on wrong and it's spinning the PS pump backwards? Pretty sure I haven't done that but I'll double check again to be sure.

aliceempire

iTrader: (14)

I hate when a problem just doesn't want to be fixed. I'm not sure you can run a lt1 fbody belting wrong. It really doesn't have many options. There's no kink in the lines? Did you flush or change them by chance? New box(es) and new pump(s), there isn't much left to be wrong.

KnightPhoenix

Right? I feel like I have that issue a lot sometimes. . . . That's what I was thinking. There isn't much that could be wrong, however this is a B-body LT1. No kink in the lines. The lines were new, I didn't fully flush them but they had been completely drained of old fluid.

When I first put the new engine in and ran a couple years ago everything the power steering worked fine, so it's very strange. The only other thing that's crossed my mind was maybe the pressures are off if the B-body had a rack and pinon? I don't ever remember reading about that as and issue from other people who did this swap, but it's been a while since I did all that reading.

aliceempire

iTrader: (14)

B bodies were old style gear boxes too. I owned one for years. The belt routing is the same for an f body acc. As I recall. Beyond strange that you're having so many issues with it. Gotta be something we're skipping over.

KnightPhoenix

Thanks for confirming. . I was pretty sure it was the same. Only other thing I can really think of is that perhaps my return line is too small? If it's restricting flow then I could see that causing issues. . . although I'm fairly certain it's not too small.

I suppose I could have slightly kinked the high pressure line causing a restriction. . .never thought about that but I'll double check it as well.

I can't remember now if I have replaced the belt tensioner, that could also be contributing to belt slippage. Once I fix the coolant leak I guess I'll check the tensioner. Those are all of my other ideas so far, so I'll keep you posted once I (hopefully) figure it out.

Strick1

It's always something. I'm hoping my power steering pump (95 Corvette type) will drive the Camaro Z28 steering box. I'll worry about that when I get there. You and I are setting a record for the longest engine swap project. But I think I have you beat.

bonemaro88

Hey, I know it's been a few years but I was wondering how this project turned out. Did you ever finish it? If you did, how did the T5 end up handling the extra power. I recently saw a decent deal on an LT1 out of a 97 firebird and was thinking about getting it for my 88. Obviously a lot has happened in the world the past few years so maybe you've abandoned the project entirely, but regardless, I'm curious of the outcome. Cheers!

Strick1

No I haven't finished the project. So many things took higher priority. You know how life goes. But this spring we'll be getting back to the project. The next step will be finalizing the fuel lines, securing the fuel tank and then installing the rear end. Then we can install the drive shaft, fill the tranny and finish up the wiring. Maybe we will be able to turn it over. You mentioned the T5 tranny, we installed a Borg/Warner T56 6 speed out of a Gen 4 Camaro. If you haven't started yet, I would suggest you go with a LS motor. Parts for the LT1 are getting hard to find (optic-sparks).

KnightPhoenix

I unfortunately have not finished my swap 100% either. My wife and I have had 2 kids in the last 2 years so between that and too many other projects the T/A has been sitting untouched.

I have driven the car and the T5 seems to be ok, but I only put a few miles on the setup. If you're not planning to beat on it then you're probably ok. . .If you want to take it to the track or drive it hard then I suspect the LT1 will blow up the T5 sooner or later.

TransAmGrant

Hey man, have you been able to make anymore progress? I’m very interested. I’ve got an 85 TA and this upcoming weekend I have the pleasure of getting a 20k mile LT1 with trans, ecm, harness, all the above kinda deal. I’d love to throw it in my bird and possibly hit up Lloyd Elliot for some power mods.

Strick1

Hi Guys, No I haven't been working on my swap for at least a year. It just sits there collecting dust and nuts from the squirrels. We are still working on the fuel lines and the wiring which I have to keep going back to my thread to see what my plan was.

TransAmGrant

Awe man, I’m sorry to hear that. I’m glad to hear you still have the car though. Don’t ever get rid of it and don’t ever give up on it if you can help it! Are you on Facebook or YouTube or anything? I’d like to keep in touch on the progress of it if you happen to jump back in.

Strick1

Well, we are still working on it. I had to readjust the plastic fuel tank and install new fuel lines, fuel filter and lines up to the fuel rails. We had to learn all over again how to put the connectors on the flexible lines. We are mounting the PCM inside the passenger side under the instrument panel. I'm not real happy with it but I want to move on with this. I'd be surprised if anyone is still watching this.

TransAmGrant

Yes sir I’m still here lol. Keep us updated boss!

Strick1

I'll be adding to my thread as we are beginning to work on it again.

My thread:

• Third Generation F-Body Message Boards
• Tech Boards
• Engine Swap
• LTX and LSX

• 83 Camaro\95 Caprice LT1\transplant