Hi everyone, I grew around classic cars and the last couple of years I have been itching to get back into the scene. I am more of a Mopar and Ford guy but I have a love for all cars. I'm getting a bit nostalgic as I get older. I'm kind of wanting something from my day's of being in junior high and high school and that brings me to the Camaro's (I love Mustang's of this era too). I have a vivid image of being in high school and a friend of mine's brother pulling up in a Z28 that was an aqua blue color. Its forever burned into my mind. I'm not sure what year it was but I would guess 1990-1992.


My question is, I am looking at a 1987 Camaro RS that looks rather clean from the pictures. It is a local car to me and has been owned by the second owner since 1995. It is a V6 car.


What would it take to switch it to a V8?


I would either do a crate 350 or an LS motor. LS is where I am leaning but a good 350 crate motor is on my mind as well.


Do I need a V8 cross member? If so, how and where do I locate one?


I would like the car to appear stock on the outside but under the hood not stock. My main focus right now would be getting a V8 into it and then appearances down the road. Its a white car and the body looks like it is rust free (Virginia car) and that in itself would be rare and welcomed.


Thanks for any information and help you can give me. I am sure I will have more questions as I dive deeper into this.

 

I'm sure others will chime in but if I were you I'd look for a Z28 and take a pass on the RS and doing a swap.
Third gen cars are still pretty affordable so there's good buys to be had on Z28s of that vintage,better suspension etc. and a lot less headaches than doing a swap job.

 

Thanks. I keep looking. Its hard to find good cars in my area. I did find an RS that is a V8 car. It has a warmed over 305 in it but the body has a little rust. I would love an Iroc Z28 or a 1990-1992 Z28 car. The ones I find are out of my price range. I kind of just want a modern day hot rod that I can jump in and drive anywhere.

I will keep looking and see what I find in my area. Maybe when I move out of Virginia I will find what I'm looking for. I'm planning to move to Florida in the next couple of years.

 

It takes time so keep saving up money 'till you find the right deal.
I had a pretty good sum of cash on hand when I was looking for the LS powered 4th gen to replace my '93 LT1 Z28.
I had the same issue, not a lot of them in my area but after 6 months of daily searches I found the right car at the right price less than 100 miles from home.

 

I am looking and I see a few more popping up now but all of them are V6 cars. Its a shame the V6 cars all seem to have really good bodies on them. I found one V8 that has a spot of rust and its in the wheel well area. I'm betting that one small spot is much bigger. I need to look and see if they make quarter panels and wheel housings for these cars. I need to actually find a parts place.

 

Keep looking and find a solid car,they're out there.

 

Thanks. I am going to keep looking and with summer here I see a few cars starting to pop up for sale. A 4th gen may be one that I consider looking at too. I like those as well.

 

I've owned 2 fourth gens now and I can tell you first hand they are a lot of bang for the buck.
I had a '93 Z28 with the LT1 and 4 speed automatic and currently own an '01 SS, if you can swing it '98-'02 LS1 powered cars are the sheet!
I had to shell out $8K for my '01 but I was very particular, it had to be an SS with a 6 speed in very nice shape and with less than 90K miles.
The car I bought had 86K miles and was beautiful inside and out with leather seats and all the caddy stuff, lowered riding on 18" Z06 style wheels, skip shift eliminator with a B&M shifter and a really rocking Alpine stereo so I think I did ok on it. (Many mods later I'm in it $22K lol)
With a little looking around and especially if you don't mind an automatic a clean LS1 Z28 can be had for around $5k-$6K in decent shape.
Give or take depending on when you are looking of course.
I like the late third gen Z28s and the IROC's are pretty sweet but from a performance standpoint the fourth gen cars will walk all over them, especially the LS powered cars.
Happy hunting!

 

I have found a few nice fourth gen Camaro's and I am thinking I may head that way. I wouldn't mind one that has a ratty interior as I would like to redo it all and customize it myself. The LS1 motors are great. I had a Corvette with an LT4 motor and a six speed. That car amazed with the power and how it hugged the road. I would like to see how an LS car feels. I may go and look at the one here that the guy selling. He has two and they are in a package deal for 6K. The SS has had some mods done while the Z28 is bone stock. I tend to lean towards the stock car so I can do what I want and know that it isn't just thrown together. Unless he has receipts of where the work has been done than that's a different story. I grew up loving these cars but back then classic cars and muscle cars was were my interest was at. I came close to buying a 1998 Mustang and waited until the 1999's came out and didn't care for them. I also worked night shift and needed an SUV for the snow. So, I missed out on having a fun car lol. I will keep searching and looking at what shows up.

 

Well if you get a chance test drive a few LS cars, they really are a step up in both power and reliability.
No damn Optispark problems and even a better power to weight ratio being aluminum block and heads vs. the LTs iron block and aluminum head configuration.
We also have a Mustang in the garage,it's the wife's though. Just a V-6 and 5 speed automatic but it's pretty snappy and she loves it. It's an '05 red convertible and she loves cruising with the top down and her tunes blaring ha ha. 63 year old teenager! lmao