Hey guys I'm new here I will be picking up an 86' automatic z-28 w/ 80k miles on it (northern va) on Thursday for about $2k hopefully. I plan on keeping the car stock for a year or so and then swapping out the 305 for a 350. I have a few questions for the patient ones on this board and would greatly appreciate any help I can get.

1. What exactly will I need to do this swap ?
2. What do I have to do to make the computer work with a 350.
3. Who are some good builders I can turn to build my motor because theres no one reliable in NoVa.
4. What is a good transmission for this motor and where can I get it ?
5. Is the 350 shortblock the only motor with the best bang for the buck I can fit in here ?
6. How hard will this swap be ?

Thank you all in advance for any help you can give me.

 

1: 350 motor, motor mounts, alternator ( i think), new plugs, wires, exhaust manifold gaskets, radiator and hoses (youll want new ones for the swap)
2. if its carbureted , you dont have to worry about computers, but if its fuel injected get the motor and computer out of a newer 350 Z28 camaro.
3. dont know cause i dont live there. cheaper to do it your self, or go to a auto -tech center like a local dealership
4. theres three trannys i like : the 700r4, TH350, and TH400, each of these can be picked up in your local salvage yard but id prefer to spend the extra money and buy it out of summit racing magezine or another performance store/website
5. Buy a 350 out of a salvage yard, and rebuild it to your liking, or order a short block from auto-zone i think there in the 700.00 neighborhood and go from there.
6.shouldnt be hard at all, just unbolt and un hook everything , pull the motor out, and drop the 350 in and re-hook everything where its supposed to be, and your ready to go, since the 305,327, 350, and 400 blocks are all the same size( only difference is bore and stroke), it will drop into place like it was a 305, for your safety have atleast 1 or more people there than you to help with the swap or else you could hurt your self badly. hope i helped.

 

Honestly I'm looking for something I can just drop in and already built. Unfortunately I dont know any decent online builders with a warranty. Would dropping in a computer from a newer Camaro be simple ? Wouldnt it screw with the emissions equipment already in the 86 ?

 

you havent said wheter its fuel injected or not , im going to assume it is. so i would get a 350 motor and computer out of a 86-92 Z28 and get the emissions stuff along with it just to be safe. thats why i go carbureted so i dont have to worry about the emissions . as for wanting something thats alreedy built ..... buy a crate motor . they usually run about 2500.00 and up

 

If I buy an 86 wouldnt it be waived for emissions in most states because it is 20 years old ? Also the only reason I would go FI over carb'd is because FI is more reliable unless someone knows a control box or something they would recommend to fix those problems. I would prefer a crate motor, art carr automatic tranny ( would a turbo 350 or 400 work ?), new driveshaft, rear axle, and rear differential (3.73 gears). I'm going to try to keep this all under $5k. Thank you for all the responses so far.

 

I would go check out what GM has to offer in the way of crate motors right now, personally. You might find something nice for a reasonable price. Just go to any GM Dealer parts counter and ask them about small block crate motors.

 

I'm thinking I will go with an Edelbrock crate motor at this point for reliability. I would like a reliable but reasonably priced automatic tranny to go with that. Any advice ? Also does any one know any thing about MSD contro boxes for engines like that ?