I have a 97 camaro with Heavy rear end frame damage. I found a 2000 camaro body in great shape for a steal. Now my question is, is it possible to interchange parts from a 97 camaro to the 2000 camaro such as interior, engine, trans, etc? I noticed no real interior changes from body to body but am worried about the engine compartment. I know the 2000 housed a v8 or at least my model did and my current 97 houses a v6 i also noticed some configuration changes such as where the fuel lines are ran etc. Any help here would be much appreciated!

 

It would be a lot easier if you found a 1996 0r 97 V6 car. All the mechanical will work but you will need to switch everything. K-frame, fuel line, exhaust and about 100 other things. The real problem be will the computer system. Since the you will need the PCM for the v6 you will have to swap that. All the other systems talk to the PCM. If anything has changed the system will not work. So you have few choices. Put it together with your V6 PCM/dash cluster and pray it works. Become a expert in automotive electronic and rewire the systems so they work together. Or replace every sub-system in the 2000 with with parts from the 97( all the under dash wiring). You could download the parts manual and start checking what parts changed and what parts did not.

If the 2000 is complete are you sure you just don't want to find a used LS1? Re-installing It would be like 20% of the work.

 

I wish the 2000 was complete, but no the 2000 is just the frame the whole thing is gutted. My other option is a cut and paste job from the trunk back and with the complexity of the swap i have been seriously considering. Just trying to figure out which is more time and cost and accuracy effecient.

 

How are you with metal work? For me, I would just make up a jig from the good car a swap the rear as long as all the damage is behind the rear axle mounting points. If the frame is "laddered" (meaning the rear is not sitting in the corrent position) I would just swap all the sub systems.

Where are you at? Assuming you use the 2000 as a complete car. I may be in the market for a front clip from a 94-97

 

car auto im average. metal work have never done but always willing to try anything once and have the tools and resources to pull it off and yeah all damage is behind rear axle except the back right quarter panel. Im in jacksonville florida! you?

 

Where are you located at?

 

If you dont know how to weld properly and how to do proper body work DO NOT try to splice 2 cars into one. There is alot of measuring, knowing where to safely splice and how to maintain the integrity of the cars strength and safety. I have been doing body work both professionally and as a hobbist for close to 15 years and this is not a project I would take on. Now if you just need to do the qtr panels and tail light pannel then good welding skills would be all you need and some patience. If the chassis is bent or tweeked you will need to have it pulled before attempting a Qtr replacement.

As for the swap if you have both cars sitting together and what have you then the swap is not too hard. EVERYTHING from the doner car should move to the new chassis. Strip the new chassis of all fuel/brake lines, wiring and suspension. Believe it or not some of the V8 and V6 suspension is not compatible. (I have done the swap from V6 to V8 with a 2000 Z28 SLP Doner to a 96 RS). The car today runs perfect with no CEL or emission issues at all.

Massey

 

+1 to going the swap route rather than the cut-and weld. And the '97s interior should be a straight swap.

Then again, I'd check as to the "legality" of registering the new car. If you use the new car's VIN, putting in an engine older than that model year can get dicey - but if you can prove that you're using MY 2000 electronics and emissions controls (or the '97s is equivalent to the 2000's, which I think it is), you'd probably be ok.

 

+1
I was talking to an inspection mechanic the other day. Where i live in PA we have a sorta emissions. They do not test the exhaust gas. Based on the year of the car they have computer checks they do. 95 back just get visual for all the emission stuff and no Check Engine light. 96 Just gets scanned for codes. He did say a car that just had the codes cleared will not pass. He also said as the cars get newer the inspection get more detailed. I am not sure but it could be that a 97 computer may be incapable of even doing the test required for a 2000. Since they are both OBD2 you should be ok but after the project was done would be a bad time to find it out it not ok.

The above guys are right. If you can not butt weld sheetmetal and make it as good as new or make jigs from the undamaged car then you do not want to play with frame rail sections. Its just what I would do

 

In most states if your car can pass the emissions for its model year you are good. Since you are going from a 97 engine to a 2000 body you may want to see if the 97 can make 2000 standards (if emissions apply where you live). If there are no emissions in your location then just make sure that the 2000 car has a clear title. If the 2000 has ever been claimed a total loss then the car will need to be inspected by the state patrol or DMV before a title can be issued to you. Also keep every receipt for every part you need and you will also need to prove ownership of the 97 doner car. Be careful of what you say about the engine swap. Tell them you are using the emissions and computer from the 2000 or you may end up getting in trouble.

Going with a newer engine into an older car does not have the same issues since the newer engine will almost always pass the older emissions.

Massey