Restoring a 94' 3.4L

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  #1  
Old 06-16-2010, 11:50 PM
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Default Restoring a 94' 3.4L

Okay so here's the deal;

I currently have a 1994 3.4L Camaro. The dealership i bought it from back in the winter of 08 bought the car from an older man and it had 130k mileage on it while they were driving it back to the dealership to sell it the car's motor gave out. When they tried to replace the motor they dropped the motor on the hood shattering windows and basically ruining the car. So they painted the car and replaced all the junk they broke. Then i purchased the car for 6k. Now the car has 157k miles on it and the paint is better now that i used touch-up paint on it and it looks brand new still and the 18% window tint that came with the car really adds to it

currently i've been replacing a lot of simple parts on my car and i was wondering if you guys knew what brand would be best to buy more parts from or any tips you guys might have to make work easier. Im not hiring any professionals at all to work on this car this is my project to learn from.

To do list:
Shift Kits
Power Windows
Cold Air Intakes (I was thinking K&N or Chrome Intakes off ebay)
Possibly injectors and how many pounds they should be?
Exhaust system? (I was kinda thinking keep it stock but can i run duals on it still at least? aftermarket exhausts sound really raspy and ricer like)
Intake Manifold (Can i paint this or what? Its all corroded idk what to do besides SOS pad it)


Now i need some advice... I got a friend who can put stripes on my car for about $80 dollars total and i was wondering if i put these white stripes on my red car won't it make it look kinda like a anniversary camaro? (35th) and I don't want to be impostering anything.


The reason im doing all this is because this car has to last me until my second year of college and im still a senior in high school and wanna make it at least look good. Plus i wanna be original and make a v6 f-body look good and sound good and perform good...for a v6 that is... Im already achieving around 200 bhp and 210 ft. lb of torque on dynos while still getting my 25 MPG. (The 3.4L has aftermarket parts idk what though besides a cam and the cat has been gutted.)

Ill be posting pictures of the car in its current state tommorrow hopefully if the weather is good. Thanks in advance fellas
 
  #2  
Old 06-17-2010, 12:49 AM
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pick up a factory service manual for your yr and model. like this http://www.ecrater.com/p/5620093/199...evrolet-camaro
shift kits may be something you would want to have on hold for a bit. heres a couple places to look though. http://www.700r4l60e.com/
http://www.transmissioncenter.net/highperflist.htm
power windows, use oem motors, the cheap chia cra,,,b will most times make noise and fail soon heres a place that has a good writeup on changing.http://shbox.com/page/windowmotor.html
good cold air intakes are moroso, k&n and slp.
have the injectors cleaned and flow tested at a good local injector shop. being in the middle of nowhere i had to send mine in and got new ones back 3 days later, mine would not flow at spec. even after cleaned.
im sure a couple of the guys would say there are aftermarket cat backs that do help bring out the rumble with the 6. if your gona open up the intake doing the same to the exhaust is a good step, they complement each other. you may also want to add headers to your list.
i had my intake powder coated black and love it. still looks like new and cleans real easy with a clean rag.
add to list, lt1 rearend, headers, 500 dollar savings as a emergency repair fund. lol
 
  #3  
Old 06-17-2010, 03:03 AM
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Originally Posted by craby
500 dollar savings as a emergency repair fund. lol
this should be on the top of the list by far in my opinion the most important part


also did you ever think to drop in the manual trans the 3.4 comes with the 5 speed but im sure you could find a 6 if you wanted it (sports cars should never be auto)
 
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Old 06-21-2010, 04:44 PM
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sorry guys the weather here has been so nice i havent had time to upload these pictures... But here's it's current state to show you guys a teenager can take care of his car.
 
Attached Thumbnails Restoring a 94'  3.4L-004.jpg   Restoring a 94'  3.4L-005.jpg   Restoring a 94'  3.4L-006.jpg   Restoring a 94'  3.4L-007.jpg  
  #5  
Old 06-21-2010, 07:11 PM
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Thats a good looking car.
 
  #6  
Old 07-01-2010, 12:17 AM
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Originally Posted by osduck5
Thats a good looking car.
thank you but unfortunetly im having serious problems with it now....

the Temperature gauge keeps hitting 260 (red mark) and it makes the Check Gauges light come on sometimes. when that goes out the service engine soon light comes on then goes off 5 minutes later.... I checked the thermostat the water is still circulating but the fan isnt coming on until its 3/4 full and sometimes it cant help it... the fan motor works and the fuses and relays are all good... My AC didnt work but we filled it back up with some fluid i forgot what its called... and now it works after the car has been running for 5 minutes (i think this is due to the battery power being dumbed down... probably just terminals i gotta check again) but now i just dont have Heat at all... this car is becoming a pain but it will be worth it to fix all this 90s technology... also im considering doing instead of a Ls1 Camaro just take a 3.6L from a 2011 Camaro and stick in there using 5th gen technology in a 4th gen v6 camaro.. has it ever been done before?
 
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Old 07-01-2010, 09:18 AM
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Originally Posted by FrostBytey
Exhaust system? (I was kinda thinking keep it stock but can i run duals on it still at least? aftermarket exhausts sound really raspy and ricer like)
You could throw a stock Z28 dual outlet exhaust on there. I have one on my 1994 3.4 and it doesn't sound too raspy. Actually made the car sound alot meaner than it really is. I also put a Magnaflow cat on it. Seems to have a slight gain in HP from the stock muffler and cat. Good luck. Post pics of your 1994
 
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Old 07-01-2010, 05:29 PM
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how old is the radiator? could be half the tubes are plugged so its not doin its job.
 
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Old 07-02-2010, 12:35 PM
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Originally Posted by craby
how old is the radiator? could be half the tubes are plugged so its not doin its job.

hmm i didnt think about that and the radiator is probably the one that came with it... the dealership wasnt too bright and i bet they even used the same plugs from the blown motor on this new one >.> im starting to realize how bad of a lemon i might have bought... the motor only has 30k mileage but its showing wear from a older motor... i doubt all this damage could have been caused from me driving it in the winter time... but the water is definetly going somewhere... i checked it for leaks and no leaking...
 
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Old 07-02-2010, 03:38 PM
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no coolant in the oil? ive seen quite a few 3.4 s on here with blown head gaskets. check all the plugs and see what they look like. look for any sign of water on em.
 

Last edited by craby; 07-02-2010 at 03:47 PM.
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