Hello all... I just acquired a 1993 Camaro Z28... LT1 and 4L60... the car has 121500 miles and is stock except for Cat back, Shift Kit, and stereo system... I'm planning on making this a street/strip car... I'm very familiar with Gen I SBC and BBC but I am somewhat new to the LT world... right off the bat, I plan on replacing the water pump and the Optispark with either a Dynaspark or a remote coil coil setup... my main question, is how reliable are the LT1s? What kind of durability can I expect out of them? Would I be wasting my time/money by doing the GM High Tech Performance High Mileage LT1 build and adding after market heads and can or should I source a new motor/rebuild the one I have? These are just some starting off questions... thanks for any insight guys!

 

Lt-1s are workhorses. Be careful about which opti you choose, there are some good ones and some bad ones. Craby will probably be able to help you with choosing a good one. I have seen lt-1's with stock bottom end run 400+ whp but I wouldnt recommend going that far on the stock bottom end. If your just doing bolt ons then you will probably be ok with a good tune.

 

The only statement needed. Craby is the guru...

I love my LT1, they are power houses and tough motors.

 

Thanks for the replies... I'm just making sure the 122,000 mile LT1 with the high mileage GM Performance rebuild would be a good platform to start putting bolt ons on and make solid, reliable power with bolt ons (headers, intake, headers, can, rockers, etc.)... I would like to stay with the LT1 if possible unless its more cost effective to buy a replacement/used engine and start from scratch... I also have a 1974 BBC 454 in the garage as well, which I'm sure is a PITA to install, not to mention having to at a minimum rebuild the tranny and replace the 10 bolt rear... if its common for LT1s to go 200,000 miles while being well maintained, I will go ahead and do the budget rebuild and go bolt one... thanks guys

 

i can almost guarantee craby will say go with a ac delco opti

 

gm performance opti has been one of the best to use. i have used msd and gm performance with no issues but some of the guys have had issues with the msd. most because the rotor comes lose. gotta put some thread lock on the rotor screws. lt1 is a great motor, loves high compression and runs a very long time if cared for. check my build thread out for ideas. 121k is not to bad, you should think about rebuilding the lower end, how is the oil pressure.

 

My car is a 1994 LT1 all stock except a couple bolt ons and it has 251,500 miles on it.I can say they are very good engines when took care of.Mine is now sadly burning a little oil.About 1/2 quart every two or three weeks.Still has strong power.I have got a couple bills to pay off and hopeing to save for rebuild.Been saying that for almost ten years though.

 

the motor produces about 65-70 lbs. Of oil pressure... almost pegs the guage... but I know stock guages can be inaccurate... the car runs strong and I found a broken vacumn hose already and it is still rank... I plan on going ahead and replacing all vacumn/rubber hoses... it doesn't look half as bad as replacing vacumn hoses on my 87 Caprice with an Old 307... talk about a nightmare of hoses...

 

plenty of oil pressure. the bottom may last another 100k depending on how its built and treated. do the bolt ons and see how you like it.

 

I have 249,678 miles on mine holds about 60lbs 40 at idle 75 when cold run it through the gears regularly and the only issue I have are failing gaskets so I'd say the lt1's are some stout engines.

Oh btw sorry I been gone for awhile