Hey guys I just picked up a used LT1 out of a 96 Caprice Wagon. Just curious about the whole motor lining up to the Z28 body. Are the motor mounts in the same spot, do I have to make any modifications. I got the motor for a nice price so I went with it, my car is OBD 1.5 and the Caprice motor is OBD 2 so I dont know if that makes a difference. Any information would be great thanks.

 

What was wrong with your motor? I would strip it to short block and use the heads intake and cam from the camaro. I think the blocks are the same but the heads on the Caprice are cast iron. I think you will be giving up 40-60 HP if you just drop it in as is. You know the intake will have to be changed either way?

 

The LT1 is a GM "corporate" engine used in Camaros, Firebirds, Impalas, etc.
It's not a "brand specific" block as some engines were in the olden days.
It may get dressed out differently (heads, cam, etc.) depending on what vehicle it's built for.
But for all intents and purposes, an LT1 is an LT1.

 

The block itself is exactly the same, you may have to use the accessory brackets from a Z28, but that's not that big of a deal. My question to you is why? The Caprice LT1 has cast iron heads that don't flow nearly as well and the cam has a different profile that will get you a loss of 40+ HP. It will increase low end torque slightly, but it still wouldn't be worth it...

 

Ok so I got the entire motor for 150. I was going to sell the heads and whatever else I could off the motor. Im going to rebuild the bottom end, .030 over and fully forged internals. Since I dont have super fast cash flow, after I finish the bottom end I will do a swap with mine. All the accessories and use my stock heads and manifold. And eventually port and rebuild the heads. I was thinking of contacting lloyd elliot, ive heard good things.
Also I was wondering why would I have to get a different intake manifold, are the runners different for the cast iron heads?

 

If you're just doing this for the block (which is what it sounds like to me) there's no need to worry about the intake. The two blocks will be identical.

 

I'm still contemplating on what I should do. I don't have a lot of downtime since my car is my daily driver. I don't know if it will be worth using the iron heads or not. I will be using an aftermarket cam either way.

 

stick with the aluminum heads off your camaro...have way better opportunities for porting

 

Yes that's what I'm going to do. I'm probably going to get a hold of Lloyd Elliot and get them ported with a custom grind cam. I don't think I have ever heard anything bad from Lloyd Elliot's work.

 

haha...that's cause he doesn't do bad work! get ready to answer a lot of questions and talk cars for a while, haha.

couple questions to be stewing over before you call him...

1. drag car or driver?
2. if drag car, what are your goals?
3. budget?
4. sound you're looking for?