Ok, a buddy of mine has a 94 Buick Roadmaster w/ the 5.7 350 v8, is this a true LT1? It has about 160k on it he says its been maintained well and runs strong...hes selling it for $250 and im wondering is this a good deal? And about how much power did these engines make??
Thanks

 

a bone stock LT1 puts out 275hp@5,000rpms and 325lbs. ft. @2,400rpms i believe. Decent motor and strong as hell! I have an LT1 and by far is the best motor i've ever had. Very easy to work on, and enough aftermarket for it too. LT1 all the way!

 

The Buick's LT1 only made 260 hp. I'm guessing it's similar to the one's in the Caprices. I don't know what the differences were, but I would guess it's mostly exhaust related. 160k is a little high, and it might need a rebuild soon. It's hard to say how much longer it will last, but I would think 200k would be the limit for these motors, before an overhaul. The best maintenance can get you only so far.

 

The Buick LT1 5.7L uses iron heads instaed of aluminum, has less compression, uses a milder cam,and is heavierthan the Camaro/Corvette version. This engine is designed to have a lot of low end torque to move the heavy "B" bodies. Make sure it came from a Buick Roadmaster or an Impala SS (RPO LT1). The version used on the Caprice is also an LT1 style engine (RPO L99)but is only 4.3L (long stroke, small bore) and makes for a poor performance engine.

 

yeah ive personally seen it so i know its a 5.7 350, i was thinking about the rebuilt, my question is what parts does this entail and about how much money to return it back to how it was originally? I also noticed the air intake is strange on it..this could be changed correct?

 

It depends on how far gone the engine is. Most likely it will need a rebore and new pistons & rings, reground crank, valve job, new cam bearings, freeze plugs, new cam & lifters, new valve springs, the heads may need a slight resurfacing. Oddly enough, the iron heads breathe better than the aluminum heads, probably because they were designed later. If you are going to use it in a F body, you will have to replace the intake, and the water pump due to different hose connections. I am not sure about the exhaust manifolds, but I suspect they are different. See the sticky on rebuilding the LT1. Costwise, you need to shop around, prices differ across the country. If you do it yourself, think about $1000-$2000 in parts & machine work.

 

wow...guess ill scratch that idea...didnt realize it would cost that much and as a 17 yr making minimum it seems out of the question for now...Mayb ill buy it then just save up for next year... my 305 seems to be running fine besides the white smoke on start up...is the $250 worth it? I got a $700 quote for the swap so i better start saving...thanks

 

i would keep the tpi engine you have for now since your on a budget. If your looking to go NA, then focus on cam, crankshaft, intake, exhaust and all that other fun stuff. Your best bet tho is to get a supercharger with at least 6 psi since your looking for big power. That and of course nitrous.

 

NA?

I've been reading up alot lately and it seems like it takes a lot of money to get a 305 to 300 horsepower, where that 350 and others (LT1's) come stock at 275, you also have to weigh buying the engine and swap costs...

I might buy it and just store it until i have enough for a rebuild/swap...id love to just put in the car until something goes wrong but thats not a great idea, and since i dont have much automotive knowledge it would be a waste to get it swapped then it have to rebuild it two months later then have it put back in...

 

by the way NA means natural aspirated, just for future reference bro. anyways, yeah you need some dollars to work up a 82-92 camaro/firebird trans am. If your looking for the quick way tho, honestly get a LT1 camaro, im not sure if u like the 82-92 body style more than the 4th gen., but if your looking for big power and your on a budget, LT1 camaro/firebird is the thing to go with.have you tried looking for superchargers for the tbi motor? You'll get a nice gain with it, and it will put you over 300hp. But whatever you wanna do, good luck with car, nice ride by way!