MTBSully's First Restomod: 1969 Camaro LS Build

[MTBSully]

1st Real post here. I'm active on corvette forum, ls1tech, SVTperformance and others, but this is my first classic car so here we are. I've got a twin turbo C6 Z06, that build is over on corvette forum as well as my youtube channel if anyone wants to check that out.

Anyways, I always wanted to do a 1969 LS swapped camaro. I started poking around this summer and found a great deal locally on a 1969 Coupe with a big block and a 4 speed. It was a driver quality car, but the paint and body had a lot of flaws and some band aids that I didnt want to deal with long term.

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Overall it drove great, looked decent and did what it was supposed to do. So I decided to cruise it for the summer, have fun with it, but not dump a ton of money into it. I blacked out the front end and bumpers, added the chin spoiler, new headlights, LEDs all around, tinted windows, 2 stage paint correction as well as some 17" race stars I picked up locally. I loved how the car turned out for very little money invested.

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As fall moved in I decided to list the car and it sold relatively quickly. I made a decent profit, but much like the housing market, I was now back in a pool of buyers driving up the price of 1st gen camaros. It took a few months, but I picked up my replacement last week.

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Its fresh restoration with around 800 miles on it. Shaved drip rails, molded front spoiler, bumpers, rear spoiler, and tail lights, shaved antenna hole, shaved marker light holes, fresh metallic gray paint, etc. Full TMI interior including seats, door panels, dash pad, dakota digital gauges, custom center consol with kenwood double din radio and speakers, all 4 power windows, fully finished trunk with custom panels, new headliner etc.

Also has a whole bunch of spension goodies including wilwood 4 pistons on all 4 corners, power brakes with wilwood master, ridetech 4 link in rear, ridetech upper and lower A arms up front with coilovers, swaybar etc. Custom exhaust with electric cutouts, vintage air.

Previous owner spent a lot of money on the car except in 1 area. The motor and transmission. It has what I beleive to be a 307 and TH350 with saddle grip shifter. It has an aluminum edelbrock intake, mild cam and holley carb and some other engine dress up items, but its nothing special. This is all fine with me since im wanting to do an LS swap anyways. Im not crazy about a few of the body items, specifically the front molded spoiler and molded tail lights. Mainly because I worry about cracking and it also prevents you from ever being able to replace or change those parts, but for what I paid for the car it was easy to overlook.

So, my plan is a LS swap and 6 speed transmission. For now my throught is to find a wrecked 2010-2015 Camaro SS and yank the ls3 and tr6060 out of that and sell any other good parts to recoup some cost. The car still has what I beleive is a 8.5 10 bolt, so I am also considering a 9" and mini tubs. I am looking for suggestions, pointers and opinions from those who have been down this road before. Looking for suggestions on brands for motor and tranny mounts, and any other components I might need. I know some of the common trip up areas are:

- driveshaft for tr6060
- tunnel clearancing for tr6060 or t56
- What accessory drive are people running? C6 corvette? GTO?
- Im hoping to do a low mount AC compressor, so I plan to notch the crossmember as well.

I plan to use holley terminator X for the ECU. The LS3 or whatever LS motor I get will be getting a cam, longtubes and maybe a few other goodies for now.

On another note, what is a recently refreshed 307 with some goodies and TH350 worth? SBC casting number says the block is a 68 307 with 2 bolt mains. Wondering what to list those for when the time comes. Car runs and drives perfectly.

I also plan to fully document the build on my youtube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuFWvbCq44Q8TjFsGDUEP3A

Looking forward to any suggestions on parts, and suppliers where I can find the best deals! Thanks!

[MTBSully]

First parts i need to order are subframe connectors and engine and tranny mounts. Any suggestions? I know CX racing and holley make parts, any others I should be looking at? Appreciate the help!

[MTBSully]

Ole 307 is out. Only took about 2 hours. Not bad for a chassis i'm not really familiar with.

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Going to take this time im searching for a motor to clean up the engine bay and get ready for an LS motor. I beleive this module on the right is my wiper motor and washer fluid sprayer. Whats weird is that some of these wires went to the distributor/carb. Can i get rid of these? Anyone had a good source for 1969 camaro wiring diagram?

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[MTBSully]

First project video is up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qimnrKJ9nvM&t=233s

Anyone have recommendations for subframe connectors that are compatible with a ridetech 4 link?

[ICrombie]

Welcome! I happened to buy your mantic clutch from corvetteforum and noticed your name sounded familiar!

If you're sticking with the stock subframe and ridetech control arms the hooker blackheart motor mounts and trans crossmember for LS swaps is a popular choice and seems like a quality piece. I think most here tend to go with aftermarket accessory drives since the low mount AC is an issue (though I think dirty dingo and others make one off brackets to relocate the AC). Holley again offers a pretty reasonably priced high AC kit compared to some of the other more expensive ones like Wegner and DriveJunky.

On subframe connectors I opted for the through floor weld in ones from speedtech (DSE is another other option here for a weld in), but if you want true bolt in connectors I'd go with ridetech since it's likely to fit with their 4 link.

[jaybee]

Very nice car.

[MTBSully]

Welcome! I happened to buy your mantic clutch from corvetteforum and noticed your name sounded familiar!

If you're sticking with the stock subframe and ridetech control arms the hooker blackheart motor mounts and trans crossmember for LS swaps is a popular choice and seems like a quality piece. I think most here tend to go with aftermarket accessory drives since the low mount AC is an issue (though I think dirty dingo and others make one off brackets to relocate the AC). Holley again offers a pretty reasonably priced high AC kit compared to some of the other more expensive ones like Wegner and DriveJunky.

On subframe connectors I opted for the through floor weld in ones from speedtech (DSE is another other option here for a weld in), but if you want true bolt in connectors I'd go with ridetech since it's likely to fit with their 4 link.

Thanks! Hope the clutch worked out well for you, I always loved that clutch.

2nd build video is up! Holley parts are on the way as well as Mcleod master and some OEM clutch and brake pedal assembly. Still on the hunt for a donor car for the drivetrain.

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[MTBSully]

New seats are in:

196612

Some holley parts have rolled in as well. Still looking for a drivetrain lol

[slazisme]

Are you looking for a crate engine or a drop out from a wrecked car or a engine to rebuild? What kind of power are you looking for? 5 or 6 speed?
I ended up going with a base 6.0L iron short block then added some LS3 heads, this way I could pick the parts I wanted like the internals, pan, cam to suit your taste.
To make things easier when you install the clutch pedal hydraulics, keep the dash bare and take out the drivers seat and steering wheel. Its not fun working on your back under the dash. I ended up using the Mcleod set up.
I'd be interested in the dash carrier if you want to split it up from the Dakota digital stuff. Simon.

[MTBSully]

Are you looking for a crate engine or a drop out from a wrecked car or a engine to rebuild? What kind of power are you looking for? 5 or 6 speed?
I ended up going with a base 6.0L iron short block then added some LS3 heads, this way I could pick the parts I wanted like the internals, pan, cam to suit your taste.
To make things easier when you install the clutch pedal hydraulics, keep the dash bare and take out the drivers seat and steering wheel. Its not fun working on your back under the dash. I ended up using the Mcleod set up.
I'd be interested in the dash carrier if you want to split it up from the Dakota digital stuff. Simon.

Hoping to find a wrecked 2010-2015 camaro and swap the drivetrain. That way I can sell some other parts and recoup some cost. Ill do a cam and supporting mods while the LS3 is out.

Seats are just roughly bolted in and the steering wheel is out as well. Should make replacing the pedals and wiring off the holley a little easier.

[MTBSully]

Waited a while for my Mcleod hydraulic clutch setup. Finally got that in. Ended up modifying my stock brake pedal.

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New video is up as well

WsNudF_nmbY

Got tired of looking for a wrecked car on copart. Hunted around and ended up finding a 2010 2SS LS3 6 Speed camaro with cosmetic issues for dirt cheap down in baltimore. I caught a 1 way flight on friday after work and drove it back 8 hours to NH. Got home at 3:30AM. Its a shame i'm going to tear apart such a nice car but for what I paid for it you can barely touch a wrecked salvage title one.

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Ran absolutely perfect the entire way home. Going to start pulling the motor/tranny tonight. Might try to sell the car as a complete roller to save myself the time of parting it out.

Still need to order:

- Fuel tank/fuel system
- Headers
- Cam Kit
- Accessory drive? Has anyone used the LS3 camaro accy drive? I see most people use GTO or c5 corvette drives. Any reason why the stock stuff wont fit?
- Radiator

Open to suggestions on these parts needed.

[ryeguy2006a]

I'd pull the fuel pump out of the car and get a kit from Vaporworx that converts it to run constant fuel pressure and get a Ricks Restomod tank. That would take care of your fuel system. You should be able to run the LS3 accessories, or at the least modify them slightly to work with your frame. I'm very happy with my Summit 8715 Cam, but it's better for a boosted application. But if you want to add an LSA down the road, it would make a good N/A cam for the time being. Small, but works great.

Headers, I'd suggest sticking with ones that will work for the mounts you plan to run. IMO, I wouldn't do anything other than the Holley system. It worked so well in my car, I would 100% do that again. Only thing I would do is try running Speed Engineering headers rather than the stainless ones from Holley.

I'm very happy with my Auto City Classics LS swap 67-69 radiator. Price is right and it would look totally stock if you painted it black.

Good luck with the tailshaft swap!

[MTBSully]

I'd pull the fuel pump out of the car and get a kit from Vaporworx that converts it to run constant fuel pressure and get a Ricks Restomod tank. That would take care of your fuel system. You should be able to run the LS3 accessories, or at the least modify them slightly to work with your frame. I'm very happy with my Summit 8715 Cam, but it's better for a boosted application. But if you want to add an LSA down the road, it would make a good N/A cam for the time being. Small, but works great.

Headers, I'd suggest sticking with ones that will work for the mounts you plan to run. IMO, I wouldn't do anything other than the Holley system. It worked so well in my car, I would 100% do that again. Only thing I would do is try running Speed Engineering headers rather than the stainless ones from Holley.

I'm very happy with my Auto City Classics LS swap 67-69 radiator. Price is right and it would look totally stock if you painted it black.

Good luck with the tailshaft swap!

I was wondering if the speed engineering headers fit. They definitely seem like a good value. A couple reviews online says that they should. Thanks for the suggestion on the radiator.

Planning to run the AC down low, so i think i'll need to notch my subframe and run a dirty dingo bracket. Not sure if the ls3 alternator will clear or not. Time to get to work doing some test fitment!

[Sinnister69]

Waited a while for my Mcleod hydraulic clutch setup. Finally got that in. Ended up modifying my stock brake pedal.

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New video is up as well

WsNudF_nmbY

Got tired of looking for a wrecked car on copart. Hunted around and ended up finding a 2010 2SS LS3 6 Speed camaro with cosmetic issues for dirt cheap down in baltimore. I caught a 1 way flight on friday after work and drove it back 8 hours to NH. Got home at 3:30AM. Its a shame i'm going to tear apart such a nice car but for what I paid for it you can barely touch a wrecked salvage title one.

197295

Ran absolutely perfect the entire way home. Going to start pulling the motor/tranny tonight. Might try to sell the car as a complete roller to save myself the time of parting it out.

Still need to order:

- Fuel tank/fuel system
- Headers
- Cam Kit
- Accessory drive? Has anyone used the LS3 camaro accy drive? I see most people use GTO or c5 corvette drives. Any reason why the stock stuff wont fit?
- Radiator

Open to suggestions on these parts needed.

Take the fuel module out and get a tank from ricks and controller from vaporworx

I have the holley midmount system on my camaro its basically a water manifold with all of the accessory brackets molded into it and uses a c7 vette pump

[Alwhite00]

Now THAT'S a donor vehicle. Nice work. How many miles on it?

[syborg tt]

Very cool project. Looking forward to more updates.


MTBSully. So are you a mountain biker ?

[MTBSully]

Now THAT'S a donor vehicle. Nice work. How many miles on it?

127k. Barely broken in!


Very cool project. Looking forward to more updates.


MTBSully. So are you a mountain biker ?

When I created my first forum username back in 03-04, i was obsessed with mountain biking! Now cars have more or less taken over, but I still enjoy it and the username is here to stay.

New video is up!

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Got the motor out on Thursday night. More updates coming soon. Need to order a cam/valvetrain

[MTBSully]

Motor is out. Roller is already sold which helped me to recoup most of the money invested in the motor/tranny.

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Anyone know if the LS3 alternator will clear the stock subframe without clearancing? I plan to run a dirty dingo low mount AC setep and clearance on the passengers side. Wondering if I will have to do the same on the drivers side.


Ordered a Tanks Inc notched tank and Fitech fuel module with 340lph pump. Will be building my own fuel lines and fuel system from there probably -6 feed and return with a regulator mounted near the fuel rails. Going to order a cam and supporting mods today. I think im going to give the speed engineering headers a shot at fitting as well.

Will be tearing down the motor this week for cleanup, painting accessories and test fitment. Parts are showing up daily and the build is picking up speed. Im happy the drivetrain is finally here.

[Sinnister69]

Before i went with the holley mid mount i had my alternator on the drivers lower using ict billet bracket and it cleared fine197486

[MTBSully]

Before i went with the holley mid mount i had my alternator on the drivers lower using ict billet bracket and it cleared fine197486

That looks like an aftermarket subrame, no?

[Sinnister69]

It is but idt its farr off from stock
Go with a midmount you wont be dissapointed

[MTBSully]

Just ordered all my cam and engine "refresh" stuff. BTR stage 4 cam and supporting valvetrain. Need to pull the trigger on some headers today or tomorrow and i'm leaning towards speed engineering at the moment. For the price, I could always modify to fit if I have to.

[Sinnister69]

I had a speedtech stage 3 cam make sure u have good valve to piston clearance

[MTBSully]

Sealed up the longblock as best I could then degreased/power washed it.

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Then got it stripped down to a shortblock. Cleaned the block deck with a razor blade and brake cleaner, and a few light passes on a sanding block with soap and water a 320 grit. Then I taped the whole thing up for paint.

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Was thinking about going with a crazy color, but I find that once most LS motors are fully dressed you can't see the block anyways, so im just going to be painting it "aluminum" color. Still havent decided on a color theme for this car, but i'm leaning towards a metallic blue for some engine components and possibly the brake calipers. I always end up painting stuff blue but it just looks so good lol. Heres the forged LS in my 2008 corvette with a "Sonic Blue" (Ford Color) intake manifold.

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Between metallic blue and a metallic orange with this car, but i'm really leaning towards the blue!

[syborg tt]

Sealed up the longblock as best I could then degreased/power washed it.

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Then got it stripped down to a shortblock. Cleaned the block deck with a razor blade and brake cleaner, and a few light passes on a sanding block with soap and water a 320 grit. Then I taped the whole thing up for paint.

197568

Was thinking about going with a crazy color, but I find that once most LS motors are fully dressed you can't see the block anyways, so im just going to be painting it "aluminum" color. Still havent decided on a color theme for this car, but i'm leaning towards a metallic blue for some engine components and possibly the brake calipers. I always end up painting stuff blue but it just looks so good lol. Heres the forged LS in my 2008 corvette with a "Sonic Blue" (Ford Color) intake manifold.

197569

Between metallic blue and a metallic orange with this car, but i'm really leaning towards the blue!

That looks really nice

[jaybee]

That's a great color. It reminds me of Ford Corporate Blue used 19661973 but with the depth and quality of a top coat.

[MTBSully]

Next video is up:

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Longblock parts piling up
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Block taped off for primer and paint
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Fresh coat of "aluminum"
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Stock cam, timing components and oil pump are out, BTR stage 4 going in
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New cam in along with new timing chain, ARP cam bolts, cam retainer plate and cam gear.
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Took advantage of the beautiful weather yesterday and went to town cleaning engine parts with the power washer and degreaser. Heads came out great. Also painted a lot of my accessories. Ready to get the longblock together.
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Forgot to grab a pic but also got the holley 302-2 pan all mocked up, windage tray modified and installed and sealed up with a new WIX filter. Tonight i'll be popping the new LS7 lifters and trays into the shortblock.

Hoping to finish up the longblock in the next day or so, and may get to work test fitting the engine in the bay. Would like to mark out where i'll need to notch the subframe and get to work on that as well.

[MTBSully]

Freshly painted accessories and valley cover.

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Shortblock finished up. New LS7 lifters and trays in. Valley cover painted and installed with new gaskets.

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Hoping to finish up the heads tonight including new BTR platinum valve springs and seals. Pop those on with new GM LS3 head gaskets and GM bolts and we should have a completed longblock.

I'd also like to test fit the motor to figure out a plan for AC. I am thinking the OEM alternator and bracket may be too big to fit down low, even with notching the subframe which I plan to do. I'd like to get my AC bracket and alternator bracket on order if I end up needing them.

[ryeguy2006a]

Looks great man! Keep up the progress.

Not trying to make more work for you, but do you ever plan to add boost? If you do, I'd suggest pulling out the pistons and gapping the rings now and using a set of LS9 head gaskets. That's what I did for my L92 and LSA. Opening up the rings slightly won't hurt the performance by any measurable amount, but gives you a greater tuning window when you add boost and timing. Word around the internet is that the rod bolts are TTA, not TTY and can be re-torqued 3 times before they should be replaced. I opted to just get a brand new set of GM rod bolts and called it a day. Will save you lots of effort down the road if you do it while you are at this stage.

If no boost is in your future, proceed as you were and forget I said anything. haha

[MTBSully]

Looks great man! Keep up the progress.

Not trying to make more work for you, but do you ever plan to add boost? If you do, I'd suggest pulling out the pistons and gapping the rings now and using a set of LS9 head gaskets. That's what I did for my L92 and LSA. Opening up the rings slightly won't hurt the performance by any measurable amount, but gives you a greater tuning window when you add boost and timing. Word around the internet is that the rod bolts are TTA, not TTY and can be re-torqued 3 times before they should be replaced. I opted to just get a brand new set of GM rod bolts and called it a day. Will save you lots of effort down the road if you do it while you are at this stage.

If no boost is in your future, proceed as you were and forget I said anything. haha

Thanks!

Boost is a possibility down the road, but If i went that route i'd scrap the LS3 all together and use the LC9 5.3 aluminum short block I have in my shed. The 5-7K i could probably get for a cammed/refreshed LS3 would go a long way in building a stout 5.3 that could probably handle 1200-1500HP. Thats basically the motor in my vette!

[MTBSully]

BTR .660 platinum spring kit and new valve seals installed, Titanium retainers.

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Once the heads were dont i gave the mating surfaces a final wipedown, slapped on the head gaskets and bolted them down with OEM style TTY head bolts in 3 passes. Shortblock --> longblock. Even gave thefront of the heads a quick polish for ****s and giggles.
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Hoping to drop it in and do some test fitment tonight. My speed engineering headers showed up as well so i can bolt those up and check fitment.

[ryeguy2006a]

Very curious about the fitment of the speed engineering headers. I was eyeing those too. Did you go with 1 7/8" version?

[MTBSully]

Yes I went with the 1 7/8" primaries.

Bolted them up last night just to see how they look. Slapped the intake and valve covers on just to see, ever though the intake is going to be painted and i'll be going with aftermarket valve covers, looks pretty good!
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[MTBSully]

Shes in. Slid right in with the holley mounts. Passengers header slides right in. Drivers side i think i should have put on while the motor was in the air. I'll mess with it more later. Just wanted to see where I was at with clearance for alternator and accessories.
198055


Going to order up an ICT billet alternator bracket since the 2010 camaro one is nowhere close to fitting. Same thing with AC bracket, going with dirty dingo and probably mini sanden compressor. Time to start cutting and welding

[Gmc427]

Shes in. Slid right in with the holley mounts. Passengers head slides right in. Drivers side i think i should have put on while the motor was in the air. I'll mess with it more later. Just wanted to see where I was at with clearance for alternator and accessories.
198055


Going to order up an ICT billet alternator bracket since the 2010 camaro one is nowhere close to fitting. Same thing with AC bracket, going with dirty dingo and probably mini sanden compressor. Time to start cutting and welding

car has stock sub ,earlier pic has aftermarket?

[andrewb70]

Good looking build and nice attention to details. Let me know if I can be of service with the Holley EFI tuning.

Andrew

[MTBSully]

car has stock sub ,earlier pic has aftermarket?

Stock subframe. Ridetech tubular control arms and swaybar.


Good looking build and nice attention to details. Let me know if I can be of service with the Holley EFI tuning.

Andrew

Thanks!

[ryeguy2006a]

That's great man! What accessories will you be using? If you use anything tighter to the block than truck/L99 accessories, you'll need to notch the frame. Right now I'm running the CTS-V which run at the Corvette depth and even with my large notch, I had to get very creative to get my low mount alternator to work right. I haven't been able to find a good option for a low mounted AC compressor that will not interfere with the Holley engine mounts without either modifying the mounts or running the AC at the main accessory depth.

How low to the headers hang? Can you please post up some pictures? If these will fit with relatively little modifications, I'm going to pick up a set for my car. Everything I could see based on measurements the company provided and that I could take shows that they will tuck up nicely.

PM on the way.

[MTBSully]

That's great man! What accessories will you be using? If you use anything tighter to the block than truck/L99 accessories, you'll need to notch the frame. Right now I'm running the CTS-V which run at the Corvette depth and even with my large notch, I had to get very creative to get my low mount alternator to work right. I haven't been able to find a good option for a low mounted AC compressor that will not interfere with the Holley engine mounts without either modifying the mounts or running the AC at the main accessory depth.

How low to the headers hang? Can you please post up some pictures? If these will fit with relatively little modifications, I'm going to pick up a set for my car. Everything I could see based on measurements the company provided and that I could take shows that they will tuck up nicely.

PM on the way.

Using the stock 2010 camaro accessory spacing which I beleive is the same as the truck/L99 spacing. ICT billet alternator bracket and 105 Amp alternator will be here tomorrow so I can test fit those. AC bracket shortly after that. I'll try to get some pictures of the headers all mounted up shortly.

[MTBSully]

New video is up!

KfrJ7dba_IM

Waiting on those accessory brackets which should be here today, so in the meantime I got going on the fuel system. Tanks Inc 1969 tank with notched corners. Just in case I decide to do mini-tubs and big tires in the future (probably). FiTech fuel pump module with 340lph pump, new sending unit, and a summit fuel pump relay kit. Just waiting on one 6AN fitting and I can make some fuel lines up to the firewall.

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[MTBSully]

More random updates as I wait for parts here and there.

Dirty Dingo low mount AC and ICT billet low mount alternator brackets
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The alternator fits great. I went with a 105amp unit from I believe a 96-99 chevy truck. $80 amazon special. I was wondering if I might have to notch the subframe here but theres 1/2"+ clearance all the way around the alternator, and the mounting nut is on the backside, nowhere near an area where it might short. Looks like this is a bolt on a go fit with the holley mounts and the truck spacing.

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Dirty dingo AC bracket, not so much, but that was to be expected. My AC compressor isnt here yet so I havent been able to test fit it, but my guess is we will have to do some notching here. Also it appears the tensioner contacts my ride tech sway bar, so some massaging will have to be done here. Ive also wondered about spacing the sway bar down 1/2" or so to gain some clearance that way.

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Lifted the motor a bit a slid the drivers header in. Fits great with exception of very minor contact on the steering box, another thing I half expected. I am confident that with slight work with a flap disk on the steering box, and maybe a few taps of the hammer on the primary we will have clearance. The curve on the primary is so aggressive that even some minor massaging won't be visible from the engine bay.

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Clearance underneath looks pretty good too. I don't have the transmission in yet (as you can see from the jack) so the floorboard clearance may change slightly, but it looks good for now. Tucks up nice. Overall im happy with these headers for almost 1/3 the price of any other LS swap brand. Welds and collectors look good.

[MTBSully]

Believe it or not the AC compressor fits with no notching. Its super close though, so i think it will be wise to do a small notch while the engine is out. Should be starting that this week.
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Spent a couple hours friday making a bracket for my DBW pedal out of the 2010 camaro. Not the prettiest thing i've ever fabricated lol, but its stong as hell, functional, and free. I chopped up one of the original SBC motor mounts and used some scrap steel for the rest. Used the original holes in the firewall (not sure what they were originally for) because I didnt want to have to drill any new holes if possible. Works great and places the pedal perfectly after a lot of trial fitment and adjustment.
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Finished making my AN lines for the fuel tank, popped those on and installed the notched 69 tank. Fits great. Going to order a fuel filter, and fuel pressure regulator to finish the system up.
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New LS7 clutch kit and flywheel from rock auto came in along with some ARP flywheel bolts and other bits. Motor is back out so I can do the rear main seal and rear cover gasket before we pop the new clutch on.
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Degreased and power washed the TR6060 in prep for its conversion to a T56 magnum I have planned. Just waiting on the tail housing which should be here in a day or two.

[ryeguy2006a]

You're making this look easy! Good work man, keep up the progress. Those headers fit really well.

[TheBandit]

Nice progress! I'm surprised the AC compressor fit without notching. Did you have the engine at the final angle? I know on mine I ended up shimming the tail of the trans up a bit at the crossmember to get driveline angles right, so definitely recommend making some extra clearance under there in case you need it later on. I noticed your tensioner and sway bar seem to be competing for space; on mine I shimmed the sway bar down with 1/2" aluminum. Low mount compressor was worth the hassle of notching - keeps the engine bay tidy!

For the rear main/cover alignment, these guys make an affordable alignment tool I wish I had when I built mine.
https://www.saccitycorvette.com/AlignItTools.html

[MTBSully]

Nice progress! I'm surprised the AC compressor fit without notching. Did you have the engine at the final angle? I know on mine I ended up shimming the tail of the trans up a bit at the crossmember to get driveline angles right, so definitely recommend making some extra clearance under there in case you need it later on. I noticed your tensioner and sway bar seem to be competing for space; on mine I shimmed the sway bar down with 1/2" aluminum. Low mount compressor was worth the hassle of notching - keeps the engine bay tidy!

For the rear main/cover alignment, these guys make an affordable alignment tool I wish I had when I built mine.
https://www.saccitycorvette.com/AlignItTools.html

Thanks! I beleive the motor was pretty close as far as angle but im going to notch it anyways just to be safe. Shouldnt take too long and I have the materials and means to do so. I plan on shimming my sway bar down as well, any pics of how you did yours?

I've got that LS alignment tool in my toolbox! A good one to have.

[TheBandit]

I have lots of photos yes. Below are a few samples. There are tons more in my build thread , but they might be hard to find so let me know if you need anything in particular. The thread is here https://ls1tech.com/forums/conversions-hybrids/1329686-70-nova-ly6-th400-6-0vvt.html The radius plate for the bottom of the notch was made by hand bending a piece of 12 gauge mild steel around a metal pole.

Image1 (https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2022/03/ly6swap272JPG-1.jpg), Image 2 (https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2022/03/ly6swap275JPG-1.jpg), Image 3 (https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2022/03/ly6swap292JPG-1.jpg), Image 4 (https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2022/03/ly6swap400JPG-1.jpg), Image 5 (https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2022/03/ly6swap401JPG-1.jpg)

[MTBSully]

New rear main seal, gasket and oil diverter on. New flywheel with ARP bolts and LS7 clutch torqued to spec.

198265

[MTBSully]

Began the dreaded task of converting my tr6060 to a t56 magnum via mainshaft and tailshaft swap. Other than swapping to a 26 spline input shaft from a 10 spline on the t56 in my 2004 cobra back in the day, i've never really messed with internal transmission work, so we'll see how this goes lol.

Brought up the old workbench from my basement just to hold the transmission so I can keep my SS bench nice and clean and organized with the internals. Drilled a 2" hole in the bench as well for the input shaft to go through so there isnt pressure on it.
198309

Tail shaft off. Can't beleive how clean this transmission is. Fluid was cherry red, not much material at all on the drain plugs. Just as clean as the motor. Glad I bought a car that was maintained!
198310

Started pulling gears off with my 3 jaw pullers and bearing separator. This is the most time consuming part is setting up the 3 jaw pullers with the right combination of arms, extensions etc.
198311

A few hours later and the main case was off.
198312

Thats where I left off for the night. More progress to come.

[MTBSully]

New video is up!

1akCixNp34g

[BrianP]

198362


Here’s a diagram of the wires going through the firewall bulkhead connectors.
The connector with the wiper wires also contains: coil+, starter solenoid, tach output, and heater fan.

198363

[MTBSully]

198362


Here’s a diagram of the wires going through the firewall bulkhead connectors.
The connector with the wiper wires also contains: coil+, starter solenoid, tach output, and heater fan.

198363

Awesome this is very helpful. Thanks!

[MTBSully]

Got the mainshaft completely torn down.
198445

All parts laid out.
198446

Waiting on the front mainshaft bearing which had to be destroyed in order to remove it. A $10 timken bearing on amazon, so no big deal. The replacement will be here today so I can start re-assembling everything onto the T56 magnum mainshaft shown on the table. In the meantime I banged out my subframe notch for my low mount AC. I measured the stock subframe at ~.115-.125", so I ordered some material slightly thicker than that from grainger.

First piece tacked in.

198447

I made templates out of cardboard and then traced onto the steel sheet and cut them out with my cutoff wheel. Cut and trimmed to fit and welded in.

198448

Grinded the welds smooth and added a quick coat of primer on the bare metal.
198449

Even though no one will be able to see this area i'll be adding a slight bit of filler, sanding and giving the subframe a fresh coat of satin black. Should look almost OEM when its done.

[thumper877]

Not sure I'd have the balls to take on a transmission I'm pretty sure I could get it apart but getting it back together would be another story LOL

[MTBSully]

Not sure I'd have the balls to take on a transmission I'm pretty sure I could get it apart but getting it back together would be another story LOL

Definitely a daunting task but i think with proper organization and taking your time I should be ok. We shall see here soon! lol

[ryeguy2006a]

Looks good man! I should have bought a press when I did mine. Would have saved me a bunch of time.

[MTBSully]

More slow progress on the transmission "rebuild". The learning curve here is steep. I'm confident I could do this in half the time or less the next time but it is a struggle learning how everything goes together the first time. Getting there though.

Main shaft is mostly back together including new front bearing with the help of my press.
198560

Main shaft, countershaft and shif rails all assembled on the front plate. This was a puzzle that took almost 2 hours. I struggled for a while installing the countershaft. Manual states the main shaft should be installed first and then lifted up slightly to install counter shaft. I found that every time I did this the slider would move down and cause the plastic slider "centering bearings" to fall out. Very frustrating. I finally decided to try it the other way and put the countershaft on first and that eventually worked. Once again, if I was doing this again tonight I could probably have it done in 15 minutes but thats part of learning.
198559

Tonight im going to double check all the shift rails and forks are assembled correctly, clean the case and install. Hopefully have a complete transmission here shortly.

[ryeguy2006a]

I had that same struggle getting to that point from being fully disassembled.

[MTBSully]

Made some good progress on saturday.

Case back on after getting the shift rails all interlocked correctly. Pressing on some gears with 2" steel pipe and a M12x1.75 threaded rod.
198703

New bearing installed in the t56 magnum tail housing. Reverse idler transfered over.
198704

T56 magnum speedo gears installed using a ball bearing from home depot. Thankfully they had the size i needed!
198705

Tail housing sealed up and torqued
198706

Made myself a mid shift blockoff plate from the same steel used for my subframe notch.
198707

Ready for some fresh aluminum paint
198708
198709

Done. Magnum shifter installed and new rear seal installed. Ready to go in the car minus 2 AN fittings for the transmission cooler.
198710

This was a challenging project but I took my time and got it done and learned a lot about manual transmissions in the process. i'm confident I could do this again in 1/2 or 1/3 the time. No extra parts and the transmission shifts into every gear nice and smooth. I think we should be good to go.

Going to repaint part of the subframe tonight where I notched, and then the motor/tranny should be ready to go in. Going to try and install them both at the same time, but we'll see. Feels good to have the drivetrain ready to go.

[ryeguy2006a]

Congrats on the rebuild! The TR6060/Magnum transmissions shift so much smoother than the older T56.

[TheBandit]

Bravo nice work!

[69ChevelleLT1]

Nice car. i found starting with a running car made my restoration more enjoyable. you can actually use it while you work on it!

[MTBSully]

After some minor bodyworking of my notch, gave the subframe a fresh coat of satin black. Blended perfectly with the rest of the subframe and bay that appears to have been recently painted as well. You wont see much of this, but I wanted it to look nice anyways.

198771

Motor and transmission are mated together. New GM slave cylinder and tick performance speed bleeder installed.
198772

And with that I gave it a shot at stabbing the entire assembly in.

198773

Shes in! Well, kind of. Transmission hits the tunnel in an area or two.
198774

Plenty of room around the bellhousing, its more down near the front cover area that it gets tight. Going to make some marks and break out the BFH and see if i can't "massage" enough clearance to get it to fit better. It doesnt hit bad enough that I think I need to cut out and weld in metal.....yet. We'll give it a shot tonight.

[Just 1 More]

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sdp-10510?seid=srese1&gclid=CjwKCAjw9LSSBhBsEiwAKtf0n2mWvLSMBGpeJcEmVXe-ESy0yjRxK7semjfux1rK7_oBMxmp_w6ivBoC71AQAvD_BwE

[JoseSS]

Very clean work. Id definitely pay you to do the swap on my 67 if you were in california. Lol

[MTBSully]

Very clean work. Id definitely pay you to do the swap on my 67 if you were in california. Lol

Thanks!

Some minor massaging with the hammer and the trans fits. Unfortunately the hooker transmission mount will not work as-is. Turns out the tr6060 hybrid is a bit longer than the standard magnum.

198804

I was thinking of selling this one and ordering the adjustable BMR unit, but now I am worried about being able to fit 3" exhaust under the BMR one. May just end up buying some steel and modifying the hooker one. Was hoping this would just bolt in lol back to the welding and grinding.

[TheBandit]

How far off is it? You can get some room slotting, enlarging, or redrilling the frame mounts and same where the trans isolator attaches. Also sometimes there is a little room to shift the engine around if you loosen the frame stands. I've found the stackup of hole clearances can provide as much as 1/2" to shift things around. I think hooker has one of the most rigid trans crossmembers out there with the boxed structure they've created and it has quite a bit of exhaust clearance too; hopefully you can get it to play nicely with your trans.

[MTBSully]

Decided to stick with the holley mount since I like the clearance it will provide for 3" exhaust. Out came the welder and grinder.

How it started

198937
198938

Where we're at
198939

Still needs some paint, but it fits and just barely clears the transmission case. Took almost all day saturday cutting, grinding, welding, getting under the car to test fit, and repeating but I think I got it.

Been travelling for work all week so probably wont have any other updates for a few days, but once this is done we can call the engine/trans install complete!

[Just 1 More]

Nice, i'm using the same mount for my T56

[MTBSully]

Forgot to post the next video. This highlights a new clutch clutch assy and the transmission project!

e-zMV_M-tj4

[MTBSully]

Made some more progress this weekend.

Some fresh paint on my modified trans mount

199051

And finally bolted up. Sonnax 1350 yoke installed. Need to look up how to measure for a driveshaft now.
199052

Tunnel clearance. Still need to cut the hole for my shifter
199053

Looped the transmission cooler lines over the bellhousing with some 6AN line and 90 degree fittings I made
199054

Headers installed. Drivers side clears steering box now, but hits floorboard lol. Going to need to do something about this.
199055

Also doesnt line up all that well with my exhaust cutout on the crossmember. Nothing a few pie cuts cant fix I suppose.

199056

Had to toss the intake on to see how the whole package looks
199057

Got to work installing accessories. AC first to see how my notch fitment is. Plenty of room now! Just need to make a small spacer for my sway bar.
199058

Alternator next.
199059

This weeks to do list:

-Install the rest of the accessories and belts
-Weld 10AN bungs to new valve covers
-Paint valve covers and intake manifold
-cut hole in transmission tunnel
-powder coat fuel rail
- etc etc etc

Ordered remote mount coil brackets and wires so i'll need to figure out where I am putting those. My Holley 12.3 digital dash will be here this week as well, so I can finally start the fabrication project of retrofiting that into the stock cluster. Of course we will also need to mount my holley terminator X max and get to wiring it, so if anyone has suggestions on where to mount that im open to ideas. I am thinking behind the glove box in front to the vintage air box.

[ryeguy2006a]

Looks great man! Great that the headers fit around the steering box, but very interesting that it's hitting the floor boards? Usually those headers are designed around the taller engine mounts so I would have expected that they would hang lower if anything. Have you checked where the engine angle is? I'm wondering if you couldn't angle it down slightly to gain some header clearance around the floor pans.

[MTBSully]

Looks great man! Great that the headers fit around the steering box, but very interesting that it's hitting the floor boards? Usually those headers are designed around the taller engine mounts so I would have expected that they would hang lower if anything. Have you checked where the engine angle is? I'm wondering if you couldn't angle it down slightly to gain some header clearance around the floor pans.

Passengers header fits perfect, but drivers doesn't. I'm thinking my drivers header is slightly off. I'm working with speed engineering customer service now, but I can't complain too much for $300 longtubes I guess. We'll see what happens i'll keep you guys posted.

Next video is up:

6VSPlxb2VnA

Made some sway bar spacers out of some 1/8" aluminum and mounted my swaybar. Just barely clears my AC tensioner now.
199092

Got the rest of the accessories on as well. Water pump, PS pump and tensioner
199093

PTFE AN hose and fittings from russell to make a new high pressure PS line
199094

PS line from stock 69 camaro steering box to 2010 camaro PS pump made. Used 2 AN adapters, 1 on each side. Should be able to re-use the OEM low pressure line.
199095

Stuff to finish up the fuel system. Areomotive regulator, fittings, line separators, russell fuel filter that I will be mounting on the frame rail back by the tank, and 6AN --> GM fuel line adapter. Will be working on this tonight.
199096

[MTBSully]

Fixed my drivers header lol. Simple "pie cut" right at the collector gave me the required floorboard clearance and also got me pointed over towards the cutouts in my transmission crossmember. Just tacked together for now. I'll finish weld it when I do the rest of the 3" exhaust.

199131199132 199133 199134

[MTBSully]

Got my intake manifold, throttle body, valve covers and fuel rails prepped, sanded, primed and ready for paint. Forgot to take any pictures though. Been waiting for the weather to not be A) raining or B) windy, which can be tough in spring in new england. Decided on "hypersonic blue", which is a 2018 camaro color, for the intake manifold.

Added some -10AN bungs to my valve covers as I am deleting the PCV system and just going to run a breather tank. Baffles on the inside made out of some scrap aluminum should keep oil in the motor, but allow crankcase gases to escape.

199399
199400

Fuel system finished as far as plumbing. Minus one fitting to the fuel rail which I am waiting until the fuel rail/manifold is installed to make sure I get the length right.
199401
199402
199403
199404

Also cut the hole for the 6 speed shifter. Now just need to figure out the best way to seal this up under the console and carpet. May try to incorporate the 2010 camaro shifter boot and rubber seal, which I saved.
199405


Hoping to paint the manifold and other engine components and get the motor buttoned up here shortly. Got my coil relocation stuff as well, so need to find a tidy spot to mount the coils. Then it will be onto wiring the holley terminator. Getting kind of close I think!

[TheBandit]

Very good progress!

[MTBSully]

Weather finally cooperated enough to lay down some paint. Valve covers, throttle body and fuel rails gloss black. Intake manifold is GM "Hypersonic Blue". Absolutely in love with this color.

First coat of base
199521

3rd coat
199522

Clear coat
199523

After 3 coats of clear
199524

All done.
199525

Should be on the motor in a day or two once it cures.

[chevyz240]

Weather finally cooperated enough to lay down some paint. Valve covers, throttle body and fuel rails gloss black. Intake manifold is GM "Hypersonic Blue". Absolutely in love with this color.

First coat of base
199521

3rd coat
199522

Clear coat
199523

After 3 coats of clear
199524

All done.
199525

Should be on the motor in a day or two once it cures.

Wow! That looks really nice!

[thumper877]

That is a beautiful blue!!

[MTBSully]

Spent some time on the ingnition system this weekend. Settled on mounting the coils in the space above the headers on the floors near the firewall. With some header wrap they should be fine. Used my new riv-nut tool for a clean install of the brackets. Bought a Summit set of LT1 plug wires and cut them to length, re-crimped and re-assembled. Came out very clean. New TR6 plugs installed as well.

199693
199694
199695
199696

[Vimes]

I think I'd be more worried about water than heat, putting the coils under the car. Every time you hit a puddle, your coils are going to get soaked. Eventually the connections will corrode.

[MTBSully]

I think I'd be more worried about water than heat, putting the coils under the car. Every time you hit a puddle, your coils are going to get soaked. Eventually the connections will corrode.


Im not too worried about it. They are more tucked up than it appears. Also I don't plan on running this car in any inclement weather. I've also power washed countless LS engine bays with the coils right on top of the valve covers and never had an issue. I think they are more robust than people give them credit for, but we shall see. If I have to move them somewhere else I will.

[MTBSully]

Fuel rail assembled, installed intake manifold, throttle body and valve covers. I'm in love.

199745
199746
199744

[MTBSully]

Latest video is up

xcE2kmakDaw

[MTBSully]

Been a few weeks since we've had an update. Been busy with other projects and spring yardwork.

After 5 months my Holley 12.3" dash finally showed up
200157

Which ironically was ordered at the same time as the Terminator X, which has been sitting in the box since January and been moved around the garage 17 times. Finally time to get going wiring this thing.
200158

I think I am going to mount the ECU right on the transmission tunnel underneath my center console. Appears to be plenty of room and the console is easily lifted up and removed with 2 screws if I need to access the ECU. Also hoping to route the harness through the factory gas pedal hole with a grommet, which I still need to purchase.

[MTBSully]

Started wiring last night. Got the ECU mounted to the transmission tunnel and the hole in the firewall enlarged enought to pass through the main harness as well as the power harness. Just ordered a large grommet to put in said hole. Ran into a few issues.

1. It appears my DMB terminator X kit does not include the required DBW harness. Guess i'll have to order that.
2. LS3 MAP sensor does not work with the holley pigtail. I beleive I have a MAP in my LS spare parts bin that will work. Should be fine as long as the 1-5V output is the same.
3. Oil pressure sensor is also not compatible. I will be ordering a truck oil pressure sensor that should be compatible.

200186

[Sinnister69]

I bought the appropriate connectors for my engine and re pinned alot cheaper than buying new sensors

[ryeguy2006a]

You can also check Low Dollar Motorsports for the oil pressure sensor. I used several on my car and they work great with Holley. I used one for fuel, oil and one other pressure sensor.

[MTBSully]

I bought the appropriate connectors for my engine and re pinned alot cheaper than buying new sensors

Thats what im going to end up doing. I'll need to re-pin MAP sensor and oil pressure sensor. Also, Terminator X uses a MAT (manifold temp) sensor. The LS3 does not have these, but it does use a MAF sensor which includes a temeprature portion. I have an LS3 style MAF pigtail leftover from another project so I am going to wire the MAT wires to the MAF temeprature portion and save myself the hassle of buying a MAT sensor and drilling/tapping the intake manifold. I also purchased a slot style MAF bung to weld into my aluminum intake tube a while back and I don't want that to go to waste lol.

Also received my DBW harness from ebay. Got a great deal and should be able to sell the transmission harness that I didn't need for the same or more.
200314

Got that run through the firwall last night and also installed a rubber grommet to seal it all up. A few more connections to be made and then we can put some power to it and see what happens.

[Sinnister69]

Great
Let me know if you need wiring diagrams on tge sensor side i have them somewhere.
Also i have a brand new MAF sensor if you need it. Just pay for the ride

[ryeguy2006a]

Any updates?

[MTBSully]

Any updates?

Really hoping to have some this week. I have been full steam ahead on a gen 1 cadillac CTS-V I bought off the side of the road a few months back. Now that that is done I have been able to focus a bit again on the 69. Have re-made some wires including the alternator wire, and cleaned up a lot of factory wiring that has gone astrew over the past 50 years, but nothing really picture worthy.

Hoping to put power to the holley this week and maybe even crank it over to see if it builds oil pressure. More updates to come shortly!

[MTBSully]

Man it has been a MINUTE since we've had an update here. Was cruising right along January through April but really lost steam the past few months while i worked on some other projects. Have spent some time on it here and there the last couple of months but nothing really worthy of an update. All of this will be covered in the upcoming video but i need to finish the holley before I can finish the video lol. Anyways, heres a general update of where we are at:



ECU is mounted. Decided to put it under the center console. Plenty of room, easy to get to if i need to. Figured this would be better than trying to stuff it in the dash with all the vintage AC stuff.
All wiring is run through the dash. Used the original hole for the gas pedal cable, slightly enlarged. Bought a 2" grommet and installed that to keep things clean and prevent fraying
All ECU connections are plugged in in the engine bay. TPS, IAC and the other throttle connections will not be used since I am using the DBW harness. Not sure if i will snip these off or just tuck them away. Probably snip them.
Re-made starter cable, new battery terminals, new alternator cable since the original one was like 14 guage wire which definitely would not be enough for an EFI car. Cleaned up a bunch of factory wiring by the headlights.


Last night I temporarily finished my "loose wire connections" which tap into the factory wiring. Mainly a switched 12V source to turn the ecu on. Reconnected the battery in the car for the first time in 8 months and turned the key and the ECU came to life. Seems silly, but nice to know this thing has a brain and some power back in it. Even used the power windows to put the windows down lol. All wiring is super temporary at the moment. I'll clean it up and loom it once I know everyhting is right.

201321201322

Connected my laptop and was able to connect to the ECU. had to update the firmware and software.

201320

Connecting everything thus far has been pretty straight forward, but I will say i'm a little dissapointed in the holley documentation for those not using the 3.5" handheld. No "initial statup wizard", no included documentation on the software etc. Need to read up on that. If anyone has any helpful videos on loading some sort of startup tune or how to use basic functions, im all ears. Going to research that today.

Also still need to wire up my alternator, which is a 4 pin. Going to research that today as well. I know some people only hook up one wire to a 12V ignition source. Anyone also hook up the "sensing" wire?

With any luck I can add some fluids and at least crank it without fuel for now to make sure we've got oil pressure. More updates to come.

[ryeguy2006a]

The reason for that is the startup tunes that they spit out are generally not that great. I would suggest starting with a tune that comes with the software that was downloaded to your computer. I think it's located on a folder called Holley. Get one that's close to your setup and use that. Then just go under the engine tab and confirm things like your displacement, injectors, TB, and etc are correct. I used a truck file I think when I first started with my LS1 a few years ago. Did exactly what I mentioned and it fired right up. Also before you start it up, make sure that your MAP is correct. I didn't change mine which defaulted to the internal MAP sensor and it gave me nothing but problems.

If you still are stuck, get with Dr. EFI (Andrew). He'll get you where you want to be.

[andrewb70]

I'd be happy to help with the initial start and with the subsequent tuning.

Andrew

[MTBSully]

The reason for that is the startup tunes that they spit out are generally not that great. I would suggest starting with a tune that comes with the software that was downloaded to your computer. I think it's located on a folder called Holley. Get one that's close to your setup and use that. Then just go under the engine tab and confirm things like your displacement, injectors, TB, and etc are correct. I used a truck file I think when I first started with my LS1 a few years ago. Did exactly what I mentioned and it fired right up. Also before you start it up, make sure that your MAP is correct. I didn't change mine which defaulted to the internal MAP sensor and it gave me nothing but problems.

If you still are stuck, get with Dr. EFI (Andrew). He'll get you where you want to be.

Good feedback. Whatched a few videos on it this morning and it lines right up with what you are saying. I'll try to get all my sensor inputs done tonight. This may also explain why I wasnt reading anything from my IAT or MAP sensor, because the ECU doesnt know which sensors I have. I'll keep you posted.


I'd be happy to help with the initial start and with the subsequent tuning.

Andrew

I appreciate it man! I will definitely be reaching out.

[Vimes]

Gonna recommend not snipping any wires, just tape them back and make sure they can't ground to anything. You never know what the future may hold, and you may decide to go back to a cable throttle at some point in the future.

[Sinnister69]

I did the 4 wire alternator with sensing wire if you want to know how i set it up let me know

[MTBSully]

I did the 4 wire alternator with sensing wire if you want to know how i set it up let me know

Would love to know! I know the excite wire needs to go to a 12V ignition source, but im curious where most guys are running the signal wire to. I've heard running it direct to the battery isn't as good as the fuse box, for example.

201325

Was able to load the 58x holley base map and input all of my relevant sensor information. Also succesfully did a TPS autoset. DBW is working perfectly and all sensors appear to be reading just fine. Are you guys with a terminator running a Fuel pressure sensor? I'm running a return system with regulator so fuel pressure should always be constant. Don't think i'll need one but I could be wrong.


Unplugged the coils, removed spark plugs, primed oil pump through oil galley, removed drive belt, hooked up the starter trigger wire (purple) and turned the key.
201326

She turns over smooth and after 15 seconds or so registered 36PSI oil pressure while cranking at ~150 RPM. Was so happy to hear this thing make some noise for the first time in 7 months. Now we know we'll have good oil pressure as soon as she is ready to fire up.

Up next:

Clean up this disaster of a wiring nightmare now that we know evreything is working properly.
Wire fuel pump relay to holley fuel pump wiring.
Install o2 sensor and finish weld headers
Tons of other little stuff
Put fuel in the tank and see if she fires!


Hoping to spend some serious time on it the next couple of nights and this weekend.

New video will be up later today.

[gigjr]

I love following your build! Can't wait until mine gets as far along as yours. Heading to the dyno Sunday and we're going to use my dad's Computer from the COPO to get things started then switch over to the Holly. Sorry you had to go through all that, it should be a big help if I run into that. Thanks in advance!

[MTBSully]

New video is up!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLj0x-6uL0o&t=10s

[MTBSully]

Small update. Got my alternator wire terminated and attached to the alternator. Re-installed the alternator. Also installed my new GM MAT sensor and that is now reading correctly in the holley software as well.


201463

Just need to figure out what wire to wire my "sense" wire to. Also, the "excite" wire is the one that needs the 480ohm resistor, right?

[MTBSully]

Also, Whats everyone doing to wire up their reverse lockout solenoid?

[ryeguy2006a]

Wire up your speed sensor from the T56 Magnum to the pin on the transmission J4 connector. Pin 14 and 18 I believe. Tell the ECU that it's a 4L80e and it will pick up the signal. Then you can create an output based on speed that will open the solenoid under 3 mph. That's what I did and it worked beautifully. Once you have the VSS as an input, you can do things like turn off your cooling fans above a certain speed.

[MTBSully]

Wire up your speed sensor from the T56 Magnum to the pin on the transmission J4 connector. Pin 14 and 18 I believe. Tell the ECU that it's a 4L80e and it will pick up the signal. Then you can create an output based on speed that will open the solenoid under 3 mph. That's what I did and it worked beautifully. Once you have the VSS as an input, you can do things like turn off your cooling fans above a certain speed.

Interesting idea. I'm using GPA based speed via the holley dash, so i wonder if I can use that as an input. If not, I can certainly give that a shot.

[MTBSully]

Spent a few hours wiring up the fuel pump last night.

Sitting on the couch gathring motivation, snapped a cool pic:
201494

Popped a drain plug out of the trunk and ran the relay/wiring up there. Mounted to the inner tub. Lines clean, loomed and neat. Yellow wire is the trigger wire that runs to the green wire on the holley harness to trigger the pump on. Red goes through a circuit breaker and then direct to the battery.
201496
201495

Running the wires clean from the dash back to the yellow wire on the drivers side and then the red wire down the passengers side, through the firewall and up to the battery took most of the night. Tedious work, but it needs to be done right, and neat.

Hit the key and the pump primed for 5 seconds and then turned off, just like it should. Going to grab some fuel tonight, hook up my fuel lines and see if we have any leaks. Getting close!

[MTBSully]

Need to measure for a new driveshaft as well. Done a little bit of reading and have found the following:

1. Make sure weight of the vehicle is on the rear axle
2.Insert slip yolk all the way into transmission
3. Pull slip yoke 3/4" to 1" out
4. Measure from center of slip yolk U joint hole, to center of differential yolk U joint hole, and that is your driveshaft length.

Any other methods or suggestions?

[ryeguy2006a]

That's exactly how I did mine. I had PEM Driveshafts make me a 3.5" thick wall aluminum unit with 1350 u joints. I think with shipping I was right at $400 bucks. Hard to beat for a brand new unit.

[MTBSully]

That's exactly how I did mine. I had PEM Driveshafts make me a 3.5" thick wall aluminum unit with 1350 u joints. I think with shipping I was right at $400 bucks. Hard to beat for a brand new unit.

Thanks, i'll do that. The car already came with a nice polished 3" or 3.5" driveshaft, so i'm going to use that one for now along with my new Sonnax slip yolk and some new 1350 U joints. I'll take the measurement and drop it at the local driveshaft shopfor them to shorten up.

Got my alternator wiring finished up. Pulled some wires from the bundle that would have gone to the coil/ washer pump. Wired the I/F terminal to a switched 12V source with a 470 ohm resistor inline. Not sure if this is necessary or not since there is no "batt" light in the car. I wired the "S" terminal to another 12V wire source from the bundle. If for whatever reason it doesnt trigger the alternator to charge i'll switch the wire from the "I/F" terminal to the "L" terminal.

Before I cleaned up and loomed all the wires.I'll get a pic of the finished product tonight. Nice to cross this item off the list though.
201811

Ordered some 7/8-1" expanding freeze plugs for the VSS and speedo gear holes in the T56 magnum tail housing since I'll be using holley GPS based speed. Now I can finally fill this thing up with transmission fluid.
201810

While I was under the car I started thinking about how i'm going to build my 3" exhaust with X pipe and it definitely looks like my e-brake cable will be in the way. Does anyone have any suggestions for an e brake setup that isnt as messy as this?

201809

Getting close to firing this thing up!

[thumper877]

E stopp electric brake and do away with all those cables

[MTBSully]

E stopp electric brake and do away with all those cables

Interesting. I wonder if there is a universal kit that allows the cable to split closer to the rear axle so its not so much in the way.

[thumper877]

Yes all my cables are in my trunk. Just little loops up to the trunk.
Interesting. I wonder if there is a universal kit that allows the cable to split closer to the rear axle so its not so much in the way.

[ryeguy2006a]

I used a universal ebrake kit from Summit. The clevis' that came with the kit worked perfectly with the LS1 rear brakes I had.

[MTBSully]

Made a lot of progress this last friday before I left for the weekend. Not too much picture worthy, but a lot done.

Removed my headers for hopefully the last time. Welded on my stainless v bands, and wrapped the collector portion of the headers, since these will be relatively close to my coil packs. Should help keep the heat down a little bit.



201857

re-installed headers, plugs, wires, dipstick and tube, ground cables, loomed ground and power cable, various other little things. This shows my alternator wiring all cleaned up and loomed.
201856

Measured for my driveshaft on Firday and dropped it off at the driveshaft shop. Hopefully will be done today or tomorrow. Lets hope I measured correctly!

All thats left to do is top off the oil, fill the transmission, double check a few things and hit the key! That should be tonight. Wish me luck!

[MTBSully]

Topped off the oil, filled the transmission with DEX III. Double checked everything.

Ready to fire!

201869

Hit the key, and she sputtered a little bit but didnt fire. Primed pump again and tried again, got more sputtering, a backfire through the exhaust and a small backfire through the intake. At this point I decided to double check all of my ignition connections. Sure enough, the coil harness on Bank 1 was completely backwards (coil 1 plug plugged into coil 7, and vice versa). Corrected that and also bumped fuel pressure up to ~55PSI. Hit the key again and she sputtered a little more and almost fired. Decided to try a little throttle and she roared to life. Ran great as long as my foot was on the pedal slightly. MAN this thing is rowdy with open headers lol. Died as soon as I took my foot off the throttle. Checked all 8 primarys, all hot, so i know we are firing on all 8 now. Was great to hear this thing make noise for the first time in 8 months.

If anyone has any ideas why it won't idle on its own, i'm all ears. Still new to the holley system. Its got a big cam, maybe it just needs more idle airflow. Basic rundown is below:



2010 LS3
BTR Stage 4 LS3 NA Cam
Stock injectors
Stock LS3 DBW Throttle body
Longtube headers


Right now the wideband is right at the header collector, which is probably gathering air. Do these systems operate like the OEM systems where the o2 sensors don't affect fueling until closed loop once the engine warms up? Didn't smell super rich or anything. Cant figure out a way to attach my tune file here. Maybe someone can take a look?

Happy to have this thing making some noise!

[ryeguy2006a]

Did you adjust your DBW settings for the idle or do a TPS reset? I believe they are similar to the IAC settings for DBW. You have to set those all first before you do anything.

[Sinnister69]

I would throw on a section of exhaust pipe after the 02 sensor so it doesnt read so much oxygen my car ran extremely rich until i did that and it corrected itself

[MTBSully]

Did you adjust your DBW settings for the idle or do a TPS reset? I believe they are similar to the IAC settings for DBW. You have to set those all first before you do anything.

I did, but i beleive i need to make some adjustments to the throttle position vs pedal position table. Seems thats the key to making these DBW setups idle correctly.


I would throw on a section of exhaust pipe after the 02 sensor so it doesnt read so much oxygen my car ran extremely rich until i did that and it corrected itself

Was thinking of doing this. Or simply unchecking the "closed loop" box so that the car won't use the wideband readings for these initial starts. It didnt smell overly rich but who knows.

[MTBSully]

She runs and man is she rowdy. Made adjustments to my DBW pedal position vs. throttle position (up 10%), and also turned off closed loop and "learn" features until i finish my exhaust, and she idles beautifully! Absolutely deafening with open headers lol. BTR stage 4 cam sounds insane!

201888

Driveshaft is done. New 1350 yolk, U joint and my sonnax 1350 slip yolk. New 1350 U joint on the other end as well. It was chrome plated so obviously that is ruined now that its been re-welded and balanced. Going to paint it metallic silver and it should look nice.

201889

Need to pop in my auto city classics radiator, make up some hoses, install the driveshaft and add more fluids before I can let this thing run and come up to temperature. Video will be up shortly!

[ryeguy2006a]

She runs and man is she rowdy. Made adjustments to my DBW pedal position vs. throttle position (up 10%), and also turned off closed loop and "learn" features until i finish my exhaust, and she idles beautifully! Absolutely deafening with open headers lol. BTR stage 4 cam sounds insane!


Prove it!! haha

[MTBSully]

Prove it!! haha

Video coming soon! Accidentally transfering it to my PC last night

[MTBSully]

Got a few things painted last night.

My auto city classics radiator came with a plastic fan that had some sort of chrome coating on it. Looked tacky to me so i prepped it and gave it a coat of satin black so that it would look plastic again.

How it looked out of the box. Took it apart for paint.
201906


After paint/re-assembly
201907

Also got some metallic silver on the driveshaft
201908

Dirveshaft installed. About 1" of hang out of the output shaft seal. Looks like i got the measurements right.
201909

Fan shroud riveted to the radiator, fan installed.
201910
201911

Just about dropped right in. Had to modify one of the mountinf brackets slightly to clear some rad support wiring, but other than that, very easy install.
201912

I can't beleive it, but im pretty sure im going to be able to get the stock 2010 camaro radiator hoses to work on this thing. Then i'll need to wire up a relay to one of the holley fan outputs, and we should be good to fill this thing with coolant, fire it up and let it get up to temperature.

[MTBSully]

Startup video is up:

Skip to the 17:45 mark if you're lame and don't care about the rest of the process and just want to see the first start attempt lol

wgbEw0faplE

[ryeguy2006a]

Cool video. Like that part where you said, it's getting late don't want to wake the neighbors...oh wait I don't have any haha

[Vimes]

That wouldn't be a Zirgo cooling fan they used on that, would it? I had one of those melt on the shaft once about 15 years back and the blade wobbled just enough to cut into the radiator until it went through the core. Took about 50 miles or so. That one looks a lot like the one I had back then, course mine went in the trash along with the new radiator it ruined. Admittedly, 15 years, but things like that tend to stick.

[MTBSully]

That wouldn't be a Zirgo cooling fan they used on that, would it? I had one of those melt on the shaft once about 15 years back and the blade wobbled just enough to cut into the radiator until it went through the core. Took about 50 miles or so. That one looks a lot like the one I had back then, course mine went in the trash along with the new radiator it ruined. Admittedly, 15 years, but things like that tend to stick.

Ouch! Probably just a generic china fan but ive had a few of them over the past few years without issues. I'll keep an eye on it.

Got a few things done this weekend. Wired up my fan to the output on the holley. Mounted a relay I got off of amazon down near the bottom of the radiator. Clean and loomed wires as usual. Tested it by grounding on the chassis and the fan works great. Filled up the radiator and power steering reservoirs. No leaks that I can see. Also built my intake using a 4" 90 coupler, 45 degree elbow and a 4" air filter. Added a custom bracket that mounts to the radiator stud for stability. Happy with how it looks and how it came out.

202094
202095
202096
202097
202098

Spent an hour or so trying to bleed my mcleod clutch master without sucess. Wish I had the correct cap for my motive brake bleeder to pressurize the master but i dont. AIf anyone has any tips to get this thing to bleed im'm all ears

[ryeguy2006a]

I had trouble with mine too and ended up just cracking the speed bleeder in a cup of fluid overnight. Then I put the speed bleeder line directly into the reservoir and pumped by hand. Finally a big bubble and I had full pedal.

[MTBSully]

I had trouble with mine too and ended up just cracking the speed bleeder in a cup of fluid overnight. Then I put the speed bleeder line directly into the reservoir and pumped by hand. Finally a big bubble and I had full pedal.

Think i got it. Took shop air to the tiny little breather hole in the top of the master cover and pressurized the whole thing. Started pumping and we got some fluid through the speed bleeder line. Few more pumps and I had a solid clutch.

Going to fire it up today and hopefully let it get up to temp to see what leaks, if any, show up and see how the cooling system does. Might even see if it will move under its own power!

[MTBSully]

Was out of town for a week for work but made some progress on rthe car on my day off on monday. Further bled the clutch and it feels and works perfectly now. I know this, because the car now moves under its own power!

video here for those of you that have instagram. Otherwise youll have to wait a day or two until I finish editing the youtube video
https://www.instagram.com/p/CishsbzJ5vd/

Drove down the road under her own power. Grabbed 2nd gear even lol. Pretty happy that the transmission I took apart and re-assembled is working properly and shifting smooth.
202254

Cut out the two hole saw holes where the Auto shifter used to come through and made a patch panel to seal it up. Tack welded it all around which kept lighting the raptor liner underneath on fire which made me nervous, so once it was all tacked in with 12-15 tacks I just grinded, seam sealed and painted. Not the prettiest repair but its sealed water tight and wont rust.

202255
202256

Next up is tackling this wiring nightmare inside and tucking all the holley wiring under the center console. Wish me luck! Still brainstorming ways to seal the shifter area up. Any ideas?
202257

[MTBSully]

Finally made it to a "update worthy" stopping point last night. Spent the last 2 weeks or so sorting out the wiring mess in the interior of the car. Decided I only want to have to mess with/clean up this wiring once, so what should have been a "quick" clean up was hour and hours of test lights, multimeters, pinning connectors, zip ties, wire wrap etc, but I think the wiring is exactly where it needs to be and i'm happy with how clean it is. Heres what we got done:

- Holley terminator wiring cleaned up, coiled and secured in the center console area
- Holley Pro -dash wired up. Including turn signals and working fuel level!
- Kenwood radio wiring cleaned up/ re-routed
- Reverse lockout wire from holley pinned/routed to transmission
- Clutch safety switch fabricated/wired
- Pedals modified and stainless pedal covers installed

Pro dash
202643

Welded a tab on my clutch pedal to use a simple $6 brake switch as a clutch safety switch. Works perfectly.
202644

69 Camaro pedlas before they met the cutoff wheel
202645

One pedal cover on. Made a template out of cardboard
202646

Stock 2010 camaro pedal before some work with the dremel
202647

After
202648

All 3 installed. These were $15 on ebay. Listing said they were for a volvo XC90 lol
202652

Brake light switch wired to the original harness that was over by the horseshoe shifter which I assume was for nuetral safety. Same idea here, just senses whether the clutch is pushed in or not. Works perfectly!
202651

More shots of the pedals
202650
202649

And heres where we are at. Ready for the center console and a guage cluster!
202653

Center console test fit. Nice!

202655

Next up I need to work on filling in the giant hole from the horeshoe shifter and making a smaller one for my lokar shift boot and ring. The center console is fiberglass so i think im going to completely lay down some fresh sheets to fill in the hole, cut a new one and then repaint.

202656

Still wondering if there is a way to seal around the shifter area below the boot. Looking for a large rubber boot/grommet. Any ideas?

202657

[ryeguy2006a]

Looking great man! I can't wait to see that dash in action! My next build will have a pro dash for sure. They are so cool.

I had basically the same dilemma in my car. I had thought about either cutting the larger hole like you did so that I could access all 6 shifter bolts, but what I opted to do was leave the hole smaller to fit a stock rubber boot. In the event I needed to remove the shifter, I could remove the stock trans mount and it would lower enough that I could get my hand in to take the front two bolts out. My plan for cutting the larger hole would be to make a removeable access plate that had a boot bolted to it. So you could just pull the shifter, boot and access plate all as one piece. Use rivnuts or something on the body and a few fasteners with a seal.

So for some reason the T56 Magnum's are pretty notorious for leaking out of the shifter. I upgraded to the same Blackjack shifter that you have and it still leaked. I had to disassemble the shifter and add a little silicone to the inner seal for the shifter. Not sure if that was the "correct" fix for the leak, but it worked and stopped leaking. Just a heads up so that you don't get your interior all back together and have to pull it apart to fix a leak. :throw:

[andrewb70]

Great progress! Sounds like you got a big cam in that LS3. Let me know if you need some assistance with the Holley EFI tuning. I added you on IG.

Andrew

[MTBSully]

Looking great man! I can't wait to see that dash in action! My next build will have a pro dash for sure. They are so cool.

I had basically the same dilemma in my car. I had thought about either cutting the larger hole like you did so that I could access all 6 shifter bolts, but what I opted to do was leave the hole smaller to fit a stock rubber boot. In the event I needed to remove the shifter, I could remove the stock trans mount and it would lower enough that I could get my hand in to take the front two bolts out. My plan for cutting the larger hole would be to make a removeable access plate that had a boot bolted to it. So you could just pull the shifter, boot and access plate all as one piece. Use rivnuts or something on the body and a few fasteners with a seal.

So for some reason the T56 Magnum's are pretty notorious for leaking out of the shifter. I upgraded to the same Blackjack shifter that you have and it still leaked. I had to disassemble the shifter and add a little silicone to the inner seal for the shifter. Not sure if that was the "correct" fix for the leak, but it worked and stopped leaking. Just a heads up so that you don't get your interior all back together and have to pull it apart to fix a leak. :throw:

I thinkim going to get a cheap rubber boot and rivnut it to the tunnel. Theres a plethora of "universal" ones out there that should work fine. I'll keep an eye on the blackjack shifter.


Great progress! Sounds like you got a big cam in that LS3. Let me know if you need some assistance with the Holley EFI tuning. I added you on IG.

Andrew

Thanks! I'll keep that in mind

[MTBSully]

Chipping away over here.

New parts. Lokar shift book and ring, and t56 reverse lockout solenoid. Got the reverse lockout wired to a key on ignition source I found in the OEM center console wiring. Will be grounded by the holley below 5mph to open it up. Tested by grounding on the body and it works perfectly!
202790
202795

B&M Large shift boot for $18 on ebay. Looks like it sat in a pep boys window for 9 years but it will work lol.

202793

Cheap and easy way to seal up the transmission tunnel. Also cut and welded the Hurst shifter attachment that originally offset the shifter left and forward and made it centered so my shift boot will be centered on the console.
202797

Now time to seal up this giant hole from the horseshoe shifter. This aftermarket console is fiberglass, so I bought some resin and fiberglass cloth from lowes and went to work.
202792

No more hole
202796

Corbeau Belts came in. Seller accidentally only sent me one set, still waiting on the other.
202794

And a new hole cut for the 6 speed.
202798

Perfect fit!
202799

Threw some filler on the area last night. Some sanding and finish body work and i'll re-spray it satin black, drill the holes for the lokar boot and shift ring, and hopefully install this thing. Also have all my exhaust components so once this is done its onto building a complete exhaust for this thing.

[MTBSully]

GFinished up the body work on the center console. Got it sprayed in using satin black. Matches the existing paint almost perfectly.

202840
202841

Got my lokar shift boot and trim ring installed. Got the console back in the car and even got my stereo working again. Super happy with how this came out.

202842
202843
202844

Tonight i'm hoping to get the seats bolted in, and finish the corbeau belt install, and other than the holley dash bezel, call the interior done!

[srode]

Wow, that turned out very nice, well done. Is that a Fezeler piece you started with?

[MTBSully]

Thanks! Came in the car when I bought it. I beleive it is this one:

http://www.modernclassicsinteriors.com/consoles-1.html

[srode]

I forgot about that one, yes that's probably it.

[MTBSully]

Seats, belts, and center console done. Interior looking sharp.

202901

Minus the custom pro dash bezel i still need to build the interior is pretty much done.

[MTBSully]

Installed my catch can and black valve covers, and re-installed my wiper motor. Waiting on some fittings for the catch can which should be in today before I grab some pics of that. This allowed me to re-install the hood for the first time since January!

203004

Outside enjoying the sun. moving over to the lift bay to get the exhaust install started
203005

Ordered a 3" universal X pipe kit as well as a 3" universal exhaust kit. Some 16" bullet mufflers, 4.5" tips and hangers. All 304SS 3". Should be everything I need to get this exhaust knocked out.

Started with the X pipe right off the headers.

203007
203006
203008

Thats basically where I left off. Pretty sure i'm going to run the exhuast under the axle unless anyone else has any better ideas. I plan to mini-tub in the future so I think 3" over the 4 link would be tight.

[MTBSully]

Latest video is up as well:

EC2c2qRdzOk

[Vimes]

Seeing as installing minitubs includes cutting and welding the body shell anyway, how about clearancing for up to a 4 inch diameter exhaust while you're in there? I know hanging the exhaust under the axle is done, but I've never liked the idea of it particularly on a lowered vehicle. 3 inch pipe under the axle, plus a bit of clearance past full extension since you don't want jacking it up (or getting some air) to knock it off, might mean just a couple of inches between the exhaust and the road.

[ryeguy2006a]

Looking great! I like the position of the x pipe. I personally wouldn't go under the axle either. I had plenty of room to go up and over the axles with my 3" exhaust pipes. The spot that I had the most trouble with was fitting the 3" exhaust pipe between the quarter panel and leaf spring. I can't remember if you have a 4 link or not, but if so, you should have tons of clearance.

[MTBSully]

Done. Just need to spend the hours to finish weld it now lol. Went under the axle. Just seemed like it would be tight with a mini tub and some wide tires, but i can easily change it to go over the axle if it turns out there is room. Basically just move the 2 45 bends back 4-6".

203036
203037
203038

Ground clearance is basically un-affected. The exhaust is parallel with the pumpkin and the frame, as well as the subframe connecters that I really should order and install lol. Gobs of ground clearance compared to my c6 corvette. I think the pipes look badass from the back too. Reminds me of my 03-04 cobra IRS exhaust days. Definitely going to mirror polish that section out once its finish welded so it looks nice from the rear.

Can't wait to hear how it sounds.

[MTBSully]

Exhaust is done. Havent driven it yet but it sounds awesome idling in my driveway lol.

203216
203215
203217
203218

With some actual exhaust behind the header collector, I was actually able to turn on closed loop, as well as learning, so the holley is making adjustments to the tune. Base fuel pressure is set at 48PSI, hooked up a vacuum line to the regulator as well.

Pulled the saran wrap off the front end for the first time in 10 months. Feels good to see this thing outside and all together.

203219

Sound clips coming soon!

[MTBSully]

Exhaust is done. Havent driven it yet but it sounds awesome idling in my driveway lol.

203216
203215
203217
203218

With some actual exhaust behind the header collector, I was actually able to turn on closed loop, as well as learning, so the holley is making adjustments to the tune. Base fuel pressure is set at 48PSI, hooked up a vacuum line to the regulator as well.

Pulled the saran wrap off the front end for the first time in 10 months. Feels good to see this thing outside and all together.

203219

Sound clips coming soon! Now need to diagnose why the car won't shut off with the ingition and continues to run even with the battery disconnected lol. My guess is somehow the alternator is backfeeding the ECU. Not sure how that happened all of a sudden since I didn't change any wiring with the ECU, but I think a diode in the alternator excite wire should take care of it.

[MTBSully]

Exhaust video is up!

wvRI3lWPVTE

Also figured out why the car wouldnt shut off with the ingition. Somehow I had wired my reverse lockout solenoid to one of the holley inputs instead of the outputs. Still not sure how, but someohow this circuit must have been feeding the ECU since the ECU would not shut off with the key. I corrected this wiring and all is well. Too bad it took like 4 hours on sunday, but it should be good now. Up next is a bezel for the holley pro dash!

[MTBSully]

Been a minute since an update. Been busy with a z06 project I picked up.

had the car out a couple times. Even took it out in rushhour traffic on Friday for its first real cruise! No issues to speak of, tune still needs a little work but it is getting better as the holley learns. Felt great to drive it. Took it to a buddies shop to finally get the AC evacuated so i can hook up the mini compressor mounted down low.
204075

Even got the christmas tree with it!
204076

Need to make some AC lines using my new AC crimper tool. Should have the fitting in by the end of the week. Then need to get to work on my Holley dash bezel!

[thumper877]

Now that's a pic u don't see everyday.:)
Been a minute since an update. Been busy with a z06 project I picked up.

had the car out a couple times. Even took it out in rushhour traffic on Friday for its first real cruise! No issues to speak of, tune still needs a little work but it is getting better as the holley learns. Felt great to drive it. Took it to a buddies shop to finally get the AC evacuated so i can hook up the mini compressor mounted down low.
204075

Even got the christmas tree with it!
204076

Need to make some AC lines using my new AC crimper tool. Should have the fitting in by the end of the week. Then need to get to work on my Holley dash bezel!

[ryeguy2006a]

That Tree shot is amazing!!

[MTBSully]

Once again been a while since we've had an updated. Vacation, the flu, bachelor parties and finishing my z06 project have taken a lot of my time over the start of 2023. But i'm itching to get to work on the 1969 again so its ready for spring!

Finally made the AC hoses for my low mount sanden compressor using my AC hose crimp tool. No just need to charge the system come spring time and hopefully it works!

Uncovered to get some work done. Just picked up this onyx indoor cover and I love it so far.
205787

AC line made
205784

Radiator closeout panel in flat black. Really cleans up under here. Now just need to adjust it so the hood will close properly. It closes but takes a lot of effort.
205785

And finally, time to tackle the project i've been putting off for over a year. Cramming the 12.3" holley dash into the stock cluster. Gonna try anyways lol. Time to get cutting with the dremel!

205786

205789

More to come here and on my youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuFWvbCq44Q8TjFsGDUEP3A

[ryeguy2006a]

Looks great man! Was wondering what happened to this build. Be interesting to see how you cram that dash in there. :smoke:

[-KILO-]

what 4" tips are those and where did you get them from?
they look perfect on the car

I looked thru the thread and saw when you purchased them but didnt give any details.

thanks!

[MTBSully]

what 4" tips are those and where did you get them from?
they look perfect on the car

I looked thru the thread and saw when you purchased them but didnt give any details.

thanks!

Thanks! Got them on ebay. Just search the size you need and other key words you want like "stainless" and "double walled" etc

[MTBSully]

Been a minute. Life keeps getting in the way lol. No plans other than work and car stuff for the next few weeks so hoping to knock some stuff out on this car!

Been chipping away at this bezel. Hour here, 30 minutes there. Progress was slow because I havent had much time, and also waiting for my acetone/abs "slurry" to dry while adding pieces. The full process will be explained in my youtube video once its done.

After much cutting with the dremel and death wheel
206355

Template made out of cardboard
206356

Transfered to ABS
206357

More cutting, turns out I only needed the sides of that filler piece lol. test fit of the dash
206358

More templates, more filler pieces
206359

Reinforcing/bracing/ more gluing
206360

Heres where we are at. All filler pieces made. Everything is filled in, now begins the hours of sanding/"bodywork" to make everything smooth and look like it was one piece of plastic
206361

Hoping to finish sanding and maybe get a coat of satin black on this thing in the next day or so and then get it in the car!

[ryeguy2006a]

That's going to look great with the digital dash in there. I'm hoping to do something similar with the dash on my 55 down the road.

[andrewb70]

Great progress. If you need any assistance with the Holley EFI tuning, keep me in mind.

Andrew

[MTBSully]

Video is up!

AUv5wBFHwd8

Finally finished the bezel. Many hours of sanding, shaping, filling, sanding, more filling, more sanding and painting later and its done! Looks almost OEM!

206556
206557
206558
206560
206559

[MTBSully]

Anyone have a good spurce for 2nd gen "bullet" mirrors? Thinking of picking up a set for the car and painting them. Do they bolt right on?

[andrewb70]

Great job with the Holley pro-dash installation!

Andrew

[ryeguy2006a]

Wow, that dash looks great!! I'm curious though why the dash is set up for boost?? Is there something you aren't telling us?

[MTBSully]

Picking away here and there. Crunch time to get this thing ready for the season

Final dash bezel. repainted with SEM trim black to solve the paint defects. Chrome trim rings painted on.

207206

Decided to install subframe connectors and poly body bushings. With over 500HP, i dont think a stock unibody car would have held up very well.

207204

Also noticed that my rear 4 link was pulling out of the frame on one side. Emailed ride-tech and they told me they updated the kit to use rive-nuts instead of just threading into the thin sheet metal. Oulled down the entire assembly, installed 18 rivnuts, fabbed a backing plate for the front mount and re-installed everything. Very solid.
207208
207207

All back together
207205

Put a few miles on the car last night and all seems good so far. More to come tonight! Video coming soon.

[MTBSully]

First drive is in the books!

Got the interior all back together, set my odometer to 0.0 and hit the road.

GFirst fuel injected fill up!

207237

Hit the road this morning to drop the car off for window tint. Time to switch gears to the cosmetic side of this thing

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about 50 miles on it so far with no issues. Need to figure out why my heat only blows cold air lol. I have warm coolant all the way to the vintage air valve but it seems it wont go passed the valve. Need to check this out. Cold ride early this AM lol.

[MTBSully]

New video is up!

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[MTBSully]

Finally some cosmetic mods!

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[srode]

On your ridetech 4 link rework, rivnuts weren't part of the Ridetech installation process up until more recently. Those self tappers is what was supplied.

[slazisme]

This might be of interest in case you have to take your wiper arms off again by using this tool.
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=2783884&pt=335&jsn=304
I've used the Snapon equivalent and it works great.
Noticed that you added the frame connectors, looks like they have a bend that follows the rear floor contour, mind posting a side profile pic of them so I can see how close they are to the ground & rear floor, tks.

[MTBSully]

Been driving the car as much as weather permits. Been doing great so far! More rain in the forecast so I decided to install the c6z brake setup ive had laying around for over a year.

Used C6 z06 calipers I picked up for $300. New pads, rotors, pins, clips, from rock auto. Bracket kit from Kore3. Also picked up some 1969 camaro drum spindles. had to turn them down slightly on the lathe to fit the c6 z06 rotors.

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Doing some test fitting.
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Fitment looked good so packed all wheel bearings, installed the spindles.
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The wilwood fronts are off. Sold these already.

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Now for paint. Removed the rear wilwoods as well. Fully disassembled and degreased.
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Painted GM "Blew me away". Same color as my intake manifold. Vinyl decals ready to go on.
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Decals on, 3x clear coated. This color is absolutely insane in the sun.
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Going to wait a day or two for the paint to fully dry and cure, then I can get them on the car!

[ryeguy2006a]

That will be a huge upgrade you will notice big time. Nice color choice on the calipers too.

[Pedigry]

Do you find the water drips into the car without the window drip rails? I love the look, thought of doing it myself. But I do drive the car in the rain. Just wondering if it's practical.

[MTBSully]

New video is up! Big brake project is just about wrapped up.

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[MTBSully]

Have a bunch of pics to upload but the forum is giving me issues. Anyways, here's another video as to what i've been up to with the car:

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[MTBSully]

After 6+ months my weld wheels finally showed up and i've actually got wheels that fit right:

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[Sinnister69]

Those look great
I powdercoated mine to match my car and did the camaro script on them
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