SSLOW6.0 Build

[SSLOW6.0]

I thought I would post my project as reference for anyone who wants to undertake a G-body Project.

I'm going to start from the beginning because that is the best place to start.

In 2003 for my first car my Dad bought me a 1986 Monte Carlo Super Sport. He had bought one brand new in 85 and it was the family car for my early years. He always wanted to make a hotrod out of his. The car we bought was a 305 car that someone had already cut the CCC computer out and was running a regular Quadrajet on, It was pretty rough, but hadn't seen many Michigan winters. There was rust but it was minimal.

Almost immediately after I got the car, I blew up the old tired 305 being 16 and stupid.

So during the summer between my Junior and Senior year of high school my dad and I started building it up.

Here it is with the 305 removed.
We did paint and body work



And took the factory 3 color perimeter stripes and turned them into '70 Camaro Z/28 style stripes

And installed a 10.5-1 compression rebuilt 4 bolt main 350 with a comp 268H grind and edelbrock manifold and carb.

After a bunch of wheeling and detailing, not to mention converting the car from a bench seat to buckets with a console, we were done.

The car was like this for the first day of school my senior year, Which was pretty awesome.



The car was my daily driver in high school when the weather was good.

This was the way the car stayed through high school and college.
Took it to the drag strip a time or two, with the best time of 14.6 @ 97mph

The car sat for a while when I was hustling to make ends meet.

Then after college and having a decent job I tried Autocross one day.


Even though battle ships have less roll in a squall, I was in love with racing.

So I did what any sane person does, and dropped a bunch of money on a QA1 suspension kit.

That's it for part 1. I'll update and post pictures of the QA1 suspension install and LS swap in a bit.

[SSLOW6.0]

So I bought a QA1 Level 3 handling kit with double adjustable coilovers.

Loaded it up in the trunk of my car and drove back to my Dad's place where we had built the car 10 years prior.
The goal being to arrive on thursday, and install everything by Sunday to go to an Saginaw Valley Region Autocross about 45 mins away from my folks house.

Started at the front of the car where we tore out the old parts.

A comparison of the QA1 tubular arms vs the stock stamped arms.

Got the front back together (note sway bar is assembled upside down in the is pic)
And went to the rear. By comparison the front was a piece of cake compared to the rear.
Due to the location of my exhaust and the 30 years of grime and rust that developed on the upper control arm nuts and bolts, it was an absolute pain to get them out.
But we finally managed to and got the rear suspension components installed.

This is all of the old parts

We made it to the race on Sunday, where i learned a lesson about tires.




$4000+ worth of suspension is useless on 215/65/15's with a 500 tread wear.

So I went out and upgraded.

Rambler U111's in 17x8 with Bridgestone RE71-R's in 245/45/17.

Would have loved to go with a bigger tire, but there aren't many non-custom wheels that will fit due to the odd backspacing required for these cars.



With the new tires, the car was much more competent





I also added in a UMI front triangulation brace which did wonders for the steering feel and overall stiffness of the front suspension.

Next up: Blown head gaskets turn into an LS swap.

[andrewb70]

....

Next up: Blown head gaskets turn into an LS swap.

As every blown head gasket should...LOL

Andrew

[SSLOW6.0]

Ran this past weekend with my local Autocross group.

Managed 2nd in my class.

[SSLance]

That looks like a fun course! What region and where was that put on?

Congrats on the successful swap, now we need to work on getting you a much larger front sway bar!!

[SSLOW6.0]

This autocross was put on by the Michigan Sports Car Club. They are part of the Detroit Sports-car Club Council, they work with the Alfa owners club, corvette owners club and the MSCC to put on autocross events at a local police training skidpad.

As far as the bigger bar goes... the QA1 is a hollow core 3/16" wall x 1 3/8" (35mm) diameter, only bigger one I can find is the ridetech Muscle Bar (37mm), and it seems like all that one does is break Posi-links.

I think in need a decent diff and more spring rate in the rear along with a little more aggressive alignment. 12x2.5 coilover Springs are cheap enough where I don't mind buying a couple of sets to see if 350/450/550/650 # springs are the answer and i have a torsen t-2 diff to install, just need to buy new 28 spline axles. My rear bar only goes between the two lower control arms, but was also in it's least aggressive position. Oh and it obviously needs more tire, but custom Forgelines are not in the budget right now, and certainly not before I get a manual and a 9 inch in there...




In the pics you can see how it was smoking from the trans vent and also how it needs a little more negative camber. I'm only running 1.5 degrees currently, I'll get it realigned when I put my taller lower ball joints on.

[SSLance]

I have run 3 different MuscleBars over the past 4 years and have only broken one posi link...and that was only because the bar bushing bracket came loose from the frame first and put it in a bind. My current version is a 1.5" OD 0.375" wall tube bar on the front and I want more!!

A LOT more bar on the front and 600# springs on the rear with no rear sway bar would make miles of difference on your setup...throw in some more caster and you'd be surprised how much better it turns...even with 245s...

[woody80z28]

Wow, that's a lot of body roll! Looks like fun though. I can't wait to do another autocross with my new TrackAddict app and RaceRender with my GoPros. haha

[ryeguy2006a]

As every blown head gasket should...LOL

Andrew

Love that quote, haha. An expensive but true statement.

Awesome project, will be tuning in for updates. I love the G-Bodies, I had an 88 MCSS around that same time-frame 06-07 but sold due to the fuel mileage. If I would have known that even back then how inexpensive 5.3 motors were, I would have gone that route.

[SSLOW6.0]

The LS swap happened in a haphazard way. I had been wanting to swap an LS motor into my car for some time, but the 355 that we had build and installed 12 years ago was rock solid reliable, if a bit quirky. One day after a spirited blast down the highway, the car was sputtering and hardly running.

I ran a compression test, and this was the result.

0 PSI on both 3 and 5.

Popped the head and found this:

well there's your problem!

Picked up a set of 882 heads and had buddy port them, only to pull the passenger head and find this:

Broken ring lands on 4 and 6, the amazing thing is that this motor had 130PSI on both of the cylinders.

Knowing that if i slapped it back together, the next engine failure would be catastrophic, and potentially dangerous, I shelved the project for a while. My wonderful Fiancee and myself are saving for both a house and a wedding and I felt guilty about even spending the money to do the head gaskets. I cleaned up the shop and I loaded parts into the trunk of the car and had an awful feeling. That "this is how project cars sit for 30 years feeling" My Fiancee asked me what was wrong and why I was so downtrodden, I explained and she offered up a solution - I could take the money to cover the purchase of an LS motor from the wedding fund. (seriously the coolest Bride to be ever.)

So I went and found a 6.0L LQ4 from a 2004 Yukon Denali. It was mostly complete, but the harness was cut. Not a big deal because I was planning on doing a Microsquirt harness ( a friend had given me it a while back to maybe do TPI on my small block)

From there it was De-grease, prep and paint




I had bought a holley 302-2 oil pan which required me to install and clearance an F-body oil windage tray

Then I installed an LS3 Cam and valve springs a friend had laying around

I found a Trailblazer SS intake and injectors and ordered some EBAY swap headers


Pulled the old engine and waived bye-bye to it's broken pistons:


This is a great before and after... Amazing what a $5 can of black spray paint can do...



After getting the motor in, ran into an issue where the rear cover bolts were contacting the flange on the dual pattern of the 200-4r. So i grabbed a file and got to clearancing.


Once that was done, I got the headers in

My dad stopped by and helped me get the fuel system and cooling system set up.


Then I made the necessary modifications to the Microsquirt Controller to allow it to run an LS motor.


The headers are a tight, but manageable fit. I'm usually all about buying top quality US made parts, but seeing as I was just sure i was going to have beat on and reshape the headers, I defered to best headers Guangzhou has to offer.



After the headers were installed I hooked up my mechanical oil pressure gauge, sending unit and installed the intake


From here it was just wiring


I had some friends come over to be extra hands to get everything laid out well
Here's the finished product with the wiring




Then it was time to weld up the janky, entirely too small exhaust previously on the car to my new headers with some slip fit reducers because I ran out of money. I'll bet there's 20 hp hiding in this exhaust.


The second to last item was to make a throttle and TV cable bracket


Then the only thing left was to install the intake tube and MAF (not currently using MAF with Microsquirt, but may down the road)


Finally it's all done, my amazing Fiancee's Camaro in the background.


Here's every part i bought and what it cost me, minus beer, pizza and shop supplies.

Category Item # Price Description QTY EXT. Link
Cooling 620160 $87.23 Dual Electric Fan 1 $87.23 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007TXZGAK/
Cooling 22437 $18.08 Gates Lower Radiator Hose (2001 Silverado HD) 1 $18.08 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KIKX0DER&psc=1
Cooling 22436 $14.08 Gates Upper Radiator Hose (2001 Silverado HD) 1 $14.08 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KIKX0DER&psc=1
Cooling CSI-970Fitting $3.97 1/8" NPT to 1/4" Barb 1 $3.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/csi-970fitting
Cooling System 67532 $5.99 Assorted Bolts and hardware 1 $5.99 https://www.harborfreight.com/240-pi...ent-67532.html
Cooling System 801947/801987 $16.00 Aluminum flat stock - Radiator Fan Brackets 1 $16.00 http://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-...1987/204273937
Electronics 16738 $23.97 Derale Single Stage Fan Controllers 2 $47.94 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/der-16738
Electronics MicroSquirt V3 $369.00 Microsquirt V3 w/8' Harness 1 $369.00 https://www.diyautotune.com/product/...iring-harness/
Electronics 30-4110 $149.99 AEM Electronics Wideband Air/Fuel UEGO Gauge Kit 1 $149.99 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/avm-30-4110
Electronics 3746 $20.71 MS Serial Cable 1 $20.71 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001S7PE2S
Electronics 261683840305 $9.49 TPS Connector Pigtail 1 $9.49 http://www.ebay.com/itm/261683840305
Electronics CB-DB9P $8.99 USB To DB9 Cable 1 $8.99 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IDSM6BW/
Electronics 1.9215E+11 $7.96 EV1 to USCAR Injector Adapters 1 $7.96 http://www.ebay.com/itm/192150052956
Electronics DWK-FPHWK $39.00 DeatschWerks fuel pump Relay Kit 1 $39.00 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/dwk-fphwk
Electronics 271-3.24K-RC $0.13 3.24K OHM 1/4 Watt Resisitors 5 $0.65 http://www.mouser.com/Search/Product...ey271-3.24K-RC
Electronics 660-MF1/4LCT52R102J $0.10 1K OHM 1/4 Watt Resistors 10 $1.00 http://www.mouser.com/Search/Product...%2f4LCT52R102J
Electronics 61527 39.99 wire spools 1 $39.99 https://www.harborfreight.com/400-ft...use-61527.html
Electronics *BP-15600-06-2 12.99 fuse block 1 $12.99 http://www.autozone.com/electrical-a...ries/32322_0_0
Electronics 8.49 fuses 1 $8.49
Electronics 85211 5.99 end connectors 1 $5.99
Electronics 67524 4.99 Heat shrink tubing 1 $4.99
Electronics Multiple 42.73 Wire loom and harness tape and supplies 1 $42.73 Multiple sources
Electronics 16 Ga Stranded wire Kit 34 16 Ga Stranded wire Kit 1 $34.00 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DC5MTFI
Electronics Maxi-fuse holders 11.09 Maxi-fuse holders 1 $11.09 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NQ8F2JW
Electronics Maxi-fuses 5.37 Maxi-fuses 1 $5.37 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00431JGKW
Electronics Heat Shielding 13 Heat Shielding 1 $13.00 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000E267M4
Electronics 5PK relay kit 11.87 5PK relay kit 1 $11.87 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017VDI0GY
Electronics 80a Relay kit 7.99 80a Relay kit 1 $7.99 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KFKDXOO
Engine 6.0L LQ4 $700.00 GM 6.0L LQ4 1 $700.00 Craigslist
Engine 302-2 $367.95 Holley LS Retrofit oil pan 1 $367.95 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/hly-302-2
Engine TBSS INTAKE $125 TBSS Intake - Rail and Injectors 1 $125.00 Craigslist
Engine 262476178777 $98.98 92MM Throttle Body, TPS and IAC. 1 $98.98 http://www.ebay.com/itm/262476178777
Engine 12499224 $70.90 LS2/LS3 Valve Springs 1 $70.90 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-12499224
Engine 12612350 $29.97 Oil pan Gasket 1 $29.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-12612350
Engine 35635 $12.99 Water Pump Gasket 2 $25.98 http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/de...1381&ppt=C0331
Engine 12558253 $25.97 F-body Windage Tray 1 $25.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-12558253
Engine 551511 $22.99 ICT Billet Throttle Body Adapter 3-bolt TB to 4-bolt intake 1 $22.99 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/icb-551511
Engine NGK-3186 $22.89 NGK Spark Plugs - Set of 8 1 $22.89 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PMKOI06/
Engine NAL-12625031 $20.97 LS3 Dipstick Tube 1 $20.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-12625031
Engine 12669528 $20.97 LS3 Dipstick 1 $20.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-12669528
Engine B32270 $19.99 Camshaft Cover Plate 1 $19.99 https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/...erm=cam+gasket
Engine CA-9049 $19.97 Throttle Cable 1 $19.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/pio-ca-9049
Engine ICB-551681 $11.99 LS Starter Bolts 1 $11.99 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/icb-551681
Engine PF48E $5.95 Oil filter PF48E 1 $5.95 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ado-pf48e
Engine 1453658 $4.97 Chevrolet Performance Bellhousing Dowel Pins 1 $4.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-1453658
Engine 371697086577 65.99 15 Camaro SS CAI 1 $65.99 http://www.ebay.com/itm/371697086577
Engine 12576410 8.99 Used 15 Camaro MAF 1 $8.99 http://www.ebay.com/itm/322563049655
Engine 262548777720 8.73 MAF Pigtail 1 $8.73 http://www.ebay.com/itm/262548777720
Engine 12623063 $49.10 LS3 Camshaft (Price New 146.50) 1 $49.10 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-12623063
Engine 59214 $5.99 thread sealant 1 $5.99 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/p...hoCRBQQAvD_BwE
Engine Swap HOK-12643HKR $132.00 Hooker Motor Mounts 1 $131.95 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/h...el/monte-carlo
Engine Swap 3-1130G $76.36 Energy Suspension Mounts 1 $76.36 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ens-3-1130g
Engine Swap 71074 $17.99 Power Steering Line 1 $17.99 https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/m...et/monte-carlo
Exhaust EBAY 209.99 Long Tube Headers 1 $209.99 http://www.ebay.com/itm/332293667554
Exhaust R3025 $28.78 Header Reducers Slip Fit 1 $28.78 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/flo-r3025
Exhaust RK-TAS300 $13.48 3 inch Exhaust Clamps 2 $26.96 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/kok-rk-tas300
Exhaust 979G $17.83 Mr Gasket Header Bolts 1 $17.83 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mrg-979g
Fuel System GM306C $152.89 EFI Monte Fuel Tank 1 $158.25 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KIKX0DER&psc=1
Fuel System 11569 $116.97 Aeromotive 340LPH E85 pump 1 $116.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/aei-11569
Fuel System FG156A $80.79 Grand National Sending Unit 1 $81.78 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KIKX0DER&psc=1
Fuel System 33737 $19.99 Filter Regulator 1 $19.99 https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/m...443943?q=33737
Fuel System 644120 $11.04 Russel Fuel Rail to AN adapater 1 $11.04 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...SLZRVYDJ&psc=1
Fuel System 220711 $10.97 Summit Twist-tite 90 degree -6 AN to barb 1 $10.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-220711
Fuel System 800-120 $7.97 5/16th fuel line adapter 1 $7.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/RNB-800-120
Fuel System 800-121 $7.97 3/8th Fuel Line adapter 1 $7.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/RNB-800-121
Fuel System 640940 $6.57 Quick Disconnect Male to -6 AN 1 $6.57 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...SLZRVYDJ&psc=1
Fuel System G1882 $5.97 Summit P-Clamps 1 $5.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-g1882
Fuel System 260690 $3.97 Summit Twist-tite straight -6 AN to barb 1 $3.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-260690
Gauges 12551708 $24.97 Coolant Temp Sensor - 3 Wire 1 $24.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ado-12551708
Gauges 650320 $37.97 Russel Analog Fuel Pressure Gauge 0-100psi 1 $37.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/rus-650320
Gauges 2268 $13.95 Autometer Metric Adapter LS oil pressure to 1/8NPT 1 $13.95 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/atm-2268
Gauges 16775NOS $15.58 NOS Tee Adapter Fitting 1 $15.58 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nos-16775nos
Gauges 5643PT $7.97 Pico Connector Pigtail 3-pin for Temp Sender/TPS 1 $7.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/pco-5643pt
Gauges NS6538 $4.99 ZEX Nitrous Tee Fittings 1 $4.99 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/zex-ns6538
Shipping FedEX Ground 7.99 S+H For Resistors 1 $7.99 www.fedex.com
Transmission SUM-704000 $59.99 Flexplate spacer 1 $59.99 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-704000
Transmission MTC8501 $42.53 Transmission Cooler Lines 1 $42.53 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/rsd-mtc8501
Transmission CA-1970 $13.97 Long TV cable 1 $13.97 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/pio-ca-1970
Transmission 551652 $9.99 ICT Billet Bellhousing Bolts 1 $9.99 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/icb-551652

It's a little garbled, if anyone wants the excel sheet let me know. All told, about $3500 for a 400+ hp LS swap.

[SSLOW6.0]

A few Sundays ago I got up early to go an Autocross about 1.5 hours from my house. I loaded up the Monte and got on the road. About an hour in of mostly just cruising up the highway, no screwing around I felt a shimmy in the rear of the car, my tach and speedometer started to climb at the same time. I looked behind me expecting to see a trail of transmission fluid... Instead I saw sparks, and my passenger rear wheel and axle slowly passing me. I pulled off the road to safety. Thankfully traffic was very light and the runaway wheel and axle didn’t contact any other cars. A bad situation went as good as it could have.

After a call to AAA, they had a flat bed on its way. I was able to run down the Axle and wheel, so that we could push it back into the housing, and get it on the flatbed. I had the car towed to my folks house because it was closer and they have a bit more room to work on it.

Got the car up in the air and worked on dropping the rear axle.


Now it was time to crack into the diff and find out why my car turned into a goddamned tripod while doing 70 mph.


So much metal in the oil. It looked like liquid anti-seize.

The ring and Pinion were surprisingly intact, but the spider gears were incredibly chowdered.

The spring plate for the clutch was also broken

There's the C-clip that let go.

The car sat like this while I waited on my rear end to be rebuilt with some better parts: a Torsen diff, 28 spline Moser Axles, a Proform Rear Diff Cover Girdle and a new 3.73 ring and pinion gear.

In doing some research, an Auburn Posi unit, if the unit wears to an extreme extent, the wear of the clutches allows the side gears to move, and lets the c-clip escape. So, if any of you are running around with 30-40 year old auburn Posi units, you may want to pop the cover and take a look at your posi unit.

I’m just lucky that A: I wasn’t hurt, B: No one else got hurt, C: Short of this poor shock mount which was forced to be a skid plate and the axle failing, there is not any damage to the car.

Got the Diff back and installed

Anyone else hate putting on drum brakes? I have a set of F-body discs, but just need to get the car back together.

Too bad my Moser axles didnt come with the Moser stickers...

Anyways, the car is back together now, the 7.5in ten bolt is about as strong as I can make and I have a torsen diff in there now. I have an autox this weekend, I'll get some video and some updates.

[andrewb70]

Man...lucky!!!

Glad that you or anyone else didn't get hurt.

Andrew

[SSLOW6.0]

Man...lucky!!!

Glad that you or anyone else didn't get hurt.

Andrew

I'd be OK if i got banged up. I'm just glad I didn't have to do body work.

[SSLOW6.0]

[SSLOW6.0]

Just an update from late last year. Forgot to post, but I took the car to the local dragstrip and ran 13.27 @ 107 mph. This was before the diff-splosion. So I'm looking to see what the torsen diff will do off the line in the spring.

[cbpldc]

Sweet ride, and I'm enjoying the story.

[JayinMI]

As every blown head gasket should...LOL

Andrew

Why wait? lol

Jay

[SSLOW6.0]

Winter has me going stir crazy.

Thinking about an S197 3-link rear setup in this car.

[ryeguy2006a]

Next up: Blown head gaskets turn into an LS swap.

Jay, the OP posted this in one of the first posts. I got a laugh out of that too. That's what Andrew's comment was referring to, haha

[JayinMI]

Jay, the OP posted this in one of the first posts. I got a laugh out of that too. That's what Andrew's comment was referring to, haha

Yeah, I got that. I was saying, why wait until the head gasket lets go? We should be LS swapping everything, anyway. lol

Jay