Fourth gen pro touring?

[louie138]

i have a v6 94 camaro. i know the first thing everyone is gonna say is to not even bother with it and sell it for a ls1, thats not my question. to that i say no because i want a challenge regardless of price range. beside a lot of pro touring cars her are constantly being worked even when they are already running on the street. i am willing to have a work in progress car. anywho my question is, should i sell it (i know i know) and get a 1979 camaro being sold in my city and mod that, or give it a good college try and "pro tour" my 94 camaro? yes i know it be better to get an ls1 but thats a quiter way of thinking in my opinion. i rather get something that will need to be fixed and has room for more

[exwestracer]

Lots of parts avail for both. The V6 could be a challenge depending on what HP you're looking to end up with. Real question is, which car do you really WANT?

[louie138]

tough one. i like both. the 79 is a legit z28. but my 94 has history with me. i want to swap out the engine in my 94 though to an lq9. no lt1/ ls1 here. it would defeat the purpose of the swap cause then thats when i should just by an ls1 car

[exwestracer]

94- better rear suspension. Built by GM in the 90s so quality is suspect, but you know the car...
79- better front suspension (but bad geometry). Near the end of it's production run (1981) so quality is suspect.
Engine will fit in either car....
94 is 15 years newer, but relative condition is your call.

[louie138]

you gave me a lot to think about. i think imma have to sleep on this. starting to lean towards sticking with mine and modding it to perfection. thanx

[CHRIZ28]

Yea, really either is going to involve alot of work to get where you want. I cut my teeth on the 4gen's, so I'm alittle biased on them. A few good select suspension pieces will get it handling good. But, the v6 is the problem there. I say just go with whatever you would like to have as a finished car (realistically). I'm in the process of pt'ing my Firehawk. Go to ls1tech and look around in the suspension section, lots of good info there for 4gens.

Chris

[ArtosDracon]

You can twin turbo that 3.8 and get 500+ hp out of it, it'll be heavier than an aluminum block LSx engine at that point though.

[nickdoe6]

We have a 2001 Z28 Project Car at Camaro Performers magazine that is a ton of fun on the autocross. Very competitive, too.
With a few dollars in suspension upgrades those cars can kick ass.
Look for suspension upgrade articles in the July and September issues.

Nick L.

[louie138]

i actually feel comfortable sticking with my fourth gen after hearing about and research suspension parts. oh and my camaro is the dreaded 3.4l engine that i can do a top end swap with parts from a 3400 car but i see it was pointless. however does anyone know if its true that upgrading the suspension on a 2nd gen still doesnt do any good? thats what i have read

[mpozzi]

You can make a second gen handle pretty good too ...

Cheers,
Mary Pozzi

[shortrack]

The engine in a 4th gen comes out from the $$$ bottom.....and sooner or later that engine WILL have to come out!......for that reason alone I went with another third gen....

[ArtosDracon]

The 3400/3500 top end swap is not pointless, not by a long shot, it might not be worth the money in the long run, but far from pointless. And any car can be made to handle with enough money, lol, the fourth gen does get a decent head start over it's 30+ year old counterparts.

[subtlez28]

79- better front suspension (but bad geometry).

Why would you say that? You do realize the 4th gens have double a-arm front suspension, not strut type like 3rd gens... right? Rack and pinion steering is a plus also.

4th gen is a great start, easy brake upgrades, strong aftermarket.

That V-6 though... I know you don't want to hear it, but why re-invent the wheel? LS1 4th gens can be so cheap!

Maybe just locate a wrecked LS1 f-body and swap in the front k-member, etc if you have emotional attachment to your car. Putting an LQ9 will be very easy then.

[-The Stig-]

You can make a second gen handle pretty good too ...

Cheers,
Mary Pozzi

Bull.....

;)

[novaderrik]

why are you so opposed to an LT1/Ls1 swap? there is a reason they are so popular- they work.
i'd find a wrecked similar year Z28 and swap everything over.

[louie138]

its not that im against the engine or car, its just that it makes it pointless in swapping versus just buying one with it in it. in that case i would rather get a different engine (lq4, lq9, ls2 or if i get lucky ls3). and as for the whole engine coming out of the bottom issue with these cars, its a real bad boner kill. regardless fourth gen cars look good.

[CHRIZ28]

The engine in a 4th gen comes out from the $$$ bottom.....and sooner or later that engine WILL have to come out!......for that reason alone I went with another third gen....

SOOOOO much easier than it sounds. I've done several, twice in the firehawk, and about 4 times in my old '00 Z28. The very first time we pulled it, we pulled the heads off the engine to get it out the top... The k-member drops in no time, and if you've done one before, all the hidden plug-ins come loose in a few. I'll be dropping it all out of the Firehawk again to swap the trans in a couple weeks.

Chris

[louie138]

so i guess the question comes down to this, since everyone has their opinion id like to hear them. which would you rather mod and see be a pro touring. late 2nd gen camaro, iroc camaro, or lt1 style camaro (i like the front end better than the ls1 version)? and why would you versus the others

[louie138]

oh and ps, lets say the budget was unlimited just to keep this interesting

[Rybar]

Why don't you tell us your plans for the car and budget to help us understand.

If the 2nd gen requires body and paint it will end up costing you alot more than the 4th gen to modify.

I would think suspension wise the 4th gen would be a better starting point.