OK, I have been looking at several power plants for the Skylark I am working on at the moment and decided to shy away from the 383 stroker I was first contemplating. I am leaning towards and LS1 or LT1 because of the reliability of a fuel injected motor, considering this will be a daily driver for quite some time. What type of fuel management and ignition systems would I need to make the swap to a fuel injected motor a success? Has anyone had experience doing a swap even remotely similar to this? I plan on coupling the LS1 with a TH-700-R4 because the shifting is SO smooth and obviously over drive is a big bonus. Will I need some other goods to get the TH-700-R4 functioning properly? Custom mounts will be my next obstacle but first I need to find out if I can even get this sucker running without too much hassle.
how about a nice 350/455 buick. This is a buick board and if you consider a chevy swap into your vehicle maybe you will be better off asking these questions on a chevy page. No flame - Just many people here are diehard buick lovers. Take a look at the torque ratings of our buick motors and see why we like them. goodluck
if you really want an LS1, i don't think anyone will stop you. bug PLEASE just don't put a chevy engine in that poor car.
Personally, if you were saying you were gonna put in a carbed chevy motor, I'd have a problem. But it looks like you want a more modern motor with fuel injection and all that good stuff, so I don't see any problem with going chevy on this one, since the most modern small block buick is 1980.... The mounts probally won't be to hard to do. I imagine a set from same year chevelle with a 350. Might have to drill a hole or to. The frames were basically the same. For the fuel injection just make sure you get everything from the donor car. You'll probally need to run a return line for the fuel.
I think you're making a mistake with the chevy power. It'd be a lot more interesting to put in a 3.8 Buick T6 if you don't want to stick to conventional V8 Buick power plants.
Actually that is another one of the power plants I was considering. A company is coming out with a new 3.8 V6 block in aluminum, less than a 100 pounds, and can handle 3000 horsepower (according to them).
That would be TA,, a supporter of this Board, and I thought it was out and the V8 Al block is now in progress.
Ahh, I was unsure if it was out yet. A friend of mine showed me the magazine article. So, is a 3.8 T6 swap possible? It would certainly be an interesting setup and has plenty of power potential.
Power potential is quite high on the stock block, as well. I've never seen a 3.8T in a Skylark, I'd certainly like to, though. As far as the LS1 swap goes, whatever floats your boat. At least it isn't a carbed 350... but I'm willing to bet the 3.8T would be more fun(and cheaper, for that matter).
The LS1 is completely different from an SBC, so from what I've read, you'll need completely new mounts. I remember this coming up in Car Craft a little while back. I think they did mention a company that makes LS1 mounts that bolt into a stock A-body frame though. I think it would be cool seeing a turbo 6 swap (or better yet, turbo buick 350), but an LS1 isn't that bad. Just a note though, this forum is mainly for small-block buick engines (not just any small-block engine in a buick), so the knowledge tends to lean towards buicks. Good luck whatever you do.
I have been dreaming of a turbo-6 in a Buick for a long time. The Turbo-6 can be easily built to make 500HP or more, and you get fuel efficiency and drivability. I haven't heard of it being done yet, but if you do it successfully I will be very jealous... You probably won't need a special block like the one TA is offering, unless you are going for an insane car- those motors have a fairly stout bottom end, as long as you don't detonate. Well you don't want to detonate on any other motor, either. For controllers, you can try to adapt an OEM ECM. However in my opinion, you are better off with a newer controller like the FAST. If you do decide to go the LS1 route, you might try somewhere like www.chevelles.com and see what advice they offer you for building a Chevy. If you decide to go the turbo-6 route, then hang out at www.turbobuick.com or www.gnttype.com and get some advice there. But I think your best bet is a nice stout 455, they are hard to beat for all-around performance (drivibility *and* power). There are a few guys that put a OD tranny with great results... -Bob Cunningham bobc@gnttype.org
It can be done. Here are a couple pics of a 65 Lark with an 87GN drivetrain. There are more pics of this car on BuickPerformance.com website. Look in January 2001 to find them under '65 pictures'. You may wish to contact them to get more information how to do it if you're interested. What an outstanding car it must be to drive...
Last one for here. The emails are dated 1/24/01, probably faster to work backwards from Feb 1 to find them. Claims to run 12.20 and get 28MPG. :jd:
I can't seem to find anything more on buickperformance.com about that car. Does anyone know where I might be able to get a 3.8 T6 without having to rob a poor GN or T-Type of its beautiful motor? Isn't that some sort of heresy?
You'll want to post over on www.turbobuick.com to find a complete engine with harness and computer for sale. Much more likely to find it there. There is a C5 Vette that runs at the GS Nationals with a 'healthy' V6/6spd. combo - FAST!!! If I remember correctly, he runs 9's!!:TU:
Ahh, and to think just two days ago I did not think there were any decent Buick forums on the internet. Thanks for the help, I guess I am going to T6 route.:eek2:
That green '65 is featured in the November 2002 issue of Car Craft. It belongs to Tim Lee. When this article came out I was very interested in this GN swap, so I sent him a letter asking the details of the swap. I even included a self-addressed stamped envelope. No reply... :gt:
