1987 camaro engine swap - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

509irocz · 07-24-2010, 12:52 AM

Hello, new to the forum here. but i picked up an 87 camaro with a knocking 305. still ran but knocked. everything else in the car is in good shape. i picked up a 350 from a buddy out of his 75 blazer for real cheap. my question is what will i need to complete the engine swap? any information or pointers would be appreciated.

transamguy · 07-25-2010, 10:40 PM

First we need to know if the 305 is carbed or efi if its carbed its done in a few hours efi might be more difficult. Check around the Thirdgen.org forums for more info i have a 83 z28 that had a 305(carb) and i swaped a new 350 in it it was very easy. good luck

Monte Carlo Man · 07-29-2010, 07:15 PM

87 did not have a carb.

It should be fuel injected, tuned port or otherwise.

What you would need to do would be to get a flywheel that was designed to be mounted on the early model engine block crankshaft - since the crankshaft is different. The older generation flywheel will not work with the newer style starter and the newer style flywheel will not bolt up to the older style crank.

You would have to reuse the heads - which would most definitely need to be redone.
The old block would have to be decked because you wouldn't want the head gasket to leak when you put the new heads on.

All the electronic hardware would have to be changed out. Intake manifold and fuel injection would all have to be gone through with a fine tooth comb.

New Hyd roller camshaft and roller lifters. Push rod lengths would have to be checked and you might have to buy new push rods.
While you are at it, you might as well put in some new bearings and a new oil pan.

Some of the older motors, the dip stick tube is on the right hand side and some of the newer motors the dip stick tube is on the left hand side and comes out of the pan.
They don't interchange.

You might have to buy all new pulleys because the old style block used a Vee belt type system and the newer block used a serpentine belt type system.

While you are at it, you will need a block off plate for the fuel pump - don't need a fuel pump because the newer motor probably has the pump in the tank.

You will probably need a new water pump = because why would you want to put all that money into a block and then not put a new water pump on it and then have it go bad and then have to tear it all back apart again?

motorhead · 07-29-2010, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Monte Carlo Man

87 did not have a carb.

It should be fuel injected, tuned port or otherwise.

What you would need to do would be to get a flywheel that was designed to be mounted on the early model engine block crankshaft - since the crankshaft is different. The older generation flywheel will not work with the newer style starter and the newer style flywheel will not bolt up to the older style crank.

You would have to reuse the heads - which would most definitely need to be redone.
The old block would have to be decked because you wouldn't want the head gasket to leak when you put the new heads on.

All the electronic hardware would have to be changed out. Intake manifold and fuel injection would all have to be gone through with a fine tooth comb.

New Hyd roller camshaft and roller lifters. Push rod lengths would have to be checked and you might have to buy new push rods.
While you are at it, you might as well put in some new bearings and a new oil pan.

Some of the older motors, the dip stick tube is on the right hand side and some of the newer motors the dip stick tube is on the left hand side and comes out of the pan.
They don't interchange.

You might have to buy all new pulleys because the old style block used a Vee belt type system and the newer block used a serpentine belt type system.

While you are at it, you will need a block off plate for the fuel pump - don't need a fuel pump because the newer motor probably has the pump in the tank.

You will probably need a new water pump = because why would you want to put all that money into a block and then not put a new water pump on it and then have it go bad and then have to tear it all back apart again?

They didn't go serpentine on the camaro or transam until 88. 87 was still v-belts. Also in 87 a 165hp carb version 305 was still available.

Monte Carlo Man · 07-30-2010, 09:33 AM

The Point is?

Back in the day, we had a connection to a junkyard that bought and sold Camaro's and Trans Am's.

For $500 we could buy a engine - usually one out of a car that was burned, and take it home and swap out - about enough of the parts to make one good car out of about 3 parts cars. We would then put a paint job on it and a killer stereo in it and then sell it for about $10,000 We probably had $8000 into everything.

The deal was that when we swapped out engines, we took everything out. Made our own wiring harness - out of a harness off a newer vehicle. Took all the V Belts off - because they were good for maybe 6500 Rpm's and replaced them with a good serpentine belt type system, or we used CV productes extra deep V belt type systems and eliminated the clutch fan - because it robbed about 15 hp.

If we had all the parts, it took us about 3 hours to swap out a motor - with 3 people.
Our best time to take one out and put another one in was 45 minutes.
There was still steam coming out of the water outlet of the old motor when we started the new motor up.

I also worked for a year for a local junkyard and removed many engines with bolt cutters and a cutting torch in about 15 minutes. So it isn't like as if it is something I had not done 100 times before.

The electronic Rochester was a real dog and required a lot of work to make it run, even then it had it's issues and we put more work into them then what they were worth. A Holley 750 Double Pumper was a much better carb and way more tune able.

When the Tuned Port Fuel Injection came out, it took most of the work out of it.
All you had to do was buy the right heads and intake and put in the computer and wiring harness and maybe clean the Mass Airflow Sensor and put a new air cleaner on it and you were ready to romp.

The 305G motor was a good piece when it was pre 1986 - 2 piece rear main seal.
The later versions were a very low horsepower version that had many issues.

07-24-2010, 12:52 AM	#1
509irocz Drives: 1987 T-top Iroc-Z Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Spokane Posts: 1	1987 camaro engine swap Hello, new to the forum here. but i picked up an 87 camaro with a knocking 305. still ran but knocked. everything else in the car is in good shape. i picked up a 350 from a buddy out of his 75 blazer for real cheap. my question is what will i need to complete the engine swap? any information or pointers would be appreciated.

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07-25-2010, 10:40 PM	#2
transamguy Drives: 10 camaro LT(syn) Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: toronto Posts: 40	First we need to know if the 305 is carbed or efi if its carbed its done in a few hours efi might be more difficult. Check around the Thirdgen.org forums for more info i have a 83 z28 that had a 305(carb) and i swaped a new 350 in it it was very easy. good luck

07-29-2010, 07:15 PM	#3
Monte Carlo Man Drives: Everything from soup to nuts Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Western Pennsylvania Posts: 37	87 did not have a carb. It should be fuel injected, tuned port or otherwise. What you would need to do would be to get a flywheel that was designed to be mounted on the early model engine block crankshaft - since the crankshaft is different. The older generation flywheel will not work with the newer style starter and the newer style flywheel will not bolt up to the older style crank. You would have to reuse the heads - which would most definitely need to be redone. The old block would have to be decked because you wouldn't want the head gasket to leak when you put the new heads on. All the electronic hardware would have to be changed out. Intake manifold and fuel injection would all have to be gone through with a fine tooth comb. New Hyd roller camshaft and roller lifters. Push rod lengths would have to be checked and you might have to buy new push rods. While you are at it, you might as well put in some new bearings and a new oil pan. Some of the older motors, the dip stick tube is on the right hand side and some of the newer motors the dip stick tube is on the left hand side and comes out of the pan. They don't interchange. You might have to buy all new pulleys because the old style block used a Vee belt type system and the newer block used a serpentine belt type system. While you are at it, you will need a block off plate for the fuel pump - don't need a fuel pump because the newer motor probably has the pump in the tank. You will probably need a new water pump = because why would you want to put all that money into a block and then not put a new water pump on it and then have it go bad and then have to tear it all back apart again?

07-30-2010, 09:33 AM	#5
Monte Carlo Man Drives: Everything from soup to nuts Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Western Pennsylvania Posts: 37	The Point is? Back in the day, we had a connection to a junkyard that bought and sold Camaro's and Trans Am's. For $500 we could buy a engine - usually one out of a car that was burned, and take it home and swap out - about enough of the parts to make one good car out of about 3 parts cars. We would then put a paint job on it and a killer stereo in it and then sell it for about $10,000 We probably had $8000 into everything. The deal was that when we swapped out engines, we took everything out. Made our own wiring harness - out of a harness off a newer vehicle. Took all the V Belts off - because they were good for maybe 6500 Rpm's and replaced them with a good serpentine belt type system, or we used CV productes extra deep V belt type systems and eliminated the clutch fan - because it robbed about 15 hp. If we had all the parts, it took us about 3 hours to swap out a motor - with 3 people. Our best time to take one out and put another one in was 45 minutes. There was still steam coming out of the water outlet of the old motor when we started the new motor up. I also worked for a year for a local junkyard and removed many engines with bolt cutters and a cutting torch in about 15 minutes. So it isn't like as if it is something I had not done 100 times before. The electronic Rochester was a real dog and required a lot of work to make it run, even then it had it's issues and we put more work into them then what they were worth. A Holley 750 Double Pumper was a much better carb and way more tune able. When the Tuned Port Fuel Injection came out, it took most of the work out of it. All you had to do was buy the right heads and intake and put in the computer and wiring harness and maybe clean the Mass Airflow Sensor and put a new air cleaner on it and you were ready to romp. The 305G motor was a good piece when it was pre 1986 - 2 piece rear main seal. The later versions were a very low horsepower version that had many issues.