wheelman

Z-Tard, That "Sun Spider" also goes by the name "Wind Scorpion". They are actually a scorpion not a spider. Those 2 bulbous things on it's head are actually it's pinchers and it has no stinger. We have them here as well but hardly ever see them in town and you're correct, they run very fast. Wheelman

I never understood the "OOh it's a spider, kill it" mindset either. I like spiders and would rather have them around than all the pests they eat. Same thing with snakes. Thats a cool one you found, hope it hangs around your place and eliminates the flys, wasps, hornets and other undesirables about. We have brown recluses and Black Widows where I live, those I will kill when I find them but others I leave alone, that is until they invade my house, then I transplant them if I can but if not will get rid of them to maintain peace in the house. Wheelman

Took my first drive of the year in the Z today. I'd forgotten just how fast it is, but I had a blast even though all I did was take it to the gas station. Had to wait in line for some tourists to clear the pump so the car heated up real good but didn't spew. Once I got to the pump and started filling it one of the tourists I was waiting on ran over and gawked at the Z. Even though it's real ugly right now he was very excited about what I've done to it, feels good to have your work recognized. Then his girl friend walks over and says "But it's so gutted!", to which I replied "It's a race car it's not supposed to have 2 seats". :burnout:Although it will have 2 seats and a full interior, it's just not in yet. On the way home I went around my block and did a small burnout right in front of the neighbor's house. She is uptight about people driving through the gravel on her corner so she came out to see what was going on. By that time I'd already parked in the driveway and was idling the car adding some water to the cooling system. She looked over and gave me a dirty look, I just smiled and continued doing my thing. Anyway it runs great and I think I finally fixed the fuel tank leaks. I'm still planning on an LS1 tank conversion but at least I can Auto-X it in the mean time. Wheelman

Have you thought about uising a 700R4 instead of the TH400? It's basically the same as the 4L60E but without the computer control. Gives you an overdrive tranny without requiring the computer. May I ask why you want to go MegaSquirt rather than using the LS1 PCM? Seems to me it would be much easier to use the factory computer and probably cheaper in the long run as well. Wheelman

73LT1Z, I should have updated this thread with what I ended up doing to get my tach to work. I connected the tach input to A13 and adjusted the pot in the tach as the JTR manual suggests and it's a smooth as a baby's butt. No 15K resistor needed. I ended up using a scan program on my laptop to match the tach reading to the actual RPM but it was very close using the JTR adjustment method. Wheelman

Thanks Matt, Re Number 8 above: A local wrecking yard has a 2001 Camaro with a 3.8 V6 and his books show the tank is identical to the LS1 but the pump assembly is different. Probably a lower volume pump, so I figured if I grabbed the whole thing and then replaced the pump with an LS1 model I'd be set. The wrecking yeard wants $150.00 for the tank with the filler neck, not sure of the pump assembly is included, but I found a tank with the pump but no filler neck from a WS6 on ebay that's $55.00 right now but has 5 days left. The auction has a $125.00 buy it now and costs $50.00 to ship making the total $175.00 if I use the buy it now. Did you snag the weather pack connectors for the pump and guage from the donor car? Wheelman

Last night I started the process of soldering up the pin hole leaks on my stock 240 tank where I welded a sump to it. After dropping the tank and rinsing it out I looked in through the filler hole and saw a buch of rust where the sump was welded and on the inside of the sump itself (I cut several 1 inch holes to make a baffle and can see into one from the filler hole). To make a long story short I'm going to start gathering parts to swap in an LS1 tank and have a few questions. 1. Isn't the LS1 pressure regulator part of the in tank pump assembly? 2. Does the LS1 use a returnless system? By this I mean the regulator in the tank recirculates the fuel and a single feed line runs to the rails in the engine bay. 3. Could the LT1 be run this way as well by modifying the fuel rails to eliminate the regulator and the return line? 4. Is it worth the effort and expense to do this seeing as I already have 3/8 inch feed and return lines installed? 5. What is the size of the feed line from the LS1 tank and which connection are you guys using for the return. 6. How did you connect the fuel line to the output/input of the LS1 tank? 7. What is a fair price for a tank with the filler neck and the pump assembly included? 8. Does anyone know if a 3.8 liter Camaro intank pump can be replaced with the larger LS1 pump? Just the pump itself not the entire assembly. Thanks in advance. Wheelman

You guys are crazy doing that in your driveway. LOL Sounds pretty mean, what are your plans for the exhuast system? Wheelman

Glad to hear it's running better, I'll have to go check out that video. I don't have any videos of mine yet but have post a couple sound clips. I got my LT1 from a 1995 9C1 Caprice as well. I didn't use the 4L60E as it was toast and I wanted a manual tranny anyway. As far As I remember the only difference between a 9C1 PCM and the consumer version is the speed limiter was removed. At 105 MPH the consumer PCM will shift the tranny into 3rd to prevent the car from accelerating any more. I thought the VATS was absent also but mine acted like the VATS was there, had to program it out to get it to run more than a couple seconds. I changed my MAF to a 3.5 inch and loaded a Camaro setup into the PCM as a starting point. It seems to run a little rich but I'll get that tuned out. Might be because I've also blocked off the EGR stuff but I don't think so, it's only active at idle. Wheelman

Don't disconnect the knock sensor, it will cause the PCM to throw a code and go into limp home mode. Won't hurt anything but will not run at it's optimum level. You might try removing it from the head then grounding it to the chassis so it won't pick up noise and see what happens. One knock sensor should be fine, both of mine connect to the same pin on the PCM. Your PCM should be OBDI for everything. I use a laptop and the DataMaster program. I don't have a license for it (eval version) so it only will collect data for about 30 seconds but it still helps and will pull all the codes. I also use TunerCat to adjust everything. I bought a cable that has DB9 connectors at both ends and didn't use the OBDI connector I took from the donor car. I don't know anything about the scan tools so won't comment. Don't assume it's the knock sensor though, be sure to check the other things and get the exhaust put together and the 02 sensors hooked up before doing any serious trouble shooting. When you do start to trouble shoot make sure to check all the sensors and the connections to the PCM. I mentioned the positive battery lead because my daughter just experienced a problem with her car that was caused by corroded battery leads. The battery connectors themselves were fine but they clamped to the cables rather than being molded in. The clamped connections were bad and caused a low voltage/current condition that would show itself when the car was under load and at start up but not at idle. Wheelman

Lakewood makes a bell housing that will allow you to mount a Mustang T5 to an SBC, might explore that option. I'm not sure what you would do for a clutch plate but I'm sure something is available to make it work. The bell housing is pretty spendy if I remember correctly but there are a ton of Ford WC T5s around, unlike the GM variant. Wheelman

It's not your opti!!! The opti will cause problems at high RPM if it's going to cause problems or run rough at all RPMS. Have you tried running it without the MAF? I have the same engine and it won't run with the MAF plugged in and the O2 sensors disconnected. Unplug the MAF and it will go into SD (speed density) mode which is less sensitive to vacuum leaks. I also agree with TIM, finish the exhaust, get the O2 sensors plugged in then trouble shoot it. Do you have a method to log data from the PCM while it's running? If so look at the knock counts to see if the sensor(s) is causing the timing to be pulled. My guess is it is with the open exhaust your running, those sensors are pretty sensitive. I used the circuit Tim refered to and have no problems with the knock sensors. You might try relocating them to the set back plates instead of the back of the head(s). Have the injectors been cleaned? Have you checked the MAP sensor? Have you tested the coil? Have you checked all the grounds for good conductivity? What about the positive battery lead? Wheelman

There should be a tin tag on the tranny with an ID number on it. Get that number and go to http://www.5speeds.com/t5/index.html. That page has a database you can use to identify exactly which tranny you have. Before buying another T5 use that page to identify it to make sure it's what you want. When I bought my T5 (after 3 months of searching) I used it to determine the tranny I was looking at was from an 89 Trans-Am instead of the 83 Camaro the PO extracted it from. Good luck finding a GM WC T5, they seem to be as rare as hens teeth these days. Wheelman

Have you checked the filter to see if it's plugged? I had a boat load of crud come out of my tank after running it for a few days last year. I had just gotten it running and had to replace the filter after about 50 miles. Since then it's been fine but acted in a similar manner, would run fine for the first few minutes and then crappy until the system was shut down. I have a high pressure high flow pump for the LT1 but it showed the same behavior. Wheelman

Nazar, Do you know who makes that kit? I saw a kit similar to that on ebay a while ago (a year or so), but it was being sold by SSAutoChrome Inc. They have a bad reputation for poor quality. Their stuff looks nice but apparently it all has problems with cracking. I don't have any personal experience but have seen these types of comments from several sources. Wheelman

Check out this commercial for a new cleaning prodcut for auto mechanics. http://www.stupidvideos.com/video/commercials/Scrotum_Scrub_2/?c=&p=121&y=2265 Wheelman

73TPIZ, I've tried the cut and past thing but the problem I've experienced is that the cursor where the next letter will be placed jumps several words if the cursor movement (arrow) keys are used and it's impossible to click on a specific location in this area with the mouse. I'm using explorer to edit this message (at work) and have noticed no problems so it must be a Firefox thing, or a combination of Firefox and Linux or Win 2000. I'm a software engineer and this stuff frustrates the hell out of me. I started programming in the days when a fast PC had an 8Mhz 286 processor, 1 Meg of RAM and ran DOS. It was drilled into us to do everything possible to conserve memory and play friendly with other applications that might be on the system. These new systems and the software (Windows and Linux) is so complicated and bloated it's a wonder any of it works, of course none of it works reliably. I'm back to programming on "lite" hardware (embedded development) and thank God for it, writing software for Windows can be a major PITA. OK, I'm done with my rant, thank you all for listening. Wheelman

Has anyone else noticed that the messages editor acts strange since the upgrade? I have noticed that the cursor will skip many words when I'm trying to move around in a message and make corrections. It forces me to backspace over large sections of text to fix something and then re-type the portion erased. I use Firefox on both a Windows 2000 and a Linux system and both show the same behavior. Is this seen when using Explorer? Wheelman

I didn't realize there was that much difference between a 94 and 95 LT1. I know the opti on the later ones is vernted but I thought the timing cover was the same for 94 and later. Hmm, guess I was wrong. So what are your upgrade plans? Wheelman

Bart, Have you looked at Combination Motorsports site? http://www.cmotorsports.com They offer the LT4 extreme duty timing set for $279.00. It's part # GM-12370835. It's a true roller setup (not double though) that doesn't require you to change the front pieces on your engine. This is the setup I put on mine. I don't plan on running it real hard so the single roller should be fine. Are you planning on drag racing or just want the extra stability for peace of mind? Wheelman

Nice find man, I wish mine had been that clean when I picked it up. I had to replace the battery tray, part of the firewall and passenger footwell due to rust. Enjoy the project and welcome to the board. What are the plans for it? Wheelman

It's possible to use the stock tach and drive it from the PCM. I have a 240 and replaced the guts of the tach with those from a 280 (came with the car when I bought it), hooked the input to the PCM and provided ground then adjusted it as per the JTR manual. I forget which output pin I connected to on the PCM but there is a thread on here that discusses it. I did perform a more accurate adjustment to the tach than the JTR manual calls for by hooking a laptop to the PCM and using scanning software to see the RPM then adjusted the tach to match. I don't think the tank from the 93 F-Body will fit, those who've swapped to F-Body tanks use them from the LS1 powered cars. There are several threads here with good pictures about the swap. The LT1 does have an OBDI warning light and the PCM will through a code and go into limp mode if it's missing. I didn't want it so I simulated the light using a small resistor to connect the line to ground. Wheelman

How does the rack compare to the stock one as far as length and alignment on the crossmember? I'm concerned about bumpsteer if I do this swap. I know the stock rack suffers from some but I wouldn't want to make it worse. Have you driven the car with the suby rack installed? How is the steering feel? Did you use a proportioning valve to adjust the pressure from the Chevy pump to be compatible with the suby rack? I thought about using a Mustang rack but then making sure it's aligned top to bottom is a factor as well as side to side. What did you use for tie rods and tie rod ends? Even the stock rack deforms the rubber mounting bushings. I replaced them with the poly-urethane ones from Energy Suspension but had to shim them to make them tight enough to stop all movement of the rack. Makes the steering response much quicker, seems twitchy until you get used to it. Wheelman

The primary reason the 5.4 is so much larger than the LS1 is it's dual overhead cam configuration. It adds width and height to change a single cam in the center of the block like the LS1 to 2 cams in each head like the 5.4. Wheelman