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1974 L96 6l90E Swap

21K views 158 replies 15 participants last post by  sf_hippie 
#1 ·
FROM LStTech forum. Just wanted to post here too:

Hello, I am Clint, and I wanted to share some of my build progress with you. I have seen a few of these that have really inspired me to start my own log (crusin73 and the bandit [same first name]). I saw a bunch of people give them suggestions and such so hopefully people can do the same with me.

I have a 1974 Nova Sedan that I love. I call it the four door dinosaur. I am thinking of calling it Frank for short (four door dinosaur = fdr = Franklin Delano Roosevelt). Anyway, I got this car when I was 15, and I blew up the 250 when I was 17. My brother in law, for my 18th birthday, put a 307 (full headers), rims, and beat in it for me and surprised me with it. Well, now I am 28 and ready for my LSx swap. I am doing a pretty much full restoration. I cannot remember who said it, but I saw this on the forms "this was my first car and it will be my last", but big facts. My wife is super supportive and tells me I can spend whatever I want to make it right. She loves me. I know the car will never be worth it, but I still love it. It is a hobby, not an investment.


So my progress so far,
I have pulled the front clip off
pulled the interior (working on the headliner and tar matts)
bought a 2010 Chevy Express Van with 222k on it (l96 and 6l90e) for 2500 shipped. I was able to drive it and hear it, good oil pressure. I am having a local shop rebuild and cam it for me.
I do have some rot
in the rear that I am pretty sure was caused by junk getting in between the quarters and the trunk (I pulled out mega blocks, newspapers, forks, radiator hoses, and brake lines from there that I know were before me because I play with legos not mega blocks).
dime sized spots near under the front windsheiled on either size. Looks like the previous owner "fixed" these because there is no rust near these holes, just the holes.
and on either side of the rear window. Again, no rust, just holes that look like they were caused by rust.
then I just have a bunch of surface rust.
Plans:
While, my wife did give me all the money, I still want to keep it some what budget. I do not want to go above 40k. There is a lot of stuff I still need to figure out:
Brakes: I have disks on the front, do I want them on the rear too. Do I want a smaller booster, what master cylinder will work.
Steering: it is pretty bad, but I am not sure what is wrong yet, so once I pull the motor I can see
Suspension: It creaks when you get into it (I am a small guy 5'7 120LBs). So I am going to get Hotkins full package and A-arms.
Seats/Interior- The thing with a 4 door is not being able to find certain parts, interior is one of those parts. So I am hoping I can use paint to paint my green interior black. I think I found some seats, but I need to get my rear to match.
Electronics: I am a software engineer so naturally I am going to put a computer in it (raspberry pi) and I am going to use that for auto start, fingerprint recognition, tracking, and gauges. I am also making the wiring harness for the car (not the engine, that is coming from the van)
Color: It is dark green now, but it was light green. I am thinking a baby blue, white, or flat black. Idk yet.

Well that is all for now. I am hopefully going to get the 307/th350 pulled this weekend. Then as the engine is being rebuilt I want to get the steering, brakes, fuel, and transmission installed. Then I want to get the wiring figured out.

Oh also, I am a full time cyclist. I ride my bike everywhere. This car will be for funzies and road trips.
 

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#2 ·
I have laid down a coat of Eastwood's Rust Encapuslator Platinum on the floors. I have tasked my wife with doing the rest of the inside with it. I am going to be working on the electrical. The stripping process and painting process took a lot longer than I thought. Soon I will be starting on the fun stuff.


I need to figure out what steering box to get and find a new booster for the brakes. I have seen people recommend a early 90s jeep for the swap. Any recommendations?
 
#4 ·
Thanks :) The people at LS1tech told me about this forum.

I do have a few questions if someone wants to take a stab at them:
1) I am looking at the hotchkis tvs system. It says it lowers the front by 2" and rear by 1.5" from stock. Being that my suspension is saggy I have no idea what stock is and I am worried my 18" rims won't fit or that I will be too low. Does anyone know where I can find what stock was? OR does anyone have any information about this drop and if things will work?

2) Does anyone have any information on if the stock accessory set will fit in the subframe? I am thinking it all will minus the AC.

3) Any recommendations for a quick ratio steering box?
 
#7 · (Edited)
Love your energy and enthusiasm.. Welcome to the site..

The thing about doing a four door is that most modern cars and SUVs are four doors as well. Finding really nice bucket seats should be a breeze. There are so many vehicles to choose from you can be as selective as you like.. Then it will just be a matter of adapting the tracks to mount up to your floor. Honda Accords, Toyota Camerys, and BMWs all have many seating options to look at as well as other makes and models.

Your suspension may have already sagged a good bit having been originally a 6 cylinder car that had a V8 swap. The spring rates are probably different when delivered with 6 cylinders, sbc, and big block V8 engines. Spring rates can vary on optional equipment selections made when the vehicles are ordered from the factory.. Handling packages, air conditioning, towing packages can all affect how a car leaves the factory.. I wouldn’t worry too much adout the ride height until you get the car fully assembled with all the interior, body panels, drivetrain, etc.. ldeally I like to take ride height measurements prior to making any suspension modifications or changes.. Pictures are also helpful but offer less technical information.. I suspect the ride height change won’t be too dramatic when it is all said and done..

Additionally, once the car is together you will need to put some miles on it to settle the new springs. Typically 1000-2000 miles should be adequate to get them to their normal ride height..

Quick ratio steering boxes are out there but not super common. I don’t know what steering box you have to start with but GM/Chevrolet use a lot of the same parts on multiple vehicles and finding a quick ratio box version of that box will be the easiest way to go.. Alternatively, may be you can get your box rebuilt with a quick ratio gears set or do a core exchange at a rebuilder for a quick ratio box.. I know of a couple of places in SoCal that deal in steering gear, hardware, and rebuilding steering components. I can give you those contacts if you need..
 
#5 ·
My experience with drop suspensions on Novas has been that if you have saggy factory leaf and coil springs, the 1-2" "drop" aftermarket suspension will be at about the same height, or slightly higher. "Factory" springs usually sit sky high and will need lowering blocks or a chop to get them to fit right.

I wouldn't be afraid of the TVA kit, but I don't have personal experience with it either.

Kev
 
#8 ·
I also have a 2010 honda civic, and when I get the interior put together I want to see if the seats can be persuaded to fit in the nova. I really like them. They seem pretty easy to come by.

My only worry was the car sitting too low, but it sounds like it should not be too much different to how it sits now. Hell it might be higher. lol.

I guess by quick ratio I meant the 12.7:1 I keep reading about. People are swearing they changed the game when the put them in. My current steering needs an overhaul so I figured since I am there I might as well swap the box out too.
 
#9 ·
Update

The interior is mostly done with rust pervention. I cleaned the floors down to bare metal and applied some rust encapulator platinum...when I shook the can it blew the lid off (I am guessing because if it sitting in my hot garage). I still need to do under the dash, in the b pillar, the roof, and all the nooks and crannys. My wife said she would finish all that up this weekend (she was a lot better at it that I was).

I have the engine ready to get yanked out of there. I will be doing that this weekend as well. Then I can clean it up and start getting parts.

I have changed the name AGAIN...it is now Jane. I think I am going to keep it green. I have been thinking something like a British racing green or Toyota Spruce Green (It is a 2010 toyota color like a green/gold). I went to a shop here to talk about possibility of painting it and dude said they start at 30,000 for paint jobs. I am going to try a few more places lol.

I will hopefully have some more interesting stuff to post next week. I am planning for a busy weekend.
 
#13 ·
Busy weekend, but productive.
I was able to get the engine and trans out. Holy crap pulling it out of this car is 10000x easier than pulling the ls from that van. The hardest part was getting a wheel stuck on the crack between my garage and the driveway. My wife came in and put some cardboard under it and we got it out. Took like 45 min and most of it was moving it through the garage to its final place until I sell it.

I was able to get the rest of the exhaust off, pull the fuel lines up to the fuel tank (I am still a bit scared to pull that with fuel inside so I am waiting until my gas can gets in), remove the brake booster, and the gas pedal.

My wife took care of painting the inside of the car with the rust encapulator platinum.

This week I am hoping to start to treat some of the rust I cannot reach with the wire brush. I am going to use some ospho and rustoleum paint for those places. I also ordered a power washer and small air compressor so I can degrease the sub-frame and under the car. There is not a lot left before I can start putting it back together.

I am hoping to get it 100% stripped and all the rust treated (minus the places I need to replace) by the 19th of July so I can get the electrical figured out. Then after that I can start putting the new shiny stuff in.
 

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#14 ·
The tare down is always fun and rewarding as it happens pretty quickly.. Cleaning, repairing, refinishing, prepping, fitting new parts, making modifications and painting all take way longer to get to the gratification stage..

Just keep at it and you’ll get there..:yes:
 
#15 ·
true. I just have a bit more to take off before it is all stripped. I am just looking forward to ordering the parts.


I have some questions if anyone wants to take a stab at them:

1) headers/exhaust. I was going to run a 1 78" headers for my swap. I was wanting to connect a decent cat in there too (for cleaner air and to have the rear o2 sensor reading). Does anyone know a decent cat they can recommend? Does 1 7/8" seem like a good size for general street driving? My current exhaust that I want to hook it up to 2 3/8" flowmaster 40s. Should I be considering something else when it comes to this decision? My cam?

2) Brakes. Is stainless steel the best material to run for brake lines?

Also, if anyone has a 4 door 74 or 73 there is a model for us. It is from a 007 movie (live and let die) and it is a cop car. I ordered mine and will be modifying it to match Jane. https://www.hobbylink.com.au/1-43-chevrolet-nova-james-bond-live-and-let-die
 
#20 ·
Update time

I contacted Pirate Jack and got a quote. 1315 for everything I need. Rear conversion, drilled and slotted rotors, lines, master, booster, and a valve. I am going to call Right Stuff again today and see if I can get a quote from them too. Does not hurt to shop around.

Yesterday I got the gas tank off. I did not realize I had 12 gallons in there. That was a PITA to empty by myself. (I am small, and not very strong.) I bought a siphon and had to lift the tank on my counter...that was not fun. I turned off my gas water heater just to be extra safe. I spilled some so my garage is airing out now. My roommate came in my room freaking out because it smelled like gas in the kitchen. oops.

I also managed to get one of the engine mounts off. I cannot figure out how to get the other one off. I got 1 bolt off, but one I cannot get my wrench around the nut, and the other the control arm is in the way. I was reading online that you can lift the car to move it a bit so I might try that. I know normally you should not lift in the middle of the sub frame, but since there is not much there I assume it will be okay.

I also got the brake booster/Mc/PP off. I had to cut two of the lines because I did not have the right size flare wrench and was too lazy to go back to Orielly to get the right one. So snip snip.

My power washer comes today, and my oven cleaner comes tomorrow. So I will be cleaning the engine bay on Friday night. The hopefully Sunday I can tackle the rest of the inside rust and get it treated. Then I want to try to get the undercoating off.

As for paining. I thought I found someone to do it, but when I called yesterday they apparently don't do anything but collision anymore...changed within a week. So I am thinking of stripping the paint off, fixing the rust holes with new metal, getting it as straight as I can, then priming it. I then will take it up to MAACO and have them color it. 5 year warranty. I am sure in 5 years I would like a new color.

I am now hoping to have everything done (excluding paint and body) by the first week of September. There is a car show. This is not a hard deadline, but I think it is a good goal.
 
#21 ·
Paying for the car

I wanted to share some ideas of getting extra money for your cars.
1) credit card churning- https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-credit-card-churning-4147321
This is the act of opening cards for the bonus. For example, you spend $5000 and they will give you $500, that is a 10% return. It adds up. Just make sure you don't pay any interest. Also there are many guides on what card to get first. Chase is pretty good, but they have a 5/24 rule that is not possible to navigate around. This does not hurt your credit too much, but probably a good idea to not be looking for another type of loan at the same time.​

2) bank account churning
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/bank-account-churning-how-to-make-$1600-in-a-year-by-being-organized/. This is less risky. You deposit X number of money into an account for N months and they give you Y bonus. There are some that go off of your Direct Deposit.

I use https://www.doctorofcredit.com/best-bank-account-bonuses/ to find the bonuses.

If you can, you can start a business, and not have to pay sales tax, this is only advisable if you can actually run the business, don't do this just to work on your own cars. Also a lot of parts stores have commercial accounts.

Nothing on here is paying me. I am just sharing some easy ways to get extra money for our projects.
 
#22 ·
If you can get an LS swap done, full braking/suspension and a repaint done in two months, my jaw will hit the floor.

Most of us, even motivated and really thrashing, will take 2-3 years to fully go through a car. Unless you don't have a day job, then you can probably make some real head way. Just trying to level set expectations for you.

Kev
 
#23 · (Edited)
Just the swap, the brakes, the suspension, and the interior. I doubt I will be painting before sept. The car is all apart, and I am about to order suspension, brakes, steering, mounts, fuel, and AC. Maybe I am being optimistic, but I think that a week (15+ hours) I should be able to do each one of these tasks. Again Sept is not a hard deadline, but it is a goal I am aiming for. I am not going to be cutting corners or anything. Just something to keep me motivated. For the interior I might just put some seats in to get me to the car show. I don't think I will have time to get it all back together.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Progress

So the wife had to go out of town which left me alone all weekend. So of course I worked on the Nova. I managed to get all of the lines pulled out and I got that suborn engine mount out. I also powerwashed the car. I cleaned it with purple power. The I treated all the rust with Must for Rust gel. I then washed it again. I let it dry. I then hit any places the must for rust gel didn't get to with the angle grinder. I then took some Ospho and "painted" the whole car. I let that sit on there overnight. Tonight I will inspect everything and go over what I need to. I ordered some paint to coat everything. I got high heat primer, paint (aluminum color), and clear for the engine compartment. Then I got primer and undercoating for under the car. I already have a bunch of enamel in black so I can use that between the primer and undercoating under the car. So I am just waiting on that stuff to come. I am hoping to get it all painted (excluding the outside) by next weekend. My brakes will be here Tomorrow too. My goal for July is to finish the painting, install the new suspension, bushings, fuel tank, steering box, and engine mounts
 

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#27 ·
new direction this week

So I was originally just going to seam seal and paint this week, but I started thinking about it, and decided to take off the suspension first so I can paint everything in one pass. So that is what I set off to do yesterday. I have never done anything like this before and it terrified me, but I read Rquad's forum about it,and I felt a little better. So I ordered some a coil spring compressor and pickle fork from Autozone, and I went to HF to get a big chain.

I took the brake off. I was sure to take plenty of pics so I know how to put it back together. It came off surprisingly easy. I did have to get a cheater bar on my Allen wrench at first to get the calipers off. I made sure to follow Rquad's advice and remove the tie rod first, then the sway bar, and then the other stuff.

To make sure I did not die. I jacked up my a-arm and ran the chain through it. I also used a ratchet strap and bike lock around it as a back up. Like I said these things scare me. I also had my neighbor watching out and ready to call 911.

I did make a stupid, and forgot to take the shock off so I did that. Question: is there a good way to take the top bolt off? I used an adjustable spanner on the tip (where there was no threads and a regular wrench to unscrew the nut. I could not find another way to get them separated. Is there a tool for this?

To separate the ball joints I flipped the castle nut upside down and banged on it a coupe of time, and out it came.

My other stupid was trying to get the spring to fully come out. I should have put the compression tool in first and then wrapped the spring with the chain and everything else. Once I compressed it a little it came right out, but easily because it was held in pretty good.

All in all it took me about 2.5 hours to from taking the wheel off to getting the spring out.

Tonight I need to finish taking everything apart and get the passenger side done.


In other news, my credit card came last night ($600 bonus for $4000 spend) so I was able to order my suspension. My brakes should be here today, and my subframe bushings and paint will be here tomorrow.

I still need help picking out steering components. I think I am going to have a chat with Summit to see if they can help me out.
 
#28 ·
So I was originally just going to seam seal and paint this week, but I started thinking about it, and decided to take off the suspension first so I can paint everything in one pass. So that is what I set off to do yesterday. I have never done anything like this before and it terrified me, but I read Rquad's forum about it,and I felt a little better. So I ordered some a coil spring compressor and pickle fork from Autozone, and I went to HF to get a big chain.

I took the brake off. I was sure to take plenty of pics so I know how to put it back together. It came off surprisingly easy. I did have to get a cheater bar on my Allen wrench at first to get the calipers off. I made sure to follow Rquad's advice and remove the tie rod first, then the sway bar, and then the other stuff.

To make sure I did not die. I jacked up my a-arm and ran the chain through it. I also used a ratchet strap and bike lock around it as a back up. Like I said these things scare me. I also had my neighbor watching out and ready to call 911.

I did make a stupid, and forgot to take the shock off so I did that. Question: is there a good way to take the top bolt off? I used an adjustable spanner on the tip (where there was no threads and a regular wrench to unscrew the nut. I could not find another way to get them separated. Is there a tool for this?

To separate the ball joints I flipped the castle nut upside down and banged on it a coupe of time, and out it came.

My other stupid was trying to get the spring to fully come out. I should have put the compression tool in first and then wrapped the spring with the chain and everything else. Once I compressed it a little it came right out, but easily because it was held in pretty good.

All in all it took me about 2.5 hours to from taking the wheel off to getting the spring out.

Tonight I need to finish taking everything apart and get the passenger side done.


In other news, my credit card came last night ($600 bonus for $4000 spend) so I was able to order my suspension. My brakes should be here today, and my subframe bushings and paint will be here tomorrow.

I still need help picking out steering components. I think I am going to have a chat with Summit to see if they can help me out.
Since you didn't get killed following in my footsteps, I'll take the credit for your work. If you had died, I would of course have denied any liability. :D

Glad my earlier pain and suffering was of help.
 
#30 ·
So I got the other side of the suspension off. I cleaned my garage too. This other side was just as difficult but for other reasons. The first side was me trying to figure things out. This side was difficult because the spring compressor broke and some of the bolts did not want to break. I also had a lot of trouble getting the tie rod to separate, but I got it out, and did not die.

My full brake kit came yesterday, and my suspension is scheduled for Monday. Back in March, I was hoping to have the engine installed this weekend, but I still don't have it back yet, which is okay there is still plenty to do. My wife's family is coming down on Friday so I won't be able to work this weekend, but I am going to try to get as much as I can tonight, tomorrow, and Friday (I am off for 4 days). I want to get everything degreased, apply ospho, prime, and paint. We will see how that goes.
 
#31 ·
Not too much to report today. I was able to get the subframe, firewall, and under dash primed. My wife's family came to visit for the weekend so not much time. This week I am planning on getting under the car to prime and paint, I have already treated any visible rust and sanded down the undercoating. I also treated everything with OSPHO. I might do another coat of ospho then prime.

My goals for this week are pretty simple:
paint and clear everything I primed over the weekend
prime, paint, undercoat the underside of the car
add a second layer of Eastwood Rust Encapsulator to the floor boards
use the internal frame coating on the frame and the pillars.

My suspension is suppose to be here today. So if I can get down with everything from above I might be putting that on this week too, but more than likely it will be next week.



Still no word from the engine shop about my L96 rebuild, which is okay since I told them to take their time on it. I still have plenty to do. I need to get the electrical, the mounts, the fuel, and the trans refresh before I think I am ready to put the engine in. I am hoping it will be ready by the middle of August.

One more thing, the car show that I would like to take the Nova to is Sept 22 so that is my goal. Again nothing hard, but I would love to have it running/driving by then.
 
#32 · (Edited)
Yesterday did not go exactly like I planned, but at the same time it did.

I spent most of my day yesterday after work scooting around under the car with a wire brush, sand paper, and a scotch brite. I was cleaning the underside of the car. I decided to just paint over anything that held up to 80 grit on my orbital sander. I scuffed everything up then added a nice layer of ospho over everything. Tonight I will go back over it with a scotch brite and wire brush then clean it all up with Acetone and wax and grease remover. Then hopefully if there is time, paint (Eastwood's rust encapulator platinum)

I also went ahead and sanded the subframe/firewall primer yesterday. There were several spots that did not adhere well. So I started with 120 then moved to 220, and then I finished with 320. Everything is nice and smooth. I need to do another coat of the primer in the spots that just came off. There were not too many for it being my first time ever painting. So I will just go over those spots with acetone and then let that dry and do another layer of primer.
It was dirty work under the car. Glad I had eye and mouth protection.


My suspension did not come yesterday. It was rescheduled to today.

So I am thinking about buying my fuel tank. I was looking at Muscle Rods until I realized you have to pay for shipping so together the tank and lines would be $1000. The Holly kit is around $800 and I think the Tanks Inc kit is around $760. I will reach out to Holly and Tanks to make sure I got the right stuff added then I will order from whomever is cheaper. I have heard good things about all three companies so for me it comes down to cost at this point since the tank does not have to match the mounts for fitment like the headers.
 
#33 ·
I went ahead and scuffed under the car and cleaned it with acetone and Eastwood's Pre paint spray. I tried to use wax and grease remover, but it was a pain to get out from under the car, put it on a rag, wipe it on, then wipe it off with a new towel...then repeat. It was pretty clean. I then applied a first coat of the eastwood rust encapulator platinum. I let that sit overnight and tonight I will see if it is sticking well. I really liked how durable it seemed on the inside, but that was on clean and bare metal. Under the car was a mix of bare metal and original coating. I used ospho all over, so I am curious how well the paint will stick.

I did get in part of my suspension. I need to call them to make sure I am getting the rest. I am missing the leaf springs, the lower control arms, and the 2 sway bars. My front door was littered with packages (I got 5 from Hotchkis, 3 from target, and 1 from Amazon).

Tonight I think I am going to scape at the paint I put on yesterday to test its stick. Then I am going to try to pull out the rear axle. Anyone have any tips?



Questions of the day:
Can someone help me with a fuel system for my car? e85 around 500hp at the crank on gas? Return less?

Anyone have any tips on taking the rear axle out? It is just lower the car on the wheels, but still have it a little jacked up, then put jack stands on the subframe in the rear. Then undo the leaf springs and the shock? Are leaf springs as mean as coil springs?
 
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