I have a 1996 Camaro SS with 78xxx miles on it and i barely ever drive it, just wondering if it is possible to take the LT1 and T56 out of it and drop it in my rubicon, and if its ever been done before. I really like the V8 power and I feel like it would be a much more reliable engine than the pentastar.

 

That would be cool, I have an 02 camaro(ls1) and the v8 torque would be sweet in a jk

 

Motech does LS swaps into JKs but I am pretty sure they dont support LTs.

You could the swap yourself but none of the electronics would be integrated...

 

There may also be stipulations what year motor you can swap out based on teh year of the Jeep depending on your state.

Also are you wanting this for the power or the reliabilty? If you want the V-8 swap then by all means go for it but if you are doing it for reliabilty concerns i would ask have you had problems or is the fear of reliabilty issues?

If it is for reliabilty then just drive hte pentastar till you start to have problems then figure it out but would bet the electronics would be a nightmare to figure out and al lthat added power would also necessitate axle upgrades too.

 

I think in a handful of states engine swaps are only street legal if you put in a newer engine than the year of the car... not sure about your state I am just saying that is likely a reason its hasn't been done yet, most people just go with a newer engine to avoid that issue.

 

Noooo!!!!!!!

I love 4th gen Camaros.

Yours doesn't happen to be black w/ T-tops, does it? I've seen one up in the Pine Lake area a few times.

Wanna sell it (with the motor in it?)

In all seriousness, though, didn't the LT1 of that year only have 275hp? Or did the SS have 305hp? I can't remember. Torque was up near 330 IIRC, a marginal improvement over the pentastar. I wouldn't think you'd need axle upgrades to handle additional power or anything. But talk about a nightmare trying to get everything to mate up to the transmission. Yeow.

 

What he said. Most states stipulate that the motor must be same yr or newer than chassis and that the emissions of motor must come with engine. Since the lt1 predates 2007, it wouldnt legally be possible to install in a JK, unless for offroad use only.

Side note, just because it felt strong in ur car doesnt mean it will feel strong in the jk. The 3.8l felt awesome in the caravan, smoke tires and top out around 130mph----yes i had a service van and yes i went that fast in it...was real exciting until a porche and corvette that were racing each other flew by me while i was bouncing off of rev limiter, took the fun right out of it. The same 3.8l in the jeep feels sickly and way underpowered.

I will say that after reading ur question, it dis make me wonder how my 78 pontiac ta 400 HO engine would feel.....it was a torque monster....oh wait.... Damn i forgot about the low single digit gas milage!

 

The LT1 is a nice motor have it in my 94 Z28 and yes it will be more power than then motor you have now with mods as it response to mods is better. But the main concern would be the opti. It hates water. I would do a LS swap myself lighter and easier to mod.


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I live in the pine lake area and the black one you saw belongs to a female I went to highschool with, it was her dads car, mines silver with 18" 5 spoke wheels. I haven't driven it since I joined the army in 2009 but my father drives from time to time and maintains it. It recently just had a full service and 4 new tires on it. It came with 305 hp and 330 to stock. But mine has a k&n intake, 3 in flow master exhaust, 52mm dual throttle body, crane cams ignition, after market fuel regulator and a full hotckiss suspension (strut tower brace, upper lower trailing arms, pan hard bar) eibach lowering springs, tokiko blue shocks,18" wheels and 255 45 r 18 tires. I was going to race it but ended up getting a pickup a year later for work (was an electrician) and then I joined the army and got stationed in Germany so I left it at my parents house.

 

The LT1 would be one of the worst engines if you retain the optispark distributor. It does not like any moisture what so-ever. It would have to either have a coil-pack conversion or a traditional distributor conversion. Plus the spark plugs are a nightmare unless it has long tubes on it.