FWIW, I would not use the Camaro bellhousing with the 18 degree tilt, the bellhousing I have is from a full size Chevy truck and it has the Muncie bolt pattern on it but it also has the boss on it for the hydraulic clutch slave cylinder. The one I have is set up for a 168 tooth flywheel though, so you may need to find out which one will work for you if you want hydraulic clutch (the original C3 Vette 4 speeds were mechanical) and a 153 tooth flywheel. I bought an 11" clutch that has the proper 26 spline disc for the V8 Camaro WC T5 input shaft and should bolt up to a 168 tooth flywheel. I've got all the parts I need for the conversion now except the flywheel, the starter and the speedo adapter and speedo gears. I'm going to buy one of those high torque mini-starters that have both 153 and 168 tooth mounting holes. Then I need to get the shifter I have cut off at the base and have an offset dogleg welded onto it so it comes up in the right spot in the console...

 

So I have the pedals installed and the hydraulics in place (89 camaro slave, 89 one-ton master). I am waiting on an 18" AN3 line to connect them, and I need to come up with some way to connect the master cylinder to the pedal. I will try to post some pictures tonight.

I am going from a 168 tooth flexplate to a 153T flywheel. My starter works great and I don't want to change it if I don't have to. I've tried searching, but I cant find anywhere to buy just a nose piece. Is this possible? Or, does anyone know what vehicles I'd look for in a yard to find the right one?

I'm going to move on to the shifter and trans mount this afternoon, and hopefully come back to the starter/hydraulics during the week when parts come in. I'm hoping to have this all buttoned up by the 23rd, so I can go spend the holiday with family. If not I don't have a car

 

So between yesterday afternoon and today, I have spent probably 12 hours trying to get this damn transmission to go in. I have the bellhousing bolted up and I am trying to slide the trans in, but it wont go the last 2" or so. I assume the input shaft isnt sliding though the clutch splines, and I have no idea what I could be doing wrong. I need the trans in place to mark the shifter cutout and measure driveshaft length, so there is nothing else to work on until it goes in.

How do you guys put in transmissions?

 

Did you use the cruddy plastic alignment tool they supply with the clutch? I always lift up on it as I seat the pressure plate bolts to compensate for all the slop. You can then turn the tailshaft if you think you need to in order to move the input shaft to align with the clutch disc splines. If the last 1/2 inch won't go you can hook up the hydraulics and push the clutch pedal (so the disc isn't locked in place) for the input shaft to align and go into the pilot bushing.

But if you just want it in temporarily to mark and measure, install it without the clutch, do what you gotta do, then put it together the right way. That's what I did, for the same reason, but time wasn't a factor.

 

I think that was the issue. I ended up using my jack handle as a lever to pry the clutch fork back and disengage the pressure plate, and then using my other hand to wiggle the transmission around until it slid in. I guess the crappy plastic tool was to blame, at least in part.

It still wouldn't go the last 1/4", so I ended up committing the cardinal sin of trans. installation and drew it up flush to the bellhousing using the mounting bolts. It went in easy enough that way and didn't require much force (tiny 1/4 drive ratchet so I wouldn't get carried away tightening), so I assume there was just a little friction from the clutch splines or pilot bushing. Next time I will put a tiny bit of grease on both. Hopefully I didn't wreck the pilot bushing pulling the trans on like this, but I guess time will tell.

Now I need to make the trans mount and find some way to offset the shifter, and then put the car back together.

 

So, tonight went from good to less good pretty fast.

There is a boss on the transmission below the speedometer output that is jamming into the crossmember so it cannot be fully reinstalled (image attached. Also note the trans is supported just out of the pic by a jack stand. It is NOT hanging from the bellhousing). I dont recall seeing anything like that in other install threads, but maybe I am not remembering accurately. The trans needs to go in another inch or 2 from the picture, and it is jammed into the crossmember. Is it safe to cut a chunk out of the crossemember to clear the trans? It looks like doing so could compromise its strength... I am also using the camaro bellhousing so the trans is tilted and the mount is flat.

Also, the shifter is now behaving strangely. With the stick in the neutral position, I cannot spin the output shaft. I also cannot get the shifter to move into first gear, and although it moves toward third it doesn't feel like it quite seats all the way. 2,4,5,R all feel fine. I swear I tested this before installing it, but is this behavior indicative of me reassembling the shifter wrong after inspecting the transmission? I am pretty sure everything was in neutral and it just slipped together like it should, but now it seems broken.
If it matters the clutch is in but the hydraulics are not connected (waiting on AN braided line) so I cant release the clutch. I don't see how this would affect anything though...