Hey everyone!
It's been a long time since I have been on these forums. I will try to make a long story short
I have a black 1996 LT4 coupe with the ZF6 speed that has been sitting for almost a year with a spun bearing. I'm not sure how catastrophic the damage is yet but will find out soon enough

I went through some rough times over the past couple years but finally have a half decent job and am actually caught up on bills so between buying Xmas presents for my siblings over the next two months, I am saving up to get this Vett back on the road.

The goal is to tear into the car shortly after the first of the year. During the mean time, I will be doing my research and asking a bunch of questions.

I have a pretty good idea about what I want to do with the car but am still open to suggestions on many factors

I plan to tear the motor down to the block because despite how bad the damage is, my car had well over 200K miles on it when it died
It's time to rebuild from scratch however I am not building an all out performance machine. I want to build a fun to drive weekend car that may still see track duty once in a blue moon just for fun and spirited driving on the road otherwise

My goal is to use the LT4 hotcam. I know a lot of you may moan and say there are plenty of other cams out there that are better and you may be right. But this is a very proven combo and I want as few headaches as possible.

Feel free to ask any questions. I will update this a little later today with more information. Right now I have to clock in and go to work.

Thanks in advance to some of the best car guys on the Internet!
Cheers!

 

My advice is simple. Get all the parts,gaskets,seals, and hardware well before you start tearing it down. Why? You'll be able to start rebuilding as soon as the machine shop is through. That way you'll still be familiar with what went where. Your research should include finding a good machine shop with a builder that is familiar with SBC and possibly LT1s or 4s. I live in NASCAR country and found a builder that does all the dirt track cars near by. Watch you tube for how to rebuild SBCs. After I did this, I went with an upgrade to 383 and a line bore and hone. I bought an Eagle LT1/4 rotating assembly from $umitt, but had it balanced anyway. Very minor clearancing was required, not a big thing at all. You tube will also show you where and why LT1/4s spin bearings. Easy fix, again, it's the builder that should know. I, too, went with a GM hotcam for the same reason you did. Besides I want to be able to use pump gas. I had other things done to the block and heads like squaring the surfaces and a good valve job.

After doing all this, I wondered if I should have just upgraded to a newer Vette. I still like the shape and feel of a C4. Enjoy the project and try not to put yourself on a time clock or deadline.

 

Hey thanks for the reply, Strick

I actually do not have the space or tools to do this project myself
My best friend owns an auto repair shop and I will be having them do the vast majority of the labor
I am tempted to start buying parts now but I've just been putting money on my tab there at the shop building up a size able credit I can use when it comes time to pull the motor

I am really wanting to at least get a valve job done on the heads and possibly even some polishing of the bowl to make everything smooth and flow better
Possibly shave the heads and use the impala gaskets to raise compression a little bit
These reverse cooled LT motors can handle quite a bit of compression and still run 93 octane that we have here in north Florida

I'm not really sure what to start buying as far as parts go
Right before the car died I spent a considerable amount of money on a performance clutch, single mass flywheel, electric water pump, opti and new plugs and wires
Hoping I can reuse some of that but I guess we will see

 

Not sure what machine shop I will use for block work
Probably whichever one local my shop owner buddy suggests
I am kinda hoping I can reuse my 4 bolt main block and bore it out to have 355ci under my "new" LT4

Still havnt decided if I want to send my heads and intake to Lloyd or not for him to do a valve job and get them all polished up and port matched
I wanna keep my lightweight hollow sodium filled valves but stay around the 195 head size they are from the factory so I don't want much porting done
I don't really think its nessecary for the hotcam
(Even if I DO decide to throw 1.7 scorpion rockers on there in the future ala Nathan plemons)

Planning on getting the entire hotcam kit with the entire valve train since mine has over 200K miles on it
I wanna start with all new parts there since I can get it fairly cheap

Hoping I can use the stock rotating assemy with just new rings. Guess we will see how that goes as well

 

Have your guides checked before you start dumping money into heads.
They arent much if you do need but know the little stuff adds up ie decking seals springs etc etc
Some solid bowl/short turn work is a good bang for the buck
For a mild 350 I wouldnt make those heads big and make the car a pooch
A big flow # can be tempting but not always the best choice

Few bucks or some time having them looked over to see what you may be getting into would be very well spent.

 

you can never tell how deep the mud puddle is from the top....so with that said...be prepared for some surprises.

First off "spun bearing" ? rod bearing...not necessarily that big of deal..spun main bearing is a big deal.

Before I went further, I'd drop the pan and attempt to assess the lower end damage;

will I need a new block?

or if the main bearing saddles are okay, is the crank okay, or at least salvageable?

when you can answer these questions you will have a much better idea of how much money the rebuild will cost.

at a minimum, rebore block, new pistons, new rods, new bearings, new cam bearings install, new oil pump, new timing chain, new gasket set, new cam and new lifters, and for god's sake don't forget to replace the stub shaft / oil pump drive.

and that's just for the lower end / short block that everything else bolts to.

You may want to investigate whether a complete rebuilt short block is available.

Good luck

 

Here is my .02. Shop around and find a short block . Use your stock heads as long as they are good. Install a LT4 Hot Cam and reassemble.

 

Start by writing down a list of what you think you want. Talk to your guy that will be doing the work. Use the search function here to come up with a list. BUT, start by deciding what you want the Vette to do, i.e., drag car, road course, reliable daily driver or all 3. Then figure how much you have to spend on it. This is usually the beginning of the compromises. Make it fun.