The price is high. The price can be a lot higher if you go to the wrong shop first. It you're confident the car is going to come out perfectly, it's worth it for the peace of mind.

 

$200/hr.? WOW-I haven't had the misfortune to find any shop anywhere that has charged that much....yet. C&S Corvettes in Sarasota, Florida is a top rated shop, and theyre not at $200 yet. Even at $200/hr, thats still 16-1/2 hours!! I think Stevie Wonder could do it qucker than damn near 17 hours! Anyway.......

 

Wow, dude!!! We are just trying to help, and saying they're cleaning you out, and you could get this done for a lot less. No need to call people a lazy piece of ****. Youre $$$$$. Blow it any way you want.......

 

QUOTE "So some of us don’t have the time or knowledge to do it ourself which is why I take it to a professional I get that you’re a lazy unemployed daddy’s money POS and have all the time in the word but I have to work and I don’t have the know-how. If you’re gonna be a dick take your lazy *** back to the garage and go jerk off or whatever it is your lazy *** does all day"

WOOPS!

 

Just keep in mind you will get really good advice on this board. And remember you will get some responses that you don't agree with and **** you off. But bar none this is the best forum for c5 Corvette advice.

 

huh?😯 Make it a winter project w some other vette guys that are knowledgeable 👍🏻 Wishing you the best, peace.

 

so seriously, how much time do you figure an experienced mechanic (be it paied or in his free time) needs to:

- remove/install heads, clean surface and holes
- remove/install springs, check pushrod length, preload and guides
- check valves, resurface/replace
- remove, check bores, replace lifters
- remove/install everything on top of engine
- remove install everything on front of engine
- remove/install, degree cam, check bearings
- radiator and condenser (no idea if needed, most people would)
- manifolds/gaskets
- test drive, check for leaks, clean etc.
- what did i forget?

not rushing anything so all of it is perfect.

edit: should i ever catch 15 guys working on my car (eating pizza and drinking beer), ill reach for the shot gun.

 

I typed out a long post and decided to scrap it due to me sounding like a complete *******.

Short version. If you’re not mechanically inclined buy a newer more powerful model Vette.
If you spend $6000 plus on a cam swap for a C5 then you’re a fool.
The C5 is a very easy car to work on despite what many believe. LS motors are as basic as it gets. You don’t even have to stab a distributor. The car itself is stripped down and absolutely nothing is exotic. The whole damn car is simple aside from a gear swap. Even that’s not so much hard but you need a shim kit that’s not commonly available and needs to be rented.
Nut up and learn your car

 

I’m sure what I make a year is a drop in the bucket for some here. That’s said I made $285k last year and there isn’t a chance in hell I would pay what equates to a week and a half’s take home pay for a cam swap.
I hope you realize that the professionals are often nothing but hacks. There are handfuls of great shops, but even then they are an only as good as the wage earner who’s turning the wrench.
You can pay for their time but don’t fool yourself into thinking they work magic as corvette specialists. Any competent mechanic that can work on a f150 should find the c5 easier.

 

Shop rates are pretty high due to the overhead these days. It’s also going to vary by region by a large margin. I doubt a $1000 will get it done post Covid.
That said it’s a weekend job . Sat to disassemble and drink beer. Sunday to recover from beer and reassemble.

 

$6500 for a cam install without a tune is absolutely nuts as is the markup on the parts. Keep looking for another shop.

 

I just checked Rockauto, Felpro head gaskets that also include valve cover gaskets and new =valve seals are $139.

 

You do not need to remove the heads for a cam and spring swap. I documented this process with a spread sheet when I did a head/cam/header mod in the spring. I went down several rabbit holes (including ported used 243 heads and a FAST intake) and that drove up cost of the project. I also used top notch parts when cheaper alternatives for parts are out there. Post #101 of the link below has the Excel spread sheet of PN's and cost of every part. Devil is in the details...
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-coupe-m6.html
Look here if you would like to see what is involved as far as work with some good tips on performing the work yourself.
http://www.ls1howto.com/index.php?article=1
If you look at the above link in the "coming soon" section he is working on a C5 cam and spring swap instructions. There are several youtube videos detailing what is involved. Again No need to remove the heads for a cam and spring swap. Perhaps that is why this guy is so expensive he gave a price with few details?
Good Luck

 

Bill Curly. Sorry didn’t mean to quote you just the quote you posted.
Looking at the invoice I just have to shake my head. It’s a bit disappointing that such a large percentage of the Corvette community is non mechanically inclined and has to face paying the “Vette Tax” or go without. It’s really part of the fun doing your own mods. In some posts I probably come off like an *******. It’s not my intention. Sometimes I have to step back and realize some really smart people just don’t get mechanical tech.
What I really want is to encourage more people to start taking on the projects. At least the ones who have the urge that are maybe apprehensive. It does involve an investment in tools and having the space to work, but it’s less complex than most think. A lot of it’s repetitive. Once you remove a torque tube then now you also know how to pull a transmission, install a converter, change out a diff, install exhaust or catback, fix linkage, change 02 sensors, replace a half shaft. Probably other things I’m not thinking of. Next time you need a water pump take that job on.

 

a bit of a difference between a water pump and torque tube, no? many guys dont do all mods themselves be it because they dont want to, dont have the skills or because they have many motor vehicles (like me). i would even say most enthusiasts dont touch their cars themselves. i dont think somebody without prior experience should start digging into his engine. something as simple as lash adjustment leads to animated discussions all over the net. isnt it the do-it-your-selvers that fill all the forums with never ending, constantly breaking projects? i, for myself, am into "hot-rodding" for the process, i cant really drive the cars anyway. but many see it differently. take a racer (and be it only track days) who has a job, not a garage owner. do you think he can do much work on the car him self, even if he wanted to? no, the car goes directly to the tuning shop after every race, where they do what needs to be done. besides its simply not every bodys idea of fun to crawl under a car and take out the drivetrain.

generally a cam change includes the lifters* and even the bearings. (doesnt apply to the guys that swap cams every weekend for the hell of it.)

i would still like to hear some estimates (→#27).

*yes, with rollers also.

 

Joe

You are 100% correct. You DO NOT need to remove the heads to replace a cam or swap springs.. That being said, Who would install a new performance cam using aged OEM lifters that can fail in short order on a performance grind cam or use old OEM aged lifter trays that keep the lifters rollers properly aligned with the cam lobe. Unless the engine was previously worked and those parts were new high quality parts, I for one would not go that route. Especially if I was paying $6K for a cam swap.

BC

 

I commend your restraint! To put it very lightly, the foregoing comment to which you made this response was inappropriate and spoken by a fool.

 

Bill, your advice is spot on, as always. There's no way I'd install a .600" lift cam and springs on 50,000 mile lifters and trays. Probably more LS engines have failed due to reusing old trays, or new aftermarket trays, than any other engine part failure. Possible exception would be the installation of the wrong, or damaged, oil pump O-ring. It's all about your desire level. 3 years ago, I had my LS7 heads "fixed." I broke my left shoulder before the heads were back on. 6 weeks later, though it hurt pretty bad, I reinstalled the heads, and torqued them down myself. At 67 years old with a bum shoulder. As for the OP, since he got P/O, he hasn't been back. Since he is determined to spend $6,000+ at that shop, so be it.....

 

Wow. I had to go and reload my popcorn after reading this one.

Some of these C5s as an entire car are worth 6k. A brand new fully decked out blower kit is 6k and any fool with a socket set and a jack can install one. While I do fully understand that we all come from different backgrounds and comfort levels with mechanical work, I have to say that this thread pulled a LOT of good advice from folks I consider to be the 'heavies' on the current C5 forums and the OP chose to go some place else entirely with it. That's unfortunate. But I hope for his sake that he was able to swallow the rest of his foot and come back for some more good info and guidance.

I didn't look: what state is this guy in? Do we know anyone over there we'd recommend?
​​​​​​

 

It’s pretty obvious the labor rates are drastically different based on location. I think the C5’s little corner of this site will reflect a more hands on attitude as time goes on. I really wish I would have documented some of my work I did on my old C5. The Z I bought already had the cam installed, but I have heads that need to go on I bought. Waiting till the temps drop lower so my car being down isn’t a big deal.