nspec

Hey guys. So my original motor has a knock in it. Im planning on keeping the car for a while but wanting to swap in a newer fuel injected V8 with an auto along with some other upgrades.

I want to find a wrecked donor car, such as a 2009 Camaro V8 with an auto, or possibly a Gen 2 CTS-V (most likely not unless i find one super cheap)
Along with the swap, i want to upgrade all the brakes to disk brakes from the donor car as well.

What would be a good car to go with?
Any one swapped out motors with a late model V8? Wanting to do it within decent price range.
I'm not looking for high performance or show car quality stuff either, just something very reliable and get all the parts from a donor car.

I tried searching but had too much to go thru and I'm short on time for now.

Thanks in advance!

Olds64

That's quite a monumental task. If you're interested in a late model fuel injected v8 I would suggest checking out crate engines available at Summit or Jegs. You'll have to most likely replace the Slim Jim Rotohydramatic transmission which would mean major floor surgery. The TH400 and 700R4 are quite a bit wider than the Slim Jim (thus the name). You can probably find a kit for aftermarket disc brakes from Scarebird. Good luck, post some pics once you get a chance.

Jon442

An LS motor of some stripe would probably be the easiest, given the amount of aftermarket support, It still will require a good deal of fabrication. If you're skilled in that, no problem. But if not, prepare to spend some big bucks. Don't rule out eBay for parts acquisition. Five years ago I bought a 6.4 Hemi crate motor with all the accessories for $7500. Plan on floor surgery for the trans, no matter which one you go with.

Good luck with the project and keep us posted.

Charlie Jones

Are you using premium (93 octane) gasoline ?