Heart Transplant

[FDEddie]

After lurking forever, the population of this board has inspired me to do some surgery....

This has been my DD for about ten years. She's in pretty good shape but gettin' tired.
Here are some pic's of her current state:












She's been hauling my butt around for ten years with only minor complaints, but like I said, she's tired. I was thinking about an engine rebuild w/TBI and a TH700R4. I did a bunch of research here and there, and was inspired to go a little further (in no small part by Killer71 and 68shortstep). Recently found a 6.0 LQ4/4l60E for a good price and started to plan the transplant.

More too come!!!!! (hopefully on schedule )

[FDEddie]

A few more pics.....

[Rokcrln]

Wow that is a great looking stock truck! I like your plans but I am not sure if I could bring my self to take a SWB BB truck with alot of options and do a heart trans plant, well yes I could but I am sure I would get yelled at by alot of the board members. If that is a true BB truck and that is the original motor please crate it up and store it for later in the trucks life. Another ten years and that truck will be worth a few bucks in stock form so do your trans plant but try not to do any mods that can not be reverced later. Kind of like saving for retirement

Keep us posted!

Kevin
LFD Inc.

[1956cameo]

I have to completely agree with rokcrln. You have a great truck, especially if it is an all original BB truck. If that is the numbers matching BB then I would definately NOT do the transplant. If you do transplant then keep the original engine, that truck wouldnt be worth nearly as much without the numbers matching engine. Either way its your call, but that is my opinion. Also your truck is my PERFECT DREAM TRUCK!

[Richard8971]

I would have to agree as well. Keep your existing motor and rebuild it. Beautiful truck by the way!

Good luck on the project and keep us updated with pics!

Don

[Bishops Trucks]

That's a fine looking original you have. I see nothing wrong with the transplant myself but like they said, pack that motor away on an engine dolley and stuff it in a corner until you want to rebuild it and put it back in it's original resting place.

[Hart_Rod]

Nice survivor BB truck! Want to trade it for a nice survivor BB Burb?!

[FDEddie]

I have no idea if the truck is original. The SPID in the glove box is an obvious reproduction and lists every option known to man!!! (slight exaggeration) I have always intended to keep the "original" drivetrain. None of the mods I'll be doing will be irreversable.

However......There's no turning back now!!!!

Cowl Removed:


Bumper gone:


Ready to come off:


I don't have any pics of the actual lift. No free hands available......
But it's off:


Another view:


And the naked front end:




Thats all for now.........

[killer71]

Ohh yea....that's what I'm talkin bout......fuel injected all the way!!!!

[b&a72]

Very nice truck! Keep those pics coming.

[franky69c10]

nice truck, what motor are you gonna put in that bad boy

[68 short step]

you wont be dissappointed with the Ls engine...keep the pics comeing...

[truckmanloco]

Originally Posted by 68 short step

you wont be dissappointed with the Ls engine...keep the pics comeing...

ill second that the the 6.0 is an awesome engine

[72BlckButy]

Wow... what a project truck! That thing is beautiful as is, so I can only imagine what it will look like in the end.

[Highsteel]

Very nice!

Subscribed

[FDEddie]

Got the BB out.......







And here she is. Sitting next to her granddaughter

[FDEddie]

I started working on my adapter plates. After shopping all over, I decided i wasn't paying $50+ for a couple of steel plates w/holes in them that may not even work. I had a local metal shop cut me a starting point. 1/4" plate, 4.375" x 7.375"



I located and drilled for the bosses in the block, but not for the mounts. I'll bolt these up and slide the engine/trans in and see where everything lines up.



While I was at it I modded the compressor bracket to clear the new mounts/plates as well. I forgot to take a before pic, but you get the idea.







I should be able to test fit the engine/trans soon. So far, with all I've learned here, it's going pretty smooth (insert catastrophe here).

[TonyJohnson]

Gonna be sweet.

[FDEddie]

And a catastrophe strikes! (just a little one.) I should have kept my mouth shut. More on that, later.......

I got to test fit the eng/trans today. I first dropped it in with the new towers
in the forward holes, right where the BB towers were.




No dice. Exhaust manifolds hit the front crossmember and no amount of
hammerin' would create enough clearance. Soooo, pick it up and and move it back.

Done. The tower bolts in the rear holes create lots of exhaust manifold
clearance...







.....a little tight on the firewall/valve cover area, but nothing
that would cause a problem. Good.


Here comes the (little) catastrophe......The 4L80E is LONG!! Not only is it way
longer than the old TH350 but the mount is WAAAAY
back on the end of the tailshaft. I'm using one of these:



In the above pic you are looking at the front of the crossmember. With the
mount on the tranny and perched on the crossmember there does not appear
to be enough clearance for the drive shaft yoke/U joint. It looks like it will hit
the crossmember. Now, Is there a different trans mount for the 4L80E? Taller
maybe? I don't have a yoke yet so I'm just eyeballing, but it sure does look
tight. Not only that but with the engine mounted so far back, it pushes the
trans crossmember back to where the rear bolt holes are just inside those
"flares" in the middle of the frame rails. I don't think that will pose a problem,
but I don't want to start drilling until I get some outside opinions. Anyone?

[FDEddie]

Oh, just in case anybody was wondering...Those are 1999 corvette exhaust manifolds.

[68 short step]

how close is your firewall to the engine/inatke??

[FDEddie]

Originally Posted by 68 short step

how close is your firewall to the engine/inatke??

The engine/intake has lots of room all the way around. The only place it is
close is (red circle) the DS head/valve cover. The rounded area where the vent
tube mounts is 1.5" away from the firewall. It doesn't look like would cause any
problem, but with the crossmember situation, I was thinking about mounting the
towers in some "new" holes, right in the middle of the existing ones.

[franky69c10]

any updates

[gringoloco]

Nice work. Did you drill your plates yet?

For your trans crossmember, you could do what I did to mine...
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...&postcount=314

[FDEddie]

Originally Posted by gringoloco

Nice work. Did you drill your plates yet?

Just for the block bosses, not for the mounts yet. It looks like they'll use the
forward/bottom hole for the bottom mount hole just like all the commercially
available plates.

Originally Posted by gringoloco

For your trans crossmember, you could do what I did to mine...
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...&postcount=314

Looks good, but more than I need. What trans are you using?? I think I may be
able to get away with a .5-1" block under the mount. I just need to go get a
yoke and see for sure, it may not even be an issue.......