BBC Turbo 400 to LT4 T56

[builtbyKane]

Originally Posted by Trackman101

Mounted up the new condenser. Now time to figure out the heat exchanger mount for the supercharger.

I like the way that sounds.

[Trackman101]

I was dreading cutting the firewall and mounting the clutch master. Getting the inside of the firewall smoothed out was a bit if a challenge but it worked out not to bad in the end.
My Mustang hydroboost adapter worked like a charm. Both the clutch and hydroboost linkages are done

[Trackman101]

I plan to tackle the heat exchanger and dbw pedal this week.

[Trackman101]

The stock oil cooler had a conflict of space with the front cross member. The cross member won out. The remote set up arrived. Not sure it will fit up front. It may have to go under the box on the drivers side.

[Trackman101]

Had a pal come over and we tweaked the existing exhaust set up to the LT4 headers. Couple beer and we had it done.
The low profile couplers form Ultimate seem like a quality pieces. Hope they seal well.

[Trackman101]

Well I didn't get to building the mount for the drive by wire gas pedal but did get the heat exchanger mounted and have a bracket designed to mount the oil cooler up front. AFCO custom built this dual pass unit for me. I've modified the hood latch brace a little bit to make room for it. While I have the grill out I'm going to cut out around the headlight for fresh air for the intake/air filter.

[Trackman101]

This must be the most boring 650HP LT4 build on the interweb. I generally don't talk to myself this much!

[68bowtie]

Originally Posted by Trackman101

This must be the most boring 650HP LT4 build on the interweb. I generally don't talk to myself this much!

Coincidence I'm sure. Not my style, but sure are some nice parts there. Keep it up.

[builtbyKane]

That's looking great.

[Trackman101]

Chopped a hole in the rad support today to supply cold air to the filter. Might have gotten a little carried away with the size of it . Ol well..
Rear brakes showed up finally. Maybe I can get it on its' wheels again tomorrow and then do some measuring for a new 4" driveshaft.
Started researching rad hoses. GM decided 1 3/8 would be a good idea off the water pump. Might be tricky to find something to work well.

[aboesec10]

loving it!!!!
This sucker is gonna be killer

[ryans69chevy]

So jealous...

What t56 transmission did you get and from where?

[Trackman101]

Originally Posted by ryans69chevy

So jealous...

What t56 transmission did you get and from where?

I purchased the trans from my local GM dealer. They offered to match the best price I could find on the web. It's the magnum with the close ratio.

Got the oil cooler mounted. It took some custom brackets as it was a tight fit. Plumbing was a breeze. These push lock fittings and hose are so easy to work with. I have a oil thermostat in line. It opens at 180. The fans are controlled by a thermo switch as well and they come on at 190.
Rummaged threw a bunch of rad hoses at the local parts store. Grabbed a couple and was able to get the lower hose figured out. It was the first one I grabbed! I thought I would try to carry on my luck by messing with the AC compressor and attempted to connect a couple fittings to the manifold but no dice. .....They hit the frame. I'll have to sleep on that problem.

[ryans69chevy]

You will have to tell us how you like driving that combo when you get it done! When are you hoping to have it ready for the road?

That's cool that your GM dealer did that for you. Do they do that a lot? I've never heard of that. I wouldn't imagine they get that much better pricing on them than we would unless they are a frequent shopper.

You need to post up some pics of your garage/shop! It looks like a nice place to be! I love the color of the floor!

[Trackman101]

Originally Posted by ryans69chevy

You will have to tell us how you like driving that combo when you get it done! When are you hoping to have it ready for the road?

.......I'm from the great white north so I have time before it hits the road.

That's cool that your GM dealer did that for you. Do they do that a lot? I've never heard of that. I wouldn't imagine they get that much better pricing on them than we would unless they are a frequent shopper.

My Gm dealer knows me. I've purchased a few vehicles from them and he could tell I had done my home work on price. Ultimately I would have paid a bit more to stay local and have him support me.

You need to post up some pics of your garage/shop! It looks like a nice place to be! I love the color of the floor!

I am fortunate to have a bit of a mancave.


Got the brakes finished up.(by that I mean mounted) A bit of a glitch with the axle offset. Moser suggested the brake package to go with from Wilwood. I followed their instruction and purchased the Wilwood kit but the calipers didn't center up on the rotors. I got the wrong spacer from Wilwood or Moser messed up the offset. Option A was to pay for new spacers and shipping that cost more than the spacers or option B build shims. I went with B. The aluminum shim is pictured in the 1st pic. The 13" brakes still look a little small on a 20" wheel but the cost to upgrade to bigger just didn't make sense to me.

[Trackman101]

Nothing to exciting. Built a couple brake lines to complete the installation of the rear brakes. Tweaked the emergency brake cables to work with the Wilwoods.
Measured twice and ordered an aluminum driveshaft.I should have it next week. The output of the transmission is 3 degrees down. That's the best I could get it. The rear is 2 degrees down without shims. I will leave it for now and adjust if needed after a road test.
Mounted the supercharger coolant pump and routed the lines. It fit very nicely where the old steering box was.
I am starting to design the cold air intake and radiator fan shroud set up. The tube and the shroud are fighting over the same space so it's going to be tricky.

[Jason7121]

What did you do with the parking brake I'm getting ready to hook mine up to my Ford 9" with the internal park shoes.

[Trackman101]

Originally Posted by Jason7121

What did you do with the parking brake I'm getting ready to hook mine up to my Ford 9" with the internal park shoes.

I already had a Lokar Ebrake set up from my prior set up. I just needed to shorten the cables and order an adapter to convert from the ball end to more of a clevis style that Wilwood has.

[Jason7121]

Oh ok I bought a wilwood cable kit just need to adapt it to my cable that comes from park brake

[Trackman101]

Installed a new aluminum driveshaft. I was going to go with a 4" but ultimately went with 3.5 as it should be able to handle the power . I am glad I did, the clearance with the top of yhe crossmember for the trailing arms is really close the suspension is fully compressed. I've also started mocking up the air intake and the layout of the cooling fans and shroud. Hopefully I can get the shroud built in the new year.
Like most people I have put off the wiring for too long. I am going to try to wrap my head around how to integrate the LT4 harness in to the stock set up. I had planned to move the battery under the box but for now I am going to leave it in the stock location. With a big airbox planned for the driverside I think leaving it in the stock location might make the engine bay look a little more symmetrical.

[LakeAnna]

That looks awesome

[Trackman101]

..oh ya I've started messing with the fuel tank. This pump is out of a CTSV. This pump will feed the high pressure pump on the engine.It's going to take a bit of work to make it fit properly. I was a little nervous cutting into the tank as I used it all year with my old set up. I rinsed it with hot water a number of times and let it vent for a couple weeks first. ..I'm still here.

[Jason7121]

I can see your concern with cutting into the tank. Glad your still here too!

[Pinky6872]

Looking good!

[Trackman101]

Got the dbw pedal bracket finished up and installed. I got a little lazy and welded the stock pedal to the arm.
...I'll probably regret not bolting it on.