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d
kstyer,sarge81 I have my old/new 396 race engine siiting in a corner can I unstall this in my 1979 c-3 without great amount of money and time what do you think this is only a thought something to think of in winter dwa
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Sounds like a cool idea, but I would say not a good idea in my opinion.
You'll have to change out the front springs to big block springs due to the additional weight. Then the car will be nose heavy compared to the small block. There are a couple big block C3's around my area and the owners say they don't handle as well as a small block car.
I believe you'll have to upgrade the radiator as well. Then you'll have to get Corvette specific water pump and drive accessories for the 396.
I don't know if you have a auto or manual transmission. If its a race engine with a radical cam, you'll need a stall converter for a automatic and maybe have the transmission freshened up to handle the extra power. If you have a manual transmission, you'll probably have to put a fresh clutch/pressure plate in. Make sure your u-joints are in good shape to.
That's all I can think of for now. I know Joel and kstyer will add a bunch of "pitfalls" to be aware of.
GEN III 5.7L "LS6" Engine swap
TKO500 5 spd.
3.54 Dana 44
'69 "N11" Sidepipes
Borgeson Steering Box
Born 8/1981
Sequence #3975
Click here to see more pics of my Vette on CarDomain.
Lifetime Member #26
Borgeson Steering Box
Born 8/1981
Sequence #3975
Click here to see more pics of my Vette on CarDomain.
Lifetime Member #26
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thanks that's what I think you told me what I needed to know 396 will sit in corner thanks dwa
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Not just the radiator, but the overflow system and cooling fan and clutch. Heavier motor mounts. Don't forget the larger diameter u joint yoke shafts in the rear diff, and wheel yoke bearing shafts. Of course that means a different dif.
Can you do the swap without all of this? Of course. But it's there for a reason. You may not like the results without them.
Of course some small blocks make a lot of power and our cars handle that, but ALL the other issues still exist. And big blocks always handle worse due to the weight. I would not do a conversion. But having said that, a big block car is still a load of fun, and yes I would love to own one.
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in Forum: C3 Engines, Driveline and Handling
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