I have a mild built 350 w/350 turbo trans and a solid Malibu. I am looking to bring my '67 up to date. I am thinking serpentine belt, fuel injection, new wiring, new gauges, interior, disc brakes, etc. The trick is that I am building a driver not a show car. I need to do it on a budget. Any suggestion on which vehicles would be good donors? I don't want to do much fabrication but I do have a friend that works at a machine shop.

Thanks

Take a look in the brakes and suspension forum. Do a search there, and you'll find a ton of info on brake swaps. I swapped in '72 chevelle front disc's to replace my 68's front drums. But there oare other better options as well if you want better brakes than factory disc's.

Also, take a look for the Jeep power steering swap info. You can install a late model Jeep steering box, with very little effort. It has a fast ratio, and better road feel than most stock chevelle boxes.

Sorry I'm not much more help, but that should get you going for a little while! :)

. I am thinking [FONT=&quot]serpentine belt, fuel injection, new wiring, new gauges, interior, disc brakes, etc. I need to do it on a budget. I don't want to do much fabrication...

Thanks



This going to sound discouraging but
I would leave the car as it is, if you do not like fabricating. Like all projects it usually takes longer than you thought or you find other problems along the way.

In the past few months I been considering adding Fuel Injection, an overdrive transmission, and larger disc brakes. But I added up the cost of these upgrades and for how I will drive, I am better off saving my money and putting it toward a modern sports car that already has all those amenidities.

-Most sertentine belt kits cost over $450 and they often require modification to something.
-To properly installed a fuel injection unit, you should have a baffled gas tank, high pressure fuel lines, electric feul pump etc

I think your modernization idea is pretty cool. Sure, you could buy new car for less... I was looking at S-10 & Tacoma pickups, which are both infinitely better small trucks than my El Camino, but I did it for the Heart's sake. I already did the Grand Cherokee steering box switch, but I think a drastic suspension mod will eventually happen. (oh, just you wait!) I will change the trans to a T56 or 700r4 (have both, can't decide) add aftermarket A/C, 4WD brakes, tilt & tele column, power windows & locks, and a new leather interior. Then I will commute 150 miles a day in it on my construction job, and in my eyes it will look better than any new Super Duty pickup. :D

For a daily drive I would use a serpentine set up from a 4.3 S10 or other factory set up, very inexpensive and you could polish it yourself if you like. Personally, a custom set up is a waste of money and they don't look that great.

Here is another option. Find an old 9C1 Caprice 94-96 and pull the engine and drop it in the Chevelle and you'll have a car that will get 20+ MPG and still have the power to get out of it's own way. If you find a whole car cheap, you will get everything you need including engine, computer, wiring harness, 12" front disc brakes, rear disc brakes, serpentine accessory system. The only thing with the front brake rotors is they are a 5 on 6 bolt pattern so you need to replace them with the 1LE F body Rotors. You can even use the transmission out of the car if you want to make it a complete swap. The only down side is a tuneup on that engines is going to cost about $1000, but it is good for 130,000 miles.
Bottom line, 94-96 9C1 Caprices are excellent donor cars.

4-wheel discs for $800: http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=115940

For suspension on a tight budget, rebuild stock with rubber bushings (not poly, especially in the rear), box the rear lowers, add 1-1/8" front (from 2nd-gen F-body) and 7/8" rear (new from GM dealership if you can't find used) sway-bars, and buy some good drop springs such as Hotchkis or Eibach, matched up with Hotchkis re-valved Bilstein shocks. (note, Springs and Shocks are the only thing Hotchkis sells that's worth their prices)

If you can afford it, upgrade the front suspension geometry with a Stage II+ kit from SC&C (www.scandc.com) which greatly improves lateral grip, tire wear, roll stiffness, bumpsteer, etc. This is far better, than the B & F body "tall spindle" swaps, and not much more expensive.

Jeep Grand Cherokee, or Caprice 9C1 steering box (do a search for posts by JIML82)

The Caprice LT1 swap is not a bad option, but does get expensive to update the fuel system, and buy a harness if you don't understand the wiring. I got 24mpg on 87 octane and ran a traction-limited 13.82 with 3.08 gears and the 4L60e with mine. :) Mileage dropped to 18mpg since changing to 4.10 gears, but it sure pulls hard. :yes: I'm expecting a 12.99 or 13.0 if I get traction next spring, and reprogramming for 92 octane.

Overdrive will make a bigger difference than fuel-injection though, and a manual trans with a carb will be just as efficient as a similar size & hp injected/auto.

Add electric fans and a big radiator, and you'll have a car that drives/brakes/turns/ and most of all LOOKS better than most new cars while being just as reliable, and much easier to work on. :yes:

Definatly go with the 9C1 swap. I got the whole car, everything running, for $400. Thats a modern engine, od trans, 4 wheel disc brakes, fast ratio steering box and all the wiring right there. If your looking to modernize your car its hard to ignore the 9C1 option.

Here is another option. Find an old 9C1 Caprice 94-96 and pull the engine and drop it in the Chevelle and you'll have a car that will get 20+ MPG and still have the power to get out of it's own way. If you find a whole car cheap, you will get everything you need including engine, computer, wiring harness, 12" front disc brakes, rear disc brakes, serpentine accessory system. The only thing with the front brake rotors is they are a 5 on 6 bolt pattern so you need to replace them with the 1LE F body Rotors. You can even use the transmission out of the car if you want to make it a complete swap. The only down side is a tuneup on that engines is going to cost about $1000, but it is good for 130,000 miles.
Bottom line, 94-96 9C1 Caprices are excellent donor cars.

really wow i have that i 95 implala motor, trans, harness and comp, how can i go about to do that wut mounts do i need and how would i do the harness