Well it seems at least one person is interested in this (Can't say no the Hex, can I?) So here goes. Here is my car Details: 1996 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am 5.7L (350ci) V8 LT1 6 Speed Manual Current KM: ~118,000 Bought the car 2 years ago, it had 99,400 KM on it, basically 2nd owner (owner before me had it less than a couple months and put on less than 1,000KM, his wife didn't approve the purchase it seemed). I've never turned a car over 100,000, so that was pretty cool =P I had to replace the clutch shortly after getting it, the throwout bearing decided to explode. Centerforce..your throwout bearing sucked. Fast forward a couple years, and the head gasket goes. Can't blame it, it's 20 years old now. Apparently gaskets 20 years ago weren't as good as the ones out today. Being a little over the 100,000KM mark there's lots of parts that are nearing end of life. I decide, screw it, the engine is coming out and apart anyway, time to replace everything. I took it to the most recommended engine guy in the area, and possibly the country? (I guess according to some people). It's been decided that pistons, crankshaft, and valves will all be replaced with newer, better parts. Distributor, water pump, all rubbers, seals, washers, basically, if it looks worn out, it's getting replaced. The clutch was recommended to get replaced as well while we're in there, but once he got it apart he saw that it was still basically a new clutch. New Pistons New Crankshaft/valves Resurfaced and restored head So where are we now? Basically, Steve(engine dude) decided the factory clearances on the block weren't good enough for his standards, so that was sent in to get resurfaced. It just got back to the shop. We're also waiting for a couple of the parts from down south to arrive still. I guess some parts are already getting hard to find for this car. Luckily I'm doing this now I guess... Next week I'll be going to the shop, and then things will be all put together. Hopefully will get some good pics. We're a little behind, but in a couple weeks she should be parked in my driveway again.
Fellow LT1 owner! Had the same problem with the throw out bearing on my Center Force as well in less than 100 miles. What did you go with on the crank? The photo looks like cast and unless it is OEM you took a step backwards in reliability. Also be leery of anyone that interchanges the 1970s "LT-1" moniker with the 1990's "LT1" as they share nothing but a similarity in name.
Just remember the trick for parts, never tell them it's for any special model or they jack up the price. It's like ordering vette parts that are the same as camaro parts. vette parts have a sucker tax on them.
It's good to hear it wasn't just exclusive to mine. Oh well, no more Centerforce. I'm honestly not too sure, I think it's OEM.. I would hope he knows the difference between the old and the new LT1, he's seems like a real smart dude, but I'll check with him to make sure. That's definitely good to know, thanks! Glad to see another LT1 owner on here Oh I wouldn't doubt it! Luckily buddy here is a real straight up dude, he's giving me a good deal on it actually since I gave him lots of time to do it (all winter pretty much, heheh). We also know a lot of the same people so he's giving me the "friend" price.
