anyone know exactly why 4th gen bird clip was changed in 98?

[V]

ok yeah i know it was probably for a few reasons, to get a new style or whatever but i'm really only concerned with one thing. A while back i sorta remember hearing that the 4 gen fbodys were redesigned for 98 to allow the ls1 to fit under the hood. Is that true? i doubt it the more i think about it. The reason i ask is because i plan on putting an ls1 in my 94 firebird and i need to re-clip the front of the car anyway and the lt1 T/A style is cheaper than the ls1 ws6 version i'd do. i figure even if the lt1 style has hood clearence issues, i'll do a custom hood to make more room for the ls1. If anyone has any info on this, please let me know. thanks.

[ar0ck]

Could it also be to addition for the Ram Air set-up?

[NJSPEEDER]

the ls1 is a much smaller engine than an lt1 or a gen1 motor, so i really doubt they went through the trouble of a redesign for that.
i don't know if the lid type air intake clears the stock 4.1 bird hoods. that would make sense for the new hood, but not the rest of teh restyling.
they were losing sales fast to the more recently redesigned mustangs at teh time, that would be the most likely reason for a restyling. sales did pick up after teh new look hit teh market.

later
tim

[V]

ok, sounds good, even if i have to do an lt1 style intake on the ls1 engine, it wouldnt be too bad. now i just gotta find an LS1 bare block....anyone?

anyone know how an LS1 would fit in a 3rd gen?

[V]

it fits fine, just the block sits a little back and down due to where the motor mounts are located, its a swap that i have seen done several times.

[Tru2Chevy]

Originally Posted by 86Formula

anyone know how an LS1 would fit in a 3rd gen?

Ask cranholio on this board....he has an early '80s z28 with an LS1 and a T56. It pretty much looks like it was born there

- Justin

now i just gotta save up for the engine and Trans

[lt14mla]

my friend has an ls1 in in his 3rd gen iroc. thing is supa-fast

[NJSPEEDER]

Originally Posted by 86Formula

anyone know how an LS1 would fit in a 3rd gen?

the ls1 fits like a dream into a 3rd gen. the engine is much lighter(approx 150lbs) and sits back further in teh engine compartment. so the gains in weight distribution are awesome.
only real fitment issue i have heard about is that a lot of guys who keep their air conditioning have a clearance issue with the coil packs. you can make up a small bracket for the coil packs to move them over slightly if this is an issue, or you can do teh right thing and ditch teh a/c while you are doing teh swap
a bunch of companies have stuff to do the swap, speartech, spohn, hawks, thirdgen resource..... the list goes on and on.

later
tim

[silver98camss]

The LS1 is not a smaller engine. its identical in size to a standard 350. 346 isn't visibly smaller than a 350, 305, 327, etc. the motor mounts are in a slightly different location but thats about it. the LT1 engine's intake manifold was shorter than the LS1/6 intake manifolds. The nose of the LT1 cars were sloped down in the front considerably. between the taller manifolds and the air box assembly the noses of the f-bodies needed to be rasied. The air boxes in the 93-97 f-bodies were actually in the engine bay. the 98-02's were in front of the engine bay. There are considerable differences in the locations of the accessories, the alternator is on the bottom of the engine bay opposed to the top. The redesign was strictly for the change of engine. You can probably find a front clip off an LS1 bird at a junk yard or on one of the message boards cheaper than from gm direct. There are kits out there to do the swap. also remember the LT1 cars have opti sparks and the LS1's have one coil per cylinder. The coils also sit atop of the valve covers making the engine taller. adding the fuel rails over the top of the engine also added height. the fenders are the same but the hoods are more raised in the center to accomodate the changes. the LT1 cars have indented hoods. just keep in mind those things when doing the swap. gl.

[V]

well i junked my 94 bird a while back, the swap cost too much plus i didnt need a 7th car