Decisions decisions.. what you you do?

[TheyCallMeSkip]

I love my GN... and don't really want to sell it, but with the goals I have for my car I just don't see the V6 getting there and staying together reliably. I have about $8000 in parts already assembled to get the chassis to the next level, but I am still on the fence about pulling the trigger and starting the project. I have a 6.0 LS on the stand in my garage I bought 2 years ago anticipating this happening. I know I can make a lot more power with the LS as opposed to the V6, but the whole mystique with the GN's is that is a V6 to begin with. I know there's people who will tell me not to cut it up and ruin the car, but to go 160+ is not safe in a 3400 car without the right equipment and we all know it. It's too fast now for what I have in it. So, do I say screw it, it's my car, I already own it and put the full cage/chassis in it with the LS and do what I want, or sell it and take the hit on the parts and do the very clean 1966 Chevy II body shell I have sitting in the corner of my friends shop. But it is only a body shell, basically a roof, quarters, firewall, and rockers. It will be a complete chassis car with 315's. It will cost me quite a bit more to build the Chevy II over the GN, as well as not having anything to play with for a year or so, since I am starting from scratch with that car...

I know most of you will be biased since this is a GN board, but what would you guys do in this situation?

 

[longball]

[QUOTE=" So, do I say screw it, it's my car, I already own it [/QUOTE]

go with that. I say that cuz that's how I went about it. Now I LOVE my car more than any car I've ever had. It's getting to be exactly the way "I" want it!
Still has a 109 block but not the one that came with it.

 

[Reggie West]

It won't matter which car you go with you are going to spend the same amount of money to go that fast.

The cost involved to go that fast requires forged parts no matter what. A full cage, built 9 inch rear, driveshaft, a built 400 or 4L80 and the right torque converter. You will need a FAST XFI or Holley Dominator EFI system. Fuel system, injectors, fuel rail, fuel lines. You get the idea

You will have to go to a TA block. You can get there with a V6 and ALL the supporting parts. And they are available. So is the LS stuff but that turns into a custom job.

You will spend more money, and time!!, on the LS motor and making all the necessary changes to the wiring, mounts, trans mount, gauges and so on. Don't forget headers, downpipe will be custom as well.

No matter which way you go you will need to take this to a very good shop to do this right. Unless you know what you are doing yourself, take it to a shop.

If you want to see what it takes to do it right look at the GN race car I have for sale. That is what you will need to get there.

 

[TheyCallMeSkip]

Its not my first rodeo.. and I know exactly what I am getting into. I have been building, racing, and helping on everything from TS/TD cars, Nitrous and Turbo Pro Mods to X275 cars for a long time. I am at a point now that I don't want a "race car", I just want a fast car to mess around with, and still be able to drive it up to a cruise nite with my wife if I choose to . My dilema is, do I want to cut up my original GN, with the original engine, trans, and rear end, although they are far from stock anymore to build a low 8 second toy, or just sell it and build the Chevy II.

 

[TexasT]

You said what I think. Without the v6 its just an ls g body. There are plenty of rollers out there that would accept the 6.0. They are only original once.
Your car, your money, your call, but I wouldnt cut up a nice original.

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[MeanBuicks]

Your car, your money, your call, but I wouldnt cut up a nice original.

+1

 

[Reggie West]

Skip I am with everyone else its your call your money.

You can get 600 hp to the wheels out of a stock block and keep it looking stock with all the accessories and it will be reliable. Now I would not call an 8 second car exactly streetable.

Sounds like you have been there done that.

 

[howdies86]

I agree with TexasT. W/O the turbo v6 it's just another nice opted regal. To me they are a big part of automotive history. All engines are going to break if u push them hard enough. Today it is fairly easy to make 600-700 reliable hp. I would never give up the v6 in my turbo t. I would just go buy a vette. Just my opinion


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[TheyCallMeSkip]

It is a nice clean car that runs low 10s with the 109, stock casting heads, and a 71GTQ now, so its making around 650.. The car has 100,000+ miles on the chassis, so it's not like it is a pristine original car. But I know doing what I want to do will take away from what the car "is", and take away from the value of the car. It's all gonna boil down to if I want to cut it and keep it forever, or sell it and start on the other car. I love the car and how it looks, but I want to go faster than the V6 will go and still remain driveable. I talked to Bobby at RPE for an hour and a half one Saturday am, and he pretty much told me unless I was going to race in Buick only stuff, don't waste my time with the V6, put the LS in it. Making it survive at the power level I am looking for will be very hard. I can build the 6.0 bottom end with Oliver Rods, JE pistons, and the stock crank, including the machine work, for what the TA block alone will cost me. With the heads I have and a Billet Wheel S480 ET-R on E85 is will make enough power to get me into the mid to low 8's easily, and still be very streetable if I choose to drive it anywhere.

I know what I want to do, I just don't know if its the right thing to do because of what the car is.. Thanks everyone for your replies.

 

[Mike T]

My car is not as clean as it once was and I probably wouldn't sell it anyway so a cage would not be out of the question . If I were to go the LS route I always thought a late 70's -early 80's Malibu would be a nice car for a turbo LS.

 

[jasjamz]

...

 

[Mr.Spool]

I know what I want to do, I just don't know if its the right thing to do because of what the car is.. Thanks everyone for your replies[/QUOTE]

I talked to Bobby at RPE for an hour and a half one Saturday am, and he pretty much told me unless I was going to race in Buick only stuff, don't waste my time with the V6, put the LS in it. Making it survive at the power level I am looking for will be very hard.

a guy that wont steer you in the wrong direction.my o2 is that if you really feel you need low 8's power on a street car do the swap however you just cant get that power to the ground on the street.

 

[TheyCallMeSkip]

Low 8's sounds like your average TSO build.
I do not view a TSO car as "streetable"
Its not mine, its yours. You want Low 8's and want to drive it around?
A turbo BBC is what I would build.

But Team Banana (Ronnie) seems to have a fast LS setup as well as the Bamford's.
You cutting one up to make it the way you like it is fine by me.
My life will be the same either way LOL.
Just don"t start a thread complaining when TR guys low ball you if you get mid-LS and decide to sell the GN and build the Chevy II.
Accept the fact you have made a decision and may lose "fan" if that matters to you.

A TSO build is on the edge and walks a fine line running a ton of boost to make that kind of power in that small of an engine. A 370" LS with a solid bottom end, good heads and a well thought out turbo/trans/converter/rear end combination making 20 lbs of boost can run low 8's all day long and still have very mild street manners. Look at the drag week cars.. There is a fellow from Colorado who has a 3200lb Nova with a stock bottom end LQ4, hand ported heads, S476 turbo and a glide who ran 8.39@165 lifting at 1100 feet on a 275 radial. He competed in drag week as well, averaging well into the 8 second zone all week with an extra 200+ pounds in the car. I know of quite a few similar LS combos that make well north of 1000HP and drive to and from the track and lay down some very impressive numbers. Why would I mess with a BBC and the extra weight when the LS will make all the power I need, and keep weight off the nose.

I'm not worried about pissing some purist off, I could care less honestly. I said in the beginning it's my car already, I just want to be sure I make the right choice for myself, because once I start it I am going thru with it.

 

[Jerryl]

My opinion:
If you want to go 160 mph, and drive on the street, I'd say there is only one good option.
Good luck, and do what makes you happy.