[icemangt71]

Ha Ha Ha very funny ( conversion )

Well as you may all know i have taken the conversion approach to the opel well here is the funny part

1. The 2.8 engine fits like a dream. Except the left header but not a big problem.

2. The really is no need for me to make i custom crossmember i used the original with minor mods. Oil pan does clear just fine.

3. The F.I. system did not clear thats the funny part. All most cleared it except for 1 1/2 inch.

Now that is funny stuff cause i dont wanna make custom stuff like everyone else how has done this and the wiring is a nightmare.

I wanna make this as easy as possible.
Now there maybe diehard fans of the opel who would say my car is now nothing but a trashy franken opel but im satisfied.

Here my solution and i cant do it till i get more money but this will work like a dream.

An Edel brock intake manafold from summit mounted on saves tons of space with a edlebrock or holley carb that would solve most of my current issues. atleast the engine part

Ya ya i know im still on the carb and bad starts and such but a four barrel carb should give my engine plenty of food/fuel and air rating at about 600cfm so no worries. This is another approach with out too much work.


I almost wanted to give away my opel when the engine didnt fit but i found my parts hurray

This is just an update.

 

[oldopelguy]

huh

If I understand your post correctly, you are planning on a carburated 2.8 swap into an Opel GT? And you are currently being held-up by the cost of the Edelbrock manifold? Nothing really wrong with that.

If that's the case, why not go with a 2 barrel? The motor really only needs closer to 400 CFM, and a Weber is actually not a bad option on a stock motor. You can pick-up an early '80's carb manifold and fabricate a very simple adapter and you'll be set. It'll also be a lot shorter, as the Edelbrock manifold is WAY tall. If you can't find one locally, I have 6 or 7 manifolds for the 2.8 in the garage I'd part with cheap, just let me know.

If you have a Camaro motor, with the 3 piece port injection manifold, you may be able to modify the stock lower piece to work with just the top part of the Edelbrock manifold. I'll fit them together and get back to you. Then you'ld only have to buy a $70 part for the manifold you already have.

 

[GT-Freak]

The factory 2V intake flows about the same as the Ed intakes. The 4V Ed actually flows less due to the harsh angles. It's possible to turn 7000 rpm (or more) with the factory 2V with mild cleaning up. The factory intake is better than it looks. For racing many people mount a 500 cfm Holley 2 barrel on the factory intake using an adapter plate. For street use the 350 cfm will do. If you use the factory intake, later you can install aftermarket TBI easily. I know this isn't the prettiest solution but it works great. On the exotic side, there are intakes for Webers available. Nothing like 3 Weber carbs for appearance.

 

[72opelguy]

yeah they are right about the facotry intake they are great single plane and low
for my blazer i am haviong a 1 inch holle carb spacer heliarced on am then i am going to smooth it all out to make a low 4 bbl intake
hell i love the 60 degree v6 so you want some i deas or somethign ask
also i am abot to get some gen 2 aluminum fwd heads and i will then take them to a machine shop buddy of mine and fab an intake for carbs on it
it flows like 45 % better than iron heads
plus they have 58 cc combustioon cambers which should bring compression up to about 9.5 to 1 and so more power is gained

 

[icemangt71]

4 barrel folly

Well the reason i wanna go 4 barrel is because summitracing sells a butterfly scoop which mounts on only four barrels i believe
Theres a picture of it on the current summit mag i have the stock carb and intake for that engine but it requires a computer and i dont want to deal with that.

also the new intake i want fits the four barrel with out an adapter.

 

[icemangt71]

How do you feel about making that engine into a stroker engine.
Estimate cost is about 1000 us. complete long block.

 

[husker]

Hey icemangt71,

What year 2.8 are you using and what tranny are you going with? How does the tranny fit?

 

[GT-Freak]

Holley 2 barrel (model 2300) uses a 4 barrel standard carb flange (5.125"). It comes in 500 and 350 cfm. Using 3/8" plate it's easy to make an adapter to the stock intake. It'll improve performance a lot.

The factory electronic carb isn't worth messing with. I consider it anti-performance.

I'd skip the stroker kit. Chevy made the 2.8L in 3.1L and 3.4L versions. If you want a stroker buy either of these or get the 3.31" stroke crank out of one. Pistons are easy to come by. All use the same length rods. GM sells a performance catalog and a performance book. They have most of the details.

If I was building an ultimate hi-po 60 degree V6: Use a GM forged crank. Have it turned to 2.00" journals. Get 6.00" forged aftermarket SBC rods with 2.00" big ends and ARP Wave-Loc bolts. Have the rods machined to fit the crank (narrowed). And buy custom forged pistons (Ross/Aries/JE...). Top with moly rings.

For a budget hi-po: Skip the forged crank, use a factory 3.31" stroke. Use 5.7" SBC reconditioned rods and ARP bolts. Machine to fit. It'll run 7000 rpm.

 

[husker]

The 2.8 and the 3.4 referenced above are both pushrod motors correct?

 

[GT-Freak]

Yes. Pushrods.

 

[husker]

and pushrod were for RWD and DOHC were for FWD only... correct?

 

[icemangt71]

good news

im using an 83 block only has 40,000 miles and driven by a granny the whole 40
the tranny fits great

Good news every one i just landed a job at walmart so i can now earn money and continue my project i dont think i wanna use the 3.1 or 3.4 cause those are fuel injected and i dont think you can get one with a mechanical fuel pump which mine has which has saved me 400 in fuel system cost i was gonna do fi but too expensive
well ill let you guys now how everything goes after i get my first paycheck

 

[icemangt71]

tranny

Im using an 86 tranny off an s-10
you have to make sure you get the fork with it clutch calbe type
cause it cost 70 from the dealer for a used one.

ITs all aluminum fits very good except for the fact that the drive shaft has to be shorten greatly no big deal
oh you can also get a shifter for it from summit
get a camaro one so its short.
thats what i used
Hoped that answered you question

 

[icemangt71]

i think so

But the fwd has aluminum heads i think

 

[GT-Freak]

"Chevrolet Power - The Official Factory Performance Guide" almost every library has a copy or can get it. Also try "V-6 Performance" by Pat Ganahl. There's always Amazon.com. Research is easier than learning the hard way.

#1. Almost all are pushrod. There is a high HP 3.4L FWD model that is not pushrod. Although a good engine, it'd be a real bear to fit in a RWD car.

#2. You can use an electric fuel pump for carbs if there is no provision for a mechanical pump. They are cheap.

#3. Beware of old granny engines. Early 2.8L engines had oil gallery problems that ate camshafts at under 50k miles. I'm not saying that particular engine has the problem. But I'd look before installing.

#4. Yes. FWD has alloy heads. These are not mix-n-match with iron heads. They both bolt on but require different manifolds and some other parts. To stay low cost, use iron. Alloy would require a home fabricated intake.

#5. 3.1 crank and pistons fit in a 2.8L no problem.

#6. S-10 T-5 should work great. Search this site for details.

 

[72opelguy]

get rid of that engine an 83 has the small journal crakn if you run it hard which i am guessing you might be you will break the crank
use an 86 and up engine they have a larger jounal and a 1 piece rear seal
my 85 blazer broke the crank at 70,000 miles and we replaced the engine
plus for any performance gains you want a large crank too




and for a stroker the ultimate stroker
you could use the crank for a 3.4 and then bore out and resleeve the block for a 4 inch bore
maybe even weld up the crankand stroke it to 3.48
guess what you have a mini 4.3
the bore center on the 60 degree v6 is the same as a 4.3 or sbc so it can be done the hard part is the heads i would say use aluminum heads because it easier to weld up the coolant passages put in the largest valves you can and maybe open up the chambers a bit on a mill make a copper head gasket run cutom dished pistons to furthe bring down compression to 9.5:1
high lift cam and duration with ported heads to help flow and you could see 300 at least maybe 350 if you do it right
and no one will believe that you have a 4.3 under your hood
its a work in progress for my blazer

 

[GT-Freak]

I forgot about the tiny journals on the early years. In general, the earlier the engine, the more problems. It took 6 years for GM to get it nearly right. Plus they made changes constantly. Some parts were made for 1/2 a year. I saw an oil gallery on a '81 that a 14 gauge wire wouldn't fit thru. The owner changed the oil religiously. The engine lasted 30k miles. That was a miracle.

 

[Marcus]

I'm working on getting an '82 camaro 2.8 engine into the engine bay with as few mods as possible, however as a proactive step for any future improvements, I am cutting out the section between the two towers on the engine cross member. welding a 2" X 3" thick walled square tube across the bottom of the cross member to give me an extra 2" to 3" clearance. then creating my own basic engine mounts. This way in the future, I can go with just about any configuration that I want on the top end of the motor. I hope!

It came with a 700R4 transmission, but I'm thinking about trying to find a used S-10 to stay manual. I've also remove all the electronic components, and going with a basic carb. right now some Rochester, but I'm looking for a weber.

I found that the performer intake manifold is 1-3/4" taller than the stock intake, so to save space I'm going to continue working with the stock, then once I have it installed, I'll be able to see how much clearance is left.

 

[husker]

The 2.8/3.1/3.4 all weigh quite a bit more than the stock Opel motor. Seen as the stock Opel suspension was created with a lighter engine in mind - what are you engine swap people doing to compensate?

It seems that without lowering the new engine and pushing it into the firewall, the car will not handle well at all.

 

[bear]

Actually the complete package I'm installing, 3.4/T-5, is equal to or less than the 1.9/4-speed tranny of the stock Opel. The Opel tranny is extremely heavy compared to the T-5 and the engines are comparable in weight, IMHO. For suspension, I'm going with the complete Poly bushings that OGTS has, front and rear, with new heavy duty shocks all around. That should stiffen things up quite a bit. With the engine sitting about 3 inches further back than the Opel, the front to rear weight balance should be real close to equal also, I hope.

Ron