To begin the job, the Energy...
To begin the job, the Energy Suspension backing plate had to be ground down a little to allow the center hump to fit inside the relief in the Speed Hound adapter plates.
While swapping an LS-series engine into the engine bay of a classic Vette has not become old hat, the process has become simpler over the last few years. Companies like Street & Performance, Speed Hound and others have helped take some of the confusion out of the process. Of course, with so many options for things like motor and tranny mounts, all of these companies have also added some unwarranted issues like inter-brand compatibility. It seems every company out there has their way of making it work. You can buy at least 20 different types of motor mounts to fit a first-gen Camaro. The C2 ('63-'67) Corvette is not quite as lucky. There are a couple of universal kits and a few specialty kits that involve special oil pans, but these pans often hang low, adding an unnecessary risk. For the Red Line Auto Sports' '67 roadster, owner Fred and Kim Murfin wanted a simpler solution.
But the Murfins are not using the requisite T56 manual transmission. Instead, they opted to use the 4L60E automatic transmission, the most common tranny bolted to LS engines from the factory, in the '67. This choice actually complicated things a little, since most swap kits are set up for the manual tranny swap. In order to mount the 4L60E, there will have to be some chassis modifications. The LS1 engine came out of a '99 Camaro, complete with the harness, computer, trans and accessory drive. While the F-body (Camaro\Firebird) oil pan and accessory drive works well in the C2 chassis, the A\C and power steering components were swapped out for newer better fitting pieces from Street & Performance.
The motor mounts shown here...
The motor mounts shown here illustrate the clearancing that had to be done to the plate and adapter. You must use Energy Suspension mounts with this kit on a C2.
For the motor mounts, the solution came from Speed Hound Performance. These trick motor mount adapter plates for the Gen III\IV engines position the engine correctly in the chassis to clear all of the body and chassis components. The Speed Hound mounts will not fit the C2 chassis with parts-store motor mounts. The cheap overseas brands use thinner metal and that was a problem, as they did not quite reach the motor. However, a set of Energy Suspension polyurethane mounts come with a thick spacer plate that allow the engine to sit neatly on the stock frame stands without any issue, although we did have to grind a little on both the mounts and the Speed Hound adapter plates to get the fit just right. A set of Street & Performance headers for the Corvette were added to make everything work.
With the motor resting in place, the 4L60E transmission clearly would not fit as is. The C2 chassis features a welded-in crossmember, and since this was a four-speed car (yeah, it is being converted to an auto), it is not even close. In order to get the drive angle where it needs to be and mount the tranny, the crossmember would have to be notched and a plate welded in. While this might seem a little tricky, it is actually quite simple, and most builders should be able to handle the task.
If you want to replicate our results, you will need a piece of 4x3 1/4-inch angle steel, about 8-inches long. This will be used for both the notch insert, and the scrap can be used to fill in the boxed section, making for a nice clean install. The crew at Red Line Auto Sports managed to get the motor dropped in, mock up the mounts and perform the fabrication in a single day, so a lazy weekend would easily see the job through.
| Difficulty Index - 3 Wrenches |
| Anyone’s Project: no tools required | 1 Wrench |
| Beginner: basic tools | 2 Wrenches |
| Experienced: special tools | 3 Wrenches |
| Accomplished: special tools and outside help | 4 Wrenches |
| Professionals Only: send this work out | 5 Wrenches |
The adapter plates bolt to...
The adapter plates bolt to the LS1 using flush Allen bolts.
Then the motor mounts were...
Then the motor mounts were bolted on and the engine dropped right onto the stands.
The 4L60E had a couple of...
The 4L60E had a couple of issues. First, the driveshaft was sitting above the rear end by about an inch. The tailshaft is sure to hit the body at this point. The second issue is the tranny mount has nothing to bolt to so the round crossmember has to be modified.
A reciprocating saw was used...
A reciprocating saw was used to cut the offending section out of the crossmember. These cuts need to be as straight as possible.
One issue you will have is...
One issue you will have is the water pump heater core hose bibs. These will be replaced with 90-degree inserts from Street & Performance.
Here you can see the crossmember...
Here you can see the crossmember was marked to reflect the position of the tranny mount. Then the engine and transmission were removed from the chassis. It helps not having the body on the car for this process.
A cut-off wheel was used to...
A cut-off wheel was used to get the corners.
Before that can happen, the...
Before that can happen, the hole was cleaned up and squared off at the corners.
The plate was tacked in for...
The plate was tacked in for a test fitting. Do not final weld it yet.
Now we have a gaping hole...
Now we have a gaping hole in the crossmember. A piece of 4x3 angle steel will be cut to fit and welded in.
The angle steel needed to...
The angle steel needed to be cut to 5 inches long. This will fit the hole perfectly.
The engine and trans were...
The engine and trans were once again set in place and checked for fit. Everything looks good.
Using a soapstone, the tranny...
Using a soapstone, the tranny mount stud was marked for drilling.
The plate was fully welded...
The plate was fully welded in place using a mig welder. Using some of the scrap from the angle steel, two end plates were made and welded in to box in the new mount. This adds strength as well as a finished look to the project.
The welds were ground down...
The welds were ground down using an angle grinder, and then they were wiped clean using some PRE spray from Eastwood.
The crossmember was sprayed...
The crossmember was sprayed with Eastwood's Rust Encapsulator and then top coated with their Extreme Chassis Black (the entire frame had been painted with Extreme Chassis Black a few months ago) to complete the fabrication job.
The engine and tranny was...
The engine and tranny was once again lowered into place for the final time. The tailshaft clears the crossmember, and the mount bolted right up. The only other issue is the exhaust tubes in the crossmember. We are running side pipes, so this will not be an issue for this project, but if you want to run regular exhaust, these will have to modified, as the transmission case blocks the tubes. Job Done.