i was thinking..

**plumpkibbles** · 08-12-2008, 12:19 PM

i was wanting to do a 3800 to ls1 swap but i was looking at the other post about it and thought the same about how much work and time it would be to do the swap. i think i just want to put a new tranny (5 speed, mine's an auto) and some engine work. was wondering on how much the tranny with the clutch and all would be to put that in. also, i was going to put a turbo or super charger on it for more power out of my v6. i think this would be the cheaper way to go than to buy a v8 with the tranny and all the parts and wires and shit. i need to get a cold air intake and a throttle body spacer kit and tune it, but i need to do the tranny and get all of that worked out for now.. about how much would it be for a 5 speed tranny, and how much stuff would i have to buy for it? i'm not a real big engine guy at all. my dad could help me with putting it on and stuff, but i'm not worried about that. plus with all of that i'm wanting to get a bigger cam and new headers. any input would be great to help me out. thanks

**FreakV6** · 08-12-2008, 01:20 PM

honestly unless u just like the 5spd better, the auto is the way to go when building power in these cars. its much more capeable of handling the power, and not to mention will be more consistant.

if your stuck on the 5 spd though, u will need the tranny, shifter, hyraulic lines, pedel aseembly, computer re-flash, etc. it will be very expensive. for that you could easily build urs to take much more abuse.

**plumpkibbles** · 08-12-2008, 10:43 PM

well i'm more into the 5 speed because it puts me in control of the engine. i know when to shift and what to shift to but my auto doesn't shift. when going up a hill at around 50 (speed limit 45) i have to downshift from OD to D because it goes to a higher gear to pull the hill a LOT easier than sputtering up the hill. not to mention the whole car starts jerking like i'm punching the accelerator to the floor and letting off. plus the shift times in my car suck pure donkey balls. if i had a 5 speed i could shift a lot faster.. believe me, i've done it in my buddy's f-bird and he has the same exact 3.8 series II that i do. but i if i go through with changing the tranny and getting the computer re-flashed it can't be that much of a pain can it? i know it would be a lot more of a pain to switch from the 3.8 to the 5.7 ls1; and what all would i have to do to build mine up to take more abuse?

**FreakV6** · 08-13-2008, 04:54 AM

Well the thing is all of your complaints about the auto are fixable with the right build up and some tuning on the trans. You can set ur shift points, make them faster and harder as well. Their are a couple write ups on swaping that i have seen. here is one of the more complete ones, you will see its a lot of parts and work. http://forum.camarov6.com/showthread.php?t=82112

you can use that same sight to learn about building up your auto as well. good luck.

**plumpkibbles** · 08-13-2008, 11:05 AM

thanks for the info man. is there any books i can buy to help me with this? and if i can set my pcm to shift faster and to set a good RPM to shift.. i was thinking 5500 as a good shifting point? i notice i have more torque when i''m at higher RPM's (obviously) and when it shifts too soon and i'm trying to kill a ricer it bogs down and doesn't shift like it should haha not to mention i beat the ricer. but, if there's some book you could recommend to to help me with some stuff that would be great. like i said, i'm not as smart with engines as i am with audio/electronics.

**FreakV6** · 08-13-2008, 11:16 AM

Honestly man i dont think their are any books. Your best best is to do a lot of research on camarov6.com, as well as fullthrottlev6.com. As for setting shift points, one key thing to remember is to set them about 3-400 rpm sooner then u acutally want to shift. the rpms are increasing so fast, it takes it that long for it to shift after the singal has been sent to do so. With stock valve spings i wouldnt set the shift points much higher then stock, you could run into valve float/failure problems. If you do decide to do all this urself you will definetly need hp tuners. The good thing about this is they have their own forums set up to help anwser questions.

The best adivise i can give is to get on either one of the sites i mentioned above and talk to people on their. Plenty their have already done this, and will be able to give all the little details. Let me know if u have any other questions.