Since I finally have figured out how to post photos (I think), here is my progress so far. Most of these are mounting the engine/transmission to the cradle. The last few are the way I chose to get a VSS signal. Please be kind with comments. I'm old you know. Daryl
I would love to get my hands on a swap like this to help out. I envy you for your project. Keep posting pictures for people like me who just love to see this stuff.
Ok, so the pictures are small. Don't know why, but I will figure it out so future updates will be bigger. Any suggestions are appreciated. Daryl
I would recommend that you ether replace the entire forward section of the cradle were your engine and transmission mounts are. OR at a minimum "box it in" by welding a thin plate of sheet to the bottom side. This boxed in section will stiffen the cradle to help it deal with more power. That section is a weak link in the cradle, and any cuts and material removal weakens it even more. The rear section has it's own issues, but is harder to replace. I have even seen a few of these sections cracking at the transmission and motor mount hols. Those sections are double thickness and still cracked.
[This message has been edited by Rickady88GT (edited 01-02-2019).]
The exhaust is coming together. To get it to go where I want it I may have to shrink the bottom of the trunk a bit, but the plan is to keep the exhaust low and back in an attempt to get heat out of the engine compartment.
[This message has been edited by Daryl M (edited 01-12-2019).]
The exhaust is coming together. To get it to go where I want it I may have to shrink the bottom of the trunk a bit, but the plan is to keep the exhaust low and back in an attempt to get heat out of the engine compartment.
Just food for thought, I do not even have a muffler on my LS4 swap. I would see how it sounds and look into options before I cut out my trunk. That looks like a huge muffler, so maybe something else could save your trunk?
Rickady88GT, I get where you are coming from, but I really don't mind loosing the bottom 3-4inches of trunk if I have a car I can have a conversation in and listen to the radio. Daryl
Rickady88GT, I get where you are coming from, but I really don't mind loosing the bottom 3-4inches of trunk if I have a car I can have a conversation in and listen to the radio. Daryl
LOL, OK I get it. But it is not as bad as it sounds. I have Corvette C5 resonated tips. They are not a muffler, but do calm it down. My LS4 used to set off car alarms in a parking lot when I started it. Yes that was a bit much, but I never got pulled over for sound ordinance enfractions because it only got loud at above half throttle. The car would start with a computer controlled blip of the throttle that would get a low frequency boom,.car alarms beware. BUT it does not do that any more. I added a small glass pack to each of the tips. This was made up of a single 12" glass pack that I cut in half, and welded directly to the back side of the tips. Basically I put a very small muffler in between the rear tire and the rear bumper in a void that seems perfect for a small muffler. Now the car is calm. But part of the reason it is so calm is a stock tune, cam and cats. If I were to got crazy with mods.......it would be loud. I recommend at least trying it or looking into it before you cut out your trunk.
I have an X-pipe and dual cats on my Northstar car. It's not Cadillac quiet by any stretch, but still conversable inside.
Your powertrain looks high on the cradle... maybe it's a trick of perspective, but it looks like the bottom of your oil pan is 3" or so above the bottom of the cradle. Is that to avoid additional cradle surgery for the bosses that would hit the forward crossmember or does the F40 transmission hit the left side rail if the try to go lower?
[This message has been edited by Will (edited 01-13-2019).]
What muffler is that? If the internal configuration works, it might be easier to make the upper left connection the front bank inlet.
Does the 3.6 have a particularly shallow oil pan? I don't think I'd read that other engines could go lower when installed as low as they could be with an F40.
Yes, it would be able to go about 1.5" lower with cradle surgery to clear the F40, but I didn't see the point.
Usually the issue is with deck lid clearance. You either cut and patch the deck lid or the cradle. That is, IF you run into clearance issues. I have had to cut a few deck lids for clearance issues.
Not only decklid clearance, but you need to keep the center of gravity as low as possible. Yes, 1 1/2" makes a difference! Bottom of the pan should be on the same plane as the bottom of the cradle side rails, if at all possible.
The way it sits now, I have about 7/8" from the bottom of the oil pan to the bottom of the cradle. I had not actually measured before. Guess it isn't as bad as it looks. As far as keeping weight low, I think I am doing better than many swaps that have cast iron block and heads.
[This message has been edited by Daryl M (edited 01-14-2019).]
Compressor clutch connectors are usually next to the pulley. If the compressor clutch connector is elsewhere, this would be a pressure transducer. If this is the only connector on the compressor then, as noted above, it has to be the compressor clutch.
It is not the compressor clutch. The pressure sensor supposedly has 3 wires. This has two. I've found an entry in Rockauto's listing for an refrigerant temperature sensor, but I can't find a photo of it. Just looking for someone that knows for sure. Thanks.
According to the Rock Auto site the XTS and Impala don't use the same compressor until 2017 model year. I won't be able to check wire colors for a few days, but I will do it when I can.
Yep... I quickly found that out as well.... but it sure looks like an AC variable displacement solenoid valve especially given it relative location to the refrigerant lines. As Will asked, is there also another set of wires coming out of the compressor?
[This message has been edited by msweldon (edited 01-18-2019).]
The clutch has wires going to it, but these are the only wires that actually connect to the compressor. Do you know how the variable servo works? How many wires go to that type of servo?
the older are diaphragm controlled and the newer are electronically controlled through PWM... no idea which yours or the one on mine are yet... probably electronic however given the late model's they are..
I set up this up compensating for proper ride height just to look at axle angles and such. Anyone see anything I should look at? This is the first swap I've done so don't be shy.
If the combo hasn't been tried before, you may want to cycle the suspension through its full range of motion to make sure you don't run out of inner CV joint plunge depth... in either direction. Although that will be difficult to verify without the upper strut attachment in place.
[This message has been edited by Will (edited 01-22-2019).]
Will, already checked for that. Kept the hub face perpendicular to the floor. Moved through the range of motion without moving too far in or out. I think I am OK there, but thanks for the suggestion. That would be a problem if missed.
If the combo hasn't been tried before, you may want to cycle the suspension through its full range of motion to make sure you don't run out of inner CV joint plunge depth... in either direction. Although that will be difficult to verify without the upper strut attachment in place.
Even if the axle setup has been used before, placement of transmission could be different, so it is always good to cycle and verify no binding or over extension. Ideally I like to do this with the tripot boots removed. To do this, install the drivetrain with the suspension, but leave the springs off the struts. Then you can raise and lower the suspension while turning the wheel bearing by hand.
Here is a sample picture of verifying this on the driver side.
Originally posted by Will: Although that will be difficult to verify without the upper strut attachment in place.
Maybe Daryl needs to put the engine + cradle into the car to perform this verification.
I as progress in my own engine build (not even a swap), I'm arriving at the conclusion that I will need to temporarily install and then remove the engine + cradle a few times, just to take measurements and see how things are fitting.
Maybe Daryl needs to put the engine + cradle into the car to perform this verification.
I as progress in my own engine build (not even a swap), I'm arriving at the conclusion that I will need to temporarily install and then remove the engine + cradle a few times, just to take measurements and see how things are fitting.
This is true. There is no way you could get an accurate measurement on the axle length/tolerance. As has been said, take the springs off of the struts and install the drive train and entire suspension. Then lift the suspension up all the way to the bump stop and turn the wheel hub the entire time as you lift the suspension. I used a floor jack and from full droop to bump stop, check many times that no binding grinding or (in the case of a short axle) make sure it does not fall out of the tripot. Do this several times on each side. And it is great advice to have the boots off aswell. My engine swaps went in and out easily a dozen times checking for this or that.
