Today I was asked an odd question...

"Makoyouidiot" (makaan12) 05/10/2014 at 01:32 • Filed to: projectcarhell

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by a coworker. He wondered if a GM 5.3 v8 such as the one in the Impala SS and Monte Carlo SS, where it drives the front wheels, would fit...in a Cavalier. I honestly had no clue, I've heard of 3.8 swapped Cavaliers, but never a v8 job...anyone familiar with such? Have a decent looking one as a reward!

Ducky > Makoyouidiot 05/10/2014 at 01:44

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that seems like a lot of effort.

Find a rare drive train, put it in a shitty chassis that was not designed to accomodate it, and voila! You have an economy shitbox with too much power going to the wrong wheels.

On the other hand this is stupid as fuck I approve 100% send video.

Aaron James > Ducky 05/10/2014 at 02:11

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I'm sure it could be done but it won't be a drop in bolt up deal. There isn't much room under the hood of a Cavalier. Probably have to cut out the inner fenders, maybe the strut towers, The firewall would probably be in the way, you'd have to hack up the frame and build a custom sub member and the hood would never shut.

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Aaron James 05/10/2014 at 02:49

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This. I had one of these about 10 years ago. Heavily researched it because I was younger and dumber[sic]. It's been done. There used to be a thread about it on some forum somewhere. They had to build a new subframe and move the firewall back. There were pics. Although now that I think about it it may have been a north star from a Cadillac. Pretty sure the guy who built it even said it drove like shit because the chassis couldn't handle the weight and power.

Camry-Into-Canyon > Makoyouidiot 05/10/2014 at 07:40

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I'm an idiot with a lot of free time on my hands, and I did some calculations for a V8 cavalier. The 5.3 will fit, but he'll have to hack the bumper support to bits because he has to push the rad forwards (because of sheer engine length). He will also have to run a full-length 2.5" cowl because the engine is a lot taller and longer than he thinks. He should also mount a secondary radiator underneath the car because the OEM cavalier unit will be completely inadequate. Overall, ECU tuning will be the most time consuming thing for him. I think he should go for it.

1337HPMustang > Makoyouidiot 05/10/2014 at 10:35

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who cares if it'll fit in a cavalier. What's awesome though is that those engines will for sure fit in a fiero because the cars were prototyped with the GM V8s

Makoyouidiot > 1337HPMustang 05/10/2014 at 12:01

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That IS awesome.

Makoyouidiot > Camry-Into-Canyon 05/10/2014 at 12:02

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I will pass that on to him and see what he says.

Makoyouidiot > Ducky 05/10/2014 at 12:02

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Sounds pretty Jalop to me! :)

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Camry-Into-Canyon 05/11/2014 at 00:09

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Width or length? Cause they made a horizontal 5.3.

Camry-Into-Canyon > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies 05/11/2014 at 07:47

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It needs to be longitudinal. The biggest engine you can fit transversely in a Cavalier is the 3800 S/C.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Camry-Into-Canyon 05/11/2014 at 10:15

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How much wider is the 5.3, cause isn't the claim to fame for the LS being compact?

Camry-Into-Canyon > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies 05/11/2014 at 11:55

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The 5.3 with accessories is almost 2" too wide for the engine bay. it would be fine in, say, a grand am, but with the cavalier's relatively narrow chassis rails and big strut housings, clearance will be incredibly tight, even with some cutting and fabricating. i would say that he would have about half an inch to work with on a z/24, a little more on a regular one since you have more wiggle room in the housings.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Camry-Into-Canyon 05/11/2014 at 14:27

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Ah, so it's possible just not practical.

Camry-Into-Canyon > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies 05/11/2014 at 19:50

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yeah. however, if he cuts out the inner fender liners and metal, he will make it fit.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Camry-Into-Canyon 05/11/2014 at 20:42

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Since he can get a cheap Cavelier and if he could find a cheap 5.3, that would be an almost neat car.

Camry-Into-Canyon > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies 05/12/2014 at 12:49

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That would be terrible, yet awesome. kind of like a full-throttle launch in a 77 Lincoln Mark V that drags both tailpipes on the asphalt. It's so bad, it's great. Besides, it wouldn't be impossibru. The 80s Cavaliers had available V6s.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Camry-Into-Canyon 05/12/2014 at 13:42

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I would track it.

BondoSpecial > Makoyouidiot 05/13/2014 at 00:02

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Here is a small block chevy powered, RWD converted Saturn I saw when I was at MIR several years back. Anything can be done w/ enough time and effort.

BondoSpecial > Makoyouidiot 05/13/2014 at 00:05

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Here is a small block chevy powered, RWD converted Saturn I saw when I was at MIR several years back. Anything can be done w/ enough time and effort.

Makoyouidiot > BondoSpecial 05/13/2014 at 00:15

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That is so awesome

thebigbossyboss > Makoyouidiot 05/13/2014 at 21:46

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There is a LOT of J body dragsters, so it may in some weird way be suitable. These cars can run 9 second quarter miles, so clearly they have been engine swapped to something big and also made rwd.