BritishV8 Forum

Looking at a British car with a 96/97 LT1.

Being a Luddite, I'm alarmed by the complexifications of injection and ignition system. Is it possible to put a 4-barrel on this engine?

Ivor

The engine is designed to run with the injection and ignition run by the computer and I would advise that you retain it if the car is currently running that way. That said, I believe a SBC Chevy intake will bolt in place and a standard distributor will then fit in the engine if you desire to return to the dark ages. You will have to remove the Optispark but I don't believe that will upset any of the drives on the front of the engine

Haha, thankyou, I like the dark ages.
Our house is 400 years old.

It bothers me when I see people on this and other forums struggling to diagnose problems with electronics.
And garages over here would be no help. Most probably never see an American car.

OK, If I buy it you'll be the first to know.

Ivor

I doubt that conventional distributor can be fitted. I don´t remember if LT1 even has a provision for rear mounted distributor.

Here´s one Youtube clip to sort the dizzy thing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaXDiAFJ3qs

As for manifolds, you need a LT1 specific intake if you want to run a carb:

http://www.flowtechinduction.com/gmpp-lt1-lt4-carb-manifold/
https://www.jegs.com/i/Chevrolet-Performance/809/24502592/10002/-1

Lt1 has a drive for the oil pump, it just doesn't have a hole in the manifold. The SBC manifold will have the distributor hole.

You need to use a carb intake manifold that is specific to the LT1.  Like this one:

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-24502592

Do more homework before you dive in.

QuoteMy LT-1 came out of a 1994 Roadmaster Buick. I chose this intake because of the bolt pattern. the intake bolts for the head are at an angle and the bolts are further apart than a 350. when you take the Omni-Spark distributor off, you can get cover plate to cover the end of the cam which bolts on to the timing chain cover from Summit Racing. When you pull the throttle body intake off look in the back of the block where the distributor goes, and you will find a bolt when you take the bolt out there is a plug to take out so you can install you distributor. I understand any 350 distributor will work. This way you can still use the stock electric water pump.

My bad! I didn't realize Chevy changed the bolt pattern on the LT1 manifold. I still think he should leave the injection on if the car is running well.

No, the fault was mine. I should have done more research.
That Summit manifold would be a cheap solution. Plus the carb of course. Plus an insulator. And filter. And the dizzie. And the blanking plate at $80. And dyno time to set up the carb. And a throttle cable. And a choke cable.
Hmmm. Perhaps the injection could stay there fttb.

Ivor

I like mine and it's very tunable.

Ivor,
I put a GM performance 4 barrel intake on my LT1. Pull the plug in the back of the motor, and drop in what ever distributor you want. You'll need a dizzy that has the proper gear on it for use with the factory hydraulic roller cam of course. I bought an MSD and dropped it in the hole. I would imagine that intake is still available from Summit racing.