Turbo LT-1

[David Cooley]

Luke Joseph wrote:

> I have seen several postings mentioning  turbo & twin turbo LT-1's.  I have
> always assumed that what people do with a 3.8 V6 could be done better and
> faster with a 5.7 V8.      I would be interested in the level of
> modification required to an LT-1 "system" in order to get my Monte SS (LT-1)
> into the 10 to 11 ET 1/4 mile times, by way of tubos that is.  This would
> make me feel better about not coughing up the extra money back in 88 to buy
> the GN instead of the Monte.  Any input will be appreciated.

Well,
It'll cost you a lot more now than what the difference was then...
The Buick 3.8 in the GN was designed to handle up to 600HP reliably (this from
the mouth of Bernard Santavy, then the head of Buick SVO).
For the Monte, you'd need:
New crank, rods, pistons, heads, possibly the block, some fuel management
better than stock, the turbo(s), plumbing, trans, frame/suspension mods, rear
end (Buick GN had an 8.5" rear, monte has 7.5 or 7.75).
You'd probably need about 6 grand EASY to do what you want to the Monte, and it
would be no where near smog legal...