Our throttle body of choice is a 90mm Holley LS Series Throttle Body designed for four-bolt mountings (GM LS2, 90mm F.A.S.T. LSX, and other intakes). This anodized aluminum unit features a contoured inlet and a throttle shaft that is fully rollerized to prevent annoying throttle sticking. It even includes a new throttle cable bracket (not shown). Carrying PN 112-576, it can be yours for $475. | 
We couldn't use Holley's provided throttle body bolts because they were apparently designed to screw into the built-in threads of a stock LS2 manifold; the F.A.S.T. uses through-bolts that require nuts on their ends. Fortunately, we had a PN 54014 hardware kit from F.A.S.T. on hand and used its bolts. The factory IAC and TPS are also transferred to the new throttle body; as for the Holley-provided throttle cable bracket, we'll attach it once we have the engine in the car. | 
An engine hoist is another must-have for an engine build, and even though the F-body's engine installs into the car from below, such a hoist is still needed to drop it from the engine stand into the subframe. The best way to lift any small-block is with a chain attached from the rear of one cylinder head to the front of the other. We used a bellhousing bolt at each location and made sure to adjust everything so that when all slack was taken out of the chain, the chain did not contact any breakable parts and the engine lifted in a neutrally balanced manner. |
An assistant is required for the final lowering of the engine, as he or she will provide delicate guidance as you drop the hoist mechanism millimeter by millimeter. (Note that the subframe will need to be sitting on a rolling dolly to enable you to wheel it around and get it all lined up as you are lowering the car onto the subframe; a trip to Lowe's will allow you to acquire the materials for one). Get the engine mounts lined up with their attachment points, and slide in the through bolts; tighten to GM spec. At this point, take the tension off of the engine hoist-the engine will probably want to rock backward a touch, so you might want to use a wood block or two under the back of the engine so as not to overstress the mounts. | 
Our Speed Inc. fuel rails. There are two PN's here: RGR500, the LS1 High Flow Fuel Rails ($139.99); and RGR501, the Plug & Play LS1 Fuel Rail Installation Kit ($99.99), which includes an LS1 Feed Line Quick Disconnect Fitting. Together, these items make for a fuel rail system that features -6 AN lines and adapts directly to the stock fuel delivery line and just about any intake manifold, making for a very straightforward installation. The provided fittings are top-quality Aeroquip and other brand pieces-a nice touch. | 
After slipping our 60 lb/hr injectors into the anodized aluminum fuel rails (available in silver, black, blue, or red to match your engine bay), they can be popped atop the intake manifold. Don't forget to lubricate the fuel injector O-rings (both top and bottom). The provided fuel rail bolts get 89 in-lb of torque; be sure to use some locking compound on the threads. |
Installation of the Speed Inc. kit involves cutting braided line. Anyone who's done this before knows it can cause some aggravation; but once you get the technique right, you'll appreciate how you can get the fuel lines to just the right length for your application. Wrap some electrical or masking tape tightly around where you want to cut. The best way to slice is with a cutoff wheel. Though we're using one here, a hacksaw won't work very well unless you have one with extremely fine teeth. A couple of trial runs were enough to show us that we needed to switch to a different tool. The key is to cut all of the stainless steel braids cleanly without pulling on them with the tool you're using-any stray braids will make installing a fitting a real hassle. | 
After the line is cut and any out-of-whack braids dealt with, remove the tape. Though technically improper, a tiny width of tape left on the end can prevent braids from popping out; they are like a Chinese finger trap and will want to increase in diameter with any force pushing on them. (If you do this, make darn sure there are no fuel leaks once the system is pressurized; there shouldn't be if you use a thin enough piece of tape, but you never know.) Lube the socket end of the fitting and use a twisting/pushing motion to insert the line; it will take a substantial amount of force. Then, the hose end portion of the fitting can be inserted into the socket and tightened, all the while making sure the line does not back its way out. | 
With a fitting on each end, the crossover fuel line is attached to the rear of each fuel rail. The fuel line coming from the tank will fasten to the front of the driver side rail, but we'll have to wait until the engine is in the car to attach this. Note that we are not using a fuel pressure regulator on this engine; according to Speed Inc., such an item is only necessary on a forced induction application. |
With the fuel rails in place, we've installed all of the aftermarket parts we acquired for this "My First Stroker" project. Our 383 LS1 looks pretty badass, if we must say so ourselves! Once in the car, most of its beauty will hopefully still be visible; though with the notoriously cramped F-body cowl, there's only so much we can expect! | 
The positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) system can't simply be unhooked from the engine intake without creating massive vacuum leaks. Therefore, one must install blockoff caps at all locations where PCV lines formerly connected to the manifold and throttle body. Rubber caps like these are readily available at your local auto parts store. | 
In addition, a PCV system cannot just be disconnected from the valve covers and capped off. There needs to be a way to vent the crankcase pressure that is found in any engine (predominantly due to the gases that inevitably leak past the rings under power). If this pressure is not vented, various seals will be compromised and you'll have oil leaks galore-in addition to potentially damaging the engine otherwise. Our method of choice is to install a valve cover breather, like this one available from Speed Inc. (PN IZM0003). It screws into the factory oil fill cap location and can be had for $44.99. |
As the valve cover breather will install into the passenger side valve cover, we still lack a way to bleed pressure buildup from the driver side. Though expert opinions differ on the necessity of such a provision, the LS1's lack of an open lifter valley made us think twice about simply letting pressure naturally find its way over to the passenger side. After all, all of the LS1's valve-cover-to-intake hookups occur on the passenger side, and the factory felt the need to connect the two covers. You can see here how we've left the factory balance pipe between the valve covers intact (with some lengthening needed thanks to increased valve cover height), but have cut and blocked off the tube (finger pointing) that originally ran all the way to the intake just aft of the throttle body. | 
We won't go through our flywheel and clutch installation in detail as you can read about it in a recent issue (see "Forward Motion," March 2006). Here's the short version: we picked up a set of ARP's PN 330-2802 LS1 flywheel bolts ($34.34) for our SPEC flywheel. They were Loctite'd and tightened to GM spec in sequence. A new pilot bearing (GM PN 14061685, about $16.00) was installed in the back of the Lunati crank. Our clutch alignment tool was put in place and the SPEC pressure plate was tightened atop the clutch disc using ARP's PN 134-2201 LS1 pressure plate bolt kit ($18.87). By the way, this Stage 3 SPEC clutch is rated up to 680 lb-ft so it'll be capable of handling the newfound torque of our stroker-at least while naturally aspirated. | 
With the clutch bellhousing in place, our long-tube Dynatech headers can now be bolted to the heads. For a full installation and review of these headers, see "The Sound! (And The Fury)" in our May 2006 issue. Since the ETP heads have a relocated spark plug, we were concerned about interference with the header primaries; but our worries turned out to be unfounded, particularly as the angle adjustability of the MSD wires' boots make creating clearance with any header a cinch. The factory air pump and fittings can then be attached to the engine and headers. |