putting big block min 73 vega

[chevy art]

my buddy is picking up a 73 vega, back-halved and set up for a bib block with turbo 400 tranny. the guy that is selling it dont have all the facts, as he bought it in present condition and dont know exactly how the previous guy planned everything. he mocked up the block and trannys in the (big block) and saw there was going to be a clearance problem with thehooker headers and the steering column(stock vegs shaft to stock vega steering box;. he cut the shaft and i guess polanned to use on joint in the middle of the shaft to go around the header. is this possible or even necessary to do if the engine is , say in the place where a hooker mount would put it(i dont think so) its a custom motor plate so i dont know where the motor will be positioned. he may have moved the firewall area around tranny bellhousing back a little. i i am waiting for pics of that area to be e-mailed to me. would appreciate any info on all aspects of this conversion. i know nothing of the oil pan situation, and the centerlink is stock. art

[megavega]

yes, it will need u joints added to the steering shaft,(3) of them to work with the hooker 2240 big block headers.

the oilpan is simply a 69 camaro pan fits nicely.

hers a pic i found of a members car without the engine, you can see the shaft set up

[chevy art]

thanks megavega. i knew you would chime in. i understand what was done there. it looks like a little support type bracket between the 1st and 2nd joint, bolted to the metal frame panel. is that correct? also, what is the best company to buy the joints at. i can figure out the diameters and the spline. thanks art

[soopertrucker]

Borgeson makes the best steering components.

[chevy art]

thanks soopertrucker for the info. never seen you post before. are you a new guy on forum? art

[chevy art]

another question i have about the big block instal is: i will use the hooker 2240 headers. do the tubes in rear need to go through the fenderwells( need to cut holes on both sides like the sbc 2129, and are there any other clearance problems with these headers , even small problems. just would like to know in advance thanks art

[soopertrucker]

Yes sir i'm a newbie. Always loved Vega's and got a chance to purchase a '71 hatchback a few weeks ago. I've got big plans for it but unfortionatly they'll have to wait till I get some other projects done first.

[BBVEGA]

another question i have about the big block instal is: i will use the hooker 2240 headers. do the tubes in rear need to go through the fenderwells( need to cut holes on both sides like the sbc 2129, and are there any other clearance problems with these headers , even small problems. just would like to know in advance thanks art

Just the rear two on the passenger side.

[BBVEGA]

Art,
Here are the other pics pertaining to my PM. I hope you can see the recessed (fabbed) firewall and
the fan pully clearance.

[megavega]

Having done 3 of these swaps, I have NEVER had to move the firewall back. It is tight for the fan to radiator clearance, its almost neccessary to put the newer thicker aluminum radiator under half of the topedge of core support if you run a belt driven w/p, this also depends on how thick the radiator is. No problems with space with a electric w/p, I still used the stock lower radiator mounts with a 4 core brass back then.
You definitely need to remove the stock 4 cyl motor plates on the frame, need them gone to clear the headers. I also find it easier to remove the brake line support brackets from the firewall. The rear of the cylinder head will just about touch the firewall with the engine in place, and the headers bolted up. Of course youll need to use a small cap distributor, like msd, etc..

The rear 2 tubes on the pass side do go thru the wheel well, rest of the tubes and the entire drivers side go under the frame. These big block headers fit better then the small block headers do, they are 2-1/8" tubes also. The big block has a angled down flange for the exh ports on the heads unlike the almost 90 degree of the small block, so the flange and tubes can come down at a easy angle instead of making a 90 degree bend at the engine.

I will tell you right off youll need to massage the trans tunnel opening as when you set the engine back,(because the big block is longer then the small block) the taper on the trans bellhousing will hit the top of the tunnel, I never had to cut them, just move them up and out with a hammer/dolly. The only reason I had to cut my current project is because the t56 six speed bellhousing is huge and does not taper down like a th350-400 and glide does, so I had no choice because I wanted the engine and trans to be set high in the tunnel because the car will be very low.

everyone has thier own way of solving problems, fabricating, etc. theres lots of ways to skin a cat.
in your quest for information you might simply look at the old car magazine articles and find the ones with the motion bbc swaps, also the car craft ones and youll see they didnt move the firewall back, and its not as hard as some people make this out to be. Once you go bigblock, youll never go back to a small block.

hers a pic of one sittin in a vega.

[megavega]

Art, heres a thread from a while back, theres some pics in there as well of the motion vega, and one of the steering shaft too.

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=27439&hilit=big+block&start=30

[chevy art]

thanks megavega the pics you posted and the pics BBVega posted really help. i see now that this swap also requires the remote oil filter. every little bit helps this project. you guys are really helpful thanks again art

[megavega]

I have not used the remote filter, just the short spin on the engine. Its not that bad of a fit,these headers fit better then the small block ones.

[anelson07x]

Great info- glad these posts are still here

[454spyder]

That's my silver engine compartment in the pic with no motor. BBC in a monza/vega is pretty easy with a front motorplate, flaming river steering and vega manual box steering system, Hooker BBC vega super comp headers. There is actually a pretty good amount of room.
I later did an LS conversion - LS is wider than a BBC!!!