V8 Vega

[vegagtfan]

Hi all V8 Vega owners I am going to this winter be putting a 350 V8 into my 72 Vega Gt Hatchback with a turbo 350 tranny behind it I am going to leave the original Vega rearend under it and just change the gears to a set of 308's for a ten bolt I was wandering after I get it in and start driving it will I have any prombloms with the front end wanting to pull up into the air or will it stay put on the ground.

Thanks

Travis
1976 Vega Gt Hatchback
1972 Vega Gt Hatchback
1978 International Scout 2

[vegadad]

Travis,
If you are indeed installing a 350 in a 72 Vega you, in all likelyhood, not have to worry about pulling the front wheels off the ground. First of all you are replacing a 4 cylinder motor with a V-8 that weighs about twice what the stock one does. Even with Aluminum heads the best you can expect to shave off a 350 is about 80 pounds. Also if you get a bit too aggressive with the loud pedal, your stock 6.5 rearend will only hold about 250 HP.
In a Vega 3.08 gears are great cruisers. you might enjoy the performance of a set of 3.36s if you can find them. You might consider some suspension work as well as traction bars, etc. Don't be discouraged by this. A 350 72 Vega will be a fun car to hustle around town, just but be careful with that drivetrain and update it as you can. Good luck.

[v8astregt]

An S10 rearend is the exact same width as the Vega unit. Either do it yourself, or have a shop transfer the 4-link brackets over. That's what I did. Cost me $100 for the rearend, and $100 for a shop to do the welding. Best to have the car there though, since these cars aren't really built square, especially when you get a wider tire in there, then you notice the small differences pretty easily.

[jon72vega]

Travis,
With the stock 6.5 rear, it will break long before you pull the front wheels.

[heinz057]

i had a 72 gt, 4cyl ,4 speed, 3.36 ,edelbrock, cyclone header, grumpy traction bars that i bought new in 72( showing my age) . just put on my new cragars with new formula tires. so a burnout was in order. well after the burn out i had to find an other rear . i broke the axel and the posi case. i hope that helps

[vegagtfan]

Thanks guys for all the replys I would love to find a set of 3.36s for it but will go with the 3.08s I plan on putting V8 Monza front springs under the front to help take the weight of the 350 I am also going to put a set of newer Vega front lower A-arms under it so I can get the V8 springs to fit right hopefully everything will come together good I hope.

Travis
1976 Vega Gt Hatchback
1972 Vega Gt Hatchback
1978 international Scout 2

[heinz057]

there's 2 sets of 3.36 on ebay now

[katostud]

you will have no problem with the front end staying on the ground. i have a 76 vega hatchback with a 350 3.73 gears and 26x9inch wide street tires running 12s in the 1/4 mile. im gonna be putting in my 90-10 drag shocks in the front then see what difference it makes

[73astregt]

sorry to butt in fellas but i was wondering what year s 10 is best to get the rear end and front suspension from i want to convert my setup as im not happy with it seems to be dodge dart rotors on front with adapters for the wheels and an 8 three quarter rear wich i cant get new cragars for any info would be muchly apreciated

[vegadad]

73astregt,
If I had an 8 3/4" rear I'd consider having it redrilled for the standard GM 5 X 4 3/4" bolt pattern, then you could put whatever Chevy wheel you want on the car. And it would be stronger than any 7.5 rear out there. Just something to think about.

Keep on

[v8astregt]

http://www.s10forum.com/forum/f13/10-bolt-faq-129992/

Everything you'd ever need to know about the S10 rears.


From what I gather, the 7.5's can be built to last in a V8 S10, which is a lot heavier than the H-bodies I believe. As long as it's 28 spline (mid 88-up), you can get good posi units.

The larger 8.2/8.5 is only in late 4.3/5spds and are very hard to find and demand big $$$$'s.

[73astregt]

tossed it around quite a bit if i keep the 8 three quarter im figuring to put the strange axels in providing there are no seal leakage issues

[gotmud7]

Stock 140 ci motor, stock rear. 200HP nitrous hit. Havent broke anything yet. I hope you don't beleive that!

[vega_man_larry]

The 71 and 72 Vega used an Opel sourced manual transmission which was quite small. Because of the small size the unibody had a corresponding small size for the bellhousing and transmission. I remember that they also used a smaller automatic that was air cooled. Because of the small bellhousing and tunnel areas in your unibody you will encounter interference when putting the turbo 350 inside. Most guys use a 5 lb mechanics helper (sledge) to beat out any places where the unibody interferes. The guys with early cars can give you the specifics. I run a '75 which has a larger opening. Also the Transdapt kit comes with a '76 and later rear crossmember, which is basically a short section as the newer H Bodies '76 and newer use a different crossmember than the early cars. You'd be best off getting a rear crossmember from Don Hardy Race Cars, as that will solve rear mount problems. I ran this crossmember with the Transdapt front mounts when I ran a Turbo 350. Now I run a 2004R 4 speed with a one off crossmember.

Larry