Get This Book!: "How to Re-Build Your GM V-6 60*

[60dgrzbelow0]

I suppose you could spend $50-$200+ on a book, then a gasket set, rings, bearings, machine work and whatnot to rebuild an ancient engine with ancient information from a book published in 1994....

Thanks to Dan... I was able to order and receive the Voegelin book on "Engine Blueprinting"... which he has described as fundamental to a Mechanic's understanding of matters which are not only important and which need precision and sound thinking while doing...but ...as it happens...hopefully are "Timeless" in their meanings, as well.

I found it interesting while leafing through the manual that while my "Ancient" Book for Re-Building "Ancient" GM V-6 Engines" was published in 1993-1994...This other, very instructive and very interesting reference was penned and published in 1983 and again...probably by popular demand...in 1988. I guess sound thinking and experience never really go out of style after all...now do they?

[60dgrzbelow0]

I've seen the book and for $14 I might get it but before I spend over that I think the factory service manuals for the vehicle you own would be money better spent.

If you need to do much more than Engine Re-Building...absolutely...and if it comes down to where to spend the $$$ first... the obvious choice is to go for the shop manuals. But... If I didn't own both complete sets of the GM Factory Carline Series Shop Manuals for the 1993 and 1994 Chevrolet Camaro-Firebirds and had a chance to compare the data and imagery inside against Tom Currao's book... I might agree with you entirely.

Surprisingly enough, specific to just the "Engine Re-Building" aspects as a basis for making such a comparison, with the exception of the car specific hardware hookups for the R&R portion of the job... Currao's Book has it all over the Shop Manuals. Having both however has been an enormous benefit and gives a mechanic a deeper level of comfort and understanding.

[neo71665]

I've seen the book and for $14 I might get it but before I spend over that I think the factory service manuals for the vehicle you own would be money better spent.

[Superdave]

my oldest is about 5 or 6 years from driving, but i see your point of view.

I also know for a fact that you can go extremely fast with not much power.. As a stupid reckless teen i took my old Z24 up past 120.. it had probably 90 HP @ the wheels with the old 2.8/auto.

I teach my oldest son responsibility, and he knows that if he does something stupid he'll pay for it. lol


but lets get back on subject.. 3400beretta, does it have "Old book smell" ?

[60dgrzbelow0]

With a healthy cam, headers and a 3500 top end your son's car would be just as fast as yours

Dave ...you'll get no argument from me on that score... I'm certain of your understanding and the reputation of the likes of Ben and John to provide the "Aluminum Solution" to the horse power equation... But as betterthanyou tried to enlighten us all on the subject of the motivation of Tom Currao to pen a book in 1994 for the then state-of-the art thinking in automotive re-builds, so look deeper into the real motivation of a father who's son is the very beat of his heart... and who has learned and understands at the age of 60... that having a boy with a Lead Foot Tendency in his driving in his twenties means using common sense and good judgment about how to steer his weakness for driving carelessly at high speed until he can grow into the maturity needed to keep him alive when riding as the pilot on surface streets in a car with over 275 Horsepower... so the very last thing my boy needs right now, is to have a car that..."will be just as fast as.." my Z-28.

If you are a father yourself with children approaching driving age...you will think about this problem long and hard the later it gets on a Saturday night...until your kids arrive safe and sound at home. This is the primary reason for my making only a "reasonable" HP boost in his new engine...rather than any other factors you might imagine. I don't want my son to be tempted by so much constant and unbridled power to risk him having to take that "Long Dirt Nap" sooner than he is able to level himself in life. Sometimes "Too Much of Good Thing"... is just not that good when it comes to making more and more Horse Power. I hope this is an adequate explanation.

[3400beretta]

As already stated, there really isn't much out there besides this website when it comes to these engines. I bought the book because it is rare, and I wanted to see for myself what was in it. Not to mention I scored it for like $25 on ebay. The chevrolet power book had a section in it with 660 info at one time.. never did get ahold of that one.

[Superdave]

It would be interesting to see (pics...anyone?) of some of the 93-95 4th Gen F-Bodys with this engine-swap-upgrade you've described. My situation is a bit different than most people who have cars with the 60* V-6 motors though. I'm retired and live on a fixed income. I have to pace the purchases I make to improve and upgrade this 3.4L engine according to how much I can afford at any given time... so this requires patience and planning.

My son owns the 94- Camaro RS that is the object of all this mechanical attention (if that RS designation is even correct) and his car is the focus of everything I am working on to make the install and upgrades correct. But I also own a 1993 Chevrolet Camaro Z-28 that is my own daily driver (I know..."Z-28" ....bad word) with the LT-1 Corvette motor and barely 65,000 miles on it. It is a very solid performer in so many pleasant ways. So I'm in no need of bumping any of the cars too substantially higher in the horsepower end of things. Ergo... the 3.4L build plods along and with God's grace...some help here and there from the likes of all of you... I'll cobble my boy's car back together very soon. That's the plan...

With a healthy cam, headers and a 3500 top end your son's car would be just as fast as yours

[60dgrzbelow0]

I would argue with the utmost respect that if you have the time and resources to pull, rebuild and re-install an engine, you are more than qualified and able to swap a better motor into the car.

Hell even a basic 3100 is a better option and they are cheap as dirt in very usable condition.

But this is getting somewhat off topic.

It would be interesting to see (pics...anyone?) of some of the 93-95 4th Gen F-Bodys with this engine-swap-upgrade you've described. My situation is a bit different than most people who have cars with the 60* V-6 motors though. I'm retired and live on a fixed income. I have to pace the purchases I make to improve and upgrade this 3.4L engine according to how much I can afford at any given time... so this requires patience and planning.

My son owns the 94- Camaro RS that is the object of all this mechanical attention (if that RS designation is even correct) and his car is the focus of everything I am working on to make the install and upgrades correct. But I also own a 1993 Chevrolet Camaro Z-28 that is my own daily driver (I know..."Z-28" ....bad word) with the LT-1 Corvette motor and barely 65,000 miles on it. It is a very solid performer in so many pleasant ways. So I'm in no need of bumping any of the cars too substantially higher in the horsepower end of things. Ergo... the 3.4L build plods along and with God's grace...some help here and there from the likes of all of you... I'll cobble my boy's car back together very soon. That's the plan...

[SappySE107]

We could write a better book on rebuilding these engines. Then a section for performance upgrades. Obviously its valuable ($300 for a book from 1994 or $450 for a book from 2009) hehe

[Superdave]

Wouldn't be much of a book...

Step 1: buy 3500
Step 2: Have Ben port the top end
Step 3: install a healthy cam
Step 4: Install headers
Step 5: tune


maybe we could do little flip-books

[robertisaar]

Maybe we should write a book on that...

"How to make 300 HP from a 60 degree v6 and still get 30 MPG"

i like this plan.

get typin'

[Superdave]

The title of the book is "how to rebuild" not "how to hotrod and make your car drop into the 13's"

Not everyone has the time or resources to drop in a 3500 or make a hybrid. A lot of people just want their car back on the road or to get it back to the condition it was in before a cylinder head cracked, cam went flat or a valve burnt out. So a book like this helps in this case.

Stop bashing something that does a good job at what it was designed to do just because there is no "How to Make 300 Horsepower From a 60 Degree V6" book. That is not what the author was writing about, he did not miss the point he was trying to make.

Maybe we should write a book on that...


"How to make 300 HP from a 60 degree v6 and still get 30 MPG"

[asylummotorsports]

I would argue with the utmost respect that if you have the time and resources to pull, rebuild and re-install an engine, you are more than qualified and able to swap a better motor into the car.

Hell even a basic 3100 is a better option and they are cheap as dirt in very usable condition.

But this is getting somewhat off topic.

[geoffinbc]

I suppose you could spend $50-$200+ on a book, then a gasket set, rings, bearings, machine work and whatnot to rebuild an ancient engine with ancient information from a book published in 1994....
OR
You could just buy a newer, better performing low mileage engine for $300-$400 and be done with it.
I generally throw away 2.8/3.1 engines. IMHO that is about what they are worth.

The title of the book is "how to rebuild" not "how to hotrod and make your car drop into the 13's"

Not everyone has the time or resources to drop in a 3500 or make a hybrid. A lot of people just want their car back on the road or to get it back to the condition it was in before a cylinder head cracked, cam went flat or a valve burnt out. So a book like this helps in this case.

Stop bashing something that does a good job at what it was designed to do just because there is no "How to Make 300 Horsepower From a 60 Degree V6" book. That is not what the author was writing about, he did not miss the point he was trying to make.

[SofaKingWeToddDid]

I generally throw away 2.8/3.1 engines. IMHO that is about what they are worth.

they sell for $150, TOPS where i am. but you gotta go pull it yourself.