Crazy swap idea on Daytona

[2ricardo3]

LAst night I had a crazy swap idea on my daytona.

I was looking at my uncle's Grand Prix GXP and I tought, how that V8 5.3 FWD engine would do in my daytona? Will it fit? Is there any FWD manual transmision that would handle those 300hp?

What do you think guys? Waste of time or would it be worth the shot? How difficult do you think it could be?

I know, too mucho custom work will have to be done but I don't know... I just saw a Beretta with one of those engines the other day on youtube and I tought it was cool.

[Vigo]

The GM trans that hooks to that engine is a big part of why it fits. Gm designed all their FWD trans to have a lot of the guts sitting behind the motor instead of handing off the end of it like a Chrysler trans. My mom's Volvo S80 has a transverse STRAIGHT SIX. It only fits because they use a GM trans.

There are 5spds that will bolt to it (the FWD 5.3 uses the same bellhousing pattern as the old gm 60* v6 2.8/3.1/3.4/3.5/3.9 etc) but the manual is not laid out like the auto so will it fit with the v8 at all? Not sure, but i kinda doubt it.

[2ricardo3]

So you think it will fit ussing the stock auto tranny?

I see you have lots of knoledgement on this TMs from all the threads and post you have done. If I want to stick to the FWD (RWD conversion is way too expensive, more than I would like to spend on my secondary performance car) platform on my daytona but I am bored of the typical 2.2/2.5/2.4/hybrid swapping/conversions, do you think this is a good choice? I really like V8s and I think this is near to what I am looking for. Plus, I already did some research and all, and all the swapping would cost me around 1500-2000 USD; Mexico is a very cheap place for custom modifications.

[Ondonti]

You have not expressed what your goal is beyond being oddball. A stock auto transmission 5.3 could be quite fun for effortless 1 wheel peels. How much does that combination weigh btw......

Oddball is easy to do, not sure this is the choice.

[Vigo]

I dont know for certain if it would fit. I think it will fit height-wise. Not sure about width or depth. What i would do is go look at a car with the same transmission (4t60/65) and measure how far back the trans extends behind the CV shafts and use that measurement to see how much room you have on your car. I dont see the swap involving a lot of cutting in the front or sides, but if you have to mangle or completely re-do your k-frame then you will probably want to know up front. Funnily enough if you cut up your front framerails or core support it kind of only matters if you wreck it, but if you cut up your k-frame, how well it's done will matter every time you drive the car.

In the end, though, this is one of those ideas where you wont be able to get much help on the fitment issues. You'll mostly be on your own or getting help locally. Once you get into the wiring/engine management stuff you will find more help on the internet since there are a lot of people who have swapped LS motors into things.

[Reaper1]

I don't know how those GM FWD V8 cars were done, but most GM FWD platforms use a front subframe that holds the power pack, steering, suspension and ties the whole bottom of the front of the car together. If I were to look at trying something like this, I would see about trying to use that entire thing.