The classic GM muscle car engine is getting a bit long in the tooth and is prepped for a full heart transplant with Backyard Barn Finds.
The Chevrolet Camaro is both a formidable drag racing platform and a daily driver. With the Chevrolet Camaro ending production soon and thus ushering in an end of an era, collectors still lust over clean examples of the classic muscle car. Passionate GM fans and classic car lovers search far and wide for old model Chevy Camaros looking for the golden barn finds.
Parker from the Backyard Barn Finds YouTube channel takes that concept literally as he begins working on his gold 1969 Chevrolet Camaro. The ’69 Camaro is a regular feature on the list of greatest Camaros of all time and Parker has plans to restore this car back to its full glory while also performing the tried and true LS engine swap.
While many collectors and barn find hunters are fond of keeping classic cars all-original, the LS engine swap is an extremely popular drop-in engine solution for those looking to spice things up a bit. Parker’s ’69 Camaro still has the original 357 engine installed and he points out that with around 70K miles on the clock, the old mill has its best days behind it.
There are still fans of the original small-block Chevy V8 engines, but it goes without saying that the newer LS powerplants are overall lighter, easier to tune, more reliable, and make more power than their predecessors. It’s an easy decision for Parker to make for his Camaro and he gets to work prepping the old girl for the swap.
Parker is no stranger to tackling 1969 Chevrolet Camaro restoration projects and he jumps right into this project with the help of a few of his buddies. They pull the entire hood off first then get to work unbolting and disconnecting all parts holding the front clip of the car to the chassis and engine.
Once that is all sorted, the three guys each take a side and just pick up the entire front clip, radiator and all, lifting it up and away from the car. Setting it down on a blanket, there is now full access to the engine bay.
Parker is somewhat of a Camaro barn find specialist at this point, and provides some useful tips for anyone also looking to perform the same work on their classic Camaro. He points out where the bolts and bushings are that need removal in order for the front clip to come completely off. Stay tuned for more as the LS swap is fully underway.