what is so bad about gen ii engines?

[caffeine]

If you know where to look you can get decent used tires for free. The local drifters buy brand new tires for $70 each mounted for drifting which is a really good price. These tires burn up nicely too unlike other cheap tires that will chunk away once they're hot.

[SwiftDrift]

how will i know exactly what tb to look for in the junkyard???? and whats the big deal, i hear the 3400 intake isnt bad, though the tb does seem a wee bit small. and everything else is gravy, i know people who i can get trannys and axles and everything, except suspension, i will have to save up for that. but really how bad can the 3400 intake restrict the 3500?????

[19Cutlass94]

The 3400 intake is not a bad intake. Just use that. I am, and its working just fine on my motor!

[SwiftDrift]

yeah people dont like the idea of older parts on newer motors. if it is as bad as putting a small port intake on a 3400, then obviously i wont use it. but they seem pretty damn close so i just wanted to know exactly how close.

[19Cutlass94]

Close enough its not worth the trouble your going through in this thread. Just use the 3400 intake. Later on down the road, if you have money burning a hole in your pocket, upgrade then.

[SwiftDrift]

well i have two options 1. get a 3500 and swap just the intake- 2. just use the whole 3400 sfi. i think the 3500 with just the plenum+tb off the 3400 would still have decent headroom for a cam. what do u think?

[19Cutlass94]

Its your car man, You gotta decide what direction to go with it and what you want. If you want all out power, the 3500 the place to start. 3400 still makes good power, and still can be made into a strong motor, but it wont achieve the power a 3500 will. If all you want is a cammed motor, just get a 3400. They are usually cheaper from a jy, and easier to drop in place. But if your wanting a cammed motor, and you plan on getting all the work done to do that, the price difference between a 3500 and 3400 doesnt matter. My .02

[Superdave]

You can make a TB adapter for dirt cheap to use the 3500 plenum, then just find a 65mm TB at the junk yard and bolt it on. No sense in purposely limiting power.

It's not so much peak power, but gains throughout the RPM range that really makes it worth while to use the 3500 UIM.

You'll probably lose 10 or more HP on a cammed 3x00 using a 56mm TB/3400 UIM VS a 65mm TB/3500 UIM. The engine will also pull a vacuum at WOT which is a huge indication of too small of a TB/not enough flow. I've seen it on the dyno several times.

[SwiftDrift]

what car and what engine would i have to look for for the tb?

[caffeine]

what is so bad about gen ii engines?

Anything with the 3.5L DOHC engine. It comes in Oldsmobile intrigues and auroras from around 99-02.

[IDCavalier]

the 3500 LX9 is a gen 3 engine, just the last revision. the Gen 4 "high Value" 3500/3900 is where there was a redesign of the block and many other changes. Those are the LZ engines.

Thanks AGAIN Dave!

What years of Malibu/ Whatever have the 3500 before the change to Gen 4?

[Superdave]

'04 and '05 for sure, some other cars had them too. I think there is a topic on all the sources.

[caffeine]

Malibu 04-06, G6 05-06, Uplander and Montana 05-06, Rendevouz 05-07 IIRC.

[SwiftDrift]

oh ok. well since the subject of gen 3 and gen 4 is being discussed, is the 3900s block completely different than the 60 degrees? i think it is but just want to be 100 percent sure. and you said the 3500 lx9 is a gen 3, so are the blocks the same? how different are they?

[caffeine]

For the 3900, bore spacing changed, coolant crossover was moved out of the intake manifold and into the timing cover, VVT cam/actuator was added and cam journals got larger. Exhaust flanges changed. Piston oil squirters on all 6 cylinders. Some were available with displacement on demand (could run on 3 cylinders)

The 3500 LX9 shares similar crank specs and same rods as the 3900. It's DBW throttle also has the same bolt pattern IIRC.