mdavis74804

Just bought an 89 GT with about 160k miles on it for $3k. Have about $2k at the moment to spend on it and not sure where to put it. With that many miles the first thing that comes to my mind is a rebuild of the motor. Really no clue what it would take money wise to do a rebuild on this motor and what parts to use now days. Any suggestions? Pretty new to the area here, (Ft. Stewart, GA) so no clue where the good mechanic shops are. Been looking into the Trick Flow Track Heat combo that comes with cam, heads, upper and lower intake, etc. etc. for about $2k. The car has flowmaster exhaust, bbk headers, cold air induction already done. Motor seems to be pretty strong for that many miles and tranny seems to be working like a champ. I plan on rebuilding the motor at some point but not sure if its needed now or not. Any advice on what or where I should go with this project would be much appritiated. Also anyone know of the best place to buy parts or anywhere near me in Georgia please let me know. Thanks folks!

-Mike

wythors

First I would have a reputable shop give the engine a thorough once-over. Doing a compression and leak-down check will tell you a lot about the condition of the internals. If they give the car a thumbs up, my advice would be to start with rear gears. They are, far and away, the best "bang for the buck" in increasing performance. 3.73's really woke my AOD car up. From there, heads, cam and intake would be next on my list. These can always be swapped over to a new engine down the road if need be. If it doesn't already have one, an aftermarket X or H pipe would be next.

My number one choice for performance parts has always been Summit Racing. Excellent pricing and great customer service. I've used others, but Summit always comes through for me.

Congrats on the new car. Be sure to post up some pictures when you have them.

vt89gtvert

Then I would go with control arms, upper and lower, Sub-frame connectors, and getting the torque boxes welded and reinforced

mdavis74804

Forgot to add it has the stock 5 speed in it. Thanks

-Mike