87 Monte Carlo SS

[Kira]

Ignoring the family / sentimental value...which is grand to say the least.....
Could your car be more saleable and possibly worth more if brought to 'concourse stock' (aka perfect) condition?
Obviously one can max out every part of that car. Would that kind of exercise be worth it?

edit: Add an engine bay pic! What trans does it have?

 

[Brian123]

I was around during those years, owned a 1985 Trans-Am (equipped with the 305 SBC) and I remember 1987 being the year that Chevy went to roller cams. My car was only two years old, and already obsolete…

Not in a Monte Carlo, now maybe in 1987 Chevrolet had the Roller Cam in the Corvette, now we are talking a 350 Chevy Engine.

 

[benjy]

nice ride!! doing ALL the fluids is smart IMO, use the best you can afford as drivetrain fluids are seldom changed! contacting HPL or Redline may get options + HPL has many grades at various prices, good luck, love those older simpler vehicles!!

 

[B1974]

The 305 of that vintage was a low lift, modest duration, cam. It doesn’t need a bunch of zinc. The spring pressures are low. The cam profile gentle.

Pretty sure it's a flat tappet cam. 87 TPI's had roller cams. But I agree with you on this, it's not a high spring pressure, high lift cam and shouldn't need extra zinc. But it's not going to hurt it if he goes in that direction.
If it's got a carb I'd be more worried about letting it sit for a few months with ethanol gas in the carb.

 

[kevjam79]

Ignoring the family / sentimental value...which is grand to say the least.....
Could your car be more saleable and possibly worth more if brought to 'concourse stock' (aka perfect) condition?
Obviously one can max out every part of that car. Would that kind of exercise be worth it?

edit: Add an engine bay pic! What trans does it have?

The invest may not make sense but I do want to at least preserve the car. What are you thinking?

 

[Patman]

Not in a Monte Carlo, now maybe in 1987 Chevrolet had the Roller Cam in the Corvette, now we are talking a 350 Chevy Engine.

That is correct, 1987 was indeed the first year that they used a roller cam in the Corvette.

 

[kevjam79]

Pretty sure it's a flat tappet cam. 87 TPI's had roller cams. But I agree with you on this, it's not a high spring pressure, high lift cam and shouldn't need extra zinc. But it's not going to hurt it if he goes in that direction.
If it's got a carb I'd be more worried about letting it sit for a few months with ethanol gas in the carb.

It does have quadrajet carb from the factory. We have always ran 91NE.

 

[racer12306]

I had an 85 for a bit in high school. Was a fun car, especially with an upgraded suspension.


For the record I used GTX 10w30 in whatever was the API standard in 2002-2004

 

[Astro14]

Pretty sure it's a flat tappet cam. 87 TPI's had roller cams. But I agree with you on this, it's not a high spring pressure, high lift cam and shouldn't need extra zinc. But it's not going to hurt it if he goes in that direction.
If it's got a carb I'd be more worried about letting it sit for a few months with ethanol gas in the carb.

It’s entirely possible that I am remembering the TPI engine.

Even in the 305, the TPI had a lot more power (215) than either the HO (190) or the LG4 (165) in mine. I just remember the feeling of, “oh man, two years later and they have so much more power, and a roller cam!”.

Interestingly, Hot Rod magazine did an article about that time, and it turns out that the TPI was flow limited. If you wanted to build a really high-performance engine, the Quadra jet gave you more airflow.

From the factory, though, the TPI was the top dog. I had no money at the time so this was all a theoretical consideration.

 

[addyguy]

305 Chev’s are problematic engines. If there is any chance it is not a roller cam, you NEED a thicker, high-ZDDP oil for engine life.
A synthetic 15W-40 HDEO would be just about perfect, as I don’t think it will see cold temps.
BTW, very nice car that is now rare and valuable, hope you enjoy it!

 

[Brian123]

It’s entirely possible that I am remembering the TPI engine.

Even in the 305, the TPI had a lot more power (215) than either the HO (190) or the LG4 (165) in mine. I just remember the feeling of, “oh man, two years later and they have so much more power, and a roller cam!”.

Interestingly, Hot Rod magazine did an article about that time, and it turns out that the TPI was flow limited. If you wanted to build a really high-performance engine, the Quadra jet gave you more airflow.

From the factory, though, the TPI was the top dog. I had no money at the time so this was all a theoretical consideration.

Yes, there was a company back in the late 1980's or early 1990's that sold an aftermarket TPI. Once I post this, I will probably remember the name of the company.

 

[bbhero]

You need a number 3 put on the sides of that car…

Blue and yellow paint….

And Wrangler on the front hood…

Then you got something there.

 

[Astro14]

305 Chev’s are problematic engines. If there is any chance it is not a roller cam, you NEED a thicker, high-ZDDP oil for engine life.
A synthetic 15W-40 HDEO would be just about perfect, as I don’t think it will see cold temps.
BTW, very nice car that is now rare and valuable, hope you enjoy it!

Well, mine wasn’t problematic at all. Ran great. Used Mobil 1 5W30. Sold it when I couldn’t fit a car seat in it.

The issue with the 305 was power. It was a 2 bolt main engine, so, it would not hold up to high horsepower, but that wasn’t usually a problem as the small valves (1.86/1.50 I think) just didn’t flow much, and neither did the “smog” heads.

Like I said, in 1987, the T/A and IROC Z, had roller cams, but it may be that they were only in the TPI engines, and the L69 HO, as well as the LG4, q-jets, still had flat tappet cams.

A guy in my flight school class bought a brand new 1987 T/A with the TPI engine (Pete Wilkins, now a United Captain) We talked about the roller cam. Running the two cars was a joke. My LG4 was so slow by comparison…

Finally, the car I wanted was the 1986 T/A HO with a 5 speed. When I was shopping, in 1986, it was about $17,000.

I just couldn’t afford it. Got through all the RPO paperwork with the dealer, and just couldn’t make the numbers work on Ensign pay.

I got my 1985 LG4 automatic T/A with 20,000 miles on it for $10,800 from the same dealer in Corpus Christi, TX.

 

[Kira]

What are you thinking?

Maintaining it as stock would qualify it as a museum piece. If it has the options people desire, so much the better.

However, if these can be brightened up a bit with a something "not excessive" like headers, it could have more appeal.

I don't know the car as it lands on the hierarchy of desire.
I'm just thinking if there's a place between 'grey old lady' and a 'wolf in sheep's clothing'.

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

Schwartz chassis and LS swap.

 

[Merek]

You need a number 3 put on the sides of that car…

Blue and yellow paint….

And Wrangler on the front hood…

Then you got something there.

The 87 Monte Carlo SS literally was my dream car growing up, color didn't matter but only with a grey interior but most in my area have red.

This is back in the glory days when Nascar actually resembled production models that you could walk into any dealership and buy.

I actually prefer this one, DW was more my guy.

 

[kevjam79]

Schwartz chassis and LS swap.

Maybe someday… Dad always talked about it.

 

[kevjam79]

The 87 Monte Carlo SS literally was my dream car growing up, color didn't matter but only with a grey interior but most in my area have red.

This is back in the glory days when Nascar actually resembled production models that you could walk into any dealership and buy.

View attachment 224202

I actually prefer this one, DW was more my guy.
View attachment 224203

Do you remember the show called MASK? I actually still have the NASCAR Monte Carlo SS from the show. I was a huge fan of both back in the day.

 

[LDB]

Schwartz chassis and LS swap.

Never heard of Schwartz before now. $32,001 for my configuration.

 

[TomYoung]

305 Chev’s are problematic engines. If there is any chance it is not a roller cam, you NEED a thicker, high-ZDDP oil for engine life.
A synthetic 15W-40 HDEO would be just about perfect, as I don’t think it will see cold temps.
BTW, very nice car that is now rare and valuable, hope you enjoy it!

Your oil suggestion is okay, but your contention that 305 Chevrolet small blocks are "problematic" is downright wrong. They will run on any modern xw30 or xw40 synthetic, or even dino if one is inclined. These engines are good for very high mileage with only average maintenance. They can be rebuilt and they are relatively simple. The knock on them might be on power relative to the larger variants, and you might have some grumbles about period engine controls. If that bothers the owner, the aftermarket is full of choices. If the engine is worn out, it can be rebuilt. I drove one of these engines in a car that got totalled with nearly 400,000 miles, untouched since new.

If this were my car, I would change belts, hoses, (all)fluids, plugs and tires if date code requires - although the tires look great. I would use Castrol GTX or Mobil 1