Northstar in a 48 Cadillac

[BodybyFisher]

Not sure if everyone will be able to seen this its on Facebook, someone tucked a Northstar into what looks like a 48 cadillac in a traditional orientation. Is this a 4.4 out of an XLR?

https://m.facebook.com/groups/523649964373899?view=permalink&id=1024186400986917&comment_id=1029407970464760&ref=m_notif&notif_t=group_comment_reply&actorid=100004014633452

[rockfangd]

do you happen to have a direct link to it, I do not have Facebook so I guess I cannot view it. If not its ok.

[BodybyFisher]

do you happen to have a direct link to it, I do not have Facebook so I guess I cannot view it. If not its ok.

Its actually on Facebook, so I can't link to anything else, but here is a photo of the NS in place

[Cadillac Jim]

Cadillac Hot Rod Fabricators, chrfab.com, has been mounting 1993-1999 Northstars longitudinally since they were current production. When I got my 1997 ETC in October of 1997 in the L.A. area, I had a flat tire and the dealer service guy said that the Northstar was a favorite hot rod engine, and that lots of '32 Ford 3-window coupes in the L.A. area were running Northstars. According to them and other sources, the bell housing bolt pattern is identical to the one most GM cars use except for one that was moved about an inch for the starter. Mounting them longitudinally is a cinch, apparently.

Here is a photo of a Northstar in a 32 Ford that I found on Google Images with a search on "32 Ford Northstar:

[BodybyFisher]

I wonder what tranny they use?

[Cadillac Jim]

In my past browsings on such things, you mod the GM bell housing by moving that one bolt hole an inch and use any GM transmission that it will bolt to. Similarly with automatics, you mod the torque converter bolt pattern by moving one bolt hole an inch.

I don't recall any details about mounting the flywheel or torque converter to the crank. I don't think that's a problem.

Chrfab.com recommends the THM700R4 (later versions called the 4L60), and an ancestor of the 4L60E/4L65E. You will need a special build to get a tranny that will hold on a pumped-up Northstar. On their web site they show a Camaro bell housing on a Northstar, which will bolt to most GM manual transmissions. They will supply GM or Ford T-5 transmissions, TKO 5-speed and 6-speed transmissions, and the older Chevy transmissions (they mention Muncie, but I suspect that the classic Borg-Warner 4-speed and 5-speed transmissions could be had, if not through them). They don't update their web site often, so I would call and ask if I was serious about identifying alternatives.

I would start with the engine so that you know what torque, horsepower, and RPM that you will be asking the transmission to stand up to. That will tell you what to specify to the transmission supplier, and you can work with them to define cooling, etc.

As far as power, chrfab.com offers a variety of complete engines, the low end using a Holley Dominator and the high end with supercharging or twin turbo with digital fuel injection, and as for the horsepower, they ask "how much power do you want to make?"

[rockfangd]

Drooling.

Makes me think of bad things I could be doing. I have not really heard too much about them being used in other models

[Cadillac Jim]

Chrfab refuses to sell anything for street cars, but you can buy parts and do what you want. Emissions inspections would be your problem, chrfab makes off-road products. They specialized in sand cars at one time and I'm sure that's the main line still, but in 2007 someone campaigned a Corvette in the European SCCA tracks with a Northstar, apparently one of theirs.

With their price of parts and complete engines, the total cost of a reliable build will be hard to beat. If you do prefer DIY off-road custom engine builds, go for it. Chrfab will sell you flow-bench developed and tested head work with matching cams and valve springs that remove the huge disadvantage that garage builders suffer under (not knowing the RPM range of different parts and unintentionally mismatching them). Knowing the flow and HP, you can specify the exhaust, fuel injection, and boost, and have a handle on the oiling and cooling.

Of course, you can get a factory GM V-series Northstar and get a drivetrain that is road-legal and originally warrantied like any other GM drivetrain when it was sold, suspension and brakes to match, all in a Cadillac. And, these cars are tunable. See Bruce's blog.

If you want a sand car, quarter-mile world-beater, hydroplane, or other special application, or you want really high performance levels that will require occasional or even regular engine pull-down, chrfab parts and egines can make your job easier, more successful, and more reliable.