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Engine SwapEverything about swapping an engine into your Third Gen.....be it V6, V8, LTX/LSX, crate engine, etc. Pictures, questions, answers, and work logs.
Was wondering what was easier I got a 82 firebird t top was a v8 car motor and trans are gone , was thinking on buying a carb v8 with a. Cam not to bad but also looking into a 5.3 out of a 03 truck with the harness what would be the easier way to go last time I went v6 to v8 I went carb
Easier? 350. Cheaper too. I'm in exactly this position now. Blown up 350 shortblock (with a long list of bolt on/bolt in speed parts) and an 03 Tahoe with a 5.3 complete and running. What to do? Rebuild the short as a 383 and it's 5k more or less. The LS swap alone would probably eat up half that amount but it would just be a pedestrian 5.3. Throw another 5k at that for something decent (heads, intake, cam plus the tuning equipment needed) and you can do the math yourself.
Funny you should say that. My approach for an LS swap would be to ditch the truck intake and go carb. I haven't the means to tune fuel injection but carbs are easy peasy. And given what I have already I'd invest in Hooker's line of related components. I have their swap crossmember already.
A list something like this.
Plus the details. That gets me to maybe 300 CHP?
Now, what to do for cam and heads?
Funny you should say that. My approach for an LS swap would be to ditch the truck intake and go carb. I haven't the means to tune fuel injection but carbs are easy peasy. And given what I have already I'd invest in Hooker's line of related components. I have their swap crossmember already.
A list something like this.
Plus the details. That gets me to maybe 300 CHP?
Now, what to do for cam and heads?
Wow that's expensive!!! Your old Vortec engine looks much better the more that $ adds up.
Throw a new intake and a carb on the 5.3 with and MSD 6014 and call it a day
Originally Posted by Boutila
Was wondering what was easier I got a 82 firebird t top was a v8 car motor and trans are gone , was thinking on buying a carb v8 with a. Cam not to bad but also looking into a 5.3 out of a 03 truck with the harness what would be the easier way to go last time I went v6 to v8 I went carb
Wow that's expensive!!! Your old Vortec engine looks much better the more that $ adds up.
Keep in mind that the $5k for the SBC I'm describing here is a shortblock only. I've got that much again and then some invested in the valvetrain, ignition, sheet metal, etc. And the result will be 450-475 unstressed CHP easily (<6000 RPM). If the OP needs the whole package, then start thinking closer to 10k for that kind of SBC.
Originally Posted by 84 z28
Throw a new intake and a carb on the 5.3 with and MSD 6014 and call it a day
Pretty much the approach I spec'd above with the Edelbrock ignition and manifold. MSD/Holley would serve just as well.
Thing is, that's not even at 300 HP. Or just barely. To hit 450 you'll needs heads and a cam. Now depending on who you believe and all the YouTube hype, there are arguments that say that a cam only will net 100 HP. Maybe I suppose. But the stock 706 heads I believe max out at a 220 CFM. That's not a lot of airflow. You'll have to step up for my "apples to apples" comparison.
Originally Posted by QwkTrip
If you have to ask then you're not ready for LS.
Not sure where the OP's head is it but I've been asking for years so I'm clearly still not ready. I will say though that the process is becoming easier both in the procurement of parts and installation.
But when I stop asking and am ready, I'd skip all of the DIY engine hot rodding and go right for the LS3. That's $8k (CDN) for 450 HP. Then add the swap parts. Don't forget the tuning software. I'd budget $15000.
Id personally go LQ4 or LQ9 over the 5.3, I have tossed aground the idea. I think I'd go 383 for the cost of converting to LS
Originally Posted by skinny z
Keep in mind that the $5k for the SBC I'm describing here is a shortblock only. I've got that much again and then some invested in the valvetrain, ignition, sheet metal, etc. And the result will be 450-475 unstressed CHP easily (<6000 RPM). If the OP needs the whole package, then start thinking closer to 10k for that kind of SBC.
Pretty much the approach I spec'd above with the Edelbrock ignition and manifold. MSD/Holley would serve just as well.
Thing is, that's not even at 300 HP. Or just barely. To hit 450 you'll needs heads and a cam. Now depending on who you believe and all the YouTube hype, there are arguments that say that a cam only will net 100 HP. Maybe I suppose. But the stock 706 heads I believe max out at a 220 CFM. That's not a lot of airflow. You'll have to step for my "apples to apples" comparison.
I can agree but the LM7 is in the driveway now.
But if we're talking preferences, even looking past the LS3 as posted above, I'd rather a big bore block. The LS7 heads sitting on a friends shelf need a home.
Building a proper 350 ain't cheap either. I have WAY over $5k into my 350 (400 HP on iron heads) and that's doing 100% of the assembly personally. Just the machine work on the block, crank, and rods was like $1600. Cam, valve train, headers and exhaust, FIRST intake, tuning and management..... the list goes on. Just what I listed there is over $6k.
I hear you GD. It'll be 5k for my 383 shortblock alone! It's very easy to put double that into a performance engine. I guess I'll pick performance and reliability in that case. But that's what it takes.
That said, it's the swap components that push up the cost of the LS deal over and above that of the Gen 1 SBC. They're not terribly expensive but still add to the total. Taking a stock LS engine and making it last in my kind of environment (or potential environment I should say) at the power levels I'm looking for still takes a lot of bucks. They still have cast crankshafts and PM rods. Stuff I wouldn't trust for a flat out open road event. And that's my direction. Plus you still need heads, intake, cam and valvetrain to push the 500 HP mark if you start with the humble LM7 (of which I have two). But I'm not a junkyard build kind of person. Not in the old days. And not today. This is why it'll be a while before I'm racing again.
If my 305 died today instead of 4 years ago,there is now way anything but an ls would end up in there,local yard was selling 4.8/5.3's with harness and trans from rusted trucks for 800 bucks when I scrapped a parts car last month.
I mean,I don't hate the 350 I ended up with but today I'd get a little more with the times.
I went through something similar when I first got my car. I'm also in Canada (was Ontario when I did my swap initially, now in NB)
I had the carbed 305 in my 87 T/A... Never intended to do anything serious to the car, just keep it nice and drive it. And then one day in August on the 401 near Brampton in rush hour traffic it started to vapour lock. Not good. Then later that summer, some POS beat up daily beat me across an intersection, and I don't think they were even trying! Valve seals leaked a bit, clutch was slipping etc.
So, naturally I figured I'll just do a 350 swap and put in a new clutch. Figured well, if I'm doing a 350 I may as well at least do a 383. Then I came across LS swaps on here. I weighed the pros and cons of both and determined LS is the way to go. And never have I regretted it.
So in the fall of 2013 I went and bought an LS1 from a yard for like $1500. Computer, harness, LS6 intake, manifolds etc out of a 2002 T/A. Engine had 140,000 KM.
I built the harness myself. My first time doing something like that, and it wasn't that bad honestly. Minimal cost.
I found an LT1 T-56 for around $1500, converted it to the LS style which cost me another $800ish.
I bought the Hawks Trans mount and engine mounts. They are not expensive and good parts.
What this got me, is for roughly the same cost as building a decent 383 was MODERN tech. Fuel injection, hook up a scanner or a computer no problem. Good mileage, with the T-56 cruising at 120km/hr I was getting really good fuel mileage IF I was nice to the throttle.
If I was to do this on a budget and if I wanted an auto transmission, I would go find myself a rotted out truck with a 5.3 and a 4l60E, not impossible to find for $1000. Take out everything you could possibly need, and then part out the truck. Wheels, tires, catalytic converter, and many other odd parts are worth money, plus the scrap value of the truck, you are in to an engine and trans for MAYBE $500. Build the harness yourself, even if you have to buy new tools to do so, you are looking at under $150.
Yes, the small stuff adds up, however ALL of the experimenting has been done on here for you. Realistically you can just find the part numbers on here and order what you need from 3-4 different websites.
The speed engineering LS swap headers are great for the money, I have them on my car. I sold my F-Body manifolds to someone else doing an LS swap for like $100.
My cam swap cost me around $1500 (cam, pushrods, springs and unfortunately head gaskets and bolts), and after the dyno I expect to be around 400 hp. So for 5G or less going with a 5.3 and 4l60E that can be in your car.
My main advice if you're doing an LS swap is to stick with factory parts as much as possible. Typically those parts are cheaper, easier to find and reliable. I have parts from Ford, VW, and a few different GM vehicles.
One thing I can't stand is seeing an LS with a carb set up. You are really taking away a big part of the LS advantage that way. It's just wires and simple DC circuits, nothing to be afraid of.
04-06-2020, 08:27 PM
