Cheapest/lightest V8?

Of all the SBC LS-X variants... what is the cheapest one with an aluminum block I can get my grubby mits on? I want light and fast but I don't need 600hp. 300 is fine and so is a T5 trans...

I just want to know what EXACTLY to put in a search engine to find what I need - searching LS-1 brings back everything from old iron truck motors to $4500 GTO mills. What junkyard dweller do I need to specify to find a good runner in the under-a-grand long block fully dressed with a harness category? What should I pay for a camaro 5sp to bolt to it?

Would a 5L Ford be better or is it too heavy (no alum blocks, right?) They look really small... are cheap as dirt and rev to 6k.

The L33, from a late Silverado 4WD extended cab.

Mark VIII DOHC Ford is HUGE... but light.

Keith wrote: The L33, from a late Silverado 4WD extended cab.

yeah, the truck 5.3s tend to run about $500-750 from yards, and take all the same upgrades for making power.

Truck 5.3L with the aluminum block (they had an iron version too, so do some research). They are a cam away from 300HP so no worries there. Aluminum heads, plastic intake, compact package, will bolt right up to a 3rd Gen F-Car T5 no problem.

why not a Lexus V8?

But what will the flywheel/bell housing/tranny run? Any bargains there?

Actually, looking at your goals, why not the 350Z/G35 V6? Lighter than any V8 other than the Rover/Buick POS...

kreb wrote: But what will the flywheel/bell housing/tranny run? Any bargains there?

If you aren't stuck on a manual tranny, they can be found for VERY cheap.

I see them all the time in my local u-pull yards, you can get the whole thing for under $400. And they're a marvel of engineering.

Cast iron 5.3's are under $200 each if you're ok with >80k miles. If you're planning on a carb with the LSx motor you can save $100 and get better tunability out of the MSD ignition controller than the one that comes withthe Edelbrock kit, then just get the manifold.

Engine, manifold, ignition controller, carb, 200R4 and torque converter adapter I figure I've got $1100 into the drivetrain in the shop waiting on a car to put it in. That's with the carb, manifold, controller, and adapter being full retail new parts.

Can you recommend some reading material for me for these cheapass truck LS swaps? My Roadmaster is ready for a swap or rebuild and I don't if I can get 300hp for $200 by rebuilding my TBI L05 5.7.

I just never got into motor swaps, rebuilds, mods, whatever, usually if I have an issue with a car like its motor blows, a transmission dies, the sky gets cloudy, I just start looking for another car. So anyway, I'm going to be tweaking this one and I'm not sure where to start.

Yeah, what Lugnut said.

I'm thinking about picking up a Roadmonster as a work vehicle with an SBC I can play with, and I've been wondering about this very issue.

Luggy, have you done anything suspension-wise to your wagon? I'm guessing 9C1 Impala stuff bolts up, but that's only a hunch of mine. Any good source of info for those of us crazy enough to want to hop up one of these barges?

oldopelguy wrote: Cast iron 5.3's are under $200 each if you're ok with >80k miles. If you're planning on a carb with the LSx motor you can save $100 and get better tunability out of the MSD ignition controller than the one that comes withthe Edelbrock kit, then just get the manifold. Engine, manifold, ignition controller, carb, 200R4 and torque converter adapter I figure I've got $1100 into the drivetrain in the shop waiting on a car to put it in. That's with the carb, manifold, controller, and adapter being full retail new parts.

Wouldn't it be cheaper to use the factory injection/ignition? The GM ECM is thoroughly hacked. If you're going automatic, it also seems like the modern transmission would be much more appropriate rather than the ol' 200. If you've got a special reason then whatever floats your boat, but if you're trying to do it on the cheap it seems to me that you'd come ahead using all the modern stuff not only on price, but also support, power, driveability, fuel economy, etc.

Bryce

Well I have the wagon but it puked a trans. I also have another '93 5.7, a sedan. I'm working on the sedan now. Suspension on the wagon was the F40/V92 heavy duty trailer package wagon suspension. It also has the 3.23 vs the sedan's 2.56. I was thinking about swapping all of that stuff over for the free upgrade.

Oh, and I hang out at impalassforum.com for b-body info.

For all things LS swap subscribe to Car Craft and call for back issues. They have thoroughly covered the subject from end to end to end. From ID'ing LSx motors, EFI/Carb, transmission adapting, head/cam swaps, ignition controllers, iron vs aluminum, accessory drives, oil pans, differences between Gen III and Gen IV, etc, etc.

I subscribed to Car Craft when I started with the V8s The recent article on accessory drives made my laughably cheap subscription a total win.

Wikipedia has the model breakdown, so you can tell where to find the aluminum L33 vs the iron block versions. LS1tech.com has all sorts of joy in it as well, such as oil pan dimensions.

Nashco wrote: Wouldn't it be cheaper to use the factory injection/ignition? The GM ECM is thoroughly hacked. If you're going automatic, it also seems like the modern transmission would be much more appropriate rather than the ol' 200. If you've got a special reason then whatever floats your boat, but if you're trying to do it on the cheap it seems to me that you'd come ahead using all the modern stuff not only on price, but also support, power, driveability, fuel economy, etc. Bryce

I haven't found any way to get the ecu re-programmed for under $100 anywhere yet. You would need at least one reprogramming to get the engine to run without throwing codes and without the VATS ignition switch that came with the computer, but for tuning down the road you would be tossing at least that same $100 every time you wanted to try something.

Or you could buy a programmer, and for one that will actually change significant features of the programming you're looking at $450 minimum.

In my case the drivetrain is hopefully destined for an old Nova my future wife seems to be stuck on. Since the Nova never came with the 700R4 the fact that the 200R4 fits length and dimensionally where a TH350 does means it should drop right in and not need another $100 driveshaft. Add to that the modern transmissions have not had the same drop in price the engines have had, it's hard to find one you know will work for under $600.

Long term the way to go is with the GM EFI and such, absolutely, but in the short term I'll have an engine running on the stand next week and be able to drop it in something and drive away the next day. Once the motor mounts, exhaust, driveline, cooling, accessory belts and such are figured out and everything is running, adding the EFI later on turns into another weekend project that can be done piece-meal. I figure the carb set-up as a stop-gap measure to keep me from losing interest in the project and let me drive the thing sooner rather than later.

I also made the mistake of buying a drive-by-wire engine for my S10 swap and didn't get all the parts. Sure I had the ecu, harness, and everything you would think you would need, but the drive-by-wire ecu was going to be another $75, as was the throttle pedal, and no one even wanted to talk to be about the interconnecting wiring. Staring down the barrel of having to spend another $200 on pieces to make the injection I had work it was easier and cheaper to buy a whole extra engine for the cable throttle body and return-type fuel rails. That meant I had an "extra" 5.3 sitting around with aluminum heads and 80k miles on it, seemed to me the easy answer would be to treat it as a regular old 300hp SBC and use it appropriately. I've actually given a lot of thought to using the parts to toss the engine in my pickup, a TBI set-up will set as easily on an adapter plate on this motor as on an old SBC, and the output of the MSD box is going to look pretty much like the output of the distributor to the old ECU. Pretty much anywhere you have an old SBC you can drop in the LSx motor with the MSD box, for TBI you need the carb manifold and for TPI use the one on the motor already.

I am not interested in cast iron, carbs or automatics... but that 5.3L out of the Silverado + a T5 looks to be right.

550lbs total with bare necessities w/ trans bolted up 305hp/330ft/lbs $900 for full dress with harness seems doable in the 60k miles range as per http://www.car-part.com/

I just reviewed a book that you should read:

"How to Swap GM LS-Series Engines Into Almost Anything". It's published by www.cartechbooks.com

I normally wouldn't plug something like that, but it's a really cool book.

Per

oldopelguy wrote: Cast iron 5.3's are under $200 each if you're ok with >80k miles. If you're planning on a carb with the LSx motor you can save $100 and get better tunability out of the MSD ignition controller than the one that comes withthe Edelbrock kit, then just get the manifold. Engine, manifold, ignition controller, carb, 200R4 and torque converter adapter I figure I've got $1100 into the drivetrain in the shop waiting on a car to put it in. That's with the carb, manifold, controller, and adapter being full retail new parts.

Does that controller use the factory-style coils? My goals seem similar to yours... Get it drivable, piece together what I want the system to be eventually while I am driving it. I'm fine carbing it and keeping the auto. It doesn't even get smogged here in IL, since it's pre-OBD2.

Lugnut wrote: Does that controller use the factory-style coils? My goals seem similar to yours... Get it drivable, piece together what I want the system to be eventually while I am driving it. I'm fine carbing it and keeping the auto. It doesn't even get smogged here in IL, since it's pre-OBD2.

The MSD box uses the stock LSx coil packs, as well as the stock LSx crank and cam sensors and a MAP sensor that comes with it.

P71 wrote: For all things LS swap subscribe to Car Craft and call for back issues. They have thoroughly covered the subject from end to end to end. From ID'ing LSx motors, EFI/Carb, transmission adapting, head/cam swaps, ignition controllers, iron vs aluminum, accessory drives, oil pans, differences between Gen III and Gen IV, etc, etc.

At this point , it is one of three things I still read CC for, that, E85 tunning, and "Krass and Bern"

Grtechguy wrote: why not a Lexus V8?

Only came in front of automatics in the US, and limited to no aftermarket support.

Elsewise I'd probably swap a 1UZ-FE into the Celica.

For $10 a year it's worth it just for Krass&Bern. I cut out the LS1 and E85 stuff plus K&B and AMC stuff and recycle the rest.

Per Schroeder wrote: I just reviewed a book that you should read: "How to Swap GM LS-Series Engines Into Almost Anything". It's published by www.cartechbooks.com I normally wouldn't plug something like that, but it's a really cool book. Per

Sweet! Ordered.