85tacoguy

iTrader: (1)

Hello everyone, sweet forum!

I just recent bought an 05 lq4 engine from an express van and had a bunch of questions.
FIrst off, whats the difference between lq4 and the lq9? Im pretty sure its compression but where at, heads? Pistons? Crank?
Also, What intake manifold will work best on one of these engines in a desert racing application? More torque the better.
Next question, The engine is setup with the drive by wire throttle body, how do i make it cable driven work.
I dont have a harness yet and plan on getting a custom one made. WHere would be a good place to get a custom harness?
Also, dont have an ecu, do i have to get one from the same type of vehicle or will any 6.0l ecu work?
Last question for now, is there aftermarket cams available that can use the factory valve springs, or is that not a good idea?

346ci

Interested as well as to the differences between lq9 and lq4, is it just compression?

72RK

To the best of my knowledged the difference between the LQ4 and LQ9 is strictly the pistons. The LQ4 has dished whereas the LQ9 has flattops. They both use the same head. I also have a 2005 LQ4 that came with the 317 heads.

i am sure others will chime in on this, but if you want torque your best bet is going to stay with the truck intake manifold. Trying to go with a LS6 setup is not going to be cost effective for torque requirements, especially for the cost of the front drive/pulley arrangement.

I used Current performance when I had my harness built for my 72 truck and those guys did an extremely awesome job. It was not a quick turnaround though. As a newbie also the custom harness took the guess work right out of the picture.

If you got the engine out of a salvage unit, you can probably track down the pedal assembly and the TAC (throttle actuation control) module to make the DBW (drive by wire) throttle body work. The TAC module is under the master cylinder area mounted to the firewall, if you didn't know.

Also on the ECU, i would talk to Jared at Current performance he would tell you what you need to do on that. I am not sure which will work.

welcome to the forum, it has been a constant source for info for me..

mark21742

The.lq4 uses dished pistons, the lq9 uses flat top pistons.
Did you get the heads with the motor or just a short block?
If you fo a cam swap valve springs are manditory.

You will need to swap your tb for a cable controled tb.
I'd recomend a 2000-2004 computer for ease of tuning, but your motor should have a 58tooth reluctor whee so you'd need a converter box for the computer to read it as a 24 tooth (newer computers have injector limits to 63lb flow rates)

What are you dropping the motor into and what are your goals?

500@10psi

iTrader: (5)

if the motor is a lq4 then it has a 24 tooth reluctor. check the crank sensor if it is gray then it is 24, if it is black then it is 58. also any gen 3 computer will work just have to get the crank relearned. look thru the classifieds you can find computer/harness combos in there. also depending on the trans you will have to take the crank spacer off from behind the flywheel

SOMbitch

iTrader: (8)

Painless wiring can also make you a harness and your pistons are a -7cc dish IIRC.... And yes any Gen III computer can be flashed. The 97-98 are a little more picky to tune so look 99 up.

85tacoguy

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the replys everyone

I bought the engine as a complete engine from a guy on offroad forum. It has 317 heads on it, i dont have a clue where the crank sensor is to know about the reluctor but there are 2 sensors on the top back of the engine and both are black. About keeping the drive by wire pedal, not gonna happen. The engine is going in a single cab toyota offroad race truck. THe least ammount of electronics, the better. Im looking to keep the engine pretty stock and hoping for around 375hp. The reason i need to change the intake manifold if for clearance from the hood. It comes down to what manifold is best for my application. Also i have another big question, is there any way i can make this engine dry sump or get a shallower oil pan? The depth on this factory pan is crazy

85tacoguy

iTrader: (1)

Also, i have a th400 trans with full reverse manual valvebody and kevlar clutches that will be going behind the engine

dwfronk

As for differences in Lq4 and Lq9, its only the pistons. Lq4 dished Lq9 flat top. I have heard that 04 to current LQ4 blocks have the same connecting rods as the LQ9 and that they are stronger then the Connecting rods in previous Lq4.

For you intake Get an LS6 intake it comes factory on 01-02 ls1 camaros. the factory vortec intake on the lq4 is much taller. the ls6 intake also has no EGR.

The LS based motors are Very easy to build power out of buy keeping them fairly stock i recomend swapping to the LS6 intake because of its lower profile for what your looking for and deacent flow for a stock intake. then one of the easyest ways to get power out of these motors it put a cam in it and have it tuned.

85tacoguy

iTrader: (1)

Any recomendations on what cam? I dont want anything crazy. Looking for more of a longevity setup here. What about my need of a drysump? Can it be swapped of another engine or what?

85tacoguy

iTrader: (1)

On the ls6 intake swap, what is 72rk talking about pully arrangments?Also, will this fit my engine?

https://ls1tech.com/forums/parts-cla...1-oil-pan.html

dwfronk

cams i dont know so much about its really depends on what kind of power u want to put out.

YES the ls1 oil pan will fit the LQ4. The LQ4 and LQ9 are both VERY popular swaps into the LS1 camaros. That is what is done to mine. Most ls based motors can use almost any thing from another. IE heads, pan, intake.

SweetS10V8

iTrader: (4)

If you want a shallow pan look into the C6 corvette pan. (great oil pan comparison in link) https://ls1tech.com/forums/conversio...-oil-pans.html

If you have the hood clearance, I would run a FAST LSXRT intake. If not, a FAST LSXR, Im running it and love it. For a budget build and LS6 will do OK too, youll just leave some power on teh table.

I also used Jared at Current Performance for my wiring, hes AWESOME!!!. You tell him what you have, what you want, and he will make you a plug and play harness. Its the best money youll spend. Plus he can get you a PCM and a tune to get you started.

Running an aftermarket cam with OEM srpings is a TERRIBLE idea, aleays run the matching recommended springs. To reccomend you a decent cam we have to know more about your vehicle, rpm range, final engine setup, and so on.

500@10psi

iTrader: (5)

the sensors on the top are the cam sensor and the oil press. sensor. the crank sensor is by the starter and kinda sits like the cam sensor

tjb406

iTrader: (4)

on the pully set up they where talking about the idler pully is in the way of the throttlebody they make a idler relocation braket for that. the crank for the throttle blade
(where the cable hooks on) also hits the water outlet on the water pump but can be changed out for an ls6 pump.

85tacoguy

iTrader: (1)

Thanks tjb, im not worried about the idler pully because its getting eliminated because of the alt setup im making. And also the water pump should be an easy swap.

For the cam, im not quite sure what im looking for. The engine is going in a desert race/play truck where more torque the better. The rpm range is all over in off road so cant really determine that.

I think i will stick to an ls6 intake manifold because i am trying to stick to a low budget build here.

How hard is it to modify a stock harness? I know my way with electronics but i defenitely dont know what to cut out and what to save for the stock harness. THere is bound to be thread about this... Also will any truck harness work, or does it have to be a 6.0 truck harness?