This is to answer questions about stroking and boring
05-25-2010, 04:26 PM
#1
This is to answer questions about stroking and boring After a large amount of research i have found a few things of interest.
-The crank in our car is not the same as other lsx engines. When laid side by side, they are not only different sizes, which we already knew but they are actually different designs. They have different separations and dont share anything with the other lsx cranks.
-The pistons are smaller than other lsx series engines.
-Aluminum engines can not be bored. There is a lot of posts online about other people boring out and stroking 5.3 engines. These are iron block motors. You can bore iron blocks, but not aluminum. I know technically you could grind it out. But that would require two things, new sleeves and a LOT of work. I have contacted many very well known shops and they all say the same thing. I believe it is because the aluminum is not strong enough. It is not straight aluminum though, the mix it with other materials so that explains why other car companies can bore their aluminum engines, example Subaru.
This means that while we can stroke our engines out, it would require custom pistons and a custom crank. When i looked, it would 3-4k just for the crank. In other words, it would be around 8-10k to have a proper stroke kit done. All that for MAYBE 30hp.
This also means that while you technically can bore the engine out, it would be again EXTREMELY expensive, and also HIGHLY not recommended. Again several thousand dollars for maybe 30hp.
-The crank in our car is not the same as other lsx engines. When laid side by side, they are not only different sizes, which we already knew but they are actually different designs. They have different separations and dont share anything with the other lsx cranks.
-The pistons are smaller than other lsx series engines.
-Aluminum engines can not be bored. There is a lot of posts online about other people boring out and stroking 5.3 engines. These are iron block motors. You can bore iron blocks, but not aluminum. I know technically you could grind it out. But that would require two things, new sleeves and a LOT of work. I have contacted many very well known shops and they all say the same thing. I believe it is because the aluminum is not strong enough. It is not straight aluminum though, the mix it with other materials so that explains why other car companies can bore their aluminum engines, example Subaru.
This means that while we can stroke our engines out, it would require custom pistons and a custom crank. When i looked, it would 3-4k just for the crank. In other words, it would be around 8-10k to have a proper stroke kit done. All that for MAYBE 30hp.
This also means that while you technically can bore the engine out, it would be again EXTREMELY expensive, and also HIGHLY not recommended. Again several thousand dollars for maybe 30hp.
05-25-2010, 07:25 PM
#4
05-25-2010, 07:34 PM
#5
Ya if i could go back i would change a lot of what i did. Never upgrade the heads and just do a port and polish, more aggressive cam, not waste money on ported intake and just do an ls1/ls6 swap.
Thats why i am posting, so other people can learn from my massively expensive mistakes.
I could have bought 3 turbo kits with all the money i have spent.
Thats why i am posting, so other people can learn from my massively expensive mistakes.
I could have bought 3 turbo kits with all the money i have spent.
05-25-2010, 07:44 PM
#6
Ya if i could go back i would change a lot of what i did. Never upgrade the heads and just do a port and polish, more aggressive cam, not waste money on ported intake and just do an ls1/ls6 swap.
Thats why i am posting, so other people can learn from my massively expensive mistakes.
I could have bought 3 turbo kits with all the money i have spent.
Thats why i am posting, so other people can learn from my massively expensive mistakes.
I could have bought 3 turbo kits with all the money i have spent.
05-25-2010, 09:59 PM
#7
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There is nothing wrong with the 5.3 (small bore, yes..) If you really wanna bigger motor then just get the adapter plate and swap cranks. Im sure you could have the 6.0's rear bell housing milled and the 60* adapter welded on. This would be much cheaper.
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05-25-2010, 11:00 PM
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06-04-2010, 06:45 PM
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At that point I'd just do a Cartuning Turbo Kit. Of couse, with every N/A mod known that we can run. 
Honestly, that would be the best way to make the most power with our motors.
-Mike
Honestly, that would be the best way to make the most power with our motors. -Mike
06-05-2010, 05:31 PM
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Naturally a higher lift will cause quite a bit of wear on the cam journals and lifters if you go crazy enough. It is not really the best for a daily driver... For me, would just do a small upgrade on the valve springs and do everything else. As mentioned we have excellent heads...We also have the compression.