New to LS1 motor building.... Advise please!!
10-09-2006, 08:58 AM
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New to LS1 motor building.... Advise please!! Ok guys, I'm new at all this in the motor department.... to the point that I dont' even know what to search for in this forum. Anyway, what I do know is that I would like to put a LS1 in my '68 Camaro.
I know I could buy a low mile LS1/T56 for around $4000-$4500 but would also like to do some mods to it. After doing some seaching around I figured I could also just buy a short block (used) and build up from there with parts that I would rather have (cam, heads, intake, TB, MA, harness, etc.). What I don't know is what exactly all the misc parts I will need in the build that I would normally get when buying a comlete motor (pulley's, water pump, power steering pump, fuel rails, fuel injection etc.). I'm wondering if maybe it would be easier to buy one complete and sell what I dont' want?? Or is it still more const effective to start with a used shortblock? What all do I need to look out for or get ahold of if I do a shortblock build? Are these things pretty straight forward to build or is there a lot of little things that one needs to be knowledgable about to do this properly?
If I was to do a shortblock build, what heads, cam, MA, TB, intake combonations should I be looking for? What cam lift/duration is good in these motors yet streetable? Is there combo's that I need to watch out for that won't work and will actually hurt performance or will pretty much any larger MA, TB and intake work with ported/aftermarket heads? What about injectors when flowing more air? Do you, or how do you, have to program the computer to work with more air flow?
I just wanted to start figuring out which direction to go and get a list started with all parts I need to look out for.
Thanks a bunch in advance!
Buddy P
I know I could buy a low mile LS1/T56 for around $4000-$4500 but would also like to do some mods to it. After doing some seaching around I figured I could also just buy a short block (used) and build up from there with parts that I would rather have (cam, heads, intake, TB, MA, harness, etc.). What I don't know is what exactly all the misc parts I will need in the build that I would normally get when buying a comlete motor (pulley's, water pump, power steering pump, fuel rails, fuel injection etc.). I'm wondering if maybe it would be easier to buy one complete and sell what I dont' want?? Or is it still more const effective to start with a used shortblock? What all do I need to look out for or get ahold of if I do a shortblock build? Are these things pretty straight forward to build or is there a lot of little things that one needs to be knowledgable about to do this properly?
If I was to do a shortblock build, what heads, cam, MA, TB, intake combonations should I be looking for? What cam lift/duration is good in these motors yet streetable? Is there combo's that I need to watch out for that won't work and will actually hurt performance or will pretty much any larger MA, TB and intake work with ported/aftermarket heads? What about injectors when flowing more air? Do you, or how do you, have to program the computer to work with more air flow?
I just wanted to start figuring out which direction to go and get a list started with all parts I need to look out for.
Thanks a bunch in advance!
Buddy P
10-09-2006, 09:15 AM
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Look around our conversions forum, especially the stickies at the top. There's a lot of members here who have converted their 1st Gens, so you'll find quite a bit of info on all the details.
As for building the motor, they're as straight forward as any other motor, but you'll want to pay attention to the somewhat tighter tolerances with an aluminum block vs. iron. Building an LS1 is childs play though, very friendly motor. Most of your combination questions can be answered by reading through the LS1 internal engine section -- LOTS of the exact same questions are asked there all the time, and you'll find LOTS of opinions and answers. There's no good answer to this kind of question though, since the options are nearly limitless. Its all up to how you want the car to behave and perform!
To make things easier, you can always find someone who has a car you like and mimic their setup. I'd say most people get their feet wet following in the footsteps of others, and learn from there.
As for building the motor, they're as straight forward as any other motor, but you'll want to pay attention to the somewhat tighter tolerances with an aluminum block vs. iron. Building an LS1 is childs play though, very friendly motor. Most of your combination questions can be answered by reading through the LS1 internal engine section -- LOTS of the exact same questions are asked there all the time, and you'll find LOTS of opinions and answers. There's no good answer to this kind of question though, since the options are nearly limitless. Its all up to how you want the car to behave and perform!
To make things easier, you can always find someone who has a car you like and mimic their setup. I'd say most people get their feet wet following in the footsteps of others, and learn from there.