What’s Up in the Forum: DIY LS1 Turbo Kit with Truck Manifolds

Monster turbo kit for the LS1 Camaro is as simple as truck manifolds and plenty of welding skill.

The LS1 engine loves boost and a single turbocharged setup can allow your 4^th gen Camaro to make monster power, but turbo kits are expensive. Fortunately, there is a great do-it-yourself write-up in the forums that walks us through all of the key steps of making your own turbo setup with truck manifolds, piping and an array of premade flanges.

Oh, and you are going to need to be able to weld, or have a welder available to finish up the piping once everything is mocked up. In the long run, being able to weld plays a major role in performing this DIY on a budget, but so long as you can tack things together, a trained welder can finish the job while adding cost to the job.

The Introduction

This LS1 turbo manifold how-to thread was written up by “KILLER-LS1” and as the title suggests, it walks us through the surprisingly simple project of making a turbo kit for your 4^th generation Camaro SS. The OP begins with some key notes before getting into the actual project.

In order to fab this kit, you need to mount the radiator vertically. I called Griffin Radiators and told them what I was doing and what engine it was for and they built me a custom one. The “universal” griffin that everyone seems to use really isn’t the correct unit to use. The engineers at Griffin said that would be too small, and it does not come with a steam port for the heads, or a bung to mount the fluid level sensor. I’d just call them and get their recommendation. Here are some photos on mounting it.

He then included a few pictures of the work needed to make the radiator fit, followed by a quick look at the mounting process for the big front mount intercooler.

He also touched on the items needed for the rest of the project:

Truck Manifolds- no need to modify them. Just put the drivers side manifold on the passenger side the other manifold on the drivers side.

Mandrel bent tubing. I bought (1) 2″ U bend for my wastegate, (3) 2.5″ Mandrel U-bends for the merge pipes, and (3) 3″ U bends for the downpipe. This gave me plenty of extra room for error

Manifold flange – I bought two laser cut flanges off ebay, but im sure some of our sponsors would have them. These are welded to the merge pipe and bolt on to the truck manifolds.

Turbo Flange – Bought my T4 flange from Turbonetics

Wastegate Flange – Should come with your wastegate

V-Band flanges w/ clamps – these come in handy while making the downpipe!

02 Sensor Bung(s)- for wideband/oem sensors

Turbo K-member- will make your life MUCH EASIER!!

Planning the Piping

The next step involves preparing the piping that will connect your turbocharger to the manifolds.

This begins by taking the T4 turbo flange and some of the piping, cutting the piping to merge smoothly and attaching that piping to the flange. The OP uses a dremel tool after welding everything in place and the result looks like something that he bought from a custom shop, especially after power-coating.

Next, he bolted up the truck manifolds to the engine, placed the flange on the end of the manifold and began cutting piping, working his way to where the turbo would sit once installed.

After the merge was done, I fully bolted up both manifolds with gaskets and started to put it all together… I started on the passenger side and worked my way over. You can go whatever way you want. Just start with the laser cut flange and figure out where you need to go next. THE LESS PIECES YOU HAVE THE BETTER This takes some creativity and a lot of trial and error, but cut an angle out of your U bend and hold it up to the manifold flange and look at the placement. if its where you want it, tack it on in a few spots.

Once he finished one side, he worked on the driver’s side, getting everything pieced into place before removing and properly welding the entire system of piping.

The Downpipe

After hammering out the piping that connects the exhaust manifolds to the turbocharger, the OP explains that the downpipe is crafted using the same basic method. By cutting and piecing together piping, he built the path that the exhaust would travel after passing through the turbocharger, connecting the downpipe to the exhaust system.

Other Key Points

This DIY focuses specifically on how to route the piping from truck manifolds on an LS1 to a front-mounted turbocharger, along with routing the downpipe to the exhaust, but it doesn’t address how he ran the charge piping from the engine to the intercooler to the throttle body, nor does it talk about how to run the oil lines.

Those are things that each owner will have to plan out on their own, but for a Camaro SS owner who knows how to weld, this thread shows how easily a set of truck manifolds and some heavy duty piping can be transformed into a big single turbo kit for a 4^th gen Chevy muscle car.

Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com