V12 LS Engine is Finally Available, and It’s a Monster
Designs and prototypes for a V12 LS engine have been floating around for years. Australian company V12LS has made it a reality.
The idea of a V12 LS engine has fascinated since we started hearing rumbles about these wicked creations years ago. Obviously, some of the first news about these beasts came from right here on LS1Tech. While we’ve followed those threads closely, they’ve never come to a satisfactory conclusion. Meaning, we’re not seeing loads of videos showing V12 LS engines blowing away everything in sight.
So we were stoked to see this report from our friends over at Road & Track, revealing that these engines are now available. Hopefully, that means we’ll soon see more builds like the 1967 Camaro we profiled at SEMA last year. Importantly, the engine in the show car was made the same way as the other V12 LS engines we’ve seen. Essentially it is a standard block with four extra cylinders grafted on to it. With 800 naturally-aspirated horsepower, the performance was impressive, if not revolutionary.
But that was then, and this is now.
After a lot of testing with the mule engine, V12LS has taken the next logical step and begun casting its own 12-pot blocks. The end result will warm the heart of anyone who loves the smell of gasoline. Right now, the wizards Down Under are working on LS7-style heads. This means engines built off the 9.5-liter monsters should easily eclipse the 1000-horsepower mark — before boost. Seriously, it’s a new day, gents.
For those looking to pick one up?
Both cast iron and aluminum versions are available. The bore and stroke remain the same as standard LS engines, and even the factory mounting points are retained. The extra pots mean the engine is about eight inches longer that the V8 equivalent, and as you’d expect, these babies won’t come cheap.
V12 LS kits with the block, heads, crank and cam will go for around $21,000, while turn-key versions will command $46K. But if you have the coin? That seems like a small price to pay to have your project running one of the most unique engines on the planet. Check out the video for more info — and to watch the delightfully old-school process of casting an engine block!
So what would you stuff this engine into? Sound off on the forum!