I am interested in this because I wanted to do the same thing. Reason being is because I already own a cts base model and it is gutless. I am disabled so I can't just go out and buy a car but, I do have time. I won't be able to get an ls till tax season.... my disability checks are all gone after bills are paid. I can slowly get parts to do the build but, I was thinking sense I already have the car I would be able to do this with time... reading all of this has actually crushed my dream of have a sum what fast cool car. Now I'm stuck with a crappie 2.8l v6 that takes forever just to get up to 60mph. I'm bummed

 

Maybe sell the 2.8L 1st gen and buy a 2nd gen with the newer, higher output LLT or LFX version of the 3.6? It wouldn't be an LS swap, but you'd be getting around 100bhp and 80lb-ft more than you've got now, and it would be a heckuva lot more affordable than an engine swap.

 

Not unique to the Caddliac either,, I've helped to small to big engine swaps, example,,,,. 4 to 6 Cyl jeep Its WAY easier/cheaper to just go find a 6 cyl jeep. Nothing forward of the firewall is really the same. Motor mounts, frame, firewall, transmission mount, drive lines all wrong and need adjusted. Engine bay and under dash harnesses.. My LS swapped Wrangler was less work than the last 6 cyl install i helped on. Of course the first thing I did was tossed the factory gauges, easy in the jeep and ht estock stuff after 200+ K miles,,, kinda wore out.

 

Being on such a tight budget, don't mod your CTS(unless like adding better audio system or something non-performance like that). Keep the maintenance up-to-date and take care of it so that you will always have something to get you from A to B.. Start putting a little money away on the side(even if its only $5-$10, it will add up eventually if you don't spend it) and save up for something cheap to work on the side that is easier to swap or came with a LS/v8 from factory. This gives you the ability of one day getting a "somewhat fast cool car", but you won't ruin the CTS you already have by trying to do some crazy swap that is going to leave you without a fun car or daily(ASSuming thats what the CTS is)....

My $0.02

 

If you can't afford to trade for a car with the power you want, you can't afford to do an engine swap to get the power you want in what you have.

As someone who owns a 2nd gen CTS with a V6, I'm going to second the recommendation you look for a good LFX powered 2nd gen and trade up. 320+HP on tap there, about as much as a stock-ish 5.3L V8, although it's not quite the low end grunt that you get from a V8.

If you can do your own work, you might even look for one with stretched timing chains that's throwing codes, if you can get that for a much, much better price (I've seen them go for under $4000 with that issue). Just be aware that if you need the cam sprockets/phasers for the timing chain job, the parts total is going to be over $700, even with discounted parts from RockAuto or other discount sources. If you have to pay someone for that job, it's probably a deal breaker. That's a $2,500+ job at most shops.

 

Derek I feel you man, but you have to prioritize what's most important, your livliehood. You are on a tight budget and you have plenty of time. Is a 5.3 and an AR5 not an option?
That's like the only viable option.

You can cam that 5.3 and make decent power.

I wish I had time to do that to my other CTS, an 07 CTS 3.6l. It's in good condition, just needs a timing chain as it is stretched a bit. Neither do I have the time to do the chain myself nor swap out the powertrain for a 5.3l. Just starring at it day in day out.

 

That's not really an option. The issue with that is that none of the V8 engines fit in the cradle of the front subframe of a V6 CTS. You either need a (straight, unwrecked) subframe from a CTS-V, or you need to extensively modify the V6 subframe cradle for the V8 engine (requiring extensive fabrication skills and engineering skills/experience to make sure you've got something that will hold together).

 

That's not true, where are you getting your info from, have you tried it yourself or you heard someone say this? All you need is the CTS-V mounts.

The only thing I'm aware of that the V subframe will make easier is that the ABS module is mounted lower on the V. You either relocate the module and lines, or try something else with the belt arrangement to clear the module.

Derek watch these videos from this guy on youtube who actually did what I'm talking about 5.3 + AR5 swap.

 

Maybe the 1st Gen CTS is easier than a 2nd Gen. I'll confess I've only been an active participant in a V8 swap into a 2nd Gen (2010) CTS that left the factory with the 6 cylinder. On ours, it wasn't that easy.

 

I would also be interested to see what you’ve done/ are doing. I have an 05 base model cts 6 speed manual. Been thinking about doing a swap for a while.

 

Get you a f body Camaro v6 and turbo it or supercharge it changing the lifters and cam will get you 350 400 hp and 3800s are reliable and cheap

 

Id also love to do this. But it honestly seems way out of the way for this. Is there any good v6 engine that would fit and give more power?

 

There are newer versions of the V6 that make more power, but they wouldn't run with your factory ECU. You'd have to figure out what it would take to use the newer ECU (which may not be possible), which would probably entail just as much wiring harness modification as doing a V8 swap.

So basically... No.

 

Wiring doesn't *seem* that difficult to me after all the videos on car wiring and books I've read about it, so I'm not ENTIRELY worried about that. I'm more just needing something that'll fit and make a bit more power. But honestly everything is just killer expensive. Now I'm just looking into slightly modifying the engine I already have. I have to take it out and have it worked on anyway. Just gotta find someone to let me borrow a cherry picker for a week🤣that's the hard part now