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WS6Store in for the win again, ordered the BMR poly motor mounts. Was looking for UMI but they didn't have red so BMR it is.
Grabbed a new set of Cloyes LS2 timing set roo.
Got some more together today. finally getting my motivation to actually get this thing done. So after it appears EVERYONE noticed i had the front two pistons backwards somehow on the engine, took apart the piston real real quick and flipped them on the rods so thet the dots face forward on the rods and the dimples on rods face the rear of the engine. all better lol there we go! started putting together the timing chain set. Cloyes ls2 chain and gear in case anyones wondering. keeping it simple. Dot to dot and all that jazz. while dot to dot works... i am curious about actually degreeong a cam once just once for educational purposes. All buttoned up with new ICT cam bolts. Forgor to show the cam retainer plate. i opted for the flat faced one that came with 4 ARP bolts with it. i didnt like the torx and countersunk one that i had on there before. After i finally found the damn extra bolt, i could now actually put this oil pump pickup plate i picked up from ICT a while ago. not really doable on the car without pretty much removing the oil pan, and i tried lol Melling Oil pump was pretty straight forward. Kept the already installed highpressure spring and installed the green oring. Wingage tray, nothing special. rear to the.... rear lol So i guess i need some hardwear for the new mounts. didnt realize the new BMR poly mounts didnt come with new bolts. For those wondering, im getting new hardware becuase the old hardware is staying with the LS1. on with the standard Fbody pan. no taps... youll see why in a sec Already soaked and ready to install BTR LS7 lifters and new trays. pretty straight forward. i loke the supplied shipping tray BTR sends these in, makes oiling them so much easier. prepping them in the trays. orientated the oil holes towards each other. Acetone for final surface cleaning. gloves and ventilation if you go this route!! one last wipe after the lifters were stuffed in there dowls are now in. So for this round, ive been reading around if you have prepped and cleans block and heads, to install the gasket dry from alot of threads and reads. I have copper spray for if I have to ever tear it down and reuse them as many have also mentioned. one of the reasons i got anothet ls9 head gaskets so i didnt uave to clean the forst set, plus i wasnt if there was an issue with those after the LS1 had a head leak as well from the ls9 gaskets before. unlikely but just in case. So here they are. all dressed up and no were to go. Fresh BTR Ls9 head gaskets with the fronts facing... the front lol I also double checked to make sure these didnt have the issue of the steam holes not lining up. i guess at one point one of the supplied LS9 Gaskets had this issue from what ive read around. I know... not ARP, but ive been reading around alot about the Speedmaster studs with alot of people having success with them, and seeing as this is a stockish engine with relatively mild application, these will do. As long as i DONT greese the washers and keep the tq down to 65-79ftlbs, should hold for a while. if i was going natually aspirated, id consider the ARP bolts instead of studs, but ive aleqdt have these. all the studds on place Timing chain front cover installed, and as you can see, some turbo drains already welded in place. should make draining a little more straight forward. i still have to dab some RTV in the corner of the cover and pan, so its loose roght now until i get some from the store. Just mocked up the heads and put a washer and nut at each corner for now, and put the LS6 valley cover on to keep everythjng out of the engine. im gonna clean the top and the heads some more when i have some time next week. not a bad run today. The idea here is to be able to hang some manifolds off it so i can see how to put my wires and or fabricate the better access headers i found. we will see.
ok decided to just see what they look like. So I grabbed a set of LT1 wires as someone somewhere mentioned that they fit around CXracing turbo headers... and you know what, I'm pleasantly surprised.
All but one wire is completely away from the primary. the passenger front just doesnt want to cooperate lol im thinking of slightly notching or flattening right in front od it to clear the 90* angle.
the bottom pictures demonstrate how they will be run down under and around to the coils except for the shortest wires that can run directly to the coils. the angled and straight coil side of the wires actually helps to orientated the wires away from the headers. I think we found a compromise solution to these turbo headers that have a horrible access design.
one major suggestion when dealing with these is install your plugs and at thia point, your wires before you install the cxracing turbo headers. its not perfect, and definetly not Hurons Speeds craftmanship, but it get the job done and gets you in the noost game.
Did some mocking up with the merge pipe today and sizing up the VSR 7875. I appear to have the billet gen 2.5 with the 1.2AR AND 4" turbine outlet so welding is in my future lol A little turbo pipe checking. wasnt sure of the physical differences between the two turbos didnt realize the 7875 and the gt45 were so similar in size. the turbine outlet on the 7875 is a bit bigger heres where the biggest visual difference is. the billet wheel looks nice on the VSR. Gonna have to weld this adaptor to the downpipe so i can fit it on.
Screw it. I'm biting the bullet.
Just don't feel like fighting this thing anymore.
Huron Speed here i come. the more I look into trying to put money into this thing to try and make it work, the more it reminds me of my rear turbo days, and while it was fun, I'm getting tire of fighting my car to just drive it. Plus I can add some other stuff later when taxes come in lol
Excellent choice, I ran that kit on my last car for four years and it worked flawlessly.
Easy plug access, accurate boost control and the fitment was awesome.
You'll be much happier with that kit.
the more I keep looking at it, and trying to fight it to work, the more it just makes more sense to get the kit. and honestly, I really don't need anything other than their hot and cold pipes with wastegate and BOV. I litterally already have everything else to run the kit. only thing I'll have to buy extra is the 4" fender dump pipe for the turbo since I managed to grab a 7875 billet gen 2.5 1.25AR (I'm guessing labeld as next gen now)
every time I look at trying to make the headers work, it just keep reminding me that I'd rather just have my car running than trying to make it work. the LT wires probably would do fine. Don't get me wrong, I loved having the Cxracing turbo kit, it did its job well while I had the gt45 and everything else to support it, but I want more quality that I can grow from. plus the fitment and quality is just better. Plus, I think I've outgrown or will be outgrowing the cxracing kit anyway. any bigger turbo and I'm not gonna be able to fit anything even with a stood up radiator lol
the more I keep looking at it, and trying to fight it to work, the more it just makes more sense to get the kit. and honestly, I really don't need anything other than their hot and cold pipes with wastegate and BOV. I litterally already have everything else to run the kit. only thing I'll have to buy extra is the 4" fender dump pipe for the turbo since I managed to grab a 7875 billet gen 2.5 1.25AR (I'm guessing labeld as next gen now)
every time I look at trying to make the headers work, it just keep reminding me that I'd rather just have my car running than trying to make it work. the LT wires probably would do fine. Don't get me wrong, I loved having the Cxracing turbo kit, it did its job well while I had the gt45 and everything else to support it, but I want more quality that I can grow from. plus the fitment and quality is just better. Plus, I think I've outgrown or will be outgrowing the cxracing kit anyway. any bigger turbo and I'm not gonna be able to fit anything even with a stood up radiator lol
Exactly, my kit was an older one, but I was still able to move radiator forward some and fit a much larger T7875 Turbonetics turbo which brought me into the 700whp range with little fabrication.
A friend of mine added a T4 / T6 adapter to the flange on his HS T4 kit, added a brace and is running a S400 style turbo so you have options for sure.
He had to move the radiator around a bit to fit it of course but it worked.
Ok, heads are torqued down and no busted studs lol all torqed down to 70ftlbs, I was hesitant to go straight to 70lbs on the the 3rd pass, so I went to 65ftlbs, and then added a 4th pass to 70lbs on just to make sure. then 25lbs for the little guys. most barely even turned, but glad the Speedmaster studs made it to 70lbs with no fuss.
Mocked up the intake and test fit the ICT Coil brackets on the vavle covers.
after torqing the heads installed the stems, rockers, and tq to 22lbs and then gave the crank a few turns and checked it again. valves covers on for now. the BMR poly motor mounts wit ICT hardware looks good too. should give some room over the stock clamshells i still have on the car. alittle ICT eye candy not too shabby. a bit thicker than the cheap ones i had on there. shame you wont see them much. so glad ICT uses cap bolts instead of allens. so much easier to work with. you know what time it is dabbed the corners in red rtv and sealed the front cover finally snuck the rear cover back there. its tight no thanks to the stand bolts, but i got it. new oil dumbell is in there too, and dabbed the corners with red rtv too look at that sexy beast. intake is just sitting there. all dressed up and no where to go. ill pull the intake, coil and brackets, valve covers, and valley cover off before dropping it into the car.
Got the old LS1 ready to be yanked out, ran out of daylight though fighting the trans to separate from the engine.
Supporting the trans with a block and jack for now, but still being a pain. Come on ya PITA!! come out! lol Ona side note, if youre trying to yank the engine out the top, beside taking it down to damn near bare short block, youll need to remove the bumper, and your intercooler to extend far enough on the engine hoist. Fortunately, 1/2 tons is 1000 lbs, so my hoist has plenty left in the tank to lift the old LS1 my garage is a bit of a mess now. If anyone is interested in a affordable turbo kit, ill have one availible of they dont want to spend big money on a running kit. So im gonna say that this engine MIGHT need new cam bearings lol Man thats got a serious copper hue lol guess 1998 was a good year lol unfortunately looks like the block will need a cyclinder wall repair and a new sleeve on the busted rod bore. not sure how far the crack goes into the block, but the sleeve edge catches my nail so it will need some work to be put back into commission. Would be a good project block with an actual LS1 to build from scratch. will take some work, but should be fun.
Well, put my final payment to the Huron Speed Group purchase! Got the T4 V3 kit coming with a 4" fender dump pipe and their BOV and Wastgate. now I gotta just get the old ls1 out of the way, and stuff the lq4 in there lol
Last edited by JoshuaGrooms83; Feb 13, 2024 at 06:37 PM.
Got the email today!! Turbo kit being shipped! I gotta admit, I might have done a "new parts happy dance" at work 😆
Guess I gotta yank the damn ls1 out now 😆 if only the weather cooperates. this rain/snow/sleep crap here in VA needs to knock it off.
😆 Im a delicate flower that needs perfect temperatures 😆
This legit had me laughing out loud.
In all seriousness though, laying a few flattened cardboard boxes on the ground and covering them with a military style wool blanket will insulate you from the cold concrete really well.
Then with the heater pointed under the car creates a nice little warm space you can work in.
Or you can wait until the weather turns lol.
Originally Posted by Ls1Rx-7
this is why i prefer the forums, youd be in facebook jail for a week with that comment lol
Best thing you can do for your mental health is get off all social media, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, its all garbage.
😆 You gotta have a sense of humor as a car guy. Life has too much bs in it to not find the humor in it lol
I've just been lazy at home lately and busy at work, so ive been just using the weather as an excuse 😆 honestly it hasn't been that bad, idmve worked in worse in Wisconsin lol What actually is a pain is working on an inclined in my driveway that's more of a deterant than anything else. wish I crammed it into the garage before it died on the driveway lol
I like the old army blanket reference. those work great. I actually have a ton of old uhaul moving blankets that would do the trick too lol
If its not raining this weekend, I'm gonna try and grab a better air hammer and beat the crap out of the dowl pins and get that engine out lol
😆 You gotta have a sense of humor as a car guy. Life has too much bs in it to not find the humor in it lol
I've just been lazy at home lately and busy at work, so ive been just using the weather as an excuse 😆 honestly it hasn't been that bad, idmve worked in worse in Wisconsin lol What actually is a pain is working on an inclined in my driveway that's more of a deterant than anything else. wish I crammed it into the garage before it died on the driveway lol
I like the old army blanket reference. those work great. I actually have a ton of old uhaul moving blankets that would do the trick too lol
If its not raining this weekend, I'm gonna try and grab a better air hammer and beat the crap out of the dowl pins and get that engine out lol
Absolutely, I'm in the same boat here brother.
It's cold, rainy and miserable here in the wintertime and I need to get under mine and nut and bolt it but it's hard to find the motivation when I haven't seen the sun in weeks.
Once the weather starts to turn and the sun starts coming out more, I'll get more motivated lol.
Finally used one of these nice days for me and did it! got the old ls1 out. Man is it toast. Litterally only had coolant come out the oil pan lol
Only way to save it is to either weld the snot out of the cylinder and then bore the crap back out of it and resleeve it, or bore and wet sleeve the entire block. either way it's not worth the extra work, verses just getting a full short block from the junk yard for a lot less money.
Now I'm prepping the new engine, and sizing up my new turbo system. Swapped over my already tapped oil feed, engine and cam sensors, and oil sending and level sensor, but i think the level sensor is inop now that ive swapped to a 411 pcm, not sure yet. but still need it to plug the hole.
So air hammer, all the way. dont even ***** foot with it with heat or what ever. just air hammer the dowls and be done with it the first time. Got this little husky from the Depot for $49, and came right out. Out the top it goes! was pretty straight forward. Dangling while i swap the remaining sensors and removing the flexplate to swap over. Thats toast. Didnt see it the first time but the other side of the cyclinder is also cracked all the way through you can see it clearly in this angle. block is toast. i can tap the piston down with out even a struggle lol theres that FTI stall. Better install the engine before it goes bad 😆 bad joke i know lol Those dowls were all kinds of messed up. gonna push them the rest of the way out and use the ones on the engine. theres the hole with the piston pushed down some. Preped the new 6.0 to slide in the open bay. This valley lifting cover is a God send. makes pulling the engine so much easier than dangly chains! You were a good engine. One of the best. 26 years is a pretty good run with boost and 130,000k miles on it. Just the carnage from the outside. cant wait to see the internals. and how bad the rods and crank got smacked around. cant believe it cracked through the liner too. I'm assuming the hydro lock found the path of least resistance, the side of the cyclinder wall this time. Looking at the space rear of the crank between this one, the LQ4... and the space of the LS1... these i believe are the same yes? So these were the dowls on the LQ4. They came out with almoat no fuss. the dowls on the 4l80 are still on the trans. im thinking since i beat them with the air hammer to replace them with these since they are in better condition. And yes, those are ARP flexplate bolts lol dowl pin holes out with the stock coolant reservoir. Gotta make room for the fender exhaust. now that i pulled this out, might be able to make something work now that ive had a better look at the hole and tank/batter holder. got some more fabbing to do. now that the engines out, might be a good time to do a thorough cleaning in the engine bay as well. Gonna run either a 6an or 8an return line in place of the hard fuel line I put in there a long time ago. it's leaking at the compression fitting where it's suppose to return at. kind of irritating.
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