Julius

I have a five thousand dollar budget to spend on a motor. I was planning on spending it on a brand new ls-2 motor but I thought that I could build a stronger and tougher motor with this money. Any ideas?

camaroman08

iTrader: (5)

heads, cam, intake, maybe bore it over some? its all up to you man be creative. i wish i had 5k to spend=[

Starz T/A 17

iTrader: (6)

You can buy/build a great motor for 5 k but in order give you good advice we need to know what direction you want to go with the car and your overall goals for it. Are you looking to a mild cam, big cam, f/i, N20, etc... And how much power are you looking to get out of it. All those will influence what the best motor to get will be

twitchtwice

iTrader: (12)

i would build a badass NA setup and get a nice rear for it. no sense in building a crazy build and after the first time you take it out your rear grenades.

but like said above we need more info. other mods, manual or auto, and goals.

Midnight02

iTrader: (8)

Do you need to start from scratch or is that a budget to mod an existing motor? If modding a close to stock LS1, $5K should allow heads, cam + intake. A few bolt ons and a couple choice supporting mods (gears, tires, etc.) and you should be good to go.

jevonniespapi

My buddy and I are working in the reverse order with our cars. Yeah, I want power, but first Im doing brakes, tires, and some comfy seats. Next will be rearend, upgraded trans, and then finally the motor.

DukesOfHazard

Don't forget suspension!

Phynix

iTrader: (3)

some advice from people who have been at the beginning of a project would probably be to start from the back and go towards the front or your car or it will most likely become a permanent fixture in your driveway. I say build toward your goals. Like say 450rwhp is your goal and you have a auto trans, good chance you can get away with building the 10 bolt, but if its a manual and you want 450rwhp, you might want to look into 12 bolt, 9in, or dana s60. Go rear and suspension first, that's what I did, guys with full bolt ons and tuned don't know what to do with themselves when you stock car is faster than there's. They never look at your suspension when you beat them. Its pretty funny

TXZ28LS1

iTrader: (5)

with 5k i would honestly invest in a strong tranny and 12 bolt for the rear. that way it can take the abuse you throw at it all day long. makes no sense to do H/C and other stuff and your tranny gives on the dyno, or your rear end blows getting on it. build your tranny and rear end!!

mikehaase1norse

iTrader: (2)

what he said. a 12 lasts a long time and build the tranny and then you dont have a 400hp motor sitting in the driveway waiting for the money for the rest.

black_phoenix

iTrader: (27)

under 5 grand you can h/c and rebuild (if needed) your current motor, way better than stock ls2 imo

jbigdawg79

iTrader: (5)

there are alot of turn key racing engines in the classifieds also !!

Sharpe

iTrader: (7)

Everyone says suspension and rear first, but no one does that. The reason? You just spent $5,000. You definitely want to feel some return on that investment.

What year is your car? Auto or manual? You really didn't give us nearly enough info to answer.

How many miles on your car/engine? H/C/I might not be the best route if you have a high-miles engine. Might want to try for a budget short block, budget heads (e.g., stock 243's for ~$500), cam, and LS6 intake if you don't have one. If you're not doing the work, $5,000 isn't going far at all for an engine replacement, mods and tune.

samson_420

iTrader: (1)

^ +1


If it was me. . . .

12 Bolt

A torque converter since I have a AT

Keep my bottom end, since it is low mileage

Some 243 ported heads

A decent cam since my car is not daily driven

And finally a tune



If you shop around here for a bit, it should be doable for right around 5k.


Would be nice and long lasting + It would give you some damn decent power.


But, I do have a bit of suspension work already done.

24/7 LS3

I have a deal for you if you are looking for a 427 stroker LS3. All brand new stuff. I also have some 706 casting Patriot GM heads bare which are brand new for 350 a pair.

See that attached pics. This is all new stuff. If you are interested I can send you a parts list and what I paid for it. I even have brand new GM flywheels for the engines.

The 16 injector Hogan intake is great for making torque.

Regards,

Tim