Decadence75

iTrader: (17)

The LS platform is not going anywhere. In fact there are tons of orders for brand new LS1/6 blocks all the time. Just because it is a decade and a half old means nothing. That is still young for a block. There are a great many blocks from 50+ years ago that are still going strong such as the SBC350, Mopar 383 Magnum, 440 ect. Perhaps more people are following the natural evolution of the engine and progressing to the larger bore LS2/3 builds but not everyone wants to make 700rwhp on their car.

I will personally be building a new LS6 stroked 383 in the next few years because it will still let me reach my goal of 500rwhp and have a MUCH better torque curve making power all over the place instead of the narrower band of the 346. My car is street only and I don't feel that I really need more power than that to spank ricers/stangs/anyone else on a surface street. And since it will be a forged bottom end if I ever felt like it I could throw a procharger on it and bump it up to around 700 with a days work.

To say the LS1/6 is dead is a fallacy.

bww3588

iTrader: (49)

It evolved. Same as the gen 1 small block. When the first 265's and 283's hit the street, it was the best thing since sliced bread. Then the 327's and 350's came out and it was to the back of the line with the smaller engines. Not saying the 283's died, just faded to a newer/better model.

The ls1 will eventually succumb to the latest and greatest, but for now, they still hold their ground.

As for the comment of magazines complaining about 5th gen's being only slightly faster than a 4th gen...well that's not the engine's fault. GM gave the 5th gen an extra 100 ponies and tacked on an extra 500+lbs. What does anyone expect to happen? Put a stock ls3 in place of a stock ls1 in anything and see what happens...

Same with all the people back in the early 60's that pulled the 283's out of their impalas and such in favor of a 350...

HeavyMetl

iTrader: (2)

Here on the interwebs, most people are years ahead of your average hot rodder. I took my turd gen swap car to a cruise in last Saturday, and out of 220+ cars I was the ONLY LSx swap. Most people still view it as new tech and are "scared of the wiring", but have "heard good things" about the LS series. The LS1 isn't going anywhere, its just not the top of the heap anymore since the later engines have debuted.

MMWS6

I'm the new guy on the block owning a LS1 as I bought a 2000 WS6 a week ago. Now, I have been tuning GM's for 7+ years, and Ill say this.... stock to stock, this LS1 I have I will put up against the LS3 and L99's that I've driven and tuned. The new camaro is a pig weight wise and this TA I have is a bloody rocket after I did a little tuning. I cant wait to track this puppy and have some numbers to go with what I think I've got here. I will say I have an increase of 60 ft/lbs of torque on tune alone thus far!
I think this car and I are in for a lot of fun.... lol

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

Agreed. The problem is not the LS3, it's the car that they put it in (5th gen). A more accurate comparasion of stock engine performance and ability can be made between the LS1 C5 and the LS3 C6; in this case, there is NO QUESTION that the LS3 car is considerably faster and quicker than its LS1 ancestor. The other problem with the 5th gens is the L99.... it starts off ~25hp behind the LS3, which gives it only about 50hp more than a 4th gen. That's barely enough to give it an acceleration edge with all that extra weight.

Bugsy

iTrader: (1)

Wow!!! I was not taking a shot at the LS3 engine. The OP was referring to an apparent lessening of respect/desire for LS1 cars. I don't think anyone can rationally question the fact that the LS3 engine is a superior descendant of the LS1 engine. One would eventually find its way into my '01, if not for the existence of the LS7, which I have in the works. Yet the 5th Gen is what it is. It is a better chassis than the 4th Gen, but it is also a heavier one. GM CHOSE to put their latest, larger displacement, and higher horsepower motor in a considerably heavier vehicle. As a result, its stock ET advantage over its 8 year old ancestor is not substantial. Proof enough that the 4th Gen's stock performance is respectable, even by today's standards.

Those magazine articles were not comparing the performance of the engines, they were comparing the performance of the cars. Naturally, they were going to pit the previous version of the SS against the newest version. The point I was attempting to make is that the LS1 raised the performance bar, and now its descendants must live up to and improve upon it. Any engine that can boast that claim isn't going to simply fade away into oblivion.

MikeWS6

A cammed ls1 is still going to own on the street anyday.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

I agree.

My post above wasn't actually directed at your previous post at all. It was more of a general statement towards the weight handicap of an LS3 when it's stuck in a 5th gen versus its abilities in a C6. Even a simple base C6 with a stock LS3 is a terror of a car right off the showroom floor; and that's how we all viewed the LS1 F-bodies back in the late '90s and early '00s. But the extra weight of the 5th gen causes a wider performance gap between Corvette and Camaro as compared to what we saw in the LS1 4th gen/C5 days.

I'm sure we can all agree that the LS3 is the superior engine, although you can still easily make an LS1 perform at just about any level you desire with the right modifications.

Carter01

iTrader: (11)

To the OP, LS1s are one of the best power plants out there still today. I have a Stock Bottom End 99 Camaro (in my sig), spraying about 300rwhp on it and ran three 9.7 passes last night at Cecil. In this car I have a TH400 tranny, Moser 9, cam shaft and a few bolt-ons. To me that is pretty dang good at 3340lbs.

My daily driver is a 02 SS with 36k miles. Cheap stock diameter ory, slp lid, cutout, tune and DRs and went a 12.62 at 111. With a stall and headers the car would go high 11s at stock weight minus jack and spare.

I would say the LS1 is still feared by many......

TransAmMan

I'd agree... I think it's more like LS1 cars are becoming rare... I used to see Trans Ams and Camaros all over the road... I still use mine as a daily driver and I can count the number of times I've seen a Trans am or Camaro 93 - 2002 on two hands in the last year or so. I mean I see the new Camaros all over the place but I rarely see the prior. I don't know if anyone else thinks that way. You also have to factor that the 4th gen Camaro and Trans Am are a bit lighter than the new muscle cars. I still stand by that the WS6 Trans Am, in black, is one of the most aggressive looking cars ever designed.

bestlude

iTrader: (4)

LS1's are still hitting hard.. i mean, i just laugh when everyone compares the new 5.0's, cobras, any of the srt8 line up to an ls1 car.. lets not forget about the ls2,ls3,ls6,ls7,ls9 ect... Obviously people still want a piece of the ls1. typically a bolt on ls1..
Now a H/C/I LS1 is as dangerous as any other "fast" car out there right now. and dont get me started on no2 lol

clean98z-28

you guys made me feel better about my car. was having a depressed day when i posted this.

Mattyfresh89

love my ls1, hell I may be buying another!

Anyway the more 4th gen camaros I see the nicer they are! This weekend I saw a sweet white Z28 4th gen, bone stock. Today I saw a silver Z28 4th gen convertible and talked to him in traffic!

I appreciate them more especially when the owners are cool. Almost once a week while I'm stuck in traffic I end up talking to another ls1 owner. Win.

MikeWS6

Your car was one of my favorites in GM Tech. Do you plan getting aftermarket/ported heads?

3gensoffs

well im new to the ls motors myself. i just got a black ws6, with a ton of bolt ons and heads and cam. all i can say is damn!!!! these are fast cars! i have 2 other f-bodys that may just be getting a transplant!!

hutchman

I am 60, so take this from that perspective....

I bought my wife a new 2000 Z28 for her birthday back then. We kept the car for a year or so and moved on, but I have NEVER been able to get that car out of my mind. It was, and still would be for me, a great value when you consider the performance of the car and the style. Since the "02s are now 11 years old and they are probably getting close to bottoming out in cost, I think they are a great value.

We will buy one to use as our daily driver when my wife retires....maybe even take an "around the US" type of retirement trip in it. From my perspective they are as good as ever and now much cheaper to own. That is a great combination.

prokilllsx

Uhhm, NO. Do we even live on the same planet?

RJDio

...and Viper V10's are so yesteryear. I think is all relative, I have a 4.6L Mustang GT with mods that my daughter drives and that motor would seem lame to someone buying a new 5.0. But to my daughter, she is in heaven. I still love my Ls1, not nearly finished with it and would kill me to part with it.

myk

iTrader: (4)

Lol, Amen to that, I'm still driving an LS1 and a 4.6L. I don't see why people even think to be bothered by the age of these platforms-they're still great cars and plenty of fun can be had with them. And hey, when the 5.0 ages to the point where the LS1 has it'll be just as old and outdated also...

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

I agree completely. And I feel the same about my old X-body car as well. Old or not makes no difference to me, so long as I still enjoy driving it.

I think some people are only happy when they are on the cutting edge of a given category; but personally I find no pleasure or meaning in that pursuit. To each his own.