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1984 K10 5.3 Swap Build Advice. Bang for buck power.
Hi guys. Looking for advice. I have a 1985 K10 that I'm looking to drop an engine in. Looking for some additional power of around 450 hp at the crank. Any suggestions for the engine? I was thinking rebuild and upgrade a donor 5.3 (probably LM7). As everyone probably knows prices are through the roof right now so I'm looking for the most "bang for buck" options. Here is what I have found digging around here locally:
Around here (DFW Metro) I'm finding running 5.3 w/ 4l60 pullouts for about $1500
5.3 only for $700 to $1000
Rebuilt 4L60E for $1400 (No core)
Summit has the Summit branded 5.3 long block making 450HP for $3500 (Good reviews on Summit but ATK the manufactured has the worst reviews)
The truck has been redone from the frame up so far. I have Dakota Digital RTX gauges ready to go. Here are some pics. Thanks!
We see you're talking about our 450hp 5.3 crate engine SUM-150153. That is based on an LM7 and yes it is re-manufactured for us by ATK Engines. It utilizes hypereutectic flat tops and 243/799 heads providing 10:1 compression. It uses our Pro LS stage 3 truck cam SUM-8713R1 with specs of .550/.550, 222/232, 112+5 with 3* of overlap. This will require upgrades such as ECU tuning, upgraded fuel injectors, headers, and a 2500+ RPM stall converter. For further details and specs on the engine check here. This engine has no core charge and comes with a two-year unlimited mile warranty.
Our customers seem to be very happy with this engine. It's competitively priced and comes with a good warranty.
If you went with a donor engine we can help there too. We have the parts you need if you decided to rebuild it in any capacity!
my advice is to start with a 6.0 instead because a 5.3 will be a little soft on the bottom especially with those big tires that I know arent light. OR put a summit stroker assembly in a a 5.3.....
my advice is to start with a 6.0 instead because a 5.3 will be a little soft on the bottom especially with those big tires that I know arent light. OR put a summit stroker assembly in a a 5.3.....
Yeah 6.0 would be ideal. So expensive though! I know now from some tips from a guy on the squarebody forums that I will go with the 4L80E instead of the 4L60. Plus it will be easier to mate to my NP205 transfer case.
I will start by saying, ATK has sold over 5 million engines. That does not include transmission, heads, rearends, etc...most of the reviews you see are also for the Stock Reman company, not for the High Performance and when you look at the overall numbers, its a very minute amount of negative reviews. Don't get me wrong, things do happen and unfortunately allot of things are out of our control including customer install error, but on the High Performance side its very rare. If ATK in general was so bad, Militaries, Governments, Major customers like Summit, JEGS, all the major auto parts shops, etc wouldn't use us.
That particular engine Summit has is one of our favorites. The power for $ is unmatchable and we have had no issues out of well I cant say how many they sold, but its allot.
I will start by saying, ATK has sold over 5 million engines. That does not include transmission, heads, rearends, etc...most of the reviews you see are also for the Stock Reman company, not for the High Performance and when you look at the overall numbers, its a very minute amount of negative reviews. Don't get me wrong, things do happen and unfortunately allot of things are out of our control including customer install error, but on the High Performance side its very rare. If ATK in general was so bad, Militaries, Governments, Major customers like Summit, JEGS, all the major auto parts shops, etc wouldn't use us.
That particular engine Summit has is one of our favorites. The power for $ is unmatchable and we have had no issues out of well I cant say how many they sold, but its allot.
ATK does build a solid engine.
They are well known and offer the best bang for buck imo.
I am eyeballing their LQ9 shortblock as I type this.
For that power level i would just buy one the others have already mentioned. it will be reliable and come with a warranty. when building one up there is a lot of nickel and dime items that add up. it will cost about the same but you wont have to do all the work yourself
12-14-2021, 10:40 AM
1984 K10 5.3 Swap Build Advice. Bang for buck power. 
