Help! Motor shot, need suggestions!
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Teching In
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 22
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Help! Motor shot, need suggestions! Ok, so apparently a connecting rod shot thru my oil pan or something similar. Talked to the shop today where they only work on LS1/6/2/7 vehicles and the guy offered me a Z06 motor with about 10k or less miles on it for $3,000. Car has about 103k on it, so a new clutch will be in order also. Looking at over $5k, possibly $6k. I think the Z06 motor is an LS6, forgot to ask if it was the 6 or 7. He said he could swap the bottom end with another LS1 thats got about 50k or so on it, but it wouldn't be too much cheaper in the end after all the machining that may need to be done for the internals.
Question is. Should I go with the Z06 motor, and if so. What can or should I get done to it before I drop it in? I want to have a little bit more power than stock Z06, but also leave options open for either a S/C or turbo setup in the future. Any and all suggestions appreciated. Whatever I could get the most HP for the cheapest, or the best setup to slap on a SC or turbo in the near future, maybe next year.
Car info:
99 Z28, M6, Subframe connectors, Front and Rear Sway bars, !CAGS, 85mm MAF, Lid, Smooth Bellows, Lingenfelter Intake Manifold
Tons of suggestions please, money does matter, but let the opionions and suggestions fly.
Thanks!!
Question is. Should I go with the Z06 motor, and if so. What can or should I get done to it before I drop it in? I want to have a little bit more power than stock Z06, but also leave options open for either a S/C or turbo setup in the future. Any and all suggestions appreciated. Whatever I could get the most HP for the cheapest, or the best setup to slap on a SC or turbo in the near future, maybe next year.
Car info:
99 Z28, M6, Subframe connectors, Front and Rear Sway bars, !CAGS, 85mm MAF, Lid, Smooth Bellows, Lingenfelter Intake Manifold
Tons of suggestions please, money does matter, but let the opionions and suggestions fly.
Thanks!!
Last edited by simmeth; Mar 26, 2007 at 11:37 AM.
TECH Regular
Joined: Sep 2006
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From: Ellicott City MD
If it were me. I i think i would just rebuild what i had. However if you do go with that Z06 motor. I would want to know every thing about that motor. Inside and out. Who had it? How was it run? you know what i mean? like get as much info as you can. I have always been sketchy about buying a used motor to build up.
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Mar 2007
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Yeah definitely, I will inquire. Chances are its from a customers car of the shop that got a new motor put in or something. I will ask to see what kind of guarantee i can get for it also. But that is a good point. The reason I don't want to rebuild the motor is because its going to cost almost the same amount of money, with a bottom half that has 50 - 60K on it, and top half that has over 100k on it. No guarantee that everything in the top half is fine, might have to re-machine some stuff. Then obviously since its taken apart and out of the car, I might as well spend some money to work on it. So its gonna cost the same if not more to rebuild.
Just looking for suggestions with cams, heads, etc.
Just looking for suggestions with cams, heads, etc.
The Z06 motor is an LS6. It's not a 427 LS7.
There are only minor differences between the LS1 and LS6, but they add up to around 50 rwhp when going from a 99 Z28's LS1. $3000 is a little less than what they are going for on eBay, but at those miles and the fact that he has it in hand, that's a damn good price.
At 3000 miles, it might have been a strip-only car, and that would be bad. Then again, it came out of a Z06, so it might be an old man's garage queen. You never know. I'd do it in a heart beat.
If you're wanting more power quick, ask him if he can put a cam in it then tune it afterwards. If he can't tune it, then it's not worth it. If he can, that would be great. Most sponsors charge about $500 or so for a complete tune and cams are like, what, $350?
A 224/224 cam is the old cam that everyone seems to gauge Daily Drivers by. If you don't want to do a bunch of cam research, then I'd ask him if he can install a 224/224 cam. That's be bad ***. With the cam, tune, and LS6 heads, you'd really notice a big power bump.
There are only minor differences between the LS1 and LS6, but they add up to around 50 rwhp when going from a 99 Z28's LS1. $3000 is a little less than what they are going for on eBay, but at those miles and the fact that he has it in hand, that's a damn good price.
At 3000 miles, it might have been a strip-only car, and that would be bad. Then again, it came out of a Z06, so it might be an old man's garage queen. You never know. I'd do it in a heart beat.
If you're wanting more power quick, ask him if he can put a cam in it then tune it afterwards. If he can't tune it, then it's not worth it. If he can, that would be great. Most sponsors charge about $500 or so for a complete tune and cams are like, what, $350?
A 224/224 cam is the old cam that everyone seems to gauge Daily Drivers by. If you don't want to do a bunch of cam research, then I'd ask him if he can install a 224/224 cam. That's be bad ***. With the cam, tune, and LS6 heads, you'd really notice a big power bump.
