LS6 intake/coolant pipe
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 44
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From: Pittsburgh
LS6 intake/coolant pipe I want to put a LS6 intake on my 99z. But instead of throwing $40-45 bucks out the door for the 01+ pipes and plugs, couldn't I just modify mine? Like cut the center out and plug it up?
I thought of this because I've heard of people using 2 01+ coolant pipes, so there shouldn't be a clearance issue in the back right?
-j
I thought of this because I've heard of people using 2 01+ coolant pipes, so there shouldn't be a clearance issue in the back right?
-j
www.ls1howto.com go to the ls6 intake swap for the f-body and see what he did...he used to 01+ pipes i think...you can read up on that
Try it and see if it works. You won't have lost anything by trying, if it doesn't work you'll have to buy new one's anyway. TSP told me to just modify the bottom of your intake with a dremel (grind on the fins in the bottom of the intake) I bought the two plugs and the front cooland pipe for 38 from my dealer. Good luck
It can be done. Basically cut the middle section of the existing pipe out, then connect the ends together with heater hose or block it off. I did this, but it only held up about 3 weeks or so until they started leaking a small amount of coolant. In the end, I just bought the new coolant line/plug kit. No leaks since then.
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Verdad Gallardo Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 44
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From: Pittsburgh
I would like take this opportunity to express my hatred for my car...
Everything was going semi-smooth. Had the old intake off after only about 45 min. and 300 cuts on the top of my hand. Was removing the little green clips that hold the knock sensor wire(i think) to the coolant line. Well wouldn't ya know the one in the back was broken under the tape. While removing the tape, the little green piece of clip jumped and flew as if guided by sonar directly into the far back passenger side intake port on the head.....
Thank god the valve wasn't open enough to let the little piece of **** fall down into the cylinder. Took a good hour to get the damn thing out. Tried to suck it out, blow it out, tape on the end of a small screwdriver, and finally some type of medical device my friend brought over to snag it and pull it out.
With that finally out of the way, I had to mod my stock coolant pipe. I cut the rear section and connected it with a small coolant line and hose clamps. As for the front, I got lazy and ran out of hose clams and decided to smash the hell out of it in a vice and put some gasket sealer in/on the end of it. Didn't work. Now its time to head to work. I'll have to mess with it later. Hopefully I can pull that front coolant pipe off and mod/replace/fix it without removing the intake manifold.
I also have some gut feeling that the back isn't seated all the way and there is a air leak. And also noticed on startup that my Y pipe is cracked... again. (dont go with flowtech) For all the do-it-yourselfers, order the 01^ coolant pipe, its not worth it.
-j
TECH Regular
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 480
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From: Ft. Worth, TX
LOL. I fell your pain.
I did my LS6 intake yesterday too, but i had preordered the front hose and 2 plugs for the rear. Being my first time it took a lot longer than i thought it would, and i had a helper too. If you are about to do this remember that once the intake is unbolted you will need to leave the loose rear bolts in the manifold and then pull it out, dont forget to put them back in the new intake before setting it in the engine bay. The 2 hoses and 1 connector on the back of the intake are a bitch. I found that turning the unbloted intake sideways allowed me to gain access. I bypassed the t/b. as well. The thing i was most worried about was that if the rear plugs leaked, i would have to take the intake manifold all the way back off to get to them. Luckily they did thier job just fine.
The idea of cutting the stock coolant hoses off the plus and welding the holes up for plugs did cross my min to save a few bucks, but in the end im glad i did it the right way.
BTW, the car is definitely faster. Not "holy **** its like nitrous" faster, but it gets to redline quicker and even sounds a little different. Not the exhaust but the sound of the motor(easily heard over the quiet stock exhaust).
I did my LS6 intake yesterday too, but i had preordered the front hose and 2 plugs for the rear. Being my first time it took a lot longer than i thought it would, and i had a helper too. If you are about to do this remember that once the intake is unbolted you will need to leave the loose rear bolts in the manifold and then pull it out, dont forget to put them back in the new intake before setting it in the engine bay. The 2 hoses and 1 connector on the back of the intake are a bitch. I found that turning the unbloted intake sideways allowed me to gain access. I bypassed the t/b. as well. The thing i was most worried about was that if the rear plugs leaked, i would have to take the intake manifold all the way back off to get to them. Luckily they did thier job just fine.
The idea of cutting the stock coolant hoses off the plus and welding the holes up for plugs did cross my min to save a few bucks, but in the end im glad i did it the right way.
BTW, the car is definitely faster. Not "holy **** its like nitrous" faster, but it gets to redline quicker and even sounds a little different. Not the exhaust but the sound of the motor(easily heard over the quiet stock exhaust).
TECH Regular
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 480
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From: Ft. Worth, TX
I thought of another helpful tip i remembered about you saying the back wasnt sealed. I noticed when i first layed the intake on the motor it wobled as if not seated properly. Almost as if it were warped. It took a good 30 minutes and finally figured out one of the stupid casting marks on the underside was crimping the wires underneath. Remember to remove the 2 green clips and then make sure than that wire/wires are directly in the middle of the intake, as there are no casting marks there. Im suprised ive neverheard anyone mention this, because if i hadnt done this one of the casting marks would have cut/crimped the wires for sure.
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 44
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From: Pittsburgh
I decided to not back down from my original plan. I decided to go with my budget LS6 swap instead of paying the $40 for the pipes. I folded over the small nipple that was left when I cut the center section out, and welded it up. You cant even see it because its directly under the TB section of the intake manifold. All is well now...
Is there a way to check with a mity vac how much vac the car is producing at idle? Which hose should I tap to check? I'd like to see if there is any air leak. After checking the intake it looks flush along the top with the head so there shouldn't be a problem.
-j
Is there a way to check with a mity vac how much vac the car is producing at idle? Which hose should I tap to check? I'd like to see if there is any air leak. After checking the intake it looks flush along the top with the head so there shouldn't be a problem.
-j
