need info on 5.3l heads
need info on 5.3l heads im lookin at a set of 2001 5.3l heads for my 99 ls1. they are casting #862 and if yall have any info on these heads it would be greatly appreciated.
What info do you need? They work fairly well especially when ported for the LS1 motors. They have a smaller combustion chamber so you get a bump in compression once installed. I have a set of the PRC 5.3l heads on my car with no complaints at all.
when i take these heads to the machine shop what all do i tell them i want done. this is my first project to swap heads and cam and im not really sure what cam to go with right now, something around .600 lift but anyway what all complications (if any) are there when putting 5.3 heads on a 5.7 im for the most part in the dark on this one so any info you have id be learning something lol
Assuming that you have a 99 car these heads will bolt directly on to your LS1. You will of course need new bolts and gaskets whenever you do this. It depends what maching shop you take your heads to i guess. The heads that I have were ported using a CNC machine as well as the valvejob. For cam it really depends more on what you intend to use the car for. Is it a daily driver? Auto or 6 speed? Just a few details to keep in mind when selecting a cam for these cars.
its got about a 3000 stall, built tranny, 4.10, lid, lt headers, ory pipe, bbk ssi intake p&p tb, p&p maf ends, and a 100 wet shot hooked up ive never sprayed it though. the car isnt my dd. as far as head bolts could i use new stock head bolts or go with a arp bolt? are the gaskets going to be for a 5.3l truck or my 5.7 ls1 i know i know im stupid
You can go with either stock or ARP's. The only advantage to the ARP headbolts is that they are reuseable, so if you plan to take the heads off multiple times it might be better to grab some of those. The GM 5.7l metal gaskets will work, but for some more money you can go with some thinner cometics for more compression. I ran the stock GM because there is about a 100 dollar difference between gasket sets. With the current stall you have I would recommend looking at something like the TSP 228R cam or something similar. That cam has a real broad powerband and will run fine with nitrous. Should leave the car really driveable, but will sound good and definately throw down some good track times.
Staging Lane
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 79
Likes: 0
The biggest problem with these heads is the valve size. the intakes i believe are 1.84" compared to the 2.00" in the ls1 head. i have a set that i had the seats reground to fit the original 2.00" valves, only cost me $80 for the machine work! the ports are similar and with the bigger valves they should flow very close to the ls1 heads, with a nice little bump in compression. the only other thing to check is your PTV clearances.
Trending Topics
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
Gas Monkey Built a 6-Wheel Ferrari Testarossa With a Corvette LT4 Engine
Verdad Gallardo
7 Most Reliable High-Performance Engines GM Has Ever Built
Verdad Gallardo
Amazing '71 Camaro Restomod Is Modern Muscle Car Under the Skin
Verdad Gallardo
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo On the dyno I would look to make anywhere between 400-420rwhp but remember autos are not dyno queens. Take it to the track, if you can get it to hook I would look for high 11's on motor out of a setup like that. Synister C5 does have a good point, moving to the larger valve setup is a smart way to go. Pricewise im really not sure how you did as I am not current with what stockers should go for. I know PRC sells these heads outright for $1150 i think, maybe even cheaper and thats fully ported and valvejobbed. I don't know if you already have a machine shop selected but you might give TSP a call and see what kind of price they will give you when porting on your heads. I am real happy with mine, and for the price I feel they are definately worth it.