Its about time to retire the LS1 in my WS6...It has 143k miles on...I have a LS6 short block from a vette with 35k miles on but it has a spun bearing. Im looking at either a TMS or TSP LS3 long/short blocks...Goal for the car is mid to low 11...I currently have 1 7/8 SE headers, LS6 intake, SE true dual exhaust, Performabuilt Level 2 trans with FTI 9.5 Billet conv at 3600 stall...Thought about just rebuilding my LS1 or the LS6 I have but when looking at cost, does not seem that much more to just get a short block from either 2 places above...TSP long block comes in around 8500, SB at 4800 but its less than 400 to go with the 418 from the Long Block they have...Just wanted to see what your thought were on the 2 places above, or if I should just get the LS6 rebuilt that's in the shop...It has 243 heads on it, not sure if they are stock or ported but all the springs, lifters, pushrods are pretty new..the guy had a cam kit put in it will all new stuff, then spun a bearing...

 

Unless there is something wrong with the LS1 there's no reason to rebuild it. These motors go much further than that without showing any signs of aging. IF they have been maintained.

You're money your thing, the LS1 will likely hold up better than the rebuilt LS6. Seen a lot of rebuilds disappoint compared to a healthy used OEM motor.

I'd use the money to heads, cam, intake the LS1

Or if you really want to go all out, go for the stroker

 

The LS1 already has a 228/232 600/590 cam, LS6 intake headers etc...Oil psi has been dropping over the last yr...Shows 35 at start up and when going down the road, drops to 15 at stop lights etc and that's with 20w50...No smoke, plugs are not fouling etc..But it does has stock 241 heads on it..I just don't want to pull that LS1 and get it to the machine shop only to find out it has issues etc when I have the LS6 on an engine stand..I know I could pull the 243 heads off the LS6 and put them on the current set up and maybe be at goal of mid 11 but that oil psi does worry me...

 

Before you call it quits on that motor (and to get more money out of it if you sell it) swap the oil sending unit out and see what it does.

I had a bad sending unit do that once.

If you got the cash go stroker

When I said heads cam etc. I meant aftermarket heads and intake. Cam sounds like a decent size already.

If you decide to do a rebuild on the LS1 or 6, the trick flow as cast heads make realllllllly good power and aren't very expensive compared to others. The TSP as cast are real nice too and similarly priced.

 

I may just go ahead and get some decent heads and put on the LS1, put a new oil sending unit, cam sensor and knock sensors since the intake has to come off anyways. Then if it still has low psi I can either have the LS1 cleaned up, new rings, bearing etc..or get a new LS3 short block that the new heads will fit on..I have been told that 143k miles on the LS1 isn't anything to worry about if they have been kept up..the car had 130k on it when I bought it, was bone stock...I just installed cam etc a cpl yrs ago...car still runs strong, no smoke...

 

I am having similar thoughts lately.

I have a 99 Z28 with 220k miles. Oil pressure is great (i.e. 65 cold, 40 hot). Oil changed every 3-5k Mobil 1 5w-30. Its my daily driver but I take it to the track (i.e. road course) a few times per year and it runs fine. New transmission (4l60e). I am starting to think about what to do next.

One idea is to get a iron 408 ls short block and put on the ~500 hp Trickflow top end kit.

Or just go with a Procharger on the stock engine and deal with any engine problem that may arise later.

It would be great to put in an LS3 but I am not sure if I want to deal with the different reluctor ring and electronics.

What do you think, Procharger or Trick Flow stroker?

 

The LS3 engines from TSP come with 24x or 58x reluctor so that's not really an issue, they have a conversion kit for like $245 that takes care of the cam position sensor etc...That will be needed for ANY LS3 going into a LS1 vehicle...its a simple plug/play adapter...Im not going with any iron block...People spend thousands in suspension to drop weight, so why add to it...that's just me tho...Im gonna talk to my installer and get his .02 since he has done both of what Im torn between....I like the idea of having a brand new block, pistons, crank etc....but also if my current block is still in great shape why spend the $ on something new...My oil psi is my main worry, and like the poster above it could just be a bad sending unit...

 

Don't buy heads for the LS1 if you are going to go to a larger cube motor lately. Find out the oil pressure issue first then plan. If you go LS3 later it would be better to go with a LS3 top end. New GMPP ported assembled LS3 heads are $1700..

If you put heads on the LS1 and still have low oil pressure and then decide to do an LS3 or stroker you'll want bigger heads to make the most from the larger cubes.


For you guys considering mileage consider this.. If it passes a compression and leakdown test and has good oil pressure. What else matters? As long as it's in good shape mileage doesn't matter because the parts don't get weaker with mileage. Some things wear some but a lot of things don't wear much with proper maintenance and care. Main rod and cam bearings usually last about forever if maintained. Rocker trunions will wear out though, lifters will wear, gaskets go bad..

I've always built on a budget so I've used several high mileage bottom ends and I've always had great luck with them while my buddies were going through built motors that didn't last because they weren't built well.

 

00pooterSS is right about the stock GM LS engine. A friend torn one down that had 297,000 miles and it still had cross hatch in the cylinders. He said if he'd realized how good the engine still was he would have torn it down for rebuild.

Low Oil pressure is sometimes the oil pressure sending unit. Sometimes it's just a little wear on the actual oil pump and replacing it puts the pressure right back up there. The LS oil pumps can wear


​​​​​​I think I read durability testing was for 25,000 hours of durability for the LS engine. 20 mph average speed and 25,000 hours equals about 500,000 miles. Average speed of 40 mph yields about 1,000,000 miles.

I have an old small block Chevy 305 that went almost 400,000 miles before it was pulled for an LS swap. That 305 ran well enough it's very easy to imagine it would have went 500,000 + miles. Proper Maintenance is the key to long life for engines.

 

The oil pump was replaced...Twice. When the car was bone stock my oil psi was usually around 40 at idle and 45-50 running...When I had the cam installed, he put a new oil pump in...Oil psi took a dump as did the oil pump, so I took it to a LS speed shop in Houston and had that one replaced...the pump was either bad or installed wrong when it was done with cam...The first guy was supposed to change sending units, but I highly doubt he did since he did a half *** job with everything else...Im gonna take it to performance shop in Humble and get him to swap sending units and run a comp and leak down and go from there....

 

you could get a 383 stroker kit for your ls6 block & have your 243 heads ported. probably need bigger injectors then add nitrous or a pro charger if you needed more. just a thought.

 

The car was, is and always will be NA....I agree with the above 2 posters, if comp and leak down turn out fine then im just gonna slap some good heads on it and call it a day...Hopefully the oil sending unit is giving false readings which I suspect it is...Sometimes the needle will "jump" up and down 10psi for a few secs before setting down again...When car is first started in the morning and I take off from the house, the psi is around 45-50, then falls off after its hot...

 

What shop in humble? I'm near Humble. My Shop Hangman Performance only Does FBodys we would be more than happy to look at it.

 

Your shop and Bad Chad are the ONLY 2 places that I trust anymore...I left a vm with SG yesterday eve, he has helped me a lot getting me lined out...

 

I was just about to recommend Chad. Stand up guy.

 

I had a bad one that did the same thing and the problem started immediately after I replaced mine with a free used one I got from a buddy. I broke mine on a sunday and needed the car for work on monday. I slapped in that used one and it would have high oil pressure when cold then it would bounce around and flicker and when it was hot it would only show 20 pounds when it was reading about 40 the day before. The only thing that changed was I put an LS6 intake on it and broke the oil sending unit during the swap.

Hopefully yours is just the sender.

I had a 5.3 with 250k miles on it in the shop last week that I did headgaskets on, if I didn't know the mileage I would have guessed it probably had under 100k judging by how the insides of the engine looked. Mileage isn't a big deal like it used to be.

 

Chad is def awesome, SG from Hangman referred me to him a yr or so before they opened shop. Chad fixed 90% of the stuff the cam installer messed up or half *** did. Also installed my PB Level 2 trans, FTI Stall, tci flexplate etc....Met SG at Pat G when I was getting my tune...Both places are very honest and right on price...cant go wrong with Hangman or Bad Chads...Gonna take the WS6 there this week and get the test done and new sensors put in and go from there..

 

Sometimes the oring on the pump gets pinched. I would run a ported stock newer pump and see what happens. That LS1 is barely broken in...

 

MTI in Houston found the oil ring was flat right after I had the cam installed...that's when oil psi took a dump and started leaking, within a week of cam install...Installer said he put a new pump, seals etc...this is what MTI sent me on what they found...Bad install is what they said. Damper was not installed right, grinding oil pump gear against outer housing etc..

 

Hopefully with a new oil pump you will back in business. Unless that motor was built on the loose side I wouldn't be running 20w50. I have friend with a 5.3 and that's all he uses is Castrol 20w50 and all is good but these engines have tight clearances and 5w30 and 10w30 oils are what's recommended. Thicker oil means more restriction and yes it will bring the oil pressure up due to less circulation through your bearings especially at start up. I'm running 5w30 through an LSX block with a high volume oil pump and at operating temp I have over 50 psi at idle.