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First Start

Old Jun 20, 2024 | 10:41 PM
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Tomorrow I begin my swap of an iron LS3 clone into a '92 camper van, and other than pre lubing the oil pump and making sure I have oil pressure up to the lifters is there anything else that I should be aware of, or do y'all have any tips for my first start?

I feel like I've read nearly everything ever written about these engines and this particular swap, but anxiety can be a bugger sometimes. 😂

​Thanks in advance!
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Old Jun 21, 2024 | 02:00 PM
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Fill the coolant through the upper radiator hose. They can be a bitch to get air out of and doing it that way helps quite a bit.
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Old Jun 21, 2024 | 02:18 PM
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Originally Posted by Quito195
Fill the coolant through the upper radiator hose. They can be a bitch to get air out of and doing it that way helps quite a bit.
Awesome. That's great info as I have a rear heater unit that can sometimes make things more complicated.

Thanks!
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Old Jun 28, 2024 | 07:59 AM
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Originally Posted by Three77
Awesome. That's great info as I have a rear heater unit that can sometimes make things more complicated.

Thanks!
I like to pull the small hose at the coolant crossover under the TB and use that as the high point vent when filling, gets most of the air out, particularly if the front end is raised up a bit. I've really never had an issue with air pockets when filling an LS.

It also may be helpful to look up the bug sprayer method of priming just to help get oil pressure up quicker on a new build.
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Old Jul 1, 2024 | 06:07 PM
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Originally Posted by NHRATA01
I like to pull the small hose at the coolant crossover under the TB and use that as the high point vent when filling, gets most of the air out, particularly if the front end is raised up a bit. I've really never had an issue with air pockets when filling an LS.

It also may be helpful to look up the bug sprayer method of priming just to help get oil pressure up quicker on a new build.
That's a really good tip, thank you! I watched a video that Melling has on YouTube that shows a similar method to what you shared, which is what I'll definitely do.

To be expected, this swap is kicking my *** with a bunch of little issues that one only discovers once they're into it. I thought I was pretty well prepped, but unfortunately that's not the case. At the very least I'm learning a ton, and am looking forward to the satisfaction of doing (most) of it myself.

Thanks again for the help!
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