I hope I have this thread in the right forum. If not, I'll look for an appropriate forum. I was referred to this site by a member of a gbody.com (Malibu/Regal/Monte Carlo/El Camino). I wanted to get specific information on swapping LS series GM engines into older model vehicles. I've been noticing the increasing availability of the LS engines in the junkyards (JY) around here. In NJ, the JYs don't carry vehicles older than ten years. I've been toying with the idea of getting an Escalade engine/auto trans and transplanting that into the Malibu as a replacement for the 305 SBC. I figured that the Caddy engine would get good MPGs because it would reside in a vehicle that weighs far less than the SUV. I can do all of the necessary fab work to get the engine/trans mounted in the chassis. My Malibu had a toasted wiring system (I was told that the curcuit for the dash was a flimsy ribbon that would break after X amount of years), so I would have no inhibitions to ripping the dash apart for the truck wiring or whatever aftermarket wiring harness that I need to make this work. I saw that they had motor mounts for LS1/LS2 engines in Summit Racing for G-Body Monte Carlos. My father is a sheetmetal fabricator, so he said he could make a trans mount an motor mounts if he had to. The driveshaft will have to be modded or custom made for the engine/trans combo, however, I know a shop that can do that kind of machine work. I will have to get a new gas tank and plumb in larger lines and fittings, possibly an in-tank electric fuel pump for the fuel system. Headers, I could go with block huggers until I can figure out which LTs to install.

I know the major problem would be getting the computer to run the engine. I figured that whatever engine I get, I will have to get the matching ECU and wiring from the donor vehicle. If there are any after market wiring systems for these engines, that would be great too. I haven't found any yet. Since the Malibu is a non-computer car, I would think that a swap like this would be easier than one with a computer that had to be removed. Also there are other electronic things with the LS engines that I know I have overlooked or just don't know about. I am sorry for the long post, but I wanted to get all of the information that I think could help me with this swap. Any thoughts and recommendations would be greatly appreciated.


Chickenbone

 

You'll probably get more answers in the Conversion and Hybrids section. Not to mention plenty of reading material for you.

Jon