Considering "coming into the light"
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Then why do some people like to do OBDI conversion? It almost seems like it would be simpler to tune for that. Anyhow, I'm not gonna be doing any hardcore tuning that soon. And what's this "PCMfor less" stuff I've been seeing? Mail order tune I'm guessing?
Which means you can run more radical setups under emmisions controlled areas.
The choice is what will fit you best based on where you live. If you have no emissions laws holding you back, get the 95 and below.
All in all If i were in your boots, I would opt for the LS1. It has better tuning options, along with more response per mod. However I do like my LT1 styling and would not trade it.
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Well...an LSX into an LT is gonna be dang pricey, no? I took a look around at a couple of the sponsor sites and found a 383 short block for $3800. The LE2 head/cam package for $1950 is *exactly* what I want. So would that be the same price or less than doing an LSX conversion? The LSX requires different trans. setup and motor mounts, right? Not to mention wiring it up. Anyway, I'm gonna be in Texas a year from now, and I'm not sure of their emissions laws, but if a car isn't OBDII, it doesn't have very stringent requirements.
Well...an LSX into an LT is gonna be dang pricey, no? I took a look around at a couple of the sponsor sites and found a 383 short block for $3800. The LE2 head/cam package for $1950 is *exactly* what I want. So would that be the same price or less than doing an LSX conversion? The LSX requires different trans. setup and motor mounts, right? Not to mention wiring it up. Anyway, I'm gonna be in Texas a year from now, and I'm not sure of their emissions laws, but if a car isn't OBDII, it doesn't have very stringent requirements.
As far as the pricing on your combo, it depends on external expenses that go along with the price of heads and cam. I myself did a full engine rebuild, that added up to just about an ls platform motor after all the expenses. I wanted to keep the original motor in my car , I guess it is LT love after 10yrs.
It really depends on the deal you get with an LS motor.
I think you will stay closer to budget with Le2 vs swapping in an LS motor. You are going to have way more hidden cost with an engine swap.
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Miles don't scare me as much as the quality of the car. If it is in good shape, i would go for it. Plus if your going to do a rebuild soon miles don't matter because your redoing everything anyway. I bought my car with 100K and I'm getting ready to redo everything at 103K. I looked for a nice car and didn't worry about the miles because i knew i would redo everything anyway. I looked at a car with 60K for the same price and it was a piece of s**t. I looked at my car and it looks like new because it was garaged its entire life. You sound like you have done your research so just find the right stuff and you'll be happy.
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Wrong on the obd2 thing. It is easier to get away with more with OBD2. You will never pass with bigger cams with OBD1 in emissions counties. It all depends on your county you move to.
As far as the pricing on your combo, it depends on external expenses that go along with the price of heads and cam. I myself did a full engine rebuild, that added up to just about an ls platform motor after all the expenses. I wanted to keep the original motor in my car , I guess it is LT love after 10yrs.
It really depends on the deal you get with an LS motor.
I think you will stay closer to budget with Le2 vs swapping in an LS motor. You are going to have way more hidden cost with an engine swap.
As far as the pricing on your combo, it depends on external expenses that go along with the price of heads and cam. I myself did a full engine rebuild, that added up to just about an ls platform motor after all the expenses. I wanted to keep the original motor in my car , I guess it is LT love after 10yrs.
It really depends on the deal you get with an LS motor.
I think you will stay closer to budget with Le2 vs swapping in an LS motor. You are going to have way more hidden cost with an engine swap.
Also, I wasn't talking about an LS1 383. I meant an LT1 383. I know that engine swaps have a lot of hidden costs. I know that a lot of people think that you can just drop a motor in if it fits in the engine compartment, but don't realize all the conversions and supporting mods that have to be added on, not to mention it's more time consuming. If I buy an LT1 car, I'd prefer to stick with LT1. I just hope that I can find a nice Camaro soon and hope that it lasts until I have more cash next Fall to mod it to my heart's content (gonna commission into the Air Force in the summer, money yay).
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Verdad Gallardo We know you were talking about an LT1 383.
However, with the newer stuff, it's easier to build with and work with once you learn it.
I built a 402ci Stroker for about the same cost that it would have costed me to get the LT1 383. And the newer Engine's are setup a little easier to maintain. I don't have to worry about Valve Lash, also I can do a Spark Plug and Wire Change in 13 minutes.
Believe it or not, it's actually pretty easy to swap to a Gen III Engine, and not too much work ontop of that to go to a Gen IV.
I've been looking into what it takes to setup a Dry-sump Oil System in my car to possibly run a LS7..
However, with the newer stuff, it's easier to build with and work with once you learn it.
I built a 402ci Stroker for about the same cost that it would have costed me to get the LT1 383. And the newer Engine's are setup a little easier to maintain. I don't have to worry about Valve Lash, also I can do a Spark Plug and Wire Change in 13 minutes.
Believe it or not, it's actually pretty easy to swap to a Gen III Engine, and not too much work ontop of that to go to a Gen IV.
I've been looking into what it takes to setup a Dry-sump Oil System in my car to possibly run a LS7..
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Hmm...well, I'll put it this way: I want a fast car, but I'm not looking to break any records. I'm not going to skimp on quality, but I also want to have a reasonable budget. You have to remember I'm coming from a slow 4-banger...anything is fast to me! Well, not exactly. I drove my friend's turbo S2k with 315 whp...which doesn't sound like a lot but he could hang with a C5 vette.
And about your spark plug change...how hard is it in the LT1? Not to mention, that's only every 40k miles, so even if it takes a while, whatev.
My biggest constraint right now is my budget. I'd love an LS1, but they are triple the cost of an LT1, at least around here. My clutch is slowly going out on my car and it's $1100 to get a new one and I'd rather not. I suppose I could borrow a little money and just get an LS1 and not have any money for mods, haha.
And about your spark plug change...how hard is it in the LT1? Not to mention, that's only every 40k miles, so even if it takes a while, whatev.
My biggest constraint right now is my budget. I'd love an LS1, but they are triple the cost of an LT1, at least around here. My clutch is slowly going out on my car and it's $1100 to get a new one and I'd rather not. I suppose I could borrow a little money and just get an LS1 and not have any money for mods, haha.
LT1 F T W. The spark plug change is a b!tch. Especially if you are still on stock manifolds, most people do a plug/wire change when they go with headers. There are quite a few cheap mods you can do that will effect how the cars drives and I'm talking from $20-$150.
Whichever route you go, be sure to shop the parts classifieds on here when you start to mod. You can find some hella deals sometimes. I would also suggest you watch the vehicle classifieds on here-lots of nice cars, and you may be lucky enough to snag one close to you for a great price. I bought my wife's firehawk from a member here at a steal of a price (I think). Paid 10,250 for a 60k mile 99 hawk 
.
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Well, if I had the money at this second, I would buy a car I just found on Craigslist in Seattle. 99 'camaro, full bolt-ons, cam, tune, yada yada, ran 12.3 on bald street tires. $9750. Just don't have the money at the moment!
