shelby987

I have decided my 64 GTO clone needs an LS1/T56 combo......I have found a couple and I have realized that I need a couple of questions answered before I drop down the $$$

First, what is the going rate for this setup, I tend to see lots of people asking for $5k+ on ebay these days.....and most of them seem to go un-purchased. With all accessories, trans, harness, and PCM what is the avg. price? (I know it depends on mileage too....how about a range?)

How do I check to make sure I have a good swap candidate on my hands, and not someones used/abused toy? I have a couple people selling that have given me compression test numbers, one is solid 180~190 range, one is solid 200~210 range, and one is 215~225 range (a poss. performance rebuild on this one).

What signs will tell me if an LS1 has been abused?

What signs will tell me if a T56 has been abused?

Is there any quick way to tell if a T56 has been rebuilt?

Any easy way to check on a clutch when the LS1/T56 combo is already out of the car?

Sorry, lots of questions.....do you have lots of answers?

Thanks all!

Carshopinc.com

iTrader: (5)

Unless you can test drive a donor car prior to removal you really are taking a roll of the dice.....

Black01M6SS

iTrader: (3)

Find out the history of the car it came out of. From there you are going to have to roll those dice. I really have no idea what a good combo like that would go for. 5k seems high to me considering you can get the whole car for a few thousand more than that. Then again if the combo has under 30k miles I might would consider 5k for it. I would say

Others might have a better opinion but as far as a range this is what I think about it.

Less than 30k miles up to 5k$ dropping to around 3k$ for one with 80k miles. If it has over 80k on it I probably wouldn't bother unless you could get it real cheep. I'm sure there are many people with LS1's with over 100k miles that are running fine but I wouldn't want to start off with a 100k mile engine in my project car.


I wouldn't buy the combo unless you can get information on the car that it came out of. Find one that came out of a low mileage car that was say hit in the side with no other accident history.

If it has mods then you can bet it has been run hard. Most people with LS1's run them hard so I'm not sure if you really consider that abuse. Compression test and a cylinder leak down test will give you an idea of the mechanical well being of the engine.

You really won't be able to tell about the trans without taking it apart. Most likely if the car has low miles and the engine wasn't modded all that much the trans will be ok.

I don't know of a way to tell if the trans has been rebuilt. There are different levels of rebuilds. If it had say a viper input shaft then you might be able to tell.

You can look at the clutch disk and see if the carbon material is almost down to the revits. There isn't much to begin with though. If it were me I would replace the clutch if the combo has over 50k miles. Under 50k with stock like hp I would probably take a look at it and if it looks good I would use it.