I need some help here guys. Currently i have a 84 better with a small block 350 from a 78 monte carlo. I'm thinking about doing a 5.3 ls swap along with a 4l60 tranny. Have anyone here done something like this b4? Any suggestions will be very much appreciated

 

I would do the LS swap with boost. If I had to do my car over again, I wouldn't have built a 350.

 

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...x-my-swap.html

 

i would do an alum block ls3 swap.

an iron block lsx (especially one with less cubes) gains you NOTHING. especially if you are going to go boost - at that point the head /intake magic of the lsx series is simply overcome by an extra 2 psi boost


the alum block weight savings is where the real potential of the lsx lies

 

I would do a serious cost vs. performance break down and go from there. I would evaluate final goals as well and buy no more than you need to meet the goal. Performance never called on is a waste of money. If the car has a D36 you have a fuse and easy to blow it if too carried away. D44 a different story. You need to look at the whole car and how you drive it and forget the numbers.

 

(On the money)

 

look up the lsx ******. He is putting serious power through them, but they don't last.

If you are pulling the motor, just get more cubes.

NOW! what is your goal? The car is limited every where else as the power grows.

600+hp gets deep in the pockets real fast unless just doing some dyno runs and hope it don't break.

 

When my 383 blew I went back and forth over this alot, I ended up going with a ls3. In the end it depends on your budget, and if you do choose a ls motor then cheapest way to do it is with a vette motor ls1 ls6 ls3 ls7. You have to use all vette accesories brackets and damper so just get a vette pullout with everything. It also depends if you are going to do the work yourself or pay a shop. There are a lot of extra cost in doing the swap and it adds up quickly. So my vote in your poll is non of the above

 

This is good advice up here ^^^

I'm involved with a 75 stingray restoration where as we are installing a Lunati 383 LT1 fuel injected stroker engine. In this endeavor I have found that we will need a late C4 donor car to complete the project just to have all the proper brackets and such to make the conversion.

The path of least resistance and cost will be a C5-up donor vehicle.

 

"I would do a serious cost vs. performance break down and go from there. I would evaluate final goals as well and buy no more than you need to meet the goal. Performance never called on is a waste of money. If the car has a D36 you have a fuse and easy to blow it if too carried away. D44 a different story. You need to look at the whole car and how you drive it and forget the numbers."

This is good advice. A c5 z06 Corvette pullout is at least $3000, plus headers, cam swap, tune, and all the nickel and dime (and very time consuming) obstacles is a daunting and expensive task.

In the end, I ended up putting a 421 in my c4 (I already had it), and if 550 streetable hp isn't cutting it, I'll get a c5 z06. You can get then in the mid/high teens for a good starter car. I love my c4, but it will also be much more difficult if you ever want to sell it. People are all talk, but tough to pull the trigger on a car thats been hacked.

 

cadmaniac is right on target. An engine swap creates a 'dune buggy' more valuable to you that anyone else.

 

Yeah but he's got an 84! You know they only come with Crossfire and I'll be darned if I ever seen anyone out looking to buy an 84 for the Crossfire! LOL

I think in this unique circumstance, given the fact it's an 84 and it's already had another non-vette engine installed, any conversion using later model corvette parts at this point would be more valuable than how it sits now.

If the body is clean, and you got the $$ and or skill, I'd say for OP to go for it. I wonder, is it a high mile car too?

 

I'd just go with whatever the best dollar to performance ratio is

 

I'd have to agree! Let's do the math..

If you're still running the crossfire, or carb then moving up to a ported electronic fuel injection system is defiantly going to yield some improvements in performance as well as reliability, but a carb is still going to be WAY LESS expensive and could net serious horsepower if your engine is set up correctly... But again, it's a carburetor.

Now if you're just looking to go fuel injection, and you're tired of the old carburetor then look at some of the built in improvements on the LS engine compared to the TPI L98 and LT1/LT4 -

1. They come with "quality" roller fulcrum shaft style bolt in rocker arms. Cost for roller rockers on an L98/LT engine $200-$400 depending, maybe $100 if you go ultra cheap.

2. They have Bee-Hive springs from the factory (good for larger cams). $1200-$2800 because lets be honest, if your going to spend money to have bee-hive springs installed on L98/LT heads you're going to spend at least a grand.

3. High speed digital ignition with individual coil. $1200-$5000 for an aftermarket digital ignition system.

So clearly you can see the value in a 5.3 LS, and a 6.0 LQ would just be that much sweeter, and yet even better an LS2 but where you going to find a trailblazer SS for cheap? Even if it is smashed and being sold for parts?!

Or you could build a pretty good 350 HP engine with a carb for about $2500 or less if you did it yourself. This is the "old-school" option, but it works.

 

GO with a carb and factory roller block 383.Best bang for the buck and easiest to work on.

 

The OP never said what kind of budget he has to work with and what the intention for the car (drag, track street). I think the sbc is a great motor and You can make some great power but I think with the money you would have to spend it would be not as good as value. You will need to spend 2k for a set of sbc heads that even come close to stock ls heads and they would still be 23 degree heads. I think a 84 would go up in value as ls swap as the crossfire cars aren't worth much. In my opinion if you stick with a sbc then put as little money in to it to drive it, I wouldn't spend more than 1500. If you have 3-6k than go for a ls, a ls1/6 vette pullout if you don't have much to spend, ls2 vette pullout for a little more and so on. I'm totally pleased with my ls3 and it rips, 430hp stock and with a cam swap over 500hp. I had a 383 with superram intake lpe cam, ported heads, the works, this ls3 is definitely faster and more reliable.

 

Without a performance goal use intended and budget this whole thread id as useful as leafs rustling in the wind.

 

That's probably true, but I think the OP just wanted others to bounce different ideas around so he/she could come up with what works best for them.

 

I was under the impression (i know, i should look up the actual numbers) but i thought the LQ9 and LQ4 with an LS1, or LS6 head, and accessories from a vette or camero will yield almost 400hp.

Then add Typical hop ups like full exhast and cam and you are over 400hp.

so am i off base? The Iron/aluminium L98/TPI can compete with the iron block/alum head LS series (LQ).

 

I think the LT1/LT4 is easily capable of 500 HP and is a great engine! But, it has its limitations.

The big thing with the LS or later systems that utilize high speed computers and sensors in conjunction with the transmission and other vital systems is that it can compensate and adjust for different conditions much faster than anything the LT1's system can. The integration of high speed computer systems throughout every aspect of the drivetrain can simply adapt faster than anything we have seen before. The end results speak for themselves!

I still like the LT4, and it's relatively archaic to me, which is why it fascinates me like a kid with an old toy they used to dream of having. But I don't let that allow me to lose sight of the truth.