Hey guys, figured it was time for an update. Mainly because I have done some new things to BLK_BETE since the last posting. I want to preface this update with the fact that I had to park her after the Brake warning light came on and the brake pedal started losing pressure randomly...more on that in a later post. But since I had her parked, I figured I would spend sometime doing “little things”....oh those pesky little things.

The 6.0 looks fairly nice sitting in its new home

but, since I had the time, I decided I wanted to clean it up and make it more appealing to my eyes. I had already decided wayyyyy back when that BLK_BETE was going to be one of those “Murdered-Out” cars, or however you want to call it, but basically flat black. However, all black in the engine bay just wasn’t cutting it and so I needed to add some color somewhere. One color combo I have really enjoyed is black and gold with a small touch of purple. So I made a plan and spent a lot of time tidying things up in the engine bay.


While having all the parts off, I took the opportunity to change the spark plus and wires and decided to install some heat shields on the plug wires. Sure enough, they had them in purple.

The plugs looked a little lean so good thing I changed them and I went ahead and got some Iridium NGK plugs.



The wheel wells were fairy dirty and the black plastic was fading. So I cleaned them with Purple Power and used some Black Magic to restore the black plastic.





Santa was nice enough to drop off some cool LED lights to add to BLK_BETE’s unique personality. So I took my dash apart for the fifteen thousandth time and installed 4 illuminated rocker switches that I had wired into the console plastic. The 4 switches will control a dashcam (for those crazy Florida drivers), LED halo headlight ring, LED Dream-Chaser Interior lights, and LED Dream-Chaser underbody lighting.


This wiring did not work. Had to rewrite in car


And of course I had to install the LED headlights with the halo ring.


A quick screenshot of the outside lights

And one of the inside passenger side

 

Cool, very unique with all the purple and glod accents plus lighting. Nice work.

Edit:
How do you like the LED headlights?

 

I really like the headlights. They are wayyyy brighter than what I had. But, I haven’t used them on the street yet. Waiting on a certain package to arrive before I can get back on the road 😝

 

One of the things I love about the early model C4 is the dash. To me, the 80s digital dash reminds me of KnightRider and being a kid again. So it was imperative that my swap keep these gauges operative. I chased the wires down and have gotten the temp sensors wired in (still working on the oil psi).
The LS series engine ECU uses the ECU and some relays to turn on the coolant fans so you have to keep the forward drivers side coolant sensor in the vehicle. It is a two wire plug for the ECU wires. So this means either running a separate sensor for the DIC to function properly, or....you can use a 1997 corvette 3 wire sensor and pigtail. This allows you to wire the 2 ECU wires and the single DIC together into a 3 wire plug and sensor. And as I found out, it works perfectly. The oil temp and oil psi sensors were installed down on the oil pan above the filter with an ICTbillet adapter.

 

Another update on the 84, it’s kinda nice to have a lot of updates since this means the projects are finishing up!!!
First update: I have been battling a hesitation with the engine ever since I got the car running. I chased down a lot of gremlins which never fully relieved the situation. I spent the money on HPTuners and logged my vehicle running. Then I posted it on their forums and sure enough somebody knew the problem instantly. Apparently I plugged the o2 sensors in wrong. I had Bank 1 plugged into Bank 2 and Bank 2 plugged into Bank 1. This was a tight squeeze to fix but it changed the car entirely. Now I can’t keep the tires from spinning!!!! Lol

The other update:
Well, I had an issue with my Master Cylinder and needed to replace it. And since I was going to put air into the system, I figured I might as well upgrade the system. Our fellow LS swapper, DMITTZ hooked me up with his “old and used” setup of C6z51 front brakes. This included slotted rotors, Performance pads, calipers, brackets, and the adapter brackets. Unfortunately his car is an 88 and mine is an 84, so I had to buy adapter brackets for my year car. No big deal. The swap took me a couple hours to change and was probably one of the easier mods on this car.


A little bit of rubbing, but not enough to be concerned about.

Man these things are huge

I’d say it’s an upgrade.

 

IMO get HP tuners and start exploring the factory GM ECM to get the most control, economy, reliability from the setup

In my LS Swap I used 411 Gen3 ECU to make it simple for forced induction 600-800hp.
The true benefit of using modern LS truck engine is that anyone of them will easily surpass 600rwhp using pump fuel and a turbocharger. It's an end-point target for modern vehicles

 

Hey man, thanks for the post. You’re absolutely correct, tuning software is vital for making these builds perform the best, that is why I went ahead and purchased HPTuners.
my goals, at this moment in time, are not about big HP or TQ numbers. I feel like the car is already a beast with stock LS power. But who knows what happens down the road.

 

The Brakes look great on your car, they match your black wheels perfectly. I think you'll be very happy with them.

 

Thanks D!! Sadly, as you know, I was not able to clear the 17” wheels with that setup. But I was able to get my hands on one ugly set of chrome 19” 8spoke wheels with tires. I hate chrome, so I spent a little time adjusting them. Some will dislike my color schemes but I love the fact that my car is just screaming 80s! So here are some pics of the wheels, the process, and the results.

I saw these on FB marketplace for $300

Some chrome was rusting so I sanded and prepared for paint.

Self-etching primer

Base coat of Metallic Gold to be taped off for the next stage.

After the Flat Black was applied and the taping removed...yeah, I got overspray on some areas.

I also hand painted the letters gold

Final product

Also tested my hand painting on the front LP cover. Will probably buy the actual gold lettering when I apply new Flat Black paint to the whole car.

 

Well guys, the most recent update on BLK BETTE is an advanced tune and dyno sessions. I decided to spend a little extra money to get the stock lq4 dialed in as best it can be. I found a dyno (Mustang Dyno) here in Orlando and a tuner who seemed passionate about my project. So I spent 4 hours on Friday night getting this baby right. Wow, thank goodness I did. The AFR was wayyyy off. I was running catastrophically lean, glad I never punched the throttle. I had the wrong injectors programmed into the ECU. We did 3 test tunes/runs to get the mapping perfect. This gave me a pull of 230hp at the wheels. Next, we decided to start advancing the timing. We got to 24 degrees before the knock sensors started acting up. In order to go anymore I will need to remove my catalytic converter, which I plan on doing next. So we ended the day at 24 degrees with 250hp and 269 torque. Remember, this is bone stock. This is a great starting point in my opinion. And the next step is learning which Addams will help and how much they’ll help.
One thing we discussed is what is limiting the motor as it sits and as we advance the setup. I’m using stock c5 manifolds which he believes is restricting the motor. The other issue is the intake air temperature. On the dyno we were sitting at 200 degrees with the hood open and under some stress, it was about 70 degrees outside air temp. So I still need to figure out a way to get cold air into the motor. And being an 84 is making it difficult to be something simple.

 

1. never use knock sensors to tell you what the timing should be, unreliable and dangerous
2. LS engines do not use alot of timing, 24* is about maximum you should ever use WOT in performance daily.
3. The iat is prob heat soaking, Doubt IAT is really near 200*F. I recommend relocating the IAT sensor to the cold pipe (after the air filter). And getting rid of MAF if you are using it.

Other things
A. The OEM manifolds are a restriction but they are also very beefy, solid thick cast construction so they retain heat (well insulated) which is IDEAL.
So, if you DO decide to install headers, make sure you wrap them and/or ceramic coat them. Everything in the exhaust system should be very well insulated to keep the heat out of the engine bay and trapped in the exhaust system. Add heat shields and blankets as necessary. Insulation is key to performance, hot exhaust flows with higher velocity and takes up more space, it will shoot to the tail-exit faster when it is warmer.
B. Yes remove the cat converter as a restriction
C. Keep a full length exhaust with 1 muffler and 1 resonator (or similar) Don't try to shorten the system and exit out the side or something, keep it going to the rear of the car

Once you get the exhaust and underhood heat sorted, and any basic external mods, the engine is crying for a cam/spring upgrade if you didn't do it yet.
In an old, re-used Truck engine, I will renew: lifters/pushrods/cam/spring/timing chain/oilpump/barbell/seals/gaskets
Obviously, never take apart the bottom end (crank/rods/pistons/etc...) leave those alone! You knew that....
This way the only thing that can really fail inside the engine is a cam bearing, or if you got a bad new part (a bad lifter or something right out of the box new)

 

Thank you for the information KingTalon. I am using MAF for now but will eventually change to speed density, probably when I upgrade the intake manifold. I’m still trying to decide which way to go with that as I am only using an LS1/6 intake (not sure which one, lol).
Do you think the shorty headers would be a good choice? The reason I ask is because I am using the batwing oil pan instead of an Fbody oil pan with my swap. Definitely not coming out of the side with exhaust, lol, not my style. I have a Borla Catback system on it right now and I like it. I was thinking of just going to a muffler shop, having them cut the cat out and just weld in a piece of straight pipe where the cat was. That should be good, right?
I haven’t done anything to the internals of the engine yet. I wanted to get running before I sunk money into the power adders. It has 317 heads on it which I guess are good for boost, but the only boost I could ever see myself adding is nitrous and I’m pretty meh about it right now. I’m sure a turbo would easily give me high numbers but I’m not sure I want to go that route at all. 400 at the wheels would be pretty sick to me but I’m not sure how crazy I’m gonna have to go to get to that point. And I’m sure if I do I will need to start replacing things like the 700r4.

 

250 at the wheels on a Mustang dyno is roughly ~287 at the wheels on a dynojet. Mustang dynos aren't very forgiving.
I dont know why people claim 317s are good for boost, when there isn't a single LS head that isn't good for boost.

A mild cam, good exhaust, and a stock LS3 top-end could easily get you 100-150 more at the wheels.

 

Sadly I think using the batwing oil pan is a problem when it comes to headers. I don't think shorty headers will gain you much HP, longtubes are what give you HP. Its not so much the flow of the headers but the length of the indvidual tubes, The longer tubes allow for 'scavaging' of the exhaust which is why they make more HP. Having said that the 2001 and later C5 corvette manifolds are pretty good, better than the early C5 manifolds so if you wanted to do a low buck swap you could sell your manifolds and get a set of the later C5 manifolds and pick up a little HP for very little money. Also if tou removing the cat, get an X-pipe put in they will add HP v.s a non-crossover system and don't cost much money.

Honestly, though a stock 6.0L has a pretty small cam, you will get a big improvement with just a cam/valvetrain upgrade, it costs some money and is some work but its where you'll see the biggest gains.

Having said that HP on a dyno is just a number, what matters more is how the car drives and if your happy with the power level (or not).

 

So you’re saying I should keep an eye out for a deal on an fbody oil pan and long tube headers, lol. Things you think about after the build. I definitely want to do a cam, although not sure which one but I’ve got time. Like you mentioned, I am happy with how she runs for now. It’s still all new to me. The greatest thing about this car is that it is a life long vehicle. I bought her intending to have for the long haul. That’s why I put the LS in it to begin with. I wanted the reliability of an LS and it’s components as compared to the old l83 crossfire.
I hate that headers are so expensive, I can’t justify $1k for them. Maybe when the budget is back, COVID kinda used up my savings.

 

Ya for sure covid has been rough on all of us, money wise and emotionally. Definietly don't spend anymore than you can afford on the car.

If your keeping the long term (like I am), the biggest thing I learned from my build is to come up with a plan and then do it right once.

For example if you want to eventually do heads, cam, LT headers, intake. Then don't waste money buying shorty headers now if your going to want LT headers later. Also don't get a cam that is optimized for stock heads, intake, and manifolds, if you intend to upgrade those things later. Just enjoy the car now and save up to do it right once.

I sort of screwed up when I was building my car and learned my lesson, I bought all the stuff to make it preform well as a 6.0L assuming the bottom end was good. Then later I found out I I had to redo the bearings, rods and pistons. Since I bought all the speed parts with the idea of building a 6.0L I just did a foreged 6.0L. But if I had waited to buy stuff until I knew the bottom wnd had to be done I could have done a 402ci making more HP for only a little more money. My engine is still great and i'm happy with it but, i learned 2 things: 1.) make a plan and buy what you are going to want up front and 2.) don't buy stuff for and engine until you know for sure its good.

Your engine will be good since its running, so just plan out what setup you eventually want theb save up and buy what you want (once) and enjoy it.

 

Also forgot to mention in regards to the cam, once you know what setup you want. Contact Pat.G and have him spec you a custom cam (costs $25) he has a very good reputation in the LS community. I had him spec the cam for my setup.

 

Based on everything so far here is my recommendation
A. finish making the vehicle into a nice driver for now and dont worry about the HP. Focus on finishing the PCV system properly, it is very important to the health of the engine. Make sure you are running a factory PCV setup. One hose from the passenger valve cover to the post-air filter tube (just behind the air filter). Other valve cover goes to PCV valve and then to the intake manifold.
Keep checking the fluids and check for leaks.
put some serious mileage on the car. 5k or 12k or something. Make sure it fully warms up, no over heating, tolerable conditions in the engine bay, no vibrations, etc... "finish" the drivability and reliability aspects.

B. Once the hood has been closed for a while, engine is good, and theres a bunch of mileage on it and everything is 'done' then start consider your performance options.
1. I do NOT recommend porting the heads or doing anything to the factory heads because they are 'cheap' in my experience and can easily be ruined and replaced.
2. I do recommend a cam swap, but while you are in there do if you haven't already: [Oil pump, timing chain, push rods(longer/stronger), springs(PAC1218 has a popular rate), lifters, cam]
3. I recommend a Supercharger because it is simple to install. Use a brand new unit so no missing parts or garbage. Then you can keep the manifolds on the engine if you want and it will run quietly and strongly.

Don't over-size the cam and don't worry about getting a 'supercharger' cam, even if you plan to do nitrous or supercharger don't let the cam know. Just use a mild cam with slightly more duration than factory (say near 220*'s @ .050 range). Don't use a high lift cam or a fast ramp camshaft. Specify that you want a LOW lift camshaft and SLOW ramp rate camshaft so the cam will be very gentle on the valvetrain parts and give good high RPM stability. For example for Gen3/4 Truck engine, lift should be kept around .575 or less generally using the PAC1218 it should last a long time.

All the truck engines need (4.8/5.3/6.0) is a cam/spring and a little boost. They are performance engines when there is boost pressure. SO easily it can make 500-600rwhp. The boost makes up for all the little inefficiencies of a daily driver: Air filter restriction, intake restriction, exhaust restriction, is able to be overcome with boost pressure. This way you can use a PAPER air filter (make sure you are using a paper air filter), a full PCV system, a very quiet and simple exhaust well insulated, any intake manifold, no head porting, no machine work or engine work. Just slap a cam and supercharger and go make 500-600 easily with the fuel/tuned and it will be as reliable as it is now.

In other words, I don't recommend nickle and diming your power. You are at lets say 300 now, you get 10 from this, 5 from that, 12 from over here, 30 from this, 8 from that... Its just nickles and dimes and tons of extra work and tweaking and re-tuning for each stupid 10hp you want sometimes... if you are tuning it yourself its a great way to learn as a novice but if you are trying to be a professional about the power then what we do is take all that nickle and dime BS and ignore it and just slap a forced induction setup

 

First, thanks for all the suggestions on performance addons! I will keep all the information gathered and use it down the road. I definitely want to get some miles on her first.
as for the next project...paint.
Wow! What a task. The car is like 50 shades of black right now. Clear peeling off everywhere, cracks in the bumpers, in need of some serious help. I drove around Orlando getting quotes for a paint job and my stomach dropped. Cheapest paint job was $4k, or $1k from Maaco. Lol. I seriously considered the Maaco paint job since this is no show quality car, it’s a beater. But after some thought I decided to try doing what I can myself. I have some friends who are painters and are willing to spray it for me for a few beers. I will just need to do all the other stuff and have the paint ready for them. So I spent 4 hours with a DA today sanding the car. I didn’t get very far. Had to take a break and go get some more sanding discs and wash off the massive amount of black dust on me.

I am sanding the car with 220 to cut all the clear off and get down to a workable surface. I will then sand again to 320 and once again with 400.
I am going to use rattle cans for the primer and then sand again with 400 before calling it ready for paint. Here is today’s mayhem...




I knew the car had different bumpers on it. The previous owner liked the later C4 body style. But I wasn’t prepared for a red fender...

Who wants to guess why there is a red fender on a black car? My guess...it’s been involved in a collision 💥 FML

 

If I may make a suggestion, go to the nearest harbor freight or auto parts store and get a cheap $50 hvlp primer gun set. Then go to koi and get a gallon of primer and a gallon of thinner. Borrow a portable compressor if you dont have one. Dont go the rattle can route, you can spend a little more and get much better primer. You can have the best painter in the world but if your work below the paint isnt right it will never look good. The way I see it, it is 90% prep and 10% paint