z06801

Hey guys, I have a LS6 out of my 01 z06. It came out of the car running strong but has a 110k on it with with track time. For a refresh, what should i plan on replacing other than the normal rings, bearings etc
does someone put together a good rebuild kit? Motor is going to end up in our 944turbo.Thanks for any help and direction.

93Polo

I would not do anything other than plugs, wires, valve springs, and gaskets. SAC City has great tools for the gaskets. In my opinion you are more likely to cause problems going into the motor. 110k is nothing for a LS if it has been reasonably maintained.

z06801

I like that idea and I think it is in pretty good was just thinking refresh because it had sat for a few years.

stevebz06

Sell the LS6 and buy one of the 525 hp LS3 crate engines. That would refresh just about everything.

billschroeder5842

A2 above the motor will need nothing much more than a good tune. If you want to be sure, do a compression check on each of the cylinders. That will tell you lots.

93Polo

If it sees HPDE time stick with the LS6

z06801

Great idea I think this is the route to go, I'll do a compression check if it good throw it in and run it. If it blows crate ls3.
Everything I have seems to end up on the track I still have my 01' Z06 which is now a NASA ST1 car but instruct for NASA and PCA so sometimes it's nice to have a track capable street car with 2 seats. What's your thoughts on that motor sitting out for a few years?

cv67

Unless it needs overbored nothing wrong with a simple refresh. Valve job, springs, timing chain thats about it. Hopefully your guides are Ok

93Polo

My current shortblock sat for 2.5 years before getting fired, and I went with my recommendations posted above. I am not an expert on getting a motor back on the road after sitting but if it spins freely, I would run it.

I have witnessed motors (1 was mine and another was a college roommate's we installed in the past few months) with basic rebuilds run into problems due to improperly filed rings, or egging of rod bearings due to incorrectly torquing the rod bolts. I might pull the heads to look at the cylinder walls if you are concerned about any damage. If you do a valve spring change, you can also perform the wiggle test LS7 owners do to get an idea on the guides.

A refresh isn't rocket science but finding someone that does good work at a reasonable price can be difficult. GM assembles thousands with very few problems.

1 symptom that the motor has received or did not receive regular oil changes is looking at the block around the knock sensors under the valley cover, if it is dark the oil was not changed very regularly.

93Polo

A few more thoughts on a motor swap as I have thought about a 951 or 2nd Gen RX7 track car. My 01 C5Z will see track time hopefully next season.

If I were building a wet sump LS swap for track time, I would likely start with a Gen 4 aluminum 5.3 bored to a 5.7 with a mild cam, and stock heads.

Why a Gen 4 5.3? From what I understand the Gen 4 aluminum blocks blocks have the same venting at the bottom of the cylinder bores which made the LS6 the most reliable wet sump LS under track use. The Gen 4 block comes with the newer knock sensors, and reluctor wheel counts/sensor location for a Gen 4 ecu and harness. The Gen 4 ECU is far easier to set up on track data logging.

The LS3 525 is very good option if you are willing to go dry sump, and I would upgrade the valve springs.

2 topics to read before finalizing the swap.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-opinions.html
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...et-builds.html

If you start to sell the LS6 let me know if you are willing to ship it. I maybe or know of someone that would be interested.

SaberD

May not be necessary, but a refresh will certainly lengthen the life, increase the reliability of the engine, and will be easy to do with the engine out. Luckily the rotating assembly pretty much never needs to be touched unless you are making big power. Here's what I would do if it was mine:

head gaskets, clean pistons, Lap valves, hot tank the heads, new valve springs(PAC 1218), valve seals, valve cover gaskets, intake mani seals, C7 LT1 timing chain, timing chain dampener, ported ls6 oil pump(stock pressure and volume), harmonic balancer(ATI, powerbond, innovators west, not oem, may need UD or OD balancer depending on your electrical setup), ARP crank bolt, front cover gasket, front main seal, rear main seal, rear cover gasket, clean pcv, plugs, wires, oil pan gasket, clean oil pan, wash out intake manifold with dish soap and brake cleaner, clean TB, flywheel(match balanced to original FW), clutch, and pressure plate, water pump and gaskets

i would highly recommend the SACCITY align-it tools for the front and rear cover alignment when replacing the seals. You will also need a valve spring compressor tool. You will also need the balancer installation tool if you can't make one in addition to a large 3-jaw puller.

93Polo

Agreed, suppose I was bit focused on the dissassembly and reassembly of the rotating assembly in my 1st post. If you do the timing chain I would prefer to replace the entire assembly both the sprocket on the cam and crank. I generally recommend an ATI balancer for track use and powerbond for a street car. The balancer will also depend on the accessory brackets you run as fbodies, Corvettes, trucks are on their own unique offsets. A rear cover loaded with gaskets maybe cheaper than the gaskets, something to look into. I like a Melling high pressure stock volume pump, GM will work great too.

z06801

Thanks guys I appreciate the input, the above sounds pretty reasonable. the reason for this swap I have motor just sitting in the garage and 951 944turbo with a 5speed with a LSD and a tired 2.5L turbo motor just seems like the right thing to do