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^^ no way is it stronger r even the same, the pistons & valve train & the lifters with what they have the motor to be able to cut down to 4 cycle mode is weak. Robert
Last edited by robert miller; Jan 23, 2020 at 04:10 PM.
I've both, a base '18 St'ray and an LS3 E-Rod crate engine in my '63 Avanti and it's hard to tell much of a difference. Of course, gearing variance, tire size differences, etc. make a strict comparison impossible in my case, but it will give you a bit of a start. As for reliability, how many ever find out without racing? Don't ask... ...the broken parts I could display (but, from other engines, I should add)
(But, then, what serious racer does so with stock parts?)
Not taking ANY swipes at the LT-1, God knows I'd love to own a Stingray with that engine one day, but I don't think there has ever been a factory high performance engine built that is more stout than the LS-3...they're damn near bullet proof.
No complaints about LT1 but I would have been happier with LS3. I keep cars a long time and I drive them hard. LS3 is the pinnacle of supremely engineered consumer-grade products.
The have an LS3 from Summit and Tremec T56 from American Powertrain on my shopping list for my C3. With a hot cam that is 495 hp which is 35 more than my Z51. That with no ABS, no traction control and plenty of pucker factor.
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
C4 of Year Winner (performance mods) 2019
Having had both, the LT1 feels a lot stronger than the LS3 in the low-mid range, which it is. It matches the LS7 almost exactly for torque/HP up to about 5000rpm. Having said that, I really liked the LS3, and would have been perfectly fine with it as it responds so well to mods. Plenty of guys (myself included) that modded them to 700RWHP (or beyond) with no issues. Of course we're starting to see more people mod the LT1s as well, and they seem to be holding up just fine as well.
I really, really miss the LS3. Friggin gooberment with this CAFE standards and now we have the sucky DOD. GM should only stick DOD on the Cruz, not the Vette. Perhaps a really good engine builder can make you a rock solid LT1 without the DOD if you have the $ and want to go that route.
The LT1 has the same power and torque curves up 4000 rpm as the LS7. After that they fall off. With the lower gearing provided in the Z51 transmission and the higher weight of the car it performs similar to a C6 Z in the lower rpm range.
Here is a dynojet comparison of the LS7, LT1 and LS3. Not as good a reference as actual engine dyno results published by GM since the environmental conditions can't be controlled as accurately but does show relative performance.
Bill
2025 C8 Stingray of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2024 C8 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
The fact that the highly successful C7R engine was built on LS architecture rather than the LT says something about the LS based engines reliability and robustness.
The fact that the highly successful C7R engine was built on LS architecture rather than the LT says something about the LS based engines reliability and robustness.
Not so fast. Rules play a big part in engine choice and configurations.
ttt
...the broken parts I could display (but, from other engines, I should add)
if you have the $ and want to go that route.
