'93 LT1 or '96-up Vortec 5.7

[Boone708]

Im still looking for a Chevy motor to put into my '78 Regal. I was told to get a Vortec 5.7 out of a '96-up truck or van, but I saw a '93 Formula with the 5.7 LT1, auto trans and all for $1100! Sounds like a great deal to me for the powertrain AND a donor f-body for swap parts. Which way should I go??? :?

 

[CHRIS.O]

LT1 will perform better stock vs stock than a vortec 5.7. Lot's of hot rod parts for either. One thing you need to know though is that the lt1 is a b*st*rd child. Reverse flow cooling, optispark distributor which the early unvented ones gave the optispark a bad name. The one you are looking at is an early lt1. The heads are different than a gen 1 sbc. You aren't gonna take old heads and put them on it. It really is a b*st*rd engine haha. I love them though. I have one in a firebird and have had nothing but tons of fun with it. Having the trans, computer and all the stuff you need to swap an lt1 in would be pretty nice. There are a couple on this forum with such a swap, pretty bad *ss cars.

 

[DRIVEN]

Depends on whet you want to end up with and your ability level. Once you strip the fuel and ignition systems off you are left with 2 very similar engines performance wise. A proper LT1 swap takes time and money and is very rewarding. A carbed Vortec is cheaper and easier.

 

[pencero]

the vortec would be so much easier. Go to upper R hand corner and use the search function to check out 'opti spark delete' and what all that takes do you really want to do all that and have to burn a chip too? The computer might go out fast on that donor car it probably sat a long time

 

[crazydavez28]

Either way you go get a complete donor vehicle to pull those nickel and dime parts from as well as the motor and transmission. I got real lucky on my vortec swap by finding a wrecked '97 Tahoe 2wd for $700 drove it home.

I used the fuel pump, lines, sender unit, radiator hoses, engine, transmission, driveshaft, PCM + wiring harness, battery, accessories, body mounts, rear bumper, O2's, cats, etc.

It fit BEAUTIFULLY into the engine bay of my elco I took one bracket off the passenger side rear of the motor and it slide right in with the FAN still attached. Hooked up the fuel line to the tahoe tank connected five wires and it fired right up.

Keep in mind that the vortec 5.7 is a solid platform for upgrades. It is basically a ramjet 350 with crappy CPI that makes 255hp and 330ftlbs torque. The limitation is the Injection system.

 

[Boone708]

Im liking the idea of the Vortec as opposed to the LT1. Initially, the car will be a street cruiser, but because i love the strip, theres a strong possibility I may turn it into an 11 sec street/strip car. So, parts availability and affordability dictate the Vortec. Will the whole accessory set up from a Tahoe/Silverado/Van fit & work for the swap?

 

[bigdawg]

i just did my regal with vortec motor from a burban with a bad trans i got the truck for 800 sold both cats for 50 a piece and body with aluminum wheels was 250 then i scrapped the radiator, aluminum intake and battery for another 50 bucks. u get the starter with it and a bunch of little screws and sh*t intake bolts etc and i couldnt get the stock acc's to fit but u can get a serp or v belt in a day at the junkyard

 

[crazydavez28]

I never even took my accessories off the Vortec. All I did was change the valve on the back of the PS pump for the original Elco one. The pulley is half an inch from the gearbox but it has never hit. Might be different on yours but I can say it worked well for me. I even run the Tahoe A/C compressor and cruise control with a little work. Hedman headers and weld in O2 bungs made it fit great.

The silencer on the intake elbow is the hang-up. I split mine open and cut 1" out of the height then epoxied it together.


If you really want an 11 second car start out with an LS style motor. If you like torque and are satisfied with 12 sec then go with a Vortec.

 

[pencero]

11 second cars dont last forever go w/ the vortec bc torque = longevity / sustainability !

 

[CHRIS.O]

IF you wanted to stay fuel injected I would still say lt1 over a vortec depending on your knowledge with computers. The lt1 is still a gen 1 on the inside, kind of. Rods, pistons, cranks, bearings, etc are all your normal stuff. Where it gets weird is the reverse flow cooling, no coolant goes through the intake, optispark on the front of the engine, waterpump driven off the cam and not a pulley. There are plenty of head options for an lt1 and the bottom end options are limitless just like a gen 1. If you are comfortable with the work to keep it fuel injected then browse some F body boards and check out the kind of horsepower they are making with a cam, and bolt ons. Pretty damn decent numbers. I won't take anything from the vortec, fine engine but most people pull the efi off, slap a carb on it and then you just have an old 350 checy with vortec heads and a roller cam. Good luck either way.