Holley LS conversion questions-shifter linkage/exhaust and cross member questions

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Silent viewer

Royal Smart Person
May 9, 2007
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I am doing the holley LS system swap conversion and have a few questions. I am doing a 5.3/4L60E swap with a Fitech ultimate LS EFI setup with their fabricated aluminum intake and trans control. I have the holley motor mounts already, I personally believe that they are the only mounts that put the engine where is actually should be. I am using the TSP 81073 oil pan that there is another thread on as matching the holley 302-2 dimensions that saved around 150 bucks. My big hang up right now is exhaust, in the past I have always ran SBCs with shorty headers and I have wrapped the exhaust on the drivers side under the oil pan and ran both exhaust tubes side by side where the factory exhaust ran making it so I can keep a stock cross member and keeping the most ground clearance possible. I am leaning towards the holley/hooker stainless headers and full exhaust as I don’t want to deal with the headaches of mixing and matching components just to settle on good enough but still not 100% correct. My issue I am seeing here is the shift linkages, I am running a factory floor shifter and want to maintain the column linkage for the reverse lights and neutral safety switch. Has anyone found a good method for hooking up a 4L60E to the floor shifter and column linkage?


Next question/another option. If I go manifolds, I think I can run my exhaust in the same method that I have used in the past which keeps the drivers side exhaust away from the shift linkage all together. Sure, I might loose a little bit in horsepower going this route but I am not building a track car so it’s not a huge deal breaker.

Second part of this question, is there any stock cross member that can work to go this route? I have the ability to modify one. The aftermarket cross members are meant for long tubes and not having 2 pipes ran side by side down the passenger side like a stock cross member will allow.

The second option is probably cheaper all around and probably make it easier but it also means my rolling frame can’t have the exhaust done until a body is back on the frame since it has to go to my exhaust guy to get done. I also loose the benefits of the long tubes and X pipe, not sure how big that is on a cammed 5.3 but it leaves room for future upgrades too.

If I buy the holley/hooker exhaust, I will also be buying their cross member so I will have pretty much all of their components.
 

oldsmobile joe

Royal Smart Person
Nov 12, 2015
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the third gen f-bodies moved their back up light/nuetral safety switches to the console shifter. maybe you can get one of these shifters to work for you.
 
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Northernregal

Sloppy McRodbender
Oct 24, 2017
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The Holley system puts the motor just about in the stock location in reference to the transmission. You should be able to use the stock cross member. I would try it first, you can always order the Holley cross member of it doesn't work.
 
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Silent viewer

Royal Smart Person
May 9, 2007
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So a little update for any one wondering or for future folks with the same question in the future. With the holley mounts and 4L60E I was able to push the stock th350 transmission cross member back so the front bolt hole of the 2 on the cross member bolted into the rear of the 2 bolt holes on the frame which is about 3" back if I had to guess. If I go with this I will have to drill one new hole on the drivers side (200 4R frame) and the rear cross member hole on the passenger side is hanging past the frame so it "should" have a tab or extension of sorts welded or bolted in. This was very easy to figure out since I have just a rolling frame right now. I will have info on the TSP pan in the next few days and maybe some pictures. I can say the with the holley mounts, the truck pan is sitting on the frame so the mounts for sure lower the engine down where it should be. Right now I am leaning towards the hooker coated manifolds and having custom exhaust ran, this saves a bunch of cash on exhaust, it fixes the linkage issue and a 300+ dollar cross member is not required.
 
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