Ls1 swap

[85grandprix]

Thanks for your service. Let us know how it goes. This might provide some inspiration for you. It's an L96 (GEN IV 6.0) in my brother's 78 Z28. We did the swap together.....
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We got it from Nordstrom's in South Dakota. www.nordstromsauto.com

Here is a picture of it on the pallet as delivered....

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That

Thanks for your service. Let us know how it goes. This might provide some inspiration for you. It's an L96 (GEN IV 6.0) in my brother's 78 Z28. We did the swap together.....
View attachment 69013

View attachment 69014

We got it from Nordstrom's in South Dakota. www.nordstromsauto.com

Here is a picture of it on the pallet as delivered....

View attachment 69015

View attachment 69016

That's a whole lot of motivation. So i was speaking with a guy as I'm talking to you guys and he quoted me 10k on the install (His words) "Roughly your going to be at the minimum $10,000. When doing a motor swap in a old school there is more to it than just swapping motors" The interior has to come out to cut the transmission tunnel. Depending on the strength of the motor you may need a new rear end cause the original won't be able to hold the horsepower

 

[Injectedcutty]

thank you that's why I joined the forum to get as much info as possible before I made mistakes...ill do more research on the two you suggested.

Just fyi...the LM7 should be pretty plentiful anywhere. It's the 5.3 donned in millions of silverado's, sierras, suburbans, etc. That's actually what I'm working on...plus a bunch of parts picked from a suburban. View attachment 69010

That

That's a whole lot of motivation. So i was speaking with a guy as I'm talking to you guys and he quoted me 10k on the install (His words) "Roughly your going to be at the minimum $10,000. When doing a motor swap in a old school there is more to it than just swapping motors" The interior has to come out to cut the transmission tunnel. Depending on the strength of the motor you may need a new rear end cause the original won't be able to hold the horsepower

OUCH!!!! I personally think that is steep, and NO the tunnel shouldn't need to be cut! Maybe that guy hasn't done any LS swaps into G bodies. However, if you had a 6l80 trans(6speed auto) then yes the tunnel would need some work due to the size of the trans.
Does that $10K include the cost of the engine/trans? When you get back to the states will be a good time to learn how to drop it in....it's just a bunch of nuts and bolts man. Along with some wiring, but we are all here to help!
The rearend(7.5" most likely) might hold up for a bit as long as you don't run slicks or drag radials. However, not a bad idea to hunt for either a 8.5" or ford 9" that is bolt in. FWIW, i was pushing 425 crank HP on my old 355 through the 7.5" without a problem.

 

[motorheadmike]

That guy is (half)full of sh*t. There are plug and play parts from Holley which make the engine a bolt in.

A basic fuel system, exhaust work, and a wiring harness gets it done for a stock install. No body mods are required.

You want performance with all the bells and whistles - then it is going to cost $10k+.

There is no such thing as a budget LS-swap when you farm out the labour.

 

[85grandprix]

Yeah

Just fyi...the LM7 should be pretty plentiful anywhere. It's the 5.3 donned in millions of silverado's, sierras, suburbans, etc. That's actually what I'm working on...plus a bunch of parts picked from a suburban. View attachment 69010

OUCH!!!! I personally think that is steep, and NO the tunnel shouldn't need to be cut! Maybe that guy hasn't done any LS swaps into G bodies. However, if you had a 6l80 trans(6speed auto) then yes the tunnel would need some work due to the size of the trans.
Does that $10K include the cost of the engine/trans? When you get back to the states will be a good time to learn how to drop it in....it's just a bunch of nuts and bolts man. Along with some wiring, but we are all here to help!
The rearend(7.5" most likely) might hold up for a bit as long as you don't run slicks or drag radials. However, not a bad idea to hunt for either a 8.5" or ford 9" that is bolt in. FWIW, i was pushing 425 crank HP on my old 355 through the 7.5" without a problem.[/QUO
Yeah I felt that was a little steep honestly..made me wanna just drop a junk yard 350 in it and call it a day lol..i dont wanna be anywhere near 10k in a car I only paid 1900 for..i don't think Its a bad idea to have a budget..i know it's not a guarantee you will stay under it but i definitely don't wanna be 10k range and that was with me providing the engine I believe

 

[Texas82GP]

With you doing most of the labor, you should be able to stay in your $5k budget, I would think. I don't see that happening with someone else doing the work.

 

[85grandprix]

With you doing most of the labor, you should be able to stay in your $5k budget, I would think. I don't see that happening with someone else doing the work.

Not having a garage etc it's kinda best I have someone do it for me lol..i may be sitting close to 8 when it's all said and done who knows.im in no rush right now

 

[oldsmobile joe]

the motor is probably the cheapest thing to get. everything else will cost you.
i personally like the holley/hooker system. its a comprehensive and complete bolt in. very well thought out. motor mounts, trans crossmember, exhaust and accessory drive. i bought the complete package for my cutlass. (I'm getting lazy, and tired of engineering everything, in my old age. time is money). procure a fuel pump and tank from rock auto and your more than halfway there. search on this forum for info on the holley install. its great.
joe
p.s. thank you for your service.

 

[85grandprix]

Update everyone..so I did a little research and found this guy who does ls swaps..and he has more than a few ls swaps under his belt..luckily he loves about an hour from me..i told him my budget (which i raised by another grand) So long sorry short the ls swap will be happening once I'm back state side..his labor is 2200 and the rest is going into the GP

 

[Injectedcutty]

Update everyone..so I did a little research and found this guy who does ls swaps..and he has more than a few ls swaps under his belt..luckily he loves about an hour from me..i told him my budget (which i raised by another grand) So long sorry short the ls swap will be happening once I'm back state side..his labor is 2200 and the rest is going into the GP

That sounds a whole lot more reasonable if you are dead set on farming it out.

Food for thought, if you can find the time to get there often, it would be a good idea to jump in to help that way you don't go in blind once you get the GP back.

 

[85grandprix]

That sounds a whole lot more reasonable if you are dead set on farming it out.

Food for thought, if you can find the time to get there often, it would be a good idea to jump in to help that way you don't go in blind once you get the GP back.

I'll be

That sounds a whole lot more reasonable if you are dead set on farming it out.

Food for thought, if you can find the time to get there often, it would be a good idea to jump in to help that way you don't go in blind once you get the GP back.[/QUOTE
Ill be there as much as i can..im not new as far as cars just new to doing swaps..lol