Havent posted in awhile so let me start off by sayn after goin to ls fest for third year n a row i finally started my swap. I bought a 5.3 out of a 02 suburban. pulled dog house and yanked old 305 out. At this point car is back in tact with motor n and waitn on harness to get back from harness guy. car is at buddys shop so we can do exhaust this week. after i get it back i will b starting on fuel system. i am running the 350 turbo for now to keep cost down. when all done i will b in the 1400-1800 price range. I will try to post a few picks
my wagon ls swap
- Thread starter kolegtp12
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I'm doing the LS swap into a '79 Cutlass. Everything has been straightforward so far. If you can get it driving on that budget, that would excellent. Mine is being done on a similar budget. Can you tell me what exhaust manifolds you are using? I've got two sets of the truck manifolds and would be money ahead if I can figure out how to use them. The use of headers would be the best idea, however, headers aren't in the budget.
Good luck with the build.
Good luck with the build.
yeah been on it pretty steady.. as far as manifolds im tryn to b cheap so i had a buddy with gto manifolds, no way would they fit, so after lookn around found a set of 98-02 maro manifolds, worked great but i wasnt spending 100-150 for used set so cheap *ss me, i put the truck ones on that came with motor and the flanges were going to hit on driver side and b close on passinger. I cut flanges off and slid a 12'" long piece of 2 1/4 inch exhaust pipe inside them then welded it up. People say u cant weld on manifolds but theses ls manifolds have other metal than old manifolds and it welds good. As for price i found a guy who sold me the 02 5.3 with wiring harness, computer, and all accessorioes for 500 bucks and with a small knotch in the cross member for the ac compressor the accessories fit good. Even power steering hose fits gbody boxes. All fuel stuff will b here next week so b startn on it then. After that just waitn on harness and doin ac lines, o yes it will have ac. should b a very good cruizer that i can drive anywheres and get 22 plus mpg and b fun to autocross. motor-500, harness rewire and computer flash-320, fuel pump lines fittings-300, radiator hoses ac hoses and misc. 300 1420 so far pullin flowmasters off to go to magnaflows not countn that in swap was goin do it anyways i love the way magnaflow r not load at cruizn speed but come alive when ur on it. This car is what im planning on using on family vacations instead of wifes 01 burban so it needs to b enjoyable.
You're method is similar to mine. I was fortunate to pickup a totaled '06 Silverado with the 4.8 and auto. The entire truck cost me 900. Sold several parts off the truck for 840, the biggest being 600 for the straight bed. It's been a very learning experience sorting through the truck and salvaging as much as possible.
Currently, I'm trying to figure out how to use the entire fuel system setup from the truck. My cheapest route is to set the 26 gallon truck tank in the trunk and strap it down. All I have to do is hook up a fuel line with the Russell adapter ends. I know it's cheap. Ideally I'd get the new GN tank and sending unit. I'm also mounting my battery in the trunk so there are concerns being next to the 26 gallon bomb! You've solved my exhuast problem. I've read somewhere else that these manifolds are easy to weld on. I'll be cutting on mine tomorrow.
Thanks for the exhaust information.
The most fabricating I've done so far is my transmission crossmember. I pulled the crossmember from an '87 Grand
Marquis. 15 bucks. Cut out and rewelded approximately 2 1/4 inches off each side. Fits perfect inside the framerails, looks good with fresh paint and has the dual exhaust humps.
Currently, I'm trying to figure out how to use the entire fuel system setup from the truck. My cheapest route is to set the 26 gallon truck tank in the trunk and strap it down. All I have to do is hook up a fuel line with the Russell adapter ends. I know it's cheap. Ideally I'd get the new GN tank and sending unit. I'm also mounting my battery in the trunk so there are concerns being next to the 26 gallon bomb! You've solved my exhuast problem. I've read somewhere else that these manifolds are easy to weld on. I'll be cutting on mine tomorrow.
Thanks for the exhaust information.
The most fabricating I've done so far is my transmission crossmember. I pulled the crossmember from an '87 Grand
Marquis. 15 bucks. Cut out and rewelded approximately 2 1/4 inches off each side. Fits perfect inside the framerails, looks good with fresh paint and has the dual exhaust humps.
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