What, another LS swap cost thread?

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I feel like I'm listening to Wally Clever and Eddie Haskell argue about whether the 283 will ever be better than a flathead with a 3/4 race cam.

Golly gee Beave, can’t you find somewhere else to be? Mom!!!
 
The big difference that nobody talks about, the one resource you never get back? Time!!!!

A 5.3 or 6.0 can all be under your control. Thousands are going into the junkyard weekly and if you buy one from a yard and it's junk you can bring it back under warranty. If you blow it up you can get a replacement and have it changed in a weekend with you and a buddy.

A new crate 383 is $4k from summit or some sketchy used build you don't know the history of. You can save money and build it yourself but you're at the mercy of the machine shop. Spin a rod bearing? Yeah you can have a crank in a week from summit, but what if you need to line bore the block or recondition the rod? Is it a week, a month, or 3 months at the machine shop? You don't know, it's not under your control!

A 383 might make more power. A 383 might be less expensive. It's probably less intensive to swap into place.

But something a 383 won't beat an LS on, is availability. Good luck replacing a custom 383 in a weekend. There hasn't been a 350 4 bolt main block go in a junkyard at a rate where they are legitimately available for 10 years. It's hunt swap meets or CL or FB for a decent one and hope its now schwasted.

Are you 400 miles from home on a sunday night and the car looses spark? The local parts store will have every sensor needed and the PCM will tell you what sensor is wrong. If your 383 looses spark and you walk in will the 19 year old behind the counter be able to find the HEI module that's covered under a layer of dust? What about that alternator that tossed the bearing. I bet NAPA has a 04 tahoe alternator! I bet they can get you 1 wire SBC V belt alternator on Tuesday morning.

I drive a fleet of junk and if something goes wrong on my LS swap car it's in stock 2 blocks from my house. If my SFI turbo buick has a problem it's a week minimum to buy a part from an old man a timezone away. If something breaks on my carb turbo buick it's hope I hoarded that part or message 'the guy' on the forum and hope they have one.

It's easy to dog LS stuff and a lot of people screw the swaps up or dump cubic dollars into them, but when you are stuck in a parking lot and need to get home, I'll take LS swap for $1 bob.

One of the things decided when building an engine(or what engine to build), is using OEM stuff or interchangeable parts to help make repairs easier/quicker if need be. I'd say the 383/SBC swap still greatly has the benefit of parts availability. Maybe in another 10 years it will be more of an issue but if you need a starter, fuel pump, ignition part you can go to any parts store and get what you need, I'd be pretty shocked if that's not the case anywhere now or in the foreseeable future. Custom, sure, custom anything you will need to order/wait for parts. 350 engines still seem relatively easy to find and if anything with LS swaps replacing them as the go-to, the cost for them has probably dropped demand. In a few of the Monte's I parted fortunately had 350's swapped in, some ran and were rebuilt with swirl port heads, got about $150 for them roughly. I think one might of been a 4 bolt but that isn't a big deal to everyone, depending on what their doing.

The amount of aborted LS swaps popping up in FB groups is only picking up, way too many people getting over their heads. Potentially some good deals happening if someone knows the value of the parts included and how much hasn't been butchered up. Think even on copart this winter there was a solid looking Olds g-body wagon with a LS bolted in place with nothing else visibly done.
 
Thankfully, the carbed LS never really took off. That's got to be the worst idea ever, right next to putting a 3 speed auto behind one.
Funny you mention the carbed LS. At the show tuesday night I was talking to a guy with a carbed, nitrous LS3 in a Regal. He said it was a total PITA to get it tuned right due to the LS being more efficient with FI vs a carb.
 
Some of it depends on the setup. Many people run aftermarket EFI setups on both SBC and LS. If a part fails on those systems, your local parts store likely won't have replacements in stock. Considering LS engines are not designed for G bodies, swapping one in will require some special parts most auto stores won't have.

I don't know about other areas, but in my area no one will sell you a used LS for less than a grand, they rather smelt it below that price. That 1k will only be a long block and "as is." Coils, harness, etc, are sold piece meal in most yards, any LS engines are pre pulled and not carefully thrown into a dumpster to either be sold or smelted. Many of the yards in my area you can still find old SBCs, I still see many TPI F bodies with L98 engines. Overall, prices will vary from region to region.
 
Here's how not to do it:

That article came up in my Google "feed" on my phone today (click bait). I clicked on it out of curiosity. $5k for a reman LS3 from AutoZone? I don't think so. You said it best. How not to do it. One would be far better off with a 150k mile 5.3 (that was halfway cared for) and a miled cam for a third or less of the cost.
 
What did that poor Nova do to deserve that kind of hate & abuse done to it? Not every car needs an LS swap.
What do we know? We have the reviled Small Block Chevy.
 
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