alex722607

iTrader: (3)

So my transam is getting a new motor, a gen 3 Chevy. I need help deciding though:

Engine 1:around $1000
2000 lm7 out of a 1500
50-60k miles
Corvette accessories
F-body oil pan stuff
Can probably be picked up

Engine 2: around $1000
2001 camaro ls1
Don't remember miles but I believe around 100k
Comes with balancer and I believe heads as well
Either seller would have to drive or it would have to be shipped

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

So a 5.3 dressed, ready to drop in vs a LS1 long block where you need to buy a FEAD still

5.3 with corvette accessories, Fbody pan is well worth $1000. If it comes with a car style intake, the expensive parts are covered, grab it

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Pocket, when you put it that way I completely agree with you. I did a lot of reading, but can't find find it at the moment. Will everything fit okay with the accessories from a c5. I know f-body accs., are best and I plan to retain A/c, power steering and obviously the alternator.

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

Flip_2 used corvette accessories and they fit the engine bay fine. If you're still skeptical, Ill trade you a set of Fbody accessories for corvette. Need a set for a different swap Im on

Not sure on the corvette low mount AC, it sits further back and Im not sure if the k-member can handle a 3/4" deeper notch

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

When I get the motor I will keep that in mind. Thanks for the offer Pocket.

Jay_rich

iTrader: (4)

LM7 all day. By the time you search down Fbody or vette accessories and a pan you will be another 600-700 into that LS1. Plus the LM7 can be board to a LS1 spec if you ever wanted to. or just toss some boost at it

Also for Vette accessories. I have them in my car (well currently building) But I have mocked it all up. Great fitment and left me with tons of room down low for Turbo hotside piping. You will not be able to run AC though. As is on a Fbody accessories you have to notch the K-member all the way to the motor mounts. It may be possible with a tubular but I havent checked myself since I have the bracket but no compressor.

Jay

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Well as for the motor I am going to go with the Lm7. With the accessories I want to retain a/c and I already purchased a K- member with a notch. I just gotta get the engine and then I can start putting evrything together. And after that I have to break the news to my dad. (That's the hardest part)

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

I have a corvette AC compressor with custom FEAD and a spohn K-member. With the engine moved forward 1", I still needed to notch the massive A-arm pocket. Fbody AC is supposed to clear

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

When I get the engine and accessories we can talk about the trade. .

ch@0s

You can use a R4 Compressor with the Holley relocation kit.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/hly-20-133

Dirty dingo makes a nice one for use with the truck accessories.

http://dirtydingo.com/store/product_...oducts_id=1378

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Will I have to do SFC's? My dad keeps telling me that the torque from an LS1 will pop the windshield out. I know it is a good idea because GM cheaped out on our frames, but being that I plan on the LM7, and a 2000 model at that, will it twist the frame more than my puny gen 1 5.7?

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

I did some research, the LM7 I have in mind is from 2000 so the specs are :
LM7 (5.3)
285 HP
325 Torque
(cast iron)

original motor
LB9 (5.0)
220 HP
290 Torque
(never saw it)

Current motor
B2C (5.7)
230 HP
330 Torque
(problematic) -nicest thing I have to say about it

Jay_rich

iTrader: (4)

Toss a LS6 cam in it and some 243 heads. I'm sure it would make 375ish crank. I have seen a few dyno's with LS6 only cam 5.3's laying down around 310-315 to the tire.

Jay

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

Throw it in stock, its a heck of a good motor out of the box

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Okay so I'm probably gonna go stock, just because I am trying to do this on a very small budget. Now question: I have a couple of jacks, ramps and stands, I have no engine hoist. Will I be able to get this thing high enough to get the SBC/ 700 and k-member out providing I lower that stuff onto a dolly or two.

QwkTrip

iTrader: (22)

No, not even close. Borrow an engine hoist from somebody you know.

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

I am thinking of doing what V8SC1987 is doing for his swap in terms of lifting.

So I need to ask you guys some questions. I have asked the guy I am getting the engine from for pictures, details about where the engine came from. What else should I ask? I want to make sure I don't get screwed. It doesn't seem shady, but so far I have had lots of bad luck with this car. $1250 for:
- 5.3 LM7 Engine
- Firebird Oil Pan
- Firebird Windage Tray
- Firebird Oil Pickup Tube
- LS1 Harmonic Balancer
- LS1 C5 Power Steering Bracket (comes with used pump)
- LS1 C5 Alternator Bracket
- LS1 C5 Pulley Tensioners

It seems fair, is it too good to be true? And once again what else should I ask. This guy got the engine from a 2000 model 1500 with 52,000 miles on it. He intended it as a swap for his 1984 corvette.

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

Thought it was $1000 for the 5.3 assembly?

Be sure the balancer is for a corvette. Corvette, Fbody, truck are all on different spacing

If the Accessories dont come with the alt and PS reservoir, you might want to pass or tell him to keep them for a discount. A bracket and pump arent super expensive, but the corvette specific alt and reservoir are quite pricy for what they are

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Thanks Pocket. He told me it was $1000 for the engine (w/o the f-body or y-body parts). I asked him about the other stuff and he threw it in for the price of an f-body oil pan. Thats what peaked my interest. I am going to ask about the resevior and alternator itself as well as about the balancer. I may be overthinking this but he could have said LS1 balancer because he might be trying to pull something. I will pry some more.

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

So I think the answer is no, but I will ask anyway.

Besides the LS1 intake, stock rail and injectors that go along with an LS1, an F-Body oil pan, windage, and pick up, f-body accessories, and a tune of course, I can fire up the 5.3 and have no issues.

I won't have to change any internals in the engine like the crankshaft or such....correct?

punkmaster98

iTrader: (5)

im up in manalapan. you can borrow my hoist. im going back to work for the next 6 months.

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Thanks punkmaster, I will keep that in mind. Although my engine swap probably won't be happening until at least December or January. So I asked him about the corvette accessories and no he does not have the alternator or the reservoir. He thinks the balancer is from a y-body ls1. So should I pass and ask him for just the lm7 and f-body pan stuff? Also can anyone give me a yes or no in regards the my last post.

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

Pass on the lot, thats a $400 long block and a few pieces to say its a start but not worth much to you. Quite expensive to complete piecing it together. If everything was complete and still $1000 for the lot, its a good deal

Keep looking for one, there was a LS1/4L60E dropout in the for sale section not too long ago for $2800. The whole thing. You'd need mounts to get it in, fuel/harness/tune to get it running, then exhaust to make it roadworthy. Thats it

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

I am gonna ask him for 1000 for the complete lm7 and f-body oil stuff. If he can do that then I might consider it. It is low mile (52k). After selling the truck stuff I can probably get a tranny, and then the little stuff. Wdy33 sold me a notched k-member with adapter plates. The plates I haven't gotten yet though.

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

The mileage doesnt boost the value that much. Still a $4-500 long block

FWIW, truck stuff has virtually ZERO resale value, so whatever pennies you can get from selling them are unlikely to buy a trans. Ive got a shelf overflowing with intakes, manifolds and accessories and a mountain of truck pans outside my shop. If they were worth something, theyd be sold already

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

So do you guys think I should pass?

I mean it does sound appealing, I get the f-body pan stuff, the coil packs. Here are the pics of the engine he sent me. The pulleys look a little rusted, which is telling me the engine might have been outside?

And the drive is about an hour and a half. It would be nice to find something closer. I don't know. The more I think about it and the more input I get from you guys, the more hesitant I get.

I am torn because I want to have the parts to do the swap when the time comes (soon), because I want to drive the car. However, at the same time I don't want to trade one set of problems for another.

And being that I learned my lesson about being screwed over with parts for this thing, and I am actually consulting you guys who have been there and done it before jumping in, if you guys would have reservations, it is making me weary about pouring money into an engine that might figuratively blow up in my face.

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

I would pass

The complete 5.3 assembly from the first pick is about $500 to me if the mileage is right. Id suggest popping a valve cover but for some wierd reason hes got the valley cover off and the pic tells the story. That engine has had one maybe two oil changes in its life. The amount of oil seepage suggests 150k ish, comparing to the build-up on my pullouts

A used Fbody pan is $200 to the right buyer, those truck coils are nothing special

Rust on the pulleys isnt a tell-all. The belt rubs the metal bare and exposure to humidity will rust them like that in about 9mo of sitting. If its been sitting outside the plastic cover and intake would quickly be on their way to a medium gray as the ABS does NOT like UV from the sun

Sounds like the seller is in over his head and trying to get his money back that he spent without learning anything and will say anything to facilitate the sale

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Well, as a quick update and segway into my build thread (which I will begin soon) I would like to say that I passed on the motor. Actually I passed on both motors and went looking for another. And I found it, today I brought it home. I payed $700 buck for a motor wpulled from a wrecked running driving car. It is a 5.3 LM7 engine out of a GMC sierra.

In fact its the one at (was at) EFX tuning. (thanks for the tip Punkmaster)
Pics soon and the story of how it is sitting in my yard later.

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Well I don't have an engine lift, so I had to engineer something. I used a ladder from a wooden play set that was rated for several hundred pounds. EFX tuning had the engine on a stand and used a lift to get it into the car (SUV). It was leaning on the ladder all the way home.

After I got it home, I was able to rock the engine back and forth on that ladder until I was able to pull it out onto boat stands. Then little by little I have been lowering it down using boat stands, a jack and automotive jack stands. Here are some pics. Its dark now and covered up, but I was able to reduce the height by half.

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

and some more pictures.

So why this engine:

Well, it came from a running, driving car, the driving to get it was tolerable, and it looks clean and like it was well taken care of. I hope that this proves to be true.

punkmaster98

iTrader: (5)

dude i dont live that far you can use my lift lol. I can bring it by today so you can get the motor into the garage and onto a stand if you havent done that already.

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

I will probably ask to borrow your lift when it's ready to go in the car. It's already in the garage, I used a motor cycle jack to wheel it around. (About the only thing it's perfect for, lol) the reason I didn't use a lift to begin with is that I had to bring it home sort of secretively. My dad wasn't to keen on the idea of swapping( he keeps sayin leave it stock) he only found out I bought a motor when it was already out of the truck on those "rails". I am just that good. I brought the motor home at 1 and waited till 6 to unload it. (It is much harder to return an engine than it is a hoist, lol)

punkmaster98

iTrader: (5)

lmao that sounds like my dad. he wanted to know why i need 6 liters. "because thats what was available" haha.

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

LMAO, my dad wanted to know why I got a 5.3 as opposed to an LS1. Ugh

Removing it wasn't half bad though. It litterally slid out, well with some tugging and rocking and when it was stable enough, I just drove the car away. Yesterday as soon as I got it maybe 2 or 3 inches off the ground the "rails" finally split apart. The motor dropped a little and righted itself, so that made it easy for me lol. Not what I had in mind, but whatever works. I also started taking it apart and it looks pretty much like yours, clean on the inside.

punkmaster98

iTrader: (5)

clean is good. i bet that was a relief!

alex722607

iTrader: (3)

Yup, made me feel pretty good.