louiez70ta

hey i am going to do a swap between an ls1 or lt1 now i will be having a budget of 6-7 grand. i want a lot of power what can i get the most for the money any pro cons and can i get the lt1 to beat these ls1s with stage 3 heads and cam packages. thanks

pasky

LS1 if you got that kind of dough. Have to put a new fuel pump, fuel lines, custom motor mounts (I believe spohn makes them), need a LS1 tranny. If you want to keep AC you have to wedge the motor crossmember. Believe you'll also need coil assemblies from a truck. Ummmm, all that comes off the top of my head.

ShiftyCapone

iTrader: (7)

Your 6 or 7k will go a lot further on a LT1 swap. You will find that swaping for an LS1 will cost a pretty penny. Half of your budget would be going towards the engine and tranny. The you only have 3k left to do all the fab work, wiring, fuel system, exhaust etc etc. You can get an LT1 for a lot cheaper and use normal motor mounts, regular 3rd gen exhaust (I mean headers and no custom stuff like if you want headers on an LS1 swap), 3rd gen tranny and a few other things. Just read the LT swappers guide that texasLt1 is working on. That will give you an idea of what is involved.

pasky

Yea, I would have also said LT1, but a lot of people seem to want to go LS1. Personally I love the LT1 engine, easy to work on and has a pretty good amount of aftermarket support. Can't wait to get my LT1 conversion. Either swap will be good however, but the LS1 gas milage is awesome.

wm_sorg

The mileage is the reason I did the LS1 swap. I am recovering the extra cost on the back end.

ShiftyCapone

iTrader: (7)

Its not much differnt than an LT1. In fact my LT1 gets about 5 or 6 more mpg on freeway trips than my roomates SS. Both are stock. That is the beauty of multi port set-ups. If money wasn't a question i would do an LS1 build in a heartbeat. It has a lot going for it and is the best small block GM has even released. But since money is only hit and miss, I have to resort to the next best thing which is an LT1. It is still a multi port sewt-up that will get great mileage and drivabilty, oh and monster power numbers as well.

TexasLT1

Like Shifty said, if money were less of an object, I would have done an LS1 swap in a heartbeat for the better fuel economy to start with and more horsepower, with the capability for more down the road. LS1'ers are getting incredible track times with very minor mods. They'd be even better in a 3rd gen that weighs less. But to me the complications and cost of the swap outweigh the benefits. I'd say it cost about $2500 initially for my swap. If from the beginning I wanted a killer street setup and had another $35-4500 to spend, I'd have a setup that could take out anything but the most heavily modified LS1. In the end it just depends on what you really want out of the car.

Also, will you be doing the work yourself? That is key. If not, go LT1 because it will still eat up your entire budget. If you are, the LS1 is more doable.

Chris89GTA

iTrader: (2)

My vote plain and simple is a LS1. I have worked on plenty of both w/ the people here in the club in Nashville, and can honestly say that if I never saw another optispark I wouldn't lose any sleep. Those things are the bane of existance for those motors in my opinion. An LS1 car can be made to go faster for the about the same price though...

For $2000 you can get an LS1 motor easily over the 400 rwhp mark. EASY. Total Engine Airflow up in Bowling Green, KY sells a set of Stage 1.5 ported 5.3L LS1 heads for right at $1599 that flow in the 315 range on the intake and 230 on the exhaust side. That with a mild cam like a 224/224 has been putting easy 400 #s to the wheels...

Here is a guy w/ an LS1, TEA 5.3 stage 1.5 heads and a Thunder 224/224 cam... nice #s if I don't say so...

http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/showth...ht=TEA+5.3+1.5

TexasLT1

I've got 60K+ miles on my LT1 and have never had any Optispark problems. I don't hesitate to drive it in the rain. If you have a vented opti and dont spray the thing with water or something, you won't have any problems.

Chris89GTA

iTrader: (2)

I know two guys who have each had 3 opties on their cars. One guy has had them last no more than 2,000 miles, and this car is a weekend warrior track car (355 procharger, yada yada...)

Each time they are bought new from GM and have problems. I think some people have more luck than others w/ the opti. I just know that if i was going through the trouble of swapping in a motor, tranny, and wiring harness I would only go the LS1 route.

pasky

I wouldn't go LS1 just because of opti. If it bothers you so much this is the best thing to do about opti:

http://delteq.com/opti_stage1.htm

http://delteq.com/opti_stage2.htm

ShiftyCapone

iTrader: (7)

There is also a bullit proof opti out there. It is 700 bucks but will never fail and is garuanteed for life. It also produces enough juice for gobs of power. I think it is called the dynaspark?

http://www.dynotech-eng.com/dynaspark.htm

pasky

Well, this soundss good too, but I believe the other is better because it uses individual coil packs like the ls1.

Drastius

Where are you guys getting this info on LS1 having better mileage than the LT1?

All the LS1's i've seen they get like lower 20 mpg. My auto LT1 get's high 20s.

The LS1 will have worse mileage since they make significantly more power.

cali92RS

Quick question: Why go for LT1 or LS1? U can build the baddest SB around with 7 grand. Even a BB.

ShiftyCapone

iTrader: (7)

Well if you put that same 7 grand into a LT1 or LS1 it would be better all around than a lopey carbed gas sucking 450hp SB.

I have to agree except for the power thing. At crusing speeds the gas mileage would be about the same. At cruising speeds both motors are probaly only making about 50hp or so at roughly 20% engine load. Now at WOT the LS1 will use more gas because of of its higher power rating and thats where you would see the mileage differnces. But my 95LT1 gets better mileage than my roomates 02 SS. By about 5 or 6 mpg. Freeway trips of course.

LS1Formula

I rode with my friend in his bolt on 99 Z28 from Orlando to Charlotte, NC. We averaged 32.2mpg on the highway.

Just because it makes more power doesn't mean it's going to get worse mileage. The LS1 is a much more efficient engine in every respect than the LT1. It's just a better design from the intake to the oil pan.

Drastius

Was that 32 mpg car a manual? That 0.5 6th gear makes a significant difference in mileage.

The LS1's in the showroom show 20-22 mpg on the sticker on the window.

Saying the LS1 is a more efficient design from the oil pan up is a pretty generic statement and doesn't explain why it would get better mileage.

The reason I say more power=worse mileage, is it seems to be true in the case of the LT1 LS1. Both motors are similar, one has more advanced electronics/induciton system, but the LT1 seems to get a bit better mileage.

I associate more power with less mileage, because that always seems to be the situation. Even guys who modify their LT1's with heads and cam seem to lose some mileage.

My personal theory on why this happens is the throttle position. A high horsepower motor will have to close its throttle more to make crusing power. More throttle restriction causes bigger pumping losses.

wm_sorg

If I were to go LT1 I would get the opti eliminator.

Here is some info on the bailey LTCC system:

http://www.geocities.com/reilym/LTCC/
http://www.geocities.com/reilym/LTCC/LTLSDIS.jpg

The LS1 is more efficient than the LT1. LS1 stock heads breather better than most aftermarket ported heads. The 15 degree valve angle makes a big difference.

For anyone who is interested in more info regarding the LS1 go here http://www.idavette.net/hib/ls1c.html

There is another article written by Hib called the ruthless pursuit of power. If I can find the link I will post it.

Here:
http://www.idavette.net/hib/02ls6/index.htm

kevinc

Uh...the LS1 doesn't have Optispark there skippy...

pasky

Whoah, thanks for letting me know, and here I was all this time thinking the ls1 used an opti spark...sheesh. I never said opti was totally removed, but they replace the internals and use individual coil packs.