4.3 vortec to LS1 newbie questions

[juztyn]

well my old 4.3 vortec has 200k on her and she sure would like a LS1. I was originally thinking of dropping a 5.7 vortec into it but I read on FSC about the LS1 swap and it sounds good soo... Its a 96 reg cab 1500 chevy. What all am I gonna need to do to it? What about tranny - thats still stock tranny with 200k on it - should I go ahead and get it rebuilt or put in t56? whats the advantages of t56 over 4l60e? cost is an issue, under 4 g's is my budget, really Id like closer to 2500 or less. What about motor mounts? im not quite the fabricator does anybody sell these for my truck? how bout radiator, computer,harness, fuel pump, etc? how about a/c? whats the best year to get the engine from? ill probably buy it off ebay. whats gas mileage like with the ls1- ive heard its good, whatdyall get? sorry for all the questions but im a newbie. Thanks for all your help!!!

[juztyn]

oh ya how bout drive shaft? will the stocker hold up to the extra torque?

[Sleeper]

[deep breath]

tranny will bolt up, but id go for a rebuild if you stick with it. advantage of a t56...put yourself in full control of everybit of your powerband in an instant at your control. for the bugdet you mentioned you might consider a auto/motor with 60-70k miles...thatll put the price around 3000-3200 and leave room for other stuff that needs $. s&p makes motor mount plates, GMCWANTSLS1 has some i believe(~$40). Radiator should be a good 2-core to help cool a bigger ci motor now. PCM will need a VATS bypass(if no painless harness) at least, gear ratio and tire size also need to be programmed.... and harness(harness you can sell imo and go with painless, allen will tell you you can splice it into the existing harness, he did it). fuel pump inst a necessity, but recomended. You'll need to hold 60-65psi continous for the LS1, so you may need a FPR. A/c....vette accesories or trucks accessories can hep you out there, or Allen(farmtruc) knows a guy making his brackets to relocate em up top on the f-bod motors as well. as for best engine...id say newer the better, seems like GM improved things every year....id say 01-02 are better(some LS6 blocks and LS6 intakes) allen says he gets 24-26mpg with his and thats with his 2600 stall, now hes got a 3200 and claims to retain the same i think, but he can clear that up later. for the driveshaft...id say upgrade, allen threw his, and with the motor not sittin in the exact same place, it may set your d/s anle off just a hair enough to throw it, especially with the plates you will nee to shorten just a bit i believe(~62" for a reg cab)


hth there will be more to chime in...in the meantime feel free to check out some of the swap tips and reference pages, allen just go em up and running the other day...lots of good info!

whew [exhale]

[farmtruc]

that was a long as reply, sleeper, usually you're a post whore and reply with one line, lol, hahaha, jk, we're all guilty of it, just trying to keep the fun up.

sleeper answered all your questions, nothing else to say, i'll wait until you reply again and ask more questions, hahah


allen

[juztyn]

ok just one more...
will you swap it for me?
naa thats pretty much it for now. is there anything i should read up on about it? never done an engine swap and i aint doin this myself, ima gonna get a friend to help me. it wont be for a while anyway, at least a year and a half or so but Ill go ahead and be lookin for a good ls1. we got a swap meet comin up so Ill check it out, they always have a bunch of ls1's. thanks!

[farmtruc]

no problem, feel free to ask more questions, that's what makes the forum,

good luck on the project,

[Dynatech]

Hey JUZTIN
Give me a call about that wiring. I can take the the factory LS1 wiring and Graf it to the 4.3 body harness
The grafting will have the charging system pre wired, all gauges and A/C will also be prewired, Vats will be bypassed and fans will be wired too.

Dynatech

[SmokinRice]

Damn, I read the topic and was hoping it was an S-series 4.3 to an LS1. My daily driver is a SC stepside sonoma and want to put my 5.3 outa my Fullsize in the Sonoma and a 502 in the Fullsize.

[juztyn]

theres a guy on s10forum.com or zr2.com i cant remember who has a ls1 in his s10 he can help ya. oh yeah what about rearend? whats some gears for good gas mileage?

[Dynatech]

How soon are you looking to do this swap?