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In what I view as a tragic twist of fate - the gearbox (I will need) has given up the ghost before the motor (I will not)... There is irony there I think.
No G50 for me - my good friend just had his G50 rebuild and the cost brought me to my knees, and I didn't even have to write the check.
The plan was to run the stock box for another season (at a minimum) with an LS engine. I am researching what to do in the very likely event the grinding box in the car is shot - I have spoken to a bunch of nice people and made some headway but... path forward still TBD. Used boxes are in the 3K range, I have gotten rebuild quotes in the 4.5K range to about 8K.
My twisted ultimate plan is to pair the LS with a PDK box...
And for any of you folks looking to hem me up, the picture was taken in a no parking zone - good luck. At least any discipline on that indiscretion would be valid.
And for any of you folks looking to hem me up, the picture was taken in a no parking zone - good luck. At least any discipline on that indiscretion would be valid.
Fun day with you Aaron.
Well, that clears that up. Back to our regular scheduled programming.
That's a cool engine! Lot's of awesome discussion from it. May it live long and prosper, well, at least not expire.
Ya know, it is. This motor treated me great, although there are things I wish it was, that it isn't, it always did what I wanted it to do, this one and me had a thing. I hope it lives a long life, it has brought me literally the most fun moments I have had in any car, ever.
Originally Posted by Type65
I saw the engine listed for sale. What are your plans for the future? LS?
I will give a general overview and later I will touch on some of the technical aspects that make up the substance of "the plan"... As with any plan, a number of circumstances may cause me to deviate so please, be understanding if I change my mind, or my mind gets changed for me.
The basics - A used L92, an L92 is basically the truck version of a LS3. The L92's are far more numerous, and although not cheap, are much cheaper than a used LS3. They retain many of the LS3 hard parts and displacement (6.2L) but have specific cam, intake, manifolds etc... None of that really matters to me as all that stuff is going to get changed out.
I have a min WHP goal of 400 and a target of 430WHP with a minimum rev limit of 7500 RPM. The min RPM choice is made to try to match the MPH required at certain points on the tracks I run frequently. The motor will get a cam and valve train upgrade, a refresh of gaskets and other maint items and then anything specific to the motor I end up with, I have talked with some really good companies, Brian Tooley Racing, Texas Speed and Katech on what to do to achieve my goals, I am thinking most likely I will use the Katech stuff mostly because of their resume - Engine builder for Corvette and GM endurance racing programs (yes, the yellow 24HR Lemans vettes) and they currently build Grand AM engines, these guys know how to tune an LS for what I want, really for way more than I could ever want. I'll put an LS3 intake manifold on it and start off with a set of shorty headers or maybe... a set of the 180 degree long tubes that Duke Engineering Solutions make, they are really nice, maybe too nice for me. The only accessories that will be run off the engine will be the alternator, water pump and the dry sump pump. Power steering will be electric.
The main focus of the build will be on the cooling and oil systems to ensure that I can keep the motor cool enough and fed with oil to feel safe putting in a more Gucci motor at some point in the future. At this point I am leaning towards going with a Dailey Engineering 3 stage dry sump which is mechanical pornography and using a PWR water to oil heat exchanger for the oil. Water cooling will be handled by 996 or 7 Turbo radiators and ducts. There will be a lot of heat management with heat shielding on the headers / exhaust and fire sleeve / heat reflective tape everywhere. Where I have seen LS in our cars fail, and in general is when the basics are not addressed to be overbuilt for the intended use, I do not plan to make this mistake and have already, spent a lot of time planning the parts selection and really, I still have a long way to go.
Ya know, it is. This motor treated me great, although there are things I wish it was, that it isn't, it always did what I wanted it to do, this one and me had a thing. I hope it lives a long life, it has brought me literally the most fun moments I have had in any car, ever.
I will give a general overview and later I will touch on some of the technical aspects that make up the substance of "the plan"... As with any plan, a number of circumstances may cause me to deviate so please, be understanding if I change my mind, or my mind gets changed for me.
The basics - A used L92, an L92 is basically the truck version of a LS3. The L92's are far more numerous, and although not cheap, are much cheaper than a used LS3. They retain many of the LS3 hard parts and displacement (6.2L) but have specific cam, intake, manifolds etc... None of that really matters to me as all that stuff is going to get changed out.
I have a min WHP goal of 400 and a target of 430WHP with a minimum rev limit of 7500 RPM. The min RPM choice is made to try to match the MPH required at certain points on the tracks I run frequently. The motor will get a cam and valve train upgrade, a refresh of gaskets and other maint items and then anything specific to the motor I end up with, I have talked with some really good companies, Brian Tooley Racing, Texas Speed and Katech on what to do to achieve my goals, I am thinking most likely I will use the Katech stuff mostly because of their resume - Engine builder for Corvette and GM endurance racing programs (yes, the yellow 24HR Lemans vettes) and they currently build Grand AM engines, these guys know how to tune an LS for what I want, really for way more than I could ever want. I'll put an LS3 intake manifold on it and start off with a set of shorty headers or maybe... a set of the 180 degree long tubes that Duke Engineering Solutions make, they are really nice, maybe too nice for me. The only accessories that will be run off the engine will be the alternator, water pump and the dry sump pump. Power steering will be electric.
The main focus of the build will be on the cooling and oil systems to ensure that I can keep the motor cool enough and fed with oil to feel safe putting in a more Gucci motor at some point in the future. At this point I am leaning towards going with a Dailey Engineering 3 stage dry sump which is mechanical pornography and using a PWR water to oil heat exchanger for the oil. Water cooling will be handled by 996 or 7 Turbo radiators and ducts. There will be a lot of heat management with heat shielding on the headers / exhaust and fire sleeve / heat reflective tape everywhere. Where I have seen LS in our cars fail, and in general is when the basics are not addressed to be overbuilt for the intended use, I do not plan to make this mistake and have already, spent a lot of time planning the parts selection and really, I still have a long way to go.
Something to consider when setting the rev limit...7500 isnt unheard of but not easy to do reliably in an LS. You'll also notice that without massive intake/exhaust/huge cam, your power will peak around 6200 so carrying the revs to 7500 wont make sense. To support that RPM on track, you'll need serious lifters, nice balanced rotating assembly and other small goodies that most dont really consider in the build process. What I think you'll notice is that you'll no longer need to wind out the motor as you would have in the m96. Corners where you had to downshift into second gear you'll now be able to take in 4th and still be faster. I'm wiling to bet you can do Palmer in 4th gear without ever shifting and still get lap times to within 1-2 seconds. The power difference will be massive.
Something to consider when setting the rev limit...7500 isnt unheard of but not easy to do reliably in an LS. You'll also notice that without massive intake/exhaust/huge cam, your power will peak around 6200 so carrying the revs to 7500 wont make sense. To support that RPM on track, you'll need serious lifters, nice balanced rotating assembly and other small goodies that most dont really consider in the build process. What I think you'll notice is that you'll no longer need to wind out the motor as you would have in the m96. Corners where you had to downshift into second gear you'll now be able to take in 4th and still be faster. I'm wiling to bet you can do Palmer in 4th gear without ever shifting and still get lap times to within 1-2 seconds. The power difference will be massive.
Thanks for the input ! In my conversations with Katech and BTR, with the associated parts I plan on running, they have confirmed that 7.5K is easily achievable, although power will peak at 6.5K, hold pretty flat until 7K and they start to tail off until 7.5 UNLESS I opt to have some porting done on the heads, which is a possibility, in which case they are relaying it will continue to make jam all the way to 7.5K. The point of this is, if I need the RPM, it will be there, if I don't I can always shift sooner. Also, pushing rev limit up should allow for RPM drops during shifts to stay in a very meaty portion of the power band. Carrying the RPM makes sense even if it means power has started to fall off if you need another 300RPM before your braking point and don't want to be sitting on the limiter or short shifting. The engine will still be making a fair amount of power up there, even if it has started to fall off.
The go fast parts I am planning for the engine are:
Custom Katech cam
High lift springs and Ti retainers
Johnson lifters
ARP Hardware
Possible head porting
Shorty headers
LS3 Intake manifold
Thanks for the input ! In my conversations with Katech and BTR, with the associated parts I plan on running, they have confirmed that 7.5K is easily achievable, although power will peak at 6.5K, hold pretty flat until 7K and they start to tail off until 7.5 UNLESS I opt to have some porting done on the heads, which is a possibility, in which case they are relaying it will continue to make jam all the way to 7.5K. The point of this is, if I need the RPM, it will be there, if I don't I can always shift sooner. Also, pushing rev limit up should allow for RPM drops during shifts to stay in a very meaty portion of the power band. Carrying the RPM makes sense even if it means power has started to fall off if you need another 300RPM before your braking point and don't want to be sitting on the limiter or short shifting. The engine will still be making a fair amount of power up there, even if it has started to fall off.
The go fast parts I am planning for the engine are:
Custom Katech cam
High lift springs and Ti retainers
Johnson lifters
ARP Hardware
Possible head porting
Shorty headers
LS3 Intake manifold
Gotcha. I'm not gonna lie, I wish I had an extra 500 RPM more often than not. Only thing I would advise, if 7500 is something to shoot for...look into shaft mounted rockers. Factory style rocker plates are ok and work great for the typical set up. They do see a lot of stress, especially with a high lift cam. Shaft mounted rockers are significantly more stable and less prone to failure. may add an extra $1800 but could be worth it.