LS Engine learning curve is steep!

[Protour_Pinto]

I have not paid too much attention to the newer platform of engines the past 25 years, Boy, What a mistake!!

I have decided to go with LS power in my latest project and I feel like I need a decoder ring for the LS family of engines from 99 to present.

So many options and combinations to process to make sure I only have to do it once, maybe twice to get a good combination of parts.

I am not looking for ground stomping power since its going to be a daily driver.

So now to figure out the alphabet part.

Im leaning to an early 6L from a truck since I can find a driver for not too much more than a pull out. I will keep the truck intake and make some headers etc.

I know I dont want VVT or any of that that goes with it, Drive by wire would fix my throttle routing problem. I have seen a lot of companys that will strip a harness and flash the stock computer but am looking at aftermarket like the Holley systems too. The engine is going to be pretty much stock for now and being hooked to a TH425 I dont need any Trans harness. Is there any cons with going with the stock other than having to be flashed everytime you make a change? There has to be someone in L.A. capable of doing that when needed.

The digging continues.

[andrewb70]

VVT was only release with gen IV engines. DBW is awesome...Having a Holley ECU and not being a slave to a "tuner" is also awesome.

I prefer Gen IV engines for their better internals, but some have VVT and AFM (displacement on demand), some don't. VVT is easy to eliminate, AFM, not so much (need to remove heads, replace lifters and cam).

Andrew

[Protour_Pinto]

Thanks Andrew,

I figured anything I can afford is going to have a jillion miles so a cam, bearings and reseal will probably be in my future.

I keep thinking about the aftermarket EFI systems. Tune with a lap top and be done with it rather than going to a tuner sure seems like its a lot less hassle and that is worth $$ any day. Im sure there are some used ones floating around.


VVT was only release with gen IV engines. DBW is awesome...Having a Holley ECU and not being a slave to a "tuner" is also awesome.

I prefer Gen IV engines for their better internals, but some have VVT and AFM (displacement on demand), some don't. VVT is easy to eliminate, AFM, not so much (need to remove heads, replace lifters and cam).

Andrew

[csouth]

An LQ4 or LQ9 would probably be you best bet if you want a cheap 6.0. I like the Ly6, but they are more expensive. You never said what your budget is? I switched from factory setup to Holley which I'm tweaking now. I would have kept mine DBW, but I couldn't swing the extra $800 at the time for Holley's DBW setup.

[andrewb70]

To get DBW support with a Holley system you need to jump to the Dominator ECU. Keep in mind that the Dominator offers a lot of other features besides the DBW. That said, I feel that DBW is in every way superior to cable. There are a ton of extra tuning options that come with DBW, such as the ability to program the TB opening curve. There is a table where you can adjust pedal% vs. TPS%. This comes in very handy for fine tuning low throttle cruising conditions, especially when using a large TB and even more so if using dual TBs (like I am).

Back to choosing an engine...budget and HP goals are going to be the main drivers of your decisions. Prices seem to be on the rise for just about all LSx engines. I think the salvage yard industry has wised up and has started pricing accordingly. I tend to prefer engines with less miles, but plenty of people have swapped high mileage engines without touching them. This is where personal preference comes into play.

If this is your first LS engine, you may actually enjoy tearing it down and learning by doing a mild refresh. You may also be amazed how even a high mileage engine will have visible hone marks in the cylinders and a lack of a bore ridge. These things are unheard of in older engines with more than 80K miles on them.

Andrew

[rustomatic]

For the sake of simplicity, if you're going to use a factory computer, go with a gen III instead of a gen IV. It's so much easier to tune . . . and everything else.