Why do I want an LS motor?

[nekkidhillbilly]

Originally Posted by chevymadness

Interesting how much gas mileage would something like the 6.0 put out and 5.7.I wonder how much those cost and would people recommend these ls for towing.

it all depends on what your towing and what trans. all are capable of the mid teens. i had a 01 4wd 4.8 truck i would pull 6-7k behind it all the time it would get about 15 mpg when hooked to the trailer. when unloaded i saw up around 23-24 mpg once on the highway. could avg around 20 mpg. in a half ton the 4.8 or 5.3 would be what i would want. now with a hd truck id def want the 6.0 or 6.2. the 5.7 was mostly a car motor and not as common i wouldnt recomend them for truck use unless i just got it for the right price. not enough bottom end really. basically would be like a new truck in the old sheet metal. if you have a 4wd truck just find a new junked 4wd and gut it same for a 2wd. all are better than the older sbc imo.

[TheBlueBomber]

Okay. You guys got me. The new "Sith Lord Apprentice" has joined the dark side lol.

I'm 1000% going with a 5.3. But with a twist, and it starts with a "T", and ends with a "turbo"

Can anybody guess what that is?

[nekkidhillbilly]

i would want an overdrive trans over the ls engine by itself to th350. the combo of a ls and od trans is best.

[bohmankid]

Originally Posted by nekkidhillbilly

i would want an overdrive trans over the ls engine by itself to th350. the combo of a ls and od trans is best.

+1 I agree with this guy.

[nekkidhillbilly]

move the coils and clean up the intake they look as good as other engine really.

[nekkidhillbilly]

its easier to go ahead to swap trans at the same time you have ecm harness and all that already to run it. just get a 5.3 4l60e out of a junk 4wd. make sure to get the 4 to 6 bolt transfercase adapter from the newer truck while your at it. with the long shaft 350 or 700r its a direct bolt in.

[TheBlueBomber]

Originally Posted by nekkidhillbilly

its easier to go ahead to swap trans at the same time you have ecm harness and all that already to run it. just get a 5.3 4l60e out of a junk 4wd. make sure to get the 4 to 6 bolt transfercase adapter from the newer truck while your at it. with the long shaft 350 or 700r its a direct bolt in.

How does the linkage for the th350 differ from the 4l60e? The only thing is about putting in the tranny ill have to adjust driveline lengths which takes a little more money aka time.

The goal is to have it done by June.

[nekkidhillbilly]

you can use the same shift linkage you need to change the indicator in the dash but thats 2 screws. the rest is computer controlled. you need a vss signal from your transfer case(with both trans for the ls). pretty simple just buy one of the signal generators. iirc the driveshafts are the same(i think). gm used a different adapter on the th350s vs the 700r4 so if you use the adapter off 93 up 4l60e truck and bolt it to your transfercase and the ds should work. if not your rear would be long enought to cut down and all you would need is the longer one off any od truck/suv for your front. your truck has the np208 right? you need to move the crossmember back but if you can use a drill this shouldnt be a problem. in a 700r4 truck the 4l60e is a bolt in which started in the early 80s. so if you had to source parts shouldnt be hard at all.

[nekkidhillbilly]

if you have the np205 then its a little harder and im not as keen on them but i think you just get the adapter and shorten lengthen the ds. if you could find a ome od truck though you can get the 208 and ds from it direct bolt up.

[bohmankid]

I kept my th400 for the exact same reason you stated. I plan on putting an OD trans in when funds allow and I want to drive the thing NOW. lol.
Also, I'm planning on doing a 4l80e instead of the 4l60e. My PCM will need to be tuned for the 4l80e and the cross member will need to be moved back. Cool thing about the 4l80e is it will bolt directly to the old transfer case and you don't need any special adapter.
And about the VSS, I bought mine from dakotadigital and it lets me use my stock speedo gage with cable.

[nekkidhillbilly]

to not swap while you do the engine id double the work is what im getting at. you can have the engine bolted to the trans and stick it all in at once alot easier. the 4l60e is direct bolt for the np208 the 4 to 6 adapter is included in new trucks from the factory. so when you getting the 4wd tranny just grab that with it. the np205 idk for sure but the adapter may work on it too.

[TheBlueBomber]

I've got the np203. I haven't made the decision yet about the 208. When I do put the 4l60e in I'll most likely go with a 208. I want to do the swap without having do modify the drive shafts first and then finish up later with the transmission swap.


Heck if there is a deal going on I might end up going with a SM465.

[nekkidhillbilly]

Originally Posted by TheBlueBomber

I've got the np203. I haven't made the decision yet about the 208. When I do put the 4l60e in I'll most likely go with a 208. I want to do the swap without having do modify the drive shafts first and then finish up later with the transmission swap.


Heck if there is a deal going on I might end up going with a SM465.

i would get a 5 speed over that sm456 .nv3500 from a 4.8 bolts right up to a 5.3. you should just be able to find a junk 80s truck/suv and either get the 208 or the 241 like bowtie said and the front driveshaft too. cutting a ds is not alot of work its when there to short is the problem. its going to be easier to do it all at once like i was saying. im sure you could find a 208 and the drive shaft for a 150 bucks.

[bowtieguy79]

I'll tell you what I did on my nephew's truck.

5.3/4L60E/ NP241 from a 91 Sub. ( VSS built in ) Used a 91 Sub/Blazer dash cluster that has the elec speedo already. Looks stock ( not 73-80 stock but close )

I was able to find a rear drive shaft that would work, but he had to shorten the front. The NP208/241 Linkage is the same for what thats worth.

If you want to run OD some day, I would do it all at once, one and done. But that is just me, there is something to be said for doing just the enigne, your going to see improved mpg, and more Smiles Per Gallon over the engine you have now.

Nephew's truck sits on 35's 4" of lift and he see's 16-17 just running around. It made it a nice truck. And its actually a pretty quick truck with the 4.10's in it.

[TheBlueBomber]

Originally Posted by bowtieguy79

If you want to run OD some day, I would do it all at once, one and done.

Your right. I have a daily so it shouldn't be a big problem to let this sit. I might end up getting this done sooner than expected.

[Stepper86]

The "dark side" grows stronger
I have been looking for a new engine for a year now, and finaly found what I wanted. Dipped in to the piggy bank 5 min ago and now I own a 2004 6.0
with 31000 mile on it.
The guy I got it from had all the parts for the swap, he had plans to drop it in a 62 Cadillac. But decided to go original instead.
Now I only need to get some engine mounts and get started

[dman1982]

Originally Posted by Stepper86

The "dark side" grows stronger
I have been looking for a new engine for a year now, and finaly found what I wanted. Dipped in to the piggy bank 5 min ago and now I own a 2004 6.0
with 31000 mile on it.
The guy I got it from had all the parts for the swap, he had plans to drop it in a 62 Cadillac. But decided to go original instead.
Now I only need to get some engine mounts and get started

how much you get that for??? sorry but I've been looking around and havnt found anything that low the lowest i found was about 55000 for like 3500 or so...just engine

[Stepper86]

I payed 4800 for everything. I like that all the parts come from the same truck,should make things easyer than having a mix of things from different donors.
It came with a new harness and clean ecm.
He even gave me the transaxel,exhaust and other bits and pieces from the parts truck.I have´nt sorted trough everything yet. Just made sure that I had all the essential stuff for the swap

[TheBlueBomber]

Originally Posted by Stepper86

I payed 4800 for everything. I like that all the parts come from the same truck,should make things easyer than having a mix of things from different donors.
It came with a new harness and clean ecm.
He even gave me the transaxel,exhaust and other bits and pieces from the parts truck.I have´nt sorted trough everything yet. Just made sure that I had all the essential stuff for the swap

Nice! That's sweet. My buddy just texted me earlier this morning, the engine just got dropped off at his shop. He went to lunch and then this happened. So as soon as the ice stops falling from the sky and he's at his shop I'll be going there to pick it up.


I'm afraid of driving in the snow not because of the snow, but because of the people.

[dman1982]

Originally Posted by Stepper86

I payed 4800 for everything. I like that all the parts come from the same truck,should make things easyer than having a mix of things from different donors.
It came with a new harness and clean ecm.
He even gave me the transaxel,exhaust and other bits and pieces from the parts truck.I have´nt sorted trough everything yet. Just made sure that I had all the essential stuff for the swap

thats pretty good for the mileage and having everything match up, I'm hoping to be going to pick up a whole 2004 suburban with 80k for 2 grand, hoping its still there when i go get my taxes in the next few days

[Stepper86]

Originally Posted by dman1982

thats pretty good for the mileage and having everything match up, I'm hoping to be going to pick up a whole 2004 suburban with 80k for 2 grand, hoping its still there when i go get my taxes in the next few days

2 grand is a good deal for a complet burb. The parts you don't need for the swap will bring in some cash to cover your expences
As we all know these things tend to go "a little" over budget :-)

[nekkidhillbilly]

you guys may be best to buy a whole wrecked truck and parting it. would be cheaper after you sell all the other parts you dont need.

[nekkidhillbilly]

with the parts left over the burban and parts you take off the truck you should make that money back