Go Mess With Your LS

This article is from a past issue of the magazine. Like stories like this? You’ll see every article as soon as it's published, and get access to our full digital archive, by subscribing to Grassroots Motorsports. Subscribe now.

Story by David S. Wallens • Photos as Credited
Screwing together an LS engine for our upcoming BMW M3 project car has kept us busy lately. It has also kept us amazed at the truckloads of LS hop-up hardware available on the aftermarket. No matter what your dreams or available dinero, the perfect parts for your LS project are likely already in production. Here are a few of the products offered for Chevrolet’s revolutionary evolution of the V8 that have caught our eye. We can’t use all of them on our build, but we still want to share them with the rest of the class.

Comments

voetsek New Reader
3/6/19 12:19 p.m.

I understand these are paid ads, but it would be helpful if they included measurements against OEM for fitment. I already have headers and an intake that hit on the framerails and hood with my LS conversion.

The purchase and see method is pretty painful and shipping parts back gets expensive.

Papabear New Reader
3/6/19 12:36 p.m.

And Holley LS Fest loves any LS powered car unless it's a Exocet.

edizzle89 SuperDork
3/6/19 1:16 p.m.

voetsek said:
I understand these are paid ads, but it would be helpful if they included measurements against OEM for fitment. I already have headers and an intake that hit on the framerails and hood with my LS conversion.

The purchase and see method is pretty painful and shipping parts back gets expensive.

The problem there's a done of different dimensions that would need to be measure and they all change with different things like what brand of motor mounts you use and things like that. with odd-ball, uncommon swaps it usually ends up just being a guessing game.

NermalSnert Reader
3/6/19 1:23 p.m.

I like that picture of 776hp in the raw.

A 401 CJ GRM+ Memberand Dork
3/6/19 8:27 p.m.

That’s the 454 I’d want. Good lord that thing is a stud.

Keith Tanner GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
3/6/19 8:55 p.m.

Every failure I've had with an LS has come from aftermarket parts. "Upgraded" rockers that break when you're cruising down the road at 30 mph. CNC-ported heads that vented the cooling jacket into the intake ports. Custom OS flashes for the PCM (not tunes, but OS changes) that don't work unless you disconnect the MAF.

GM's spent a lot of money making these engines reliable. I keep mine pretty close to stock. The only mods are a cam (the ASA one that's used in the 525 crate engine, and is very valvetrain-friendly), an oil pan with improved oil control (and which lets me actually put the engine in the car AND have a steering rack, which is nice) and custom headers (again with making it fit). Everything else is stock so I don't have to worry about it.

te72 Reader
3/6/19 10:12 p.m.

Papabear said:
And Holley LS Fest loves any LS powered car unless it's a Exocet.

Well to be fair, there's not much with a body that is going to be on that level of performance... Throw it in the unlimited class if that's the case!

On the subject of the LSX 454R, it really makes me wonder why people still want a 502 or 576 these days. The 454R makes more power, weighs less, and uh... do you really need more reason than that? Price, yeah I'm sure the old ZZ big blocks are cheaper, but when you're talking an engine that physically large, the weight savings improve even further than with the smaller engines, when going aluminum block.

Lof8 GRM+ Memberand Dork
3/7/19 1:46 p.m.

What chassis M3 are you guys putting an LS into?

A 401 CJ GRM+ Memberand Dork
3/7/19 4:02 p.m.

te72 said:
Papabear said:
And Holley LS Fest loves any LS powered car unless it's a Exocet.

Well to be fair, there's not much with a body that is going to be on that level of performance... Throw it in the unlimited class if that's the case!

On the subject of the LSX 454R, it really makes me wonder why people still want a 502 or 576 these days. The 454R makes more power, weighs less, and uh... do you really need more reason than that? Price, yeah I'm sure the old ZZ big blocks are cheaper, but when you're talking an engine that physically large, the weight savings improve even further than with the smaller engines, when going aluminum block.

Power under the curve maybe? I don't know about a lowly 502 (feel funny saying that) but a 572 has a lot more area under the curve, even though the "peak" number might not be far off. That makes a world of difference in anything except an all out drag-car that's always in its power band.

te72 Reader
3/7/19 9:58 p.m.

In reply to A 401 CJ :

Haha, "lowly" isn't the word that comes to my mind necessarily, but in this comparison, it's valid. Can't say I've looked at the curves in a long time, but as much as I appreciate good low end response, I really like engines that rev...

Totally understand where it would be a good engine for a heavy car though. My car is about 3600 lbs with me in it, and has all of about 13 ft-lbs of torque off of boost. It really sucks, until it blows!