some Ls1 f body dicsussion--------

[>X<]

ok, when i sell my 71 i am definately going to throw an ls1 in the 99. my boss has a 2000 camaro z28 auto( i think, maybe ss, whats the diff? ) behind the shop. this car has 70 thou miles and runs/drives. (it flipped into a pole, pass side and roof arent there) i could get this car for 4000. i can pretty much get any f body i want, but i will probably have to buy the whole car. this is better right, because then i can get the little things that i will need along the way. i have done a lt1 swap into a 75 elcamino and soon we will be putting a ls1 into a 95 jaguar convertible. i just want to be able to finish the swap in a week or two, unless i buy another vehicle before then. whats the difference between the corvette ls1, the trans am ws6 ls1, the regular trans am ls1, and the firehawl ls1, the ss ls1 and the z28 ls1???? is 4000 an ok deal? i guess i could make a few bucks on the rest of the car. what else do i need besides the fbody? mounts, exhaust, do i need to get my computer redone? what about special wiring? this is going to be in a 99 with a 2.2/5 speed. i might buy my boss's 6 speed if that makes it easier, i might go with stick anyway. i will also be using the huge ass brakes from the camaro definately, maybe soon. thanks for any help, sean

[doublejack]

You have a ton of questions. I'll try to help as best as I can.

Regarding the differences in LS1 engines (Vette/WS6/Firehawk/Trans Am/SS/Z28) the answer is complex. Things are not only different model-to-model, they are also different year-to-year. Further, at the end of the Fbody run there were some LS6 parts that managed to find their way into the engine bay of some cars. So hitting the lottery is finding a 2002 Z28 or Trans Am with LS6 heads (rare but they exist) and/or an LS6 block (very rare but they are also out there).

Anyway - A Trans Am LS1 of any year is exactly the same as the same year WS6 or Firehawk engine. The only differences were the Trans Am/WS6/Firehawk had ram air, while a Firebird Formula LS1 did not. The only other thing done to increase the HP on the WS6 and Firehawk were a better flowing exhaust system was installed to replace the factory GM one. Internally they are all identical.

Likewise, the SS and Z28 LS1 engines are identical (and they are the same as the Pontiac Fbody cars). Again the SS had ram air while the Z did not, and the SS got a better exhaust system - that's why it makes more power.

other differences:
-oil pan. The Vette's is shaped differently and has mounts on it which attach to the cradle. The Fbody has a more standard looking pan, no mounts on it.

-throttle body control. The vette is a drive-by-wire system that has no cable (it's electronic). The fbody uses a standard cable setup.

-camshaft. The vette every year had a hotter cam. From 98 to 00 the fbody's had their own cam grind, slightly de-tuned from a vette's (119LSA). In 2001 GM started using truck cams instead in the fbodys (115LSA).

year-to-year differences:
-injectors. In 98 all LS1s had 28 lb/hr injectors. From 99-01 they all (even vette) went to 26.5 lb/hr injectors. In 02 they all went back to 28 lb/hr.

-intake. Later year LS1s (vette and fbody) came with LS6 intakes. I believe this switch was made for the 01 model year.

- headers/manifolds. Cast iron replaced the double walled stainless used on earlier engines.

- heads/blocks. As I mentioned above, some 2002 fbody cars got LS6 heads, and even fewer got LS6 blocks. These can be verified by looking at the part numbers cast into them.


I think 4k is a good price for a whole donor car. That's the route I'll go when I do this swap myself. Like you said, you get all the little do-dads that come with a whole car, and engine/tranny packages often run that much by themselves.

Now, I doubt you can finish the swap in a week or two. It depends of course on your skills, parts availability, and knowledge of the engine and truck. However most people who take on this project spend anywhere from 2 to 6 months getting it done.

You will need to either have a harness made for you, or fab one yourself. Also, the computer doesn't NEED to be reprogrammed, but you'll throw codes if you don't have it done.

The rear brakes are bolt-ons to your truck. As for the fronts - it has been done but it isn't easy.

Mounts - JTR (Jags That Run) sells some.

Exhaust - nobody makes headers yet. Stock fbody manifolds work with some tweaking.

I think I hit on most of your questions. I learned all I know by using the search on this site and at LS1Tech.com. There are several posters here who have done the LS1 swap and they are very helpful with questions, and there's a book you can buy for $18 on ebay that was put together by someone who swapped an LS1 into a blazer.

[v8power]

it was in a 02 S10. http://www.v8S10s.com

[>X<]

thanks for the reply man. i am a body man/painter for a living but deal with alot of wholesale cars that need engine swaps, restorations too. the thing that will take a while will be the wiring. does anybody build custom harnesses for this application? i've used painless before. who do i need to send the computer to, or can i just get it done at the dealership? i'm jsut trying to see if i can get all the parts and try to throw it to together in a short time. from what i have read i assume that the vette motor is the one to get, but then you have to get a tranny. the vette has the best brackets right? that will be a lot of extra money if i use the camaro motor. maybe i can just get it in without ac first and worry about that later. i'l get the wholesellers that i know to start looking for a vette, hopefully they will want the body so i might get a deal. thanks, sean

[LS1-STen]

The best and only place to get a good harness is from
Jared at
Current Performance Wiring
Currentperformance.com
His stuff is custome made and it is trully plug and play.
I'm sure some of the other guys will pipe up on how good Jared is.

[NewV8S10]

The F body LS1 cars never came with LS6 heads from the factory. Some of them got the LS6 engine block, and the 01-02 models got the LS6 intake.

The Vette didn't get drive by wire technology until the 03 model year.

[onyxxtreme]

/\ what NewV8S10 said
also 98, 01, and 02 got the 28.8lb injectors and the 99 and 2000's were the only years with the 26 pounders
also TA's and Formulas didnt have "ram air", but the TransAM WS6 and Formula WS6 had it, as did the 'hawk's

[doublejack]

Quote: Originally Posted by onyxxtreme

also 98, 01, and 02 got the 28.8lb injectors and the 99 and 2000's were the only years with the 26 pounders
also TA's and Formulas didnt have "ram air", but the TransAM WS6 and Formula WS6 had it, as did the 'hawk's

I mentioned the different injectors in my post. I also mentioned the ram air differences and correctly noted that formulas don't have ram air.

[doublejack]

Quote: Originally Posted by NewV8S10

The F body LS1 cars never came with LS6 heads from the factory. Some of them got the LS6 engine block, and the 01-02 models got the LS6 intake.

The Vette didn't get drive by wire technology until the 03 model year.

It's a fact that some 2002 LS1 fbody cars slipped through the assembly line with LS6 heads. It has been documented and verified by car owners who bought them new from dealerships. You can verify this for yourself at www.LS1tech.com This was not something done intentionally by GM, like the switch to LS6 intakes was. It was probably caused by parts shortages, or less likely through a mixup. But it definitely happened.

As for the vette, the throttle most certainly was drive by wire from 1997 on (electronically controlled instead of cable controlled). You can also verify this at ls1tech.

-edit
I just did some legwork and it looks like the LS6 heads could have come from SLP. There was a factory supported 345HP version of the F-body's.