LS1 conversion wisdom

[jcommin]

I have access to a auto wrecking yard. I can get an LS engine at the owners cost. I certainly would like an engine that runs. What do I need out of the wreck? Which engine (year) is preferred?

I would like an all Aluminum engine out of a car rather than a truck engine, I'm thinking something from 2003-2006 GTO or vette. I plan on doing a total rebuild to the engine.

Thoughts anyone?

[Techno Duck]

If a GTO donor is your choice, the complete engine and assesory drive brackets is all I would grab. Leave the harness and PCM. Getting a complete dropout engine is probably best though.. You can always sell what you don't need off the engine. The GTO is a good choice because the assesory drive layout is basically the same as the f-body which fits the 944 best, the only difference being a different steering pump (which still works fine). The '04 GTO LS1 uses the LS6 block, LS6 intake and the LS6 PCV setup which are all good things, in my opinion the best 'version' of the LS1 you can get, also the last use in a production car stateside. The later GTO had the LS2. You Justs need to decide what engine you want to go with as they all fit the same. Many choices.. LS1,2,3,6. Don't disregard the 5.3L Vortec also, they are really cheap and easy to find. Most parts from the LS fit the Vortec also..cam, heads..etc.

F-body camaro or firebird would be a good choice also for donor... But I believe only the '02 f-body LS1 had the LS6 block, intake, PCV. The big thing is just find a good motor. You can always buy the assesory drive parts separate. Sure it's easy to buy an engine with all the parts already, but finding the parts isn't all that difficult or expensive..finding a solid engine is more important I think. Plus you can sell all the parts with relative ease. I sold the GTO harness, PCM, oil pan, alternator, power steering pump and a/c which helped recoup about 1/3 of what I bought the entire dropout engine for.

For the harness and PCM, get a standalone harness from a place like PSI and a 411 PCM. The GTO engine harness includes the body control module and its routing is not friendly to the 944.. So better to just go with a standalone harness I think. I sold all the asssecories; alternator, PS pump and AC compressor and bought all new f-body parts. The GTO accessories will work fine, but you will need a f-body alternator if switching to a standalone engine harness.

Sell the oil pan to someone on LS1 tech and get the conversion pan from TPC. Also you need a 2pc C5 vette bell housing....among a few other parts.

Before you start collecting parts, talk to a builder about doing the conversion, whether it be TPC in Dallas or someone else local. Getting the engine in I guess is the relatively easy part, getting everything to work right is the challenge (but certainly do-able).

[jcommin]

I thought the engine is the easy part..................the devil is in the details. time to do the research. I will share what I want to do. Jon, I'm probably your evil twin when it comes to details.

[Arthropraxis]

Mine came out of a 2004 GTO. Get all of the accessories alternator, harness and ECM. You will need an F-body A/C compressor. The ECM will have to be re programmed to set the high speed fan adjustment to the EMC as it is originally controlled by the BCM. The power steering pump is speed sensitive and matches the needs of the Porsche rack better than the F-body.

[Techno Duck]

Progress has been slow on my car, but ive finally got a few days i can put towards it over the next week. Hoping to get the brake setup sorted out which i think is one of the major hurdles to get past. The car is at a local shop, its the first LS swap on a 944 for them so getting around the learning curve has taken alot of time for all of us.

I am going to try and get the brakes all figured out before i leave again so they can work on fitting the engine while im back overseas. Its just a matter of getting the mix match of parts installed all together!

[Rich L.]

The most straight-forward choice is the 99-02 f-body LS1. The 98 f-body engine has some issues and the PCM isn't very good. The Vette and GTO engines have some nice upgrades but other aspects are harder to deal with. The 5.3L aluminum truck engines are cheap but also are harder to make work in a 944.

Tons of reading here:
944hybrids Forum: V8 Conversions

Rich