Doing a LSx turbo swap

[ITSNOTAGN]

Wow i am so glad this section is up. i (like alot of us) have been hiding out at turbomustangs for a long time. I just started this and got my motor about a month ago. been working on accesory placement and stuff before i got carried away. anyway i dont have any pics yet, think im going to re-do my motor mounts this weekend as they are about 1/4 inch too wide, might just try to tweak them a bit. also if you are using a truck engine, its really easy to get the accesories bolted up, ill post pics showing this later.
6.0L LQ4, 9.4:1 compression
Lunati 224/224 112 .560 lift. had it from previous build
Moly pushrods
headers by me, have everything just need get placement done first, 1 3/4 primaries and 3" collectors
Pro Products Typhoon intake
60# mototrons
HP Tuners 2-bar speed density
Borg Warner S400 turbo, 77mm
Powerstroke Intercooler
4 or 5" downpipe, whatever fits.
4L80E
looking at 500-600whp on pump gas with little drama. going to keep it at 10# or less until i opt for rod bolts and stuff. dont think i will have too much of a problem doing that. after running this combo through dyno-sim alot this cam is actually a pretty good turbo cam. also i had this in my GTO, and with the extra 17ci of the 6.0 i think it will fit just right. also with the better heads it should do 340whp N/a, did 363whp in my GTO.
Comments?? Suggestions?? post em
Gary

[John Wilde]

I can't wait for updates, I am really excited about your project.
Please dont forget the picutres!

[Dusty Bradford]

Have you tried swapping the factory manifolds around backwards so the collectors face towards the front of the car and point down? I was thinking you can do this with the truck accessories without any problems. A friend has put an LS1 into a Mustang coupe and used the factory manifolds turned backwards but did have to move the alternator to the head. These manifolds are great and would save you from having to build a set of headers.

Just FYI...if you have trouble doing the 3 inch crossover just stick with a 2.5....they are usually much easier to work with when you make the transition to the turbo flange. No matter what you read on the net 2.5 is more than enough crossover for what you are doing. Turbo motors make 2000hp with 2.5crossovers. I'm sticking with a 2.5 crossover on my new set-up and the heads and headers will support 2000.

[johnplogii]

What is the difference between the ls- & the truck block? I heard the ls motors have 6 bolt mains. I have a line on an 04 silverado motor that was burnt but all I would have to do is pull it.

Thanks

[Kevin87TurboT]

Itsnotagn,
I've got a similar project. It's an 86 T-type that I'm installing a 6.0L stroker into. Originally the plans were to do a stock crank/stock inch 6.0L with a 76 mm turbo. Now it's going to be a 408/88 mm. I'm going to do what Dusty suggested...use truck manifolds turned around backwards. Good luck with your hot rod! (and I'd love to see some pics)
Kevin

[ITSNOTAGN]

i tried with the truck manifolds, the collectors sit on the frame and the drivers side points right at the steering box. i can use them pointing up, but to me the looks are important as well and i dont think the headers will be that difficult. The way it sits, im not using a/c, i can fit the passenger side collector between the engine and frame, giving me lots of room for the downpipe to sit nice and low. the drivers side i need to go with an upswept design though to go over the steering box.
Also the truck blocks are iron and are very very strong. they are good structurally to around 2000 hp.
Gary

[ITSNOTAGN]

so i got some pics today. got the motor positioned where i want it, need to start making some new mounts this week. have to space up the temporary crossmember i made to get the trans up in the tunnel a little more, but its pretty close to right on. i ended up with about 5.25" from the top of the sway bar to the crank centerline, which i beleive is .5" higher than a stock SBC. as you can see there is plenty of room in there, the only mod to the truck pan is to remove about 2-2.25" from the bottom and weld it back together. and i also held up the truck manifolds to give you an idea of possiblities.
There is also pictures of how i modified the truck accesory mount and how easy it is to mount up the PS pump. comment!
Gary

[ITSNOTAGN]

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[John Wilde]

Looking good!

[ITSNOTAGN]

well its been awhile, so heres some progress. I got all my wiring figured out and stuck into the factory fuseblock. so far everything works and tonight i fired it for the first time. It will not run as i have to go upload my new tune into the PCM now and i dont have all the holes in the intake plugged yet. Aside from that, I cannot get my fuel fittings to stop leaking, so i may just TIG everything in place, havent decided yet. anyway heres pics of the engine while i was finishing the wiring harness, and my turbo, B-W S475.
Gary

[ITSNOTAGN]

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[blestx4]

and pics with those updates please!!

[ITSNOTAGN]

Yeah, its definately been awhile. its been cold and i decided to shutthe shop down for a month or so cause i dont want to pay a $500 heat bill. Have been down there a bit lately but mostly thinking about what i want to do. I decided i am going to make new mounts again cause i dont really like the way the engine is sitting in there, i wanted it as far back as possible, but its only 1/2" from the firewall. think ill move it ahead to about 1" clearence, should make the 4l80 fit better as well. The way it looks this weekend i should get the mounts done and a trans crossmember. also if i have time i will start on the passenger side header. other then that i need to order a few fittings and the hoses for the trans cooler lines, measure up a driveshaft and its ready to go. Last month i got it all wired in and made some redneck fuel stuff, and i did get it to fire off for about 10 seconds, and everything seemed to work fine, the computer didnt see anything out of whack. The core support is cut, i didnt do that good of a job on it, but it will work for now. I cut it flush with the headlights and knocked 2 rows off the intercooler, this way it is up tight against the radiator and everything fits alot better. also i got the factory tune pulled out of the ECM and make the adjustments for the injectors and updated to a 2 bar speed density system. anyway ill try to get pics this week of it in the car, and next week if i get that stuff done. The only other thing is im debating on getting a manual rack right away or waiting.
Gary

[ITSNOTAGN]

spent the weekend working on my car, got alot accomplished. first off i have both headers tacked up, put a bunch of holes in em with the welder, ah well. also made up a turbo bracket to hang that big heavy bastard. I can bounce the front of the car without it moving so it should be strong enough. Also made up some motor mounts and a trans crossmember. tonight i plan on getting the y-pipe taked up, hopefully get the downpipe done this week also.
Gary

[ITSNOTAGN]

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[Louie L.]

Nice work. Where did you get the tubing and colectors from ? Is that mild steel ?

[ITSNOTAGN]

i got the stuff from schoenfeld, was 120$ for all of it and i have alot left. and yes it is mild steel. And as a consequence of wanting to do it myself, i spent 2 days learning to TIG this week,
(PITA) and i practiced on the pass side header as it will be covered by the downpipe anyway. needless to say my first welds arent that good, but the drivers header looks pretty nice. But, i would rather have stuff look so-so but say i did it myself then pay for it to be done. I take alot of pride in what i do, even if it isnt the best.
Gary

[Louie L.]

Originally Posted by ITSNOTAGN

i got the stuff from schoenfeld, was 120$ for all of it and i have alot left. and yes it is mild steel. And as a consequence of wanting to do it myself, i spent 2 days learning to TIG this week,
(PITA) and i practiced on the pass side header as it will be covered by the downpipe anyway. needless to say my first welds arent that good, but the drivers header looks pretty nice. But, i would rather have stuff look so-so but say i did it myself then pay for it to be done. I take alot of pride in what i do, even if it isnt the best.
Gary

Im with ya on the DIY. Im the same way. I rather do it myself even if its not "show quality" . I purchased my own TIG last year and been making my own exhausts and DP's since then.
Is it possible for you to PM me a list of the part you purchased ? Im ready to start this myself.

[ITSNOTAGN]

you want the parts for the headers? if so i just went to the schoenfeld site, got a set of LS flanges, a box of misc bends, and collectors, it was $120 or 140 for all of it i think then its straightforward as you know. if your gonna copy mine go ahead, they look really nice on there.
Gary

[Louie L.]

Gary,
Ok you got the box of bends. Got ya. That simplifies everything. Thanks

[rking]

Looking good!! I have a 402 LSx with L92 heads getting ready for a future in my GN!! I think that I am going to go with two 67 and see what happens . Are you still only hoping for 500-600rwhp with that!! You should easily hit that, just push it a little!! I have seen these stock cranks go 800 at the rear wheels!

[ITSNOTAGN]

yeah, i just plan to max out the single walbro 340 i have, am going to do a double pumper this winter, and pull everything out again and clean it up, sray it all down with some nice paint and put in ARP rod bolts. aside from that, 500whp around here is like 3rd or 4th place, only a couple legit drag cars even have that. Also i am using this as a fun driver, not a strip machine. i just want to run my 11.5's at like 5psi whenever, then turn it up to 10psi to get my high 10 and get kicked out for no bar. Ive got too many other things to work on this year anyway, a FC rx7, and a FB rx7. FC is getting the motor put back together this weekend, and theres a GT4202 turbo sitting here for it. its around 2400lbs now and should do 10's easy. Going to pick up the FB next week, that is getting a FD motor, full bridgeport and a S400 turbo. Yeah i have alot to do
Gary

[rking]

That 340 sounds like your only holdback from BIG numbers, but I understand you. You will be able to run that thing at 5# of boost forever! It would be nice to have a 5-600 RWHP car and never really have to worry about a thing!

[ITSNOTAGN]

I got my headers welded up, finally. that took forever and a day, and no they arent the sexiest things around, but it will get the job done. i finally got pissed and grabbed the MIG gun and finished em up. also made a plate for the heater box, out of 1/4" alum diamond plate. haha, it was layin there and i figured what the hell, i can always change it. So now it goes back to the small shop to sit for a week wheni go play on spring break. hopefully i have some extra cash when i get back to order the rest of my plumbing so i can run it. then its just a driveshaft, master cylinder and brake hoses and its driveable! has to be driveable by may 1st for a local car show, we'll just see about that.
Gary

[gnx7]

Are you going to use the factory 6.0 computer to control the shift points in the 4L80E or an aftermarket box/controller?

That setup should make 500rwhp with very little effort.

[ITSNOTAGN]

factory electronics, you reall cant go wrong with the new gm PCM's, its damn near as good as DFI or fast system. I have HP Tuners software and it is converted to 2-bar speed-density. all wiring is stock, that was either shortened or lengthened and using a stock 4l80 and a stock converter. hope to get a new converter this winter as the stocker weighs in at...


73lbs!!! holy **** that thing is heavy. going to a 10" 3000 stall that weighs only 36lbs, that should knock about 3/10ths off minimun.

[ITSNOTAGN]

More accomplished this week, the wiring is done and secured into the fuse box. will finish running hot wire for fuel pump this weekend. going to pick up some relays on the 1st for the pump and fan, maybe get a y-pipe made. Also need to finish putting loom and secure the wiring. mount computer and FPR to the firewall. Shampooed the carpet and got some new insulation and the carpet put back in today as well. assembled inner fenders and set the hood on tonight to check fitment, have about .2" of clearance at the alternator, just right! Also this weekend im gonna pull the master cyl/ pedal from the donor car and get that put in. If i get really ambitious i may install the new p-brake cables too, but ill probably find the beer before that happens!
Gary

[rking]

Interested in seeing it with the inner fenders back in and the clearances that you are seeing!!!!

[ITSNOTAGN]

some more today, got my e-brake cables on, and obviously the rear brakes off. Also, got a free vacuum brake system, was going to go with manuals originally, and because of this, the rear tube of the drivers side header is pretty close to the booster. i think it will be ok once the headers are coated, and i am going to put some foil tape on there to keep the heat off it. Clearance is about 3/4", other than that i have lots and lots of room to work with for everything.
On a side note, i decided i am not gonna hang the turbo right away. Funds say, either get the turbo on there, or buy a driveshaft. im gonna get a driveshaft of course, because then it is actually driveable and i would like to get a nice base tune in first. also all i need to do later for the turbo set up is make a y-pipe and weld a fitting in the front cover, no biggie. Though the turbo should be operational around the 4th of july. Ill post pics tomorrow or monday i guess.
Gary

[dizzlesturbo6]

damn, looks good for a homemade special. a lsx looks good in anything.

[ITSNOTAGN]

as promised, pics with the fenders on. and as a bonus, i posted a vid i shot of it last week on you tube, just a startup.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyTzXLxbpOo
so, here they are
Gary

[ITSNOTAGN]

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[ITSNOTAGN]

more, comments!
Gary

[FastRegalWE2]

just curious, I know you have got headers now, but did you look into the Fbody turbo headers???
Ive considered this swap before myself


http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1...1/IMG_0412.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1...1/IMG_0428.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1...1/IMG_0407.jpg

are you going to coat all the hot parts since everything is so tight in there to keep heat down and keep from melting the plastic inner fenders? Like JH2000

[ITSNOTAGN]

those headers look like they would work perfectly. The only real reason i made my own was to get the packaging i wanted to the T. I could have adapted a number of different headers, but i wanted this layout specifically. Also I wanted to make them myself as a learning experience, now i can say just that.
Yes i do plan on doing everything in full ceramic. that brake booster is the only place where they are even remotely close to anything, including the plugs as i made sure i can get a socket and extension on every plug and every bolt.
Also last night I made a new turbo bracket, moved it back about 4" and up 1.25". There was alot of room and this makes fitment of an intercooler that much easier. The downpipe may take another few bends but thats ok.
Gary