Florida Members - PHUUUUUUCK!!! Just spun a bearing!

Well the LS1 took a shit tonight. Just driving down the road and all of a sudden I heard the 'KNOCK'. This truly suck! I am in such a bad position right now for something like this. I go to school full time and in doing so, can't find an employer willing to employ me since my schedule is so sporadic. This semester the Fin-Aid dept fucked up my paper work so I had to pay out of pocket this term, and of course this had to be the most expensive term to date. Blah....!

So what to do?

What is the best way to remedy this situation? I know it will not be an over night fix, but best bang for the buck and time would be nice. I was wanting to start a mod campaign to build a LQ4/Q9 418, but have yet to really start the research into it. I know it will not be as cheap as a used LS1 drop, but a LS1 drop would be quicker.

Then again, what are the options for a rebuild on my 98 LS1. I would assume that since it threw a rod, then the crank is toast as well as the head on said cylinder.

Damn it!!!

Give me some Ideas guys :(



DM

i have a complete 3.8 v6 and 5 spd setup you could drop right in. everything you need to do the swap. i know it's kinda a downgrade but it'll get ya by in a cheap way. or you could do a budget rebuild which would be even cheaper.

Thanks man, but I will respectful pass.


DM

Sorry to hear it but I feel your pain as I just went through the same thing having my engine die. You really won't know for sure what will be involved cost wise until you get it out and see what is damaged. Mine I could of just had the crank turned,replaced a couple rods,cam and then all the normally expected stuff (rings,bearings,seals,etc..). I ended up going the forged short block route but it sounds like you are in need of the budget rebuild so get it apart and see what you've got....Good Luck!!!

Yeah budget is an issue, but I am trying to look at this as a forced upgrade. The only thing with that is it then becomes more of a time issue than a money issue; we can all afford a $15K+ setup when we have the time to save, lol.

As for ReManning the crank, I am not a big fan of that. How well do the 98 (not sure if there is a difference in years) cranks take to getting turned?


DM

Question!

Which LQ4/9's are the best to get? I know each year has it designed differences, but what year would be considered "the best?"


I ask because it just seems irrational to replace a LS1 with a LS1 when a LQ4/9 seems to cost the same give or take.


Thanks!

DM

lm7, drop right in and use most of your parts from the ls1 to improve performance. i'm hearing they are great for the price as low as 250-800 bucks complete to the oil pan and harness. and when you use the ls1 parts you can make decent power equal to or better than the stock ls1. wish i would have done that when i blew a bearing, could have waited and patiently bored and stroked and rebuilt the ls1 badder than ever with time.
but being in a hurry caused me to get a 3700 buck rebuild that could have been way badder.

DAMN buddy that sucks, best of luck with the upgrade!!!

Well the LS1 took a shit tonight. Just driving down the road and all of a sudden I heard the 'KNOCK'. This truly suck! I am in such a bad position right now for something like this. I go to school full time and in doing so, can't find an employer willing to employ me since my schedule is so sporadic. This semester the Fin-Aid dept fucked up my paper work so I had to pay out of pocket this term, and of course this had to be the most expensive term to date. Blah....!

So what to do?

What is the best way to remedy this situation? I know it will not be an over night fix, but best bang for the buck and time would be nice. I was wanting to start a mod campaign to build a LQ4/Q9 418, but have yet to really start the research into it. I know it will not be as cheap as a used LS1 drop, but a LS1 drop would be quicker.

Then again, what are the options for a rebuild on my 98 LS1. I would assume that since it threw a rod, then the crank is toast as well as the head on said cylinder.

Damn it!!!

Give me some Ideas guys :(



DM

Sucks to hear buddy, I had the same situation occur to me last December. I also looked at it as a forced upgrade. I saved up for 4 months and bought a fully built LQ4 shortblock for under 3K the way I wanted it built, bought some almost new LQ4 heads and had a good shop do the swap for me. The downtime blows, I know I have been there, but you are at a point where you need to make a critical decision as to whether your going to get crazy with a build spending more money or if you want to get back on the road quicker with an ok used motor spending much less money. Which ever you decide, best of luck to you, any questions feel free to ask.

Question!

Which LQ4/9's are the best to get? I know each year has it designed differences, but what year would be considered "the best?"


I ask because it just seems irrational to replace a LS1 with a LS1 when a LQ4/9 seems to cost the same give or take.


Thanks!

DM


Any 2003+ LQ4 or LQ9 would be ideal for the swap, try to stay '03 and newer.

isnt an LM7 a 5.3? wouldnt recommend that. find a used lq and drop it in. i sold a longblock with good 317 heads for 700 bucks. those deals are out there, just keep in mind they add 70lbs to the nose of the car

Damn! Just missed a LS3 short block in Daytona for $1200. I don't know what to do. I am thinking of just getting a clean crank and rod a, then having it rebuilt. I just hope the piston did not fuck the head up. Since I really want to go with a LS2, LS3, L92, LQ9 or L76 I guess the best thing to do is rebuild my LS1 on the cheap and save for what I want. What a fucking waste of money!!!

DM

Might have found a LQ9 with only :eek2:12 miles:eek2: on it.

What needs to be done to my Bird to make it work? The Trans Am is a 98 A4, but I have the complete M6 swap as well as a 00 or 01 harness and ecu.

As for the LQ9, it is out of some big ass box truck or truck that looks like a bread truck, the seller said. It has everything except the harness and ecu. The upper plenum and an accessory bracket are damaged (cracked) when the truck decided to play "family dog" and rolled over.

So that is about it. What do I need to make this swap work?

Thanks guys!


DM

Bump!



Dm

Still looking for info on my question in post 13 :D



DM

to swap the motor into place, youll need to drill a hole to mount the alt bracket and swap the intakes and needed accessories and retune the car for the different engine and trans. now would be a good time to swap a cam in it also before you install the new motor.

Any 2003+ LQ4 or LQ9 would be ideal for the swap, try to stay '03 and newer.

Question -


I found a Fresh rebuilt LQ4 with LQ9 pistons, but it is a 2002, what are the issues with the Pre-03's?

Here is the stats on the engine:


2002 LQ4 6.0l out of a Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD that had 101k miles
Block has been hot tanked and the cylinders have been honed
The block also has all new bearings (main and cam bearings)
Crank has been balanced and rod journals polished
LS2 Rods with new rod bearings
All new Federal-Mogul LQ9 (flat top) pistons and rings
Fel-Pro Complete bottom end gasket kit
Texas Speed 228r 588/588 112LSA Cam (Comp Cams)
LS2 timing chain
317 Aluminum Heads that have been pressure checked, re-surfaced, 3 angle valve job and new valve seats
Comp Cams 918 valve springs
7.400" Chromemoly Hardened pushrods
Stock intake manifold complete with fuel rails, injectors, throttle body, all emission componets, etc
All this motor needs to be 100% complete is acouple top end gaskets, head bolts, crank pully bolt and spark plugs.
Has all as the accessories (alt., a/c, water pump, power steering, pullys)
Comes with the complete wiring harness and the PCM
Engine Cover
Flexplate for a 4l80e automatic transmission
Has all of the original emission parts


DM

Looks good to me make sure it will not break the bank though. I had the same setup except for the pistons (gm lq9) and cam (ls6) in my old truck. Is the bottom end assembled? if so get all of the paperwork or take it apart and recheck everything. He should have the weight for the crank balance, bearing clearances, cylinder clearances, ring gaps, and cylinder head combustion chamber cc's. Is this your 1st lsx your building?

Looks good to me make sure it will not break the bank though. I had the same setup except for the pistons (gm lq9) and cam (ls6) in my old truck. Is the bottom end assembled? if so get all of the paperwork or take it apart and recheck everything. He should have the weight for the crank balance, bearing clearances, cylinder clearances, ring gaps, and cylinder head combustion chamber cc's. Is this your 1st lsx your building?

I am assuming that it is assembled, but not 100% sure. The asking price is $2500 + Freight.

Yeah this is my first time dealing with a LSX. I am from the old skool 3rd gens so this is all new to me; engines 101, lol.

So what is the difference between the Pre-03 and the 03+? Is there anything I need to be concerned about since it is a Pre-03 (2002)?

Thanks man!!


DM

not 100% on this, but I think there are some minor differences between '02 and '03 LQ4's. Just stay away from LQ4 with iron heads.

I just want to make sure I don't have issues with it bolting in my 98 Trans Am or working with my M6. I thought i read about some reluctor wheel or something like that or some kind of thing you need to put on the crank to make it work with the m6 because the crank was to long or too short. I can't remember but it was something like that, lol.

Does anyone have a clue what I am trying to describe?

I just want to know about any and all issues, pros and cons, etc about the LQ9's.


DM

keep searching and reading about the LQ swap for the F-body's. Everything you need to about the swap has been covered on these forums.

Ive got a 408 that I will sell. I had it built and had it in one of my cars. Very strong and guaranteed to run great. It may be out of your price range thou. I would need $6500 for the complete long block with heads and cam. PM me if interested.

Ive got a 408 that I will sell. I had it built and had it in one of my cars. Very strong and guaranteed to run great. It may be out of your price range thou. I would need $6500 for the complete long block with heads and cam. PM me if interested.

Thanks for the offer man, but that is waaaay out of my $$ range.


DM

I spun a bearing in my 98 and just bought a brand new LS6 longblock for $3104 with shipping from http://www.sdparts.com/ and even sold the oil pan on it for another one fifty off....now I just need someone to install it because I cant get ahold of the the guy that was going to. :(

One of the guys are selling a LS9 block with Ls9 steel crank and a Ls7 steel 4.0 stroke crank turned .010 .010 which comes with 8 Ls7 rods.

What would it take to make these work in my Bird? Would it be any more expensive that building a 408?


DM

*sigh* my condolences man. i just did the same thing yesterday.

forced upgrade time

I just saw a listing on craigslist for a wrecked 2000 silverado for $1000. You could even part some of the truck out to get some money back http://jacksonville.craigslist.org/search/pts?query=ls1&catAbbreviation=pts&minAsk=min&maxAsk=max

I just saw a listing on craigslist for a wrecked 2000 silverado for $1000. You could even part some of the truck out to get some money back http://jacksonville.craigslist.org/search/pts?query=ls1&catAbbreviation=pts&minAsk=min&maxAsk=max

Way to look out for a Bro! Thanks man, but I think I have it covered with a LQ9 with 12K on the clock ;)


DM

Ok good deal. Hope you get everything sorted out soon