Conversions & Hybrids - '78 Malibu Motor Poll

Well I have had my '78 bu just chilling in my garage in pieces for the 6 or 7 years and this winter I'm going to start hacking up the frame and begin the long process of putting the pieces back together.

But I'm still up in the air about my motor choice. The car is going to be pro-touring, its going to be low on big wheels with big brakes, full cage, yeah yeah yeah you know how it goes. I have always been planning on doing a big inch Big Block chevy, but now with all of the LS series motors and the potential they have I'm kinda wanting to do an LS motor for obvious reasons.

I have a mildly built 454 lined up and can probably get it for under $300, then I'd have to find an LTX 6 speed and start the swap and get a flywheel ad stay carberauted and have alot less headachs about wiring.

Now on the other hand I could find an LS motor on the forums or ebay and have a lighter platform and the potential to have that old school BB power. The downside to this is I would have to build the motor or do a turbo setup to get the power levels where I want them.

The car is old school (well to me since I'm 24) and I kind of want to keep the BB idea in place rather then go a newer route, but let me know what you think......

It will be kinda hard to beat a $300 454,but if your like me I've done the big block thing plenty of times and am ready to do ls stuff.You can find a l92 pretty reasonable if you look hard enough and with a little head work and a cam make 500 hp.while taking 300 lbs.off your front end.If you want to save money go with an iron block and still save 200lbs.You can go with a carbed setup without too many wiring problems although I would rather have f.i. if you go ls.Big blocks are hard to beat for raw power but the ls does a lot of things well.

It will be kinda hard to beat a $300 454,but if your like me I've done the big block thing plenty of times and am ready to do ls stuff.You can find a l92 pretty reasonable if you look hard enough and with a little head work and a cam make 500 hp.while taking 300 lbs.off your front end.If you want to save money go with an iron block and still save 200lbs.You can go with a carbed setup without too many wiring problems although I would rather have f.i. if you go ls.Big blocks are hard to beat for raw power but the ls does a lot of things well.

I completely agree with you. And I know that this board will be pretty bias, but thats fine. The big block will have aluminum heads so it will be a little ligter, but I know that the LS motor will have a huge benefit there. And if I go LS route it will stay injected, not carbed.

If I go LS route it would probably be a 6.0 with TSP heads and cam and supporting mods. But the car is going to be a 6 speed either way. And I have never owned a BB or driven one for that matter and it would make my dad happy if I went that route LOL so I don't know. With all of the LSX swaps being done I'd love to do another, but I never plan on selling the car so I can always do a motor swap down the road if the mod strikes me :D

HAHA you guys are killin me LOL I can get a mild BB for about $300 and your telling me to go LS. I guess I'll have to see what happens :D

Umm.. what did you expect the people on LS1tech to say? ;)

Go with a Stroker LS and match the power of a BBC, and then get double the gas mileage..:nod:

The easiest IMO is a 402.. 6.0l Iron Block and a 4" Crank/6.125 Rods, just have to clearance the Oil Pan and that's it. That's what I built and it's a pretty nasty setup.

I would get a 555 if I had it to do over..........

Umm.. what did you expect the people on LS1tech to say? ;)

HAHA yeah I said the same thing above. But in a serious note I waas browsing ebay and came across alot of GTO motors with trannies for about $4-5k What are the thoughts on the GTO motors? I'd like to stay iron block since it seems like alot of guys are swapping over to them anyway and I'm not looking to save a bunch of weight

ive seen many a big block boo. but never a LS based one

Get out of Yonkers........

Not gonna lie I would do a big block. Cheap Iron head Iron block BBC on a big kit would run like a mother fucker.

I'd stick with the big block.

ive seen many a big block boo. but never a LS based one

GM 8.1l, Vortec 8100 Series..




Hell..go all out and get the Katech 500ci LS7..:drool:

Well the plan for the car is a pro-touring based car so probably 14" front brakes, 13" rears, 18s all around (probably 10" front and 12" rears with a nice fat lip ) rack and pinion steering, full roll cage, boxed and braced chassis, tubular upper and lower front arms, coil overs at all 4 corners, bare bones interior, all go and mabye a little show LOL

So basically the LS series motor would fit in nicely since nothing else is going to be even close to stock. The only downside is coming up with $5,000 to just get the motor/tranny and then tear into it and modify it more. But I'd do the same thing with the BB, but I can get the motor and tranny for about $1,500 and go from there.

Either way I look at it, its going to be expensive but I plan on building the car over the next few years and do EVERYTHING myself, except the machining on the motor if there is any.

But the 8.1 would be kind of cool, but they are kind of poochie IMO, but thats in a big truck so in a car it would probably get it pretty good.

Ahhhhh to many choices :)

I can never understand people who talk about putting tens of thousands into a build then compromise the basic motor choice to save a few bucks. Figure out what you want to do, develop a plan and stick to it.

GTO motors are 6.0L LS2 motors. Great starting point for any swap IMO. I like the 402 suggestion. That would be a balls on car.

By the way, 18's are all show and slow go. If you want to go fast get something with less rotating mass.

GTO motors are 6.0L LS2 motors.

Minor point, but 2004s are LS1.

I can never understand people who talk about putting tens of thousands into a build then compromise the basic motor choice to save a few bucks. Figure out what you want to do, develop a plan and stick to it.

GTO motors are 6.0L LS2 motors. Great starting point for any swap IMO. I like the 402 suggestion. That would be a balls on car.

By the way, 18's are all show and slow go. If you want to go fast get something with less rotating mass.

So a built aluminum headed big inch (over 500 CI) big block is a basic motor choice huh? I'm not saying that your wrong, but each motor is going to be expensive in its own way. And the 18s thing :rolleyes: so adding 1" of diameter to the wheels to get a tire with a little less sidewall and adding just a little more weight than a 17 is all show. Have you seen thses malibus?? They are a big car and putting a 17 with a fatter sidewall to make everything look right I'd rather give up a little handeling with more rotating weight to have everything flow better if you understand where I'm coming from.

You don't like it don't post here anymore, my plan for the past 6 years or so was to do a big block car, so I'm having a hard time changing my mind. And if I were to go with a GTO motor it would have to be the 6.0.

If you don't want opinions don't ask for them. More importantly, don't laugh at or berate people for giving you what you asked for.

And yes, 18 inch wheels give up performance compared to a 15 or 16 inch wheel. There is this thing called moment of inertial. It is not so much the total weight as it is concentrating the weight farther out from the axle. Same reason people pay big money for lighter flywheels. You have to pump a bunch of energy into just getting the bling bling wheel turning, then turn all that rotating energy into brake heat to get the wheels to stop.

But hey, sounds like you already know what you want and you're just trolling for people to agree with you. Stop posting and build it already.

A $300 454 with an assload of spray sounds good :D

If you don't want opinions don't ask for them. More importantly, don't laugh at or berate people for giving you what you asked for.

And yes, 18 inch wheels give up performance compared to a 15 or 16 inch wheel. There is this thing called moment of inertial. It is not so much the total weight as it is concentrating the weight farther out from the axle. Same reason people pay big money for lighter flywheels. You have to pump a bunch of energy into just getting the bling bling wheel turning, then turn all that rotating energy into brake heat to get the wheels to stop.

But hey, sounds like you already know what you want and you're just trolling for people to agree with you. Stop posting and build it already.

Apparently you don't understand. If I were building a drag car then yes I would want some 15" wheels, but when my plans include listing brakes that are 14" then I'm pretty sure that no 15 or 16" wheel will fit over them. Do you even know what a pro-touring car is??? Its not a drag car on 15s, sorry. I realize how the physics work with the weight of wheels and how it affects acceleration, braking, and handling. And I'm also open to different motor choices, hence why I have been looking at GTO motors. I know that each has some advantages and was looking for some good USUABLE info to help me decdide what route to go with and you come in here and start crying about how some people throw a build away by doing something that you apperently do agree with. Right now getting a BB would save me money, obviously since it can be had for about $300, but then you add a forged bottom end, machining, custom cam, intake, carb, adapting a tranny to work and everything else there is to getting a stout motor and I could have had a stock 6.0 LS2 with a tranny that I could simply drop in the car, wire up and its ready to go. But that wouldn't be good enough so I'd have to modify that too. See where I'm going?

Thanks for your opinion, or aguement

A $300 454 with an assload of spray sounds good :D

Yeah, but I want the big block power all the time, not just when I push a button :D I may buy the motor just to have it, but I think the 'Bu build is going LS2 with some bolt-ons and a good suspension setup, then it will get a stroker or boost eventually. But I'm still researching :engarde:

Hell, if I were you I'd:
1. Install "$300 mildly built 454"
2. Install a fucking wild camshaft, something that barely idles
3. Spray the shit out of it
4. Run some low 11's
5. Blow up "$300 mildly built 454"
6. Build a 427 Iron block LSx, designed to take a shit load of nitrous that you've already set up for your previously fragged $300 motor.
7. Do all those crazy ass mods like the big brakes, big wheels, trick suspension, etc.

With the $300 motor, you have the oppurtinity to make a very quick, very cheap drag car. It might not last very long with massive amounts of nitrous, but who the hell cares, if you've got less than $1000 in the motor. Swapping in a carbed BBC would be a cake walk in that Monte, considering they had big block option from the factory.

Hell, if I were you I'd:
1. Install "$300 mildly built 454"
2. Install a fucking wild camshaft, something that barely idles
3. Spray the shit out of it
4. Run some low 11's
5. Blow up "$300 mildly built 454"
6. Build a 427 Iron block LSx, designed to take a shit load of nitrous that you've already set up for your previously fragged $300 motor.
7. Do all those crazy ass mods like the big brakes, big wheels, trick suspension, etc.

With the $300 motor, you have the oppurtinity to make a very quick, very cheap drag car. It might not last very long with massive amounts of nitrous, but who the hell cares, if you've got less than $1000 in the motor. Swapping in a carbed BBC would be a cake walk in that Monte, considering they had big block option from the factory.


Yeah I know I could have a good running car for cheap that could probably break into the 10s or run low 11s. Its a little too new for a BB option, but these is plenty of room under the hood for it :D

LSX All the way.

LSX All the way.

:D I wish I had the coin to be able to just buy an LSX motor LOL But I think I'm going LS2 for the build, iron block and tons of potential :secret2: