LS1 conversion

[t-phoenix]

I've seen this topic before somewhere....but...ummm... I was watching youtube and someone successfully swap a LS1 engine into it 300zx. The question I wanna ask is which engine has more potential for power gain and which would take less money to get it there?

[legion]

I don't have the answer to your question, but I guess I will say it before evildky does...sell your NA and buy a TT lol

[t-phoenix]

lol

[Z32TT]

tt would be cheaper since it will bolt in with out any fab work really and you can still pull some great hp numbers wit tt

[t-phoenix]

tt would be cheaper since it will bolt in with out any fab work really and you can still pull some great hp numbers wit tt

I'm not that worried about the cost of the swap since now i can do it myself. i just wanna know which has the most potential in power gains with aftermarket parts.

[jedijeff123]

Proly the TT. i never saw the point in crate engine swaps. there is lots of potential power in the VG30DETT, all you need is the money.

[i_love_my_300zx]

Both engines will make power with the right parts and money. Both are very excellent powerplants with tons of aftermarket support. I have gravitated towards towards swapping an LS3 into the Z. Why? There is no replacement for displacement. The LS based engines are very stout. So is the VG, dont get me wrong. But the fact that you can take an LS engine, add simple bolt ons to improve its breathing for pennies compared to modding a VG and be able to put down impressive numbers has me hooked.I will probably get flamed for the above statement.To get any LS engine to fit, push the firewall back. Delete the AC plus heater core. I can live with this. Obviously, other things have to be done, such as transmission tunnel massaged, shifter linkage, custom driveshaft etc...

I also suggest you check out http://www.hybridz.org. Its is an excellent website to further research before you commit.

[t-phoenix]

koo... so whats a good price for a ls engine?? without emptying the back

[i_love_my_300zx]

A good price for a used LS2 is around 2500$. Obviously, year, mileage, components on the engine and LS series will greatly affect the price.

The type of LS you look for will affect the price. I would suggest you look at finding a wrecked donor. Here is a link from the hybrid section that will help. This will allow you to pull the wiring harness etc... to aid in the swap.zer...stion

[evildky]

I spent 1.5k on a "low miles JDM engine"200 on used turbo's1k rebuilding stock motor2k on sport 500'sanother 500 because my cores were unacceptable500 for injectors adapters and ecuanother 100 for a carrier bearinganother 300 for trans and engien mountsplus who knows how much other money I threw into that car, and for 3300 I could have had and LS and fabbed some simple moutnts, couple hundred for custom driveshaft and I woudl ahve low end torque instead of waiting for the sport 500's to spool

[zilla32sgt]

keep it JDM...TT all the way turbo spool sounds better than any V8 any day!! ppl already ruin FDs with the swaps....dont make it a norm with Zs too!! if ya really are cinsidering V8 power...try a nissan V8 :P keep it in the family! incest is best!

[nicknasser300z32]

if you wanted an LS1 you shoulda bought a TA or a camaro this is Nissan 300zx not a Chevy besides stock vs stock a ttz runs the same times as a camaro. turn it up to fifteen pounds and its 300z all the way. my friend stomped a cobra mustang with his stock 7lbs of boost ttz. now i can understand "there's no replacement for displacement..." except boost...

sorry if it sounds like i'm being critical i just love these cars and i think they should be respected and not put technology that hasn't been updated much since the 1950's in it

but i would give credit to my friends 1998 LS1 bored and boosted trans am...monstrous

sorry if i sounded like a d!ck

[zilla32sgt]

if you wanted an LS1 you shoulda bought a TA or a camaro this is Nissan 300zx not a Chevy besides stock vs stock a ttz runs the same times as a camaro. turn it up to fifteen pounds and its 300z all the way. my friend stomped a cobra mustang with his stock 7lbs of boost ttz. now i can understand "there's no replacement for displacement..." except boost...

sorry if it sounds like i'm being critical i just love these cars and i think they should be respected and not put technology that hasn't been updated much since the 1950's in it

but i would give credit to my friends 1998 LS1 bored and boosted trans am...monstrous

sorry if i sounded like a d!ck

tell it like it is!! sell the Z to someone who loves them, marry a redneck and go buy a comaro...FTW of all rednecks. YEE HAWW

[t-phoenix]

tell it like it is!! sell the Z to someone who loves them, marry a redneck and go buy a comaro...FTW of all rednecks. YEE HAWW

Ok? Well first off this is my second Z and I've been in love the Zs since I was a kid. I've also had a thing for covettes since I was a kid. I can't afford to buy a corvette but i can buy Zs and plan to by another. Thought would be cool to combine the two for my personal pleasure. Now, its my property and I can do with it as I please. But thanks for your concern and your passion for the Z car.

[i_love_my_300zx]

Go for it t-phoenix!To say that this is a bad swap, I disagree. Your taking an engine with: good hp out of the box, cheap, lighter than a VG, inexpensive to mod. In my eyes, very good option to the tt swap.Sure, some of the custom work will add up, but we all know how much money you have to put in your jdm engine to make it perfect. As well, I enjoy keeping things simple, because you ensure its reliability.

[t-phoenix]

Go for it t-phoenix!To say that this is a bad swap, I disagree. Your taking an engine with: good hp out of the box, cheap, lighter than a VG, inexpensive to mod. In my eyes, very good option to the tt swap.Sure, some of the custom work will add up, but we all know how much money you have to put in your jdm engine to make it perfect. As well, I enjoy keeping things simple, because you ensure its reliability.

Thanx bro.... my thoughts exactly. however, if and when i do the swap I'll be parting out the engine and anyone who wants or need parts, I'll keep you posted. But not to worry Z lovers I'll be buying a TT in the near future as well. this will just be my project car

[importfreak]

an NA 2 TT swap is really f***in expencive FYI and it takes a butt load of fab...

[sxracerb25]

I don't get all the negativity towards the LS1. LS1's or even LS2's are great platforms. If you can fab up the parts then it will be way cheaper than a TT swap. You won't need to mess with 2 turbos to potentially replace, or all the accessories that come with turbos. All the "oh chevy in a nissan! Blasphemy" stuff I think is pretty stupid. If it serves the same purpose, is cheaper, and has no disadvantages then why not? Not to mention that I'm sure the LS1 is probably a bit lighter than a VG with TT's. I say go for the LS1 if that's what you want. If I had the means to fab everything up I would probably go with LS1 instead of doing my swap.

[CALIKID]

keep it JDM...TT all the way turbo spool sounds better than any V8 any day!! ppl already ruin FDs with the swaps....dont make it a norm with Zs too!! if ya really are cinsidering V8 power...try a nissan V8 :P keep it in the family! incest is best!

He is right, a nissan v8 would be best. Ls1 may be cheap to upgrade in some areas,but ARE NOT near reliable as a nissan v-8. Research on a VH45 or even a VK56 if your pockets are deep. In the end you will be more satisfied with either of the two,ls1 wouldnt even be an option for me.

[sxracerb25]

Yea because Nissan V8's have huge aftermarket support lol. He's asking between a VG and a LS1, which is cheaper and which has better aftermarket support. I've never heard of anyone dog on the reliability of a LS1 either. Which the 2 choices he has listed (vg-tt or ls1) the LS1 would win on reliability hands down.

[tg]

yeah do a turbo vh45 swap :0 that would be alot more badass than a ls1 swap.

[SpartanZ32]

t-phoenix -

Ls1 swap all the way! I'm currently doing an LS1/t56 swap into my Z32 right now. In the past, you would have to hack up the firewall, delete your A/C, radio, and other dash functions, etc due to the Z32 steering rack sitting too high for the LSx engine to fit in properly.

BUT, I'm about 80% complete with a custom front subframe that will allow the LSx-series engines to bolt right in. I too am a Z enthusiast, and I HATE to see a perfectly good Z get hacked up. With my "kit", it will be a bolt-in affair and not ruin the Z.

Sooo, with that being said, feel free to shoot me any questions if you start the swap. HydridZ.org is a great resource as well. BRAAP, on eof the members has done an extensive write-up on fitment issues.

Good luck with the swap, and keep us posted. Dont let the naysayers get you down. Do what you want to do.

[i_love_my_300zx]

spartan!

Would you be able to post some pics of this subframe? Interested to see how it looks.

How much massaging did you have to do to get the t56 to fit? What did you do for the shifter linkage?

What mods do you have done to the LS1? What headers are you running?

[SpartanZ32]

spartan!

Would you be able to post some pics of this subframe? Interested to see how it looks.

How much massaging did you have to do to get the t56 to fit? What did you do for the shifter linkage?

What mods do you have done to the LS1? What headers are you running?

I'll post some pictures once it's done. Right now it's in a rough mock-up......I'll be having the final design (possibly tubular) built sometime before the end of summer.

The motor isn't even in the car yet. Haven't dealt with the shift linkage or the headers yet, but those things are just slight bumps in the road. The a$$-kicker has been the subframe itself.

I will say this. I will be using a low profile oil pan that Moroso makes....this seems to be the only one that will fit, without building a completely custom pan. As far as the t56 trans, I'm pretty confident that I will be able to use it as-is with little to no massaging of the trans tunnel. Worst case scenario, McLeod makes an LS1/T56 bellhousing that will give me some added clearance if needed.

So yeah, I'm really stoked about the possibilty of having a truly bolt-in LSx/T56 swap in to the Z32's!! Such a beautiful car and such a potent engine/trans combo will surely make an awesome car!!

If I get enough interest, I may start a build thread.

[t-phoenix]

t-phoenix -

Ls1 swap all the way! I'm currently doing an LS1/t56 swap into my Z32 right now. In the past, you would have to hack up the firewall, delete your A/C, radio, and other dash functions, etc due to the Z32 steering rack sitting too high for the LSx engine to fit in properly.

BUT, I'm about 80% complete with a custom front subframe that will allow the LSx-series engines to bolt right in. I too am a Z enthusiast, and I HATE to see a perfectly good Z get hacked up. With my "kit", it will be a bolt-in affair and not ruin the Z.

Sooo, with that being said, feel free to shoot me any questions if you start the swap. HydridZ.org is a great resource as well. BRAAP, on eof the members has done an extensive write-up on fitment issues.

Good luck with the swap, and keep us posted. Dont let the naysayers get you down. Do what you want to do.

I would love to see that frame work as well

[PyroTheGreen]

Would you be offering these "kits" for sale? Or possibly plans? I had given up on the idea of an LS1 swap, that may change if it becomes easier to install in my car.

[SpartanZ32]

Would you be offering these "kits" for sale? Or possibly plans? I had given up on the idea of an LS1 swap, that may change if it becomes easier to install in my car.

Yes, I'll probably build a few of the subframes and related parts needed once I get mine perfected. Keep in mind that it probably wont be completed until the end of the year.

Good things come to those who wait.

[Rex]

Check out a couple links to NICO'sHybrids and VH45DE sub-forums. People have done both LS and VH swaps with great success. Some have even boosted the V8's after the swap.

Personally, I won't get into a TT vs. LS vs. VH vs. UZ "discussion" as they all have their strong points. I'd just recommend you read some first hand experience and go from there.

Good luck.

[t-phoenix]

thanx i'll check it out

[jwbuba]

Hi, Looking to do a swap on my 1990 300zx with a LS2 from a GTO 2004 & T56. Did you ever make up subframes? If you did would like one, if not do have any pictures?