LS swap

[ls1nova71]

Originally Posted by Charles wright

I guess I should have said this is a pretty solid low optioned 350 auto fleet side truck. No body work done and very little rust. I have the option of using a motor setup lt1 from a 94 roadmaster with 67,ooo original miles and a 97 ls motor with 86,000 miles. I have both complete vehicles for the swap. Just trying to find out if it is worth the trouble.

Unless this is out of a Corvette, it's not an LS, or else the year is wrong...

Originally Posted by Mike C

IMO, the later model motor swap is a great value when you score and use all of the late model features. Specifically the fuel injection but more importantly the integrated computer controlled transmission.

In terms of value, a hot rod is hard to price. It's worth what someone is willing to pay at that time. It may be a guy who hates FI and is willing to pay more. Or it could be the guy who hates carbs and that's what he wants.

If you are building the truck for any other reason than that is what YOU want then you are likely to be let down in many ways.

^^^ This is pretty spot on. I would say if you're thinking of doing the swap purely to make the truck worth more, then I would advise against it. If you are planning on keeping the truck and want to make it more drivable, then yes, go for it. But swapping it just to make a buck usually isn't going to happen unless you are really good at it, and it sounds like it would be your first swap, so you would be running into hurdles you cant forsee. Unless the swap is very cleanly done, a lot of potential buyers are going to be wondering how reliable the truck is going to be and if something goes wrong with it, will they be able to track down someone's cobbled up mess. If you're going to have to pay someone to do a lot of the work, then there's almost no way you will recoup your money, so that has to be accounted for too. Also, don't believe everything you read on the internet. I see the quotes of "a swap can be done for $2500" all the time, and although that is a true statement, it almost never happens unless you have either done the swap many times, or get really lucky and get your engine free by parting out a whole truck.

The other side of the coin though, if you are building it for yourself, and you do the work yourself, then you will know how to fix any problem that may arise. LS swaps are great for economy and drivability. No pumping the gas to get them to start, and temperature and altitude doesn't affect them so they are always the same, pretty much what everybody is used to these days. There are pros and cons to both. I prefer swaps, but have a buddy who prefers bone stock, so there's really no one answer, it's your truck, do what you want.