heidihi

I know most of you will say ls6 just cause of more power from it.. but hear me out..

Im not looking for a total race machine.. more of a good mileage reliable fun street car.. i will not build up either motor any.. except maybe a stock rebuild back to oem just to freshen it up.. but anyways.. which would you chose? and why?

LS6 i know flat out will get me in the high 11's since the ls1 models seem to be darn near there in stock FD's so the ls6 will def get ya there cause its another what 50hp?

LS1 will still be plenty fast and get a few more mpg out of it.. swap otherwise is the same.. im just debating is the lil extra power worth the fuel mileage wven tho its not much diiferent.. if you were in my shoes which would u choose and why?

also each would be attached to a t56 transmisison..

Karl573

If I were in your shoes I would probably choose the LS1; your needs seem more in favor of it over the LS6.

turbogarrett

iTrader: (1)

Your best bang for the buck is going to be a ls1 pullout from a fbody. Ls6 heads and cams can be had for $300-400 if you want a little more power.

oo7arkman

iTrader: (2)

Is the gas milage really THAT significant between the two? My thought is that you would be happy with the LS1, but a few months, years, whatever may wish you would have gone ahead and dropped the LS6 in it and to go back and do the change is a bit of work and less cost effective than just dropping it in originally... I doubt the gas milage is of any realy significance between the two and you would always have the extra power should you want it and if you don't you simply keep your foot out of it a bit more.
My vote is for the LS6.
-Noah-

KaoticFdR1

i'd get a ls1 pull out of an FBody since you get everything that you need just with that....an LS6 will require you to source all the parts etc etc. That Extra 50hp can be had cheaper with just a cam swap than what you would be spending on the LS6 "logo". There's nothing wrong with the ls6...however i chose to do the LS1 route myself.

heidihi

thanks guys.. i was juts like hmm which would be the better route.. i mean your right if i ever do need any more power i can get it with simple bolt ons, or a cam swap.. and if i want to go crazy i can but i just have no reason to go for crazy power for a street car.. 350whp should be all id ever need really.. expecially with the torque it will produce! and dont forget about the 25mpg setup

Rookie84

350whp? Go with LS1, get a cam, get it tuned, and be done with it. You don't even need headers for 350whp.

heidihi

i understand.. im thinking LS1 with minor bolt ons such as headers, a mild cam, and cold air intake will be all that is needed to break the 11's and do exactly my goals.

owen is fat

LS1.
leave it all stock too, you will still be shredding tires with the 6spd stock LS1 setup in any FC.
get it built and on the road and then ponder your mods but a stock LS1 in an FC can take you over 180mph and easily get you into a lot of trouble at high Gs.

cozmo kraemer

The LS1, as long as you get a 2001 or a 2002 model year, is only heads and a cam away from being an LS6 in terms of power.

The LS6 isn't really worth the extra money...and usually LS6s don't come with trannies and this is a problem. The tranny is pricey and difficult to source by itself without going to someone like 6speedsinc. and getting a new rebuilt unit.

Go with an Fbody LS1/t56 pullout from an 01 or 02...

classicauto

iTrader: (3)

I love rotarys.......

But good gawd I love torque.

Sorry, was just oot and aboot in a customer's C6 Z06 today. ****.

heidihi

just a q but has anyone installed a supercharger with there ls1 in a FD yet? ive seen turbos but no SC anyone?

cozmo kraemer

I know of a couple procharger cars. Not worth it really. The LSx NA can put down more power than you can put to the ground ... unless this is a total drag only, full slick, type deal. More power? Cam/heads can get you to 440 or so whp on the 5.7....FAST 90/90 setup might get you another 15-20 on top of that...want more than that? just go more cubes...it is the same size block...LS2 can get you over 500whp...LS3 stroked with cam/heads can get to nearly 600whp.

IF this is a drag thing... Build the fuel system and throw a 150 shot on your 440whp LS1 and you have a near 600hp beast... The LSx series takes nitrous pretty well.

Plenty of options without the space hassle and mounting problems of turbo and supercharger. That is, unless it is bling factor...

heidihi

i understand i was just thinking to keep the mileage the best it can be but still have a load of power when needed.. that was my only reason..

sunburn

yes... I'm going LS1 as well

good advice.

heidihi

so on a stock ls1, if i do a mild cam, roller rockers, intake with tb, and full exhaust with headers.. could i be looking at around 380hp at the wheels? and also keep excellent fuel mileage meaning over 20mpg?

burtoncr

Yup. Or just get a stock LS2 from a GTO and you're done.

heidihi

thought about a ls2 but the throttle issue bothers me for fabbing.. cause i have to do something with my pedals and stuff.. so i was thinking mild built ls1 cause of that.. but i would rather have a full oem engine first.

Brismo7

iTrader: (2)

First off, if your overly concerned with gas milage, this isnt a car for you. I basically only drive my car to and from work, with a small trip(less than 100 miles) on the weekends, and i'm spending over $300 a month on gas. It gets good gas milage(on the highway), but its hard to stay out of the throttle. I'm at the pump every 5 days when i drive as conservatively as possible, and remember, these engines only drink premium.

as for the ls6 vs ls1. I have a 99 based engine. Ls1 intake, 2002 stock cast iron exhaust manifolds, and besides the 228/230 cam, EVERYTHING is stock. ( i upgraded the valve springs and oil pump and lifters, but those only add reliability, not HP). I got my car tuned on a dyno dynamics Dynometer(which are known to rate hp notoriously low, but are a great tool. google it.) and i dyno'd at 356rwhp. Which is about the same as an Ls6 at the wheels. So take it for what its worth.

Here is where I say to take Cozmo's advice with a grain of salt. (and this isnt to bash him. I actually look forward to meeting Cozmo in a couple weeks at Seven Stock and SNS) BUT IMO, if you want a mere 400RWHP go with a Ls6 intake, head/cam/header combo and be done with it. The engine be run great for a long time.

If for some reason you need 450+ RWHP. Go supercharged. A D1SC on a bone stock ls1 will produce 450RWHP at 6 or 8psi.

I personally think if your going to invest that much money into a High HP N/A (stressed out) engine, its going to be cheaper and less stress on the engine to just go SC in the begining. You'll have some issues you need to work out like heat and mounting, but its been done and not impossible. Plus later on you can make huge numbers by buildiing up the engine with heads and fast 90/90 setup

Also, you can get an Ls2, throw on an ls1 mechanical Throttle body and use a throttle cable to solve that issue.

These are just my opinions and usually dont mean sqaut

cozmo kraemer

I said all that because he doesn't have the engine yet. If he did, had a 346, and wanted 450+ then...FI is probably your best bet. With his posts though, I think supercharger isn't what he is after, maintaining the good driveability of the lower stressed engine and having the high power punch when you want it sounds like someone whom should go Nitrous as their form of FI. Seriously. You could build the fuel system for pretty cheap, get a good Nitrous setup and have a plenty powerful car when you wanted, for relative reliability.

If you want the power all the time and dont already have the engine. Spend the money on the front end and pick up a nice LS2-3 setup. An LS2 at 450whp isn't really stressed. An LS3 is barely even working.

That is what I would do. Heck a brand new LS3/t56 is <10K. If you get a mid mileage LS1/T56 + all the hassle of adding FI, you are most likely nearing $10K... Just get the new engine from the start, it will be a WAY better decision in the long run.

That is how I see it. If I wanted more than the 400whp (what my little LS1 can make and stay in it's 'mild mods' stage.) I would have went Gen IV. But my car is a road course car, so I really have no need for more power than I already have... (although the other benefits of the Gen IV engines would be nice)

Sevenstock will be a lot of fun! I'll see ya there.

heidihi

yeah i dunno.. ls2 or 3 is sweet idea.. but the cash dang I dont have that much.. i was thinking stock ls1 for now, and over the course of a year add parts here and there..

Brismo7

iTrader: (2)

This **** isnt cheap. I got over 6k tied into my motor/trans setup and i have "the shitty 1999" ls1 with only a cam. I paid about $4500 for the engine/trans, and another $1500 for my cam swap(with all the reliability goodies). That does start to include the price of exhaust work and other things. It also cost me about $50 to change my own oil.

Ls1 is not a super cheap redneck motor. But its sooo worth it.

Cozmo, good post.

heidihi

i agree man! it wont be cheap and im gathering parts and engine now! and i plan to actually put things together this fall/winter so money isnt a issue..

well it is an issue but i can absorb most of it over 3-4 months rather than a huge hit at once like the parts and enging/trans will be.. im sure ill need nick nacks here and there and thats just all fun of building something up. right??

Meola

I know someone that just spent over $10K swapping a LS2 into a FD apparently there is a bit of fabrication work, but the main killer is the engine. The LSx line is by far not a cheap engine, when I was looking at a LS1 swap on my miata the engine alone was starting base at about $6K for a crate engine. I would say put a large single turbo on your rotary and have fun, unless you are craving a ton of low end torque, but thats just my two cents on it.

cozmo kraemer

Been there....done that... LS1 and comparable power levels is a lot cheaper and more user friendly, wish I had done it prior to the single, but hindsight is 20/20.

Heck, I sold most of my single turbo parts for about 80% of the LS1 build cost and that was selling them at a BIG discount to what I paid for them. My LS1 will put down only about 30-40 or so less whp, but MUCH more torque...and it is basically stock. Just think about that for a second... Single turbo is a LOT of headaches. Especially tuning!!! And you have to constantly worry. At least I did...and I built my car right. You can search my posts if you would like.