Progress Thread Akumu No Dara Ra's LSX swap and build Thread! Updated (2/10/22 @ 8:30PM CST)

[LILCBRA]

OR.... here's what you're looking for, but the ad's been up for over a month. $3500 for a 94 GT, manual transmission.

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Genius!!..............................................................................................................................

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

Or this one, which is more in line with what you've said you'd like to get. Again, it's not a GT, but it's only $1k as well....

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Unfortunately it's not a manual either......

I'm gonna say this once, nicely. I appreciate your help searching. I take anything posted on facebook for 1k (or 1234, etc) as a scrappable that doesn't run or doesn't run right

This is the one time I want a stick in my life.

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

And I have another question about that. If you're going to be swapping an 800hp engine into it, why would the transmission of the car you're going to be doing the swap in matter? It's gonna get shelled anyway. If it's just needing the clutch pedal assembly you should be able to get them from a salvage yard or Ebay or whatever.

I don't want to bother welding in or assembling pedals when I can have them already done. I'm not so flexible and with the mcleod hydraulic clutch conversion kit it's much easier. This is a wife/wife project and the only thing we're really going to send it 1out for is engine assembly and tuning. I want to drive the car as is for a while to make sure everything that needs to work does work.

From what I've got from the (month) of research, I'll be doing a LSx/T56 swap kit from Holley (less headers and exhaust cus we're doing a single turbo build and those would be superfluous). The goal is to piece everything together and then install everything all at once, then rent a truck and tow it to get tuned on a dyno. Which rear end is still a WIP but heavy lean towards a Ford 9" or built 8.8

 

[Mustang5L5]

Wow. That's the worst paint job i've ever seen. They didn't pull any trim or even the luggage rack off and just painted everything bright ass red.

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

Wow. That's the worst paint job i've ever seen. They didn't pull any trim or even the luggage rack off and just painted everything bright ass red.

agreed, but it's a good example of how little i care about the quality of the paint. Also i linked the automatic one FML.

 

[Mustang5L5]

OR.... here's what you're looking for, but the ad's been up for over a month. $3500 for a 94 GT, manual transmission.

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Genius!!..............................................................................................................................

That crease where the fender and front door meet make me think it got tapped on the nose at some point.

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

That crease where the fender and front door meet make me think it got tapped on the nose at some point.

True, Didn't see that part, blah. but as i said, i'm not too concerned about the outside or inside as long as the important bits are there and work. That car didn't pass anyway, owner never responded and there's loose wires in the front drivers side engine bay by the headlight.

 

[LILCBRA]

I'd expect you've probably run into this ad already since it's in your neck of the woods, but it seems to hit on everything you're asking for other than it's a V6. They're asking $2500.

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[Akumu No Dara Ra]

I'd expect you've probably run into this ad already since it's in your neck of the woods, but it seems to hit on everything you're asking for other than it's a V6. They're asking $2500.

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I've been looking at that one and it currently is at the top of the list. I just need to get in touch with the poster and get a ride there from my wife (I don't have a car currently, we're always together like two peas in a pod). Another car is not a need for us.

Driving with her is day to day because of her fibromyalgia so distnaces over an hour each way are already torture to her. We're less than 2 minutes off of 65 about 35 mins north of birmingham so there's not much really close. Huntsville is about an hour and is as far north as we can really go and that puts her out of commission for 2 days most of the time. I would argue that our range is Huntsville to Bessemer (North to South) and Trussville to Hueytown (East to West). If you drew a box that hit all of those points, one on each side, you'd have the range we can realistically get to at the moment.

I'm more interested in driving a v6 manual than a v8 auto, fwiw.

 

[General karthief]

Ok, I have to ask
why LS??

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

Ok, I have to ask
why LS??

Kind of a long story. I'll cliffnote it best i can

The extremely short version: Because it's tried and true and LS's are in my background. If I was going to do a ford powerplant i'd do a 5.0 and buy a factory one. Sadly my credit is kinda due to some issues with a medical bills and family drama. There's so much room in the 96-04 engine bays that a more compact engine with a ginormous set of turbochargers hidden just out of sight of the guy next to me just makes more sense out of the gate. (I also prefer the LS sound over the 4.6 and 5.0).

My father had every generation of Camaro until the 5th gens came out and the one that spoke to me most was the 2000 SS convertible. When i had a chance to buy my first car (After my learner accord which I managed to lose to a cab-over semi in), I wanted a trans am. I almost bought a WS6 but between the time the porter went to gas it up for the delivery and the time I saw the car, someone had rear ended the car so hard that the rear axle was sitting in the back seat. Luckily he was okay but the car was a total loss. The dealer's owner was a friend of the family good to me and searched for a month until they found another and was going to sell it at a thousand below cost (providing receipts and purchase agreements etc. for me). Sadly, I was so devastated that I couldn't pull the trigger again and ended up taking my money back. I ended up learning stick in a 2006 civic si that I bought brand new. 15 cars later I'm looking for the first project car I can both make my own and do almost all the work on, as well as say I built with my own blood sweat and tears. I guess i'm chasing my first love again in a roundabout way.

Also the first car I hooked up with someone in was an LS powered vehicle, so there's that...

 

[General karthief]

Why not put an LS in a chevy?
I ask only because I'm faithful to Ford although I like older muscle cars of all types, I call it 'brand centric' for lack of a better term.

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

From what I've gathered:

I could compile and post the research I've done if you want, but the shortest answer is that in the end, I'm going to spend more money building a 4.6 that can handle 800hp than I am swapping in a LS3. Nevermind the part where I'm slapping a set of twin turbskies on it- the LS3 can hold 800 hp easily, as it has been repeatedly pushed to 700+ wheel on stock bottom end. 500 wheel+ N/A has been done with bolt ons. cams, heads, and a tune more times than i can count. Since I'm looking at 800 as an engine horsepower number, I should easily be under 700 WHP. I can do all of this under $10,000 excluding the car which would be the same for either build. In the future when I inevitably want more, the LS is going to further prove it's value after I tear it apart for a forged rotating assembly rebuild. My first goal is 800hp, a longer term goal might be closer to 1000 wheel, but we're questioning the limits of streetability (and fate) at that point.

I could also do a larger single turbo setup and be all in ~$8k in parts, but then i sacrifice drivability.

 

[General karthief]

Can't argue with that

 

[nickyb]

Who you trying to fool General you know we can argue about anything,anytime,anywhere.

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

Who you trying to fool General you know we can argue about anything,anytime,anywhere.

My wife says i'd make a great lawyer but a better politician, since a politician isn't obligated to prove their opinion as fact.

 

[Noobz347]

Let's just stick to how awful it is to put a Chevy engine into a Ford and leave it at that.

That said, we have at least [one] LS conversion thread in this forum that I followed for a long time. Dude does awesome work.

It's karthief's job to remember which thread I'm talking about and post the link.

He got a fair amount of hate. You will too probably. His work was pretty amazing though. I think he installed twins?

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

Let's just stick to how awful it is to put a Chevy engine into a Ford and leave it at that.

That said, we have at least [one] LS conversion thread in this forum that I followed for a long time. Dude does awesome work.

It's karthief's job to remember which thread I'm talking about and post the link.

He got a fair amount of hate. You will too probably. His work was pretty amazing though. I think he installed twins?

Believe me, I'm a lesbian and I live in rural alabama- I'm 100% sure i can handle a bunch of car guys giving me about "things that don't belong" or whatever.

"I just know what i like"

At the end of the day it's cheaper to slap a LS in a new edge than it is to convert a 98-02 v6 fireird to a LS. The entry point is roughly the same too.

 

[Noobz347]

Believe me, I'm a lesbian and I live in rural alabama- I'm 100% sure i can handle a bunch of car guys giving me about "things that don't belong" or whatever.

"I just know what i like"

At the end of the day it's cheaper to slap a LS in a new edge than it is to convert a 98-02 v6 fireird to a LS. The entry point is roughly the same too.

Me too. Only, I'm trapped in a man's body. Extraneious.


I do, however, see how potent the LS platform is. I have two Chevys, one of them is a factory 6.2L Twin-Screw. I also have different requirements for my Mustang. I'm not trying to pull any 6-second quarter miles although it is also a pushrod and also has a Twin-Screw. As it is it's scary enough. I couldn't imagine another 300+ HP/TQ. Not on the street at least.

You're going to need all of that suspension stuff I mentioned earlier. All of it... Just call them up and tell them to send it all.

 

[Akumu No Dara Ra]

Me too. Only, I'm trapped in a man's body. Extraneious.


I do, however, see how potent the LS platform is. I have two Chevys, one of them is a factory 6.2L Twin-Screw. I also have different requirements for my Mustang. I'm not trying to pull any 6-second quarter miles although it is also a pushrod and also has a Twin-Screw. As it is it's scary enough. I couldn't imagine another 300+ HP/TQ. Not on the street at least.

You're going to need all of that suspension stuff I mentioned earlier. All of it... Just call them up and tell them to send it all.

I love me my twin screws and I'm not gonna say it hasn't been an enticing option- I put a 1.46L twin screw on top of my old FRS and that made some glorious noises. On 215/40/17s it was a burnout machine until 3rd gear and even then i could break em loose if the road wasn't hot and completely dry.

the LSA and LS9 are rediculously fun motors and they're a riot to drive. that said i'm sure i could build an LS3 to do 1400 hp or more when faced with the up front cost of a running LSA and don't even get me started about the LS9.

The only car that has ever scared me was my buddy's 9 second STI swapped WRX. It was scary because of the awful suspension so it bounced like a horse in a pogo jump competition.