wicks

After being out of cars for 3 years my wife insist me to get another project. I have made up my mind and decided to go with a 3rd gen lq4 swap. I want to keep everything fuel injected. As I am doing research I still havent came across the question what is the best donor car for this swap. I been looking around my area at 3rd gens plenty out there I just want to find the right foundation.
Should I get a v8 car that way the suspension will hold the weight of the v8 or does it matter due to replacing the kmember. What was the best years for factory suspension and braking? I plan to make this my dd after everything is complete. I miss the power of the v8 and my current dd get around the same mileage as the lq4 or ls1 so thats not a factor. Also will z28 cars have a better rear end as v6 or base v8. I due apologize for the noob questions I just want to start with the right foundation. Sorry if this is the wrong section to post this. Thanks for your time

krazeefewl

iTrader: (1)

First off, congratulations on having a wife that insists you get a new project. My wife gives me a hard time about having only one.

Although there are a lot of differences an options in these cars from 82-92. You will most likely want to upgrade most everything on the car. i.e. suspension, braking, rear end. That being said I think the most important thing is finding a good foundation. The car should be as rust free and straight as possible. So the other things you mention aren't as important seeing as you're not trying to restore to an original condition. Body styling did change a few times in the 10 years. and finding bumpers/ground effects can be hard to do and expensive If you want to change the styling of the car. So i would find a body style you prefer and start from there.

The suspensions on these cars are actually quite good from factory. But there are many options out there for upgrades. Weight Jacks, Air Ride, Koni's, etc...

Braking is generally a weak area for these cars. Many upgrade to LS1 Brakes or C4 Brakes which are significantly better and not too cost intensive. If you really want to go all out and spend a lot of money there are some high dollar options as well. C6 Z06, CTS-V, Brembos, Wilwoods, etc..

Rearends Most came with 9-bolts or 10-bolts, 9 bolts are marginally better, but but cost significantly more to rebuild and are hard to find parts for. Although some have put high horsepower to these rearends most recommend upgrading to a better one. There have been a lot of Ford 9'', 12-bolts, Dana 44's and even some S60's installed in some.

What it really comes down to is how fast you want to go, how responsive/adjustable you want your suspension, how fast you want to stop, and most importantly...How much you want to spend.

sofakingdom

iTrader: (1)

2014.

Can't go back and do it in the past; and no sense waiting til next year or more.

Seriously, newer is generally better, although you might want to avoid the ones that are so new that they have the displacement-on-demand "feature".

Donors are limited; 2500 series trucks, Escalades, etc. Doesn't too much matter how many cupholders the sheet metal had that wrapped the motor originally. Basically it is what it is, don't worry about what it came out of, beyond, maybe predicting what condition it's likely to be in.

LQ9 is a bit better motor than LQ4 but not all that much different.

wicks

Thanks for the quick responds. Ya my wife is pretty awesome she misses my maverick so I think thats why she wants me to do another. I thought about the lq9 but I noticed higher compression which I plan to maybe squeeze a power adder into the budget. My goal is to keep the build under $18k. that is why I was asking about the stock parts could be reused, this project will take me probably a year due to saving money. My goal is to have a stock looking 3rd gen but can outrun a 03-04 terminator. I love the factory rims on 92.

okfoz

Technically 89-92 with the 4 wheel disc brakes probably had the best braking, there was a midyear 89 change that improved the brakes even more. With the power-swap, I would definately consider contacting someone, either hawksthirdgenparts.com, or baer brakes for upgraded fronts, and rears if you don't get the large rear brakes from the get-go. One thing to consider, if you go with an earlier, 82-88 with the 10.5" brakes on all corners, and you have all the same sized brakes, say 12" on all corners, there is a greater chance of not needing to replace the proportiong valve. BUT if you got a later car with the larger rear brakes, you might want to change your prop valve with larger front brakes.

Typically yes, I think they may have been a bit more beefy, but if you are just DD ing it, and really don't smash the throttle all the time, you should be ok, Z28 is going to have better suspension from the get-go...
We will forgive you.

Homer23

Another option to look at would be T-tops. For less headaches, you will want to go with a hatchback car. T-top weatherstripping is not cheap. Depending on your starting budget, you will want to go with a Z28 or Trans Am for the best suspension, but suspension and brakes should still be upgraded.

okfoz

I would also suggest subframe connectors,

Gregs_GSXR

check out Scott at bigbrakeupgrades.com he is very easy to contact, does great work and is fast.

v6 cars are cheaper to start off with, and even with an iron block, I still had to cut a coil on my old stock v6 front springs with the new lq4 5.3 block with the auto trans in it, remember the ls blocks are lighter then the old sbc stuff. I have eibach sport springs in there now and it doesn't sit low enough, so come spring I may take them out and cut a half a coil maybe a full coil, but Im trying to let the springs "settle" a bit before I do any cutting.

cam-

Third gens are all basically the same in terms of performance potential in stock trim theres not huge differences worth considering over the main criteria, the only criteria that really you should focus on at this stage. Get the most rust free, complete, stock, unmodified car you can find and start there. In the end the build will be a lot better. If your going to be on a tight budget? Then maybe look for one that has a lot of stuff on it you can re-use ( diff upgrade, suspension, brakes etc ) but expect to have to go through these parts and freshen as nec.

As for the ls engine starting point? Theres no bad ones, only some that offer more power potential than others. 99 and older engines especially have some quirks that can make life more difficult so id look for a 2000+ and cap that search off at 2006. After 06 they went to a 58x reluctor and a whole new management system that flat out SUCKS for swaps. Meaning its ten times more difficult, will always have "issues" you cannot change ( hard coding int the ECM etc ) so stick with a 24x LS and go.

Now if your budget is a bit bigger? Then buy a fresh short that has some cubes and run the Holley engine management system. Does it all, lots of support, but its pricey

QwkTrip

iTrader: (22)

It's not THAT hard to use a newer engine.

I have a newer engine. I swapped in a 24x reluctor ring and am using a LS1 F-body harness and engine controller with cable throttle body. LS1 knock sensors go into side of the block instead of the top valley. You can either get LS1 injectors to use with the LS1 wire harness, or you can do what I did and use late model injectors and change the connectors on the harness. Late model injectors are superior with faster response and easier to tune idle with big cams.

Later model engines come with rectangle port heads that will make more power that cathedral heads, stock vs. stock. If you spend money on ported heads then I don't think it matters if you use cathedral or rectangle port as long as the correct camshaft is used with each type of heads. Other advantage of newer heads is the manifolds and superchargers for LS3 will bolt on.

cam-

Sure its doable. Plenty of them out there. But for a first time swap? Tough road... Or pricey. Plug and play is available but it aint cheap.

Swapping reluctors is the way to go for ease, but might as well buy a fresh built short with one already in there, it'll cost similar. The genIV stuff is really only worth it with the square port heads and those drop outs are PRICEY! For the 5.3, 4.8L genIV stuff? Sure its good materials but it is a LOT harder to swap over than a cable driven 24x is imo. No real power advantage over the older stuff either so its like asking for more work, for no extra reward for it.

OP as you can see there are plenty of ways to skin the cat here. Seeing as your under the watchful eye of the cookie jar boss, its a lot easier to advise some direction when we know what your willing to spend. Got budget?

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

Swapping a 24x reluctor and using a ls2 1x cam gear do allow an older control system on the newer platform, but the crank change turns a lot of people off

On a good engine, I'd use the ligenfelter conversion box. If the engine needs an overhaul, sure swap the parts

cam-

I've noticed a lot of complaints about that Lingenfelter box. Mostly about heat and bricking up. Just wanted to mention in case anyone thinks yay solved, its not as perfectly easy as that. But it sure is nice to have options.

Pocket your spot on. Soon as anyone hears "tear the crank out" they run for the hills. Seems most guys just want a yard drop out, to drop in as easy as possible and for that? Its still tough to argue against a true 4th gen LS1 complete drop out. It really is the closest thing you can get to fit well, and wire easy ( same as any other 24x cable tb easy that is )

QwkTrip

iTrader: (22)

Ya, I guess I took it for granted about the 24x reluctor because a stroker kit was going in my engine at the same time, so engine was already opened up.

cam-

Another thing worth noting is a lot of guys are having issues with the OEM 24x reluctor wheels themselves when swapping them over. They can be "fixed" by carefully welding them but they need to run true, the window for error is small. I cant recall the runout specs but it is tight. If in doubt and swapping reluctors? Get an aftermarket one pc billet