Problems with 1998 LS1's?

[vannatte]

I can never see myself doing any internal upgrades. I'll just be doing bolt-ons, headers, exhaust, and a tune. I shouldn't have anything to worry about then.

[Justin23454]

well somebody just said they had a single exhaust... and 99+ didn't.

For the WS6

[M-Ten]

oh.. gotcha

[VTR99]

watch your oil level, and don't spin the motor real high.

The two killers of any engine are not changing the oil often enough, and revving them too high. Not changing oil causes bearing wear which makes the tolerances sloppy. Once this happens it's only a matter of time before you spin a bearing, or something fails. High rpms will cause a motor to fail faster than any other single thing. I spent nearly 10 years drag racing, and over revving an engine takes it's toll very fast. You see a lot of young kids constantly revving engines in neutral, and this really wears em' out fast. You are far better off saving using those revs for times when the engine is under load, and make sure you don't hold the engine at high RPMs for very long.

[VTR99]

The 98 had weaker rod bolts and typically hold about 450HP at the crank before they shit on you. The ws6's were the only ones that had a single exhaust. (OOTL) "One on the left". Nothing to be scared of considering that all of the LS1 years had fairly weak rod bolts. Just upgrade to ARP 2000 or if your looking for serious HP, L19's. You can get eagle forged rods with ARP 2000 rod bolts for 499.99. GOOD INVESTMENT

If you plan to push the engine to it's limits, and have upgraded the cam and heads, it's probably a good idea to go with ARP rod bolts. For most of us with external mods the stock rod bolts will do fine. Again, I have seen no evidence that the 98', or any other LS1 motors had weak rod bolts, or any other major problems. I know there are quite a few supercharged LS1s on the road with stock bottom ends, and tons of miles on them.

[yellowv]

My 98' just turned 111,000 miles and is running like a champ. I got it at 98,000 miles about 6 months ago did a full tune up on it right away and then started modding. I have not had a problem with it. Change the oil every 3000 and it doesn't burn a drop in between.

[vannatte]

I just got back from looking at a 1998 Trans Am. I was disappointed to find out that it had the 2.73's (GU2). It has 145,000 miles, but the engine and tranny seemed to be running flawlessly. It has the typical issues slow windows, noisey headlights, and the power antenna was loud as hell. Also, the A/C wasn't blowing cold, so it could've just needed a charge or maybe it was something more. I can probably get it for $5000 (which is about my budget because I'm looking to pay cash), but I'm worried it will just turn into a huge headache. He said the fluids were all changed regulary and all the maintenance was performed, but it was very dirty on the inside. I'm waiting on some Carfax results until I make my final decision. Any opinions?

[M-Ten]

personally i would never buy a car that had 145k on it.. if you do hopefully nothin goes wrong!! but gl

[9T8W66]

`98 WS6 and SS Cars all came standard with the SOTL Exhaust.
This system was replaced in `99 by the more traditional dual outlet setup.
The Single out setup actually flows better but was louder and didn't pass Drive by noise standards for `99

[VTR99]

I just got back from looking at a 1998 Trans Am. I was disappointed to find out that it had the 2.73's (GU2). It has 145,000 miles, but the engine and tranny seemed to be running flawlessly. It has the typical issues slow windows, noisey headlights, and the power antenna was loud as hell. Also, the A/C wasn't blowing cold, so it could've just needed a charge or maybe it was something more. I can probably get it for $5000 (which is about my budget because I'm looking to pay cash), but I'm worried it will just turn into a huge headache. He said the fluids were all changed regulary and all the maintenance was performed, but it was very dirty on the inside. I'm waiting on some Carfax results until I make my final decision. Any opinions?

Sounds like you can find a cleaner car with that many miles for about the same price. If you want this one, it might pay to invest a few bucks in a can of R-22 to see if the AC is good, and have it checked out by a good mechanic before buying. The miles wouldn't scare me, but if the car is dirty inside it probably hasn't been maintained as well as it should have been.

[thecorrectformula]

If you want this one, it might pay to invest a few bucks in a can of R-22 to see if the AC is good, and have it checked out by a good mechanic before buying.

You shouldn't run R-22 in our cars. For one thing it cost about 10 times more than R-134 and Secondly R-22 will rot the seals on our cars AC systems. GM switched all their vehicles to R-134 in I believe 96. And for another thing you have to be licensed to buy that. R-134 can be had by anyone.

[M-Ten]

You shouldn't run R-22 in our cars. For one thing it cost about 10 times more than R-134 and Secondly R-22 will rot the seals on our cars AC systems. GM switched all their vehicles to R-134 in I believe 96. And for another thing you have to be licensed to buy that. R-134 can be had by anyone.

lol good thing you told him before he did that :P

[JohnnyBs98WS6Rag]

well somebody just said they had a single exhaust... and 99+ didn't.

The '98 SS/WS6 cars came w/ the SOTL (Single On The Left), which used a louder and better flowing muffler than the '99+ WS6/SS systems (optional SLP SS/Hawk exhaust systems excepted). The WS6 exhaust was changed to the dual setup in '99 to meet new noise requirements. Yeah, it looks kinda funny (especially on a T/A), but sounds great. Makes it real easy to do the "poor man's Borla" mod (cutout before the muffler to a 2nd tip on the right). Ssssleeeper.

[VTR99]

Quote:
Originally Posted by thecorrectformula
You shouldn't run R-22 in our cars. For one thing it cost about 10 times more than R-134 and Secondly R-22 will rot the seals on our cars AC systems. GM switched all their vehicles to R-134 in I believe 96. And for another thing you have to be licensed to buy that. R-134 can be had by anyone.

lol good thing you told him before he did that :P

Oops, my mistake, I was more than a little tired when I made the post. You can't buy R-22 without a license, so there was not much chance of him doing that. There is only one refrigerant you can buy in stores, R-134a. I have a few cans of R-22 laying around, but it's been ages since I used one.

[vannatte]

What would you guys expect this car to run in a quarter mile (stock 1998 auto with 2.73's)? Seemed to run and shift fine. I really not wanting a car payment, so this seems like my best option. I'm not going to be able to pay cash for many LS1 Trans Ams.

[76ls1bird]

Mine has 98K miles & needed a water pump at 70k
Dale

[dotcom2000]

my a/c just went out. $1200.00 worth. compressor took a dump and plugged everything. of course it had to happen when its 100+ degrees every day. 96k miles

[SeVeReDiStOrTiOn]

I've heard that there are problems (internal issues, etc) with the 1998 LS1's, is that true? I'm going to look at a high mileage 1998 T/A tomorrow and I want to know what I'm getting into. The 98 seems like a cheap way to get an LS1. From what I've read, the 98 has some advantages over some of the other years (28 lb injectors, smaller throttlebody cams for quicker WOT, a real water temp gauge, etc). Thanks.

The only thing that might actually effect you is the 98's PCM is different then all other years...so it could be more of a PITA to tune it. You won't be able to get a handheld as far as I know...i've never seen one for a 98.