540 ci BBC TKO 600 vs. LS1 t56 HELP ME CHOSE

[01somta]

I am building a pro-touring 68' camaro and I am ready to buy my engine and tranny. I had originally decided on a 540 ci w/ 9.5-1 cr and about 645 flywheel hp with a tko 600. I am know thinking about doing a LS1 w/ a t56. My main question is what is a good rwhp number for a stroked bolt on LS1 and what is an average cost to build it. I have a buddy that has a complete LS1 w/ tranny and computer for a good price, but I just don't know what I am looking at paying to for all the goodies (bolt ons, stroker kit, assmebly, machine work). I don't mind doing a stroker kit, heads, cam, or whatever it takes. I'm just trying to see if I can get close to the hp of the 540 w/ the streetablity and MPG of the LS1s. I would really like a 427 LS1 with heads and cam, etc. Here is the main question, I could probably have everthing complete with the 540ci and tko600 around 15k give or take a couple thousand (most likely take). What am I looking at ballpark for stroker LS1, bolt ons, machine work, and assembly. I'm just kicking around the idea to see if it is even an option.

BTW: Thanks in advance.

[99DROPTOPZ]

Jegs has a complete ls7 427 505HP for 13000 I would go with that

Check it out:
http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/store...0002_881490_-1

[01somta]

Jegs has a complete ls7 427 505HP for 13000 I would go with that

Check it out:
http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/store...0002_881490_-1

I would like less cr and more hp . This is a nice setup, but I would have to run a different headers and I already have a cheap LS1 and tranny.

[Wesman]

Jegs has a complete ls7 427 505HP for 13000 I would go with that

Check it out:
http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/store...0002_881490_-1

Then you can get a built T56 for >$3000, and you'll be spending about as much as you would if you got the 540 and TKO. Plus it would be very unique, and an LS7/T56 will get much better fuel economy than a 540/TKO.

[01somta]

Jegs has a complete ls7 427 505HP for 13000 I would go with that

Check it out:
http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/store...0002_881490_-1

That 11-1 cr is on the edge of me being able to run pump gas and the highest octane that we have around here is 91. I would still need all the accessories for the ls7 and my 15k on the 540 included the accessories.

[SStriker]

go lsx block.

[Firebirdjones]

You are limited on the cubic inch with the LS1 block, and if it has alot of miles on it you will be lucky if a small overbore will clean it up,,,,most can only go about .005 over and then it requires resleaving,,,,costing big bucks.
One of the biggest reasons I really hate these aluminum blocks.

A stroker assembly for an LS engine will run about $2,000. A good set of CNC ported heads are another $1,200 or so and then you have intake choices. On a stroker LS engine a Fast 90/90 setup works nice,,,thats another $1,000 easily.

Going with the LSX block would be a nice way to go in my opinion, with plenty of overbore material and no worries of resleeving,,,but then you run into the problem of obtaining all the accessories, sensors, block plugs, etc.... that you don't get when starting from scratch,,,this also adds up in a hurry.

Something I like even better than the $2,000 price tag of the LSX block (which is a little hard to swallow in my opinion for a cast iron block) is to go with the cast iron truck block. New from GM these are $600 and with stroker crank and stock bore you would have 402 cubes. Another .030 over bore can be used in the future for another build if required, cheap and easy, and $600 is much easier to swallow, especially when you factor in buying all the sensors and accessories for a retro swap.

Probably the best way to go here if you want an LS engine is to shop around at the different crate engines offered,,,,I am sure there has to be someone out there offering them with bigger HP numbers. A complete crate assembly would help some when it comes to finding all the little things.

Honestly those 540 HP numbers are pretty tame. I am making those numbers with a mild pump gas 454 that is very streetable.
Those crate motors are sometimes rated conservative though.

I like the LS engines, they have their place, but I'm old school and in my opinion nothing has more eye candy than a big block chevy under the hood.

All the LS engines look kinda bland to me, not much ooh aah factor to me when the hood is open. But they make great power. They just haven't been around long enough for the prices to settle down. Still kinda pricey to obtain a good core as a starting point. They haven't had the advantage of being around for 50 years yet. Sounds like a neat project, goodluck.

[01somta]

I now thinking about buying a crate LS2 for around 5.5k and then do the following mods;
http://www.popularhotrodding.com/tec..._modification/

[bigrondownhiller]

with an aluminum ls engine you will have a lot less weight than a big block. a definate plus if you want better handling.

[99bluebird]

Are you trying to stay naturally aspirated? If so why the 9.5cr?
Stoked limits are ABOUT as follows:
LS1-383 c.i.
LS2-402 c.i.
LS7-440 c.i.

Otherwise you will need something than the LS series of aluminum engines.
Personally I would buy the LS7 stroked short block with whatever dished pistons you want then build on it (short block less than 6k at TSP). That 650hp number will be cake and the built stage 4 T56 from 6speedsinc is only $2k. That means you can spend 7k on heads and little parts and still beat your 540 price. Plus the combo will weigh a hundreds pounds less or so.

[slims00ls1z28]

It should be cheaper to build a LS series engine for that hp lvl than the big block especially NA route. Higher than that NA then it probably swings back to the big block. With the advent of the L92 heads stock flow numbers and extremely cheap price you can get a set of CNC'd heads cheaper than you can a CNC'd BBC head. You'r not going to find any decent heads for the base price of the L92's. Plus the efficiency of the of the LS chambers and the 15 deg heads (or was it 18 forgot exact) makes the same HP with less cubes. Of couse the ultimate LS package would be the Dart billet block that can go up to a 5 in bore but they are over 10k for just a block.

Me personally I think its more trick to see an LS engine under the hood of an old school car and I would pick an LS over a BBc anyday for the weight, power, efficiency, and hp per dollar especially if you are "only" (nothing to sneeze at obviously) in the 600 hp range. You can find a stroked LS cheaper than a 540 if I'm not mistaken as well.

[180ls1]

you can always go with a carburated ls1 setup to save some money, or a carburated lsx setup. I have heard you can get 511ci out of the lsx block with a nasty cam and some good heads i am sure you could make 650+ horsepower easily and still be reliable. i remember seeing a 422 ls2 build up where they made 650 horsepower with individual throttle bodies for a trophy truck and that would be cool also. If you had in individual throttlebody setup on an 511ci lsx block with all the goodies in an old school camaro that would be something very interesting and unique that would be an awesome setup. check out this link http://www.texas-speed.com/shop/listcatsM.asp?MID=1

[LS2Tuner]

BigBlock with the TKO600 w/.62 O/D. NO subsutute for big block with a clutch!
Do yourself a favor and send that TKO to ProMotion and get it ProShifted!