Customer Reviews

How to Swap GM LS-Series Engines into Almost Anything (S-A Design)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Restorod." Of late, amongst automotive enthusiasts, the term describes an older car fitted with a late model powertrain. The most popular late model engines to put in older hot rods or muslecars are GM's Generation 3 or 4 Small-Block V8s which are known to hot rodders as LS-series or LSx engines and have been the stock Corvette engines since 1997.

The swapping of Gen 3/4 V8s in to older cars has become so popular that a cottage industry has sprung-up selling adapters, oil pans, engine mounts, headers and other parts necessary to put LS-series motors into old Novas, Camaros, Chevelles, Vettes and even more unusual endeavors such as Buicks, BMW E36es and Jaguar XJSes.

With the level of enthusiasm as high as it is, it was inevitable that someone would write a book about transplanting Gen 3s and 4s into other cars. It was CarTech books, already the publisher with the best line of LS-series books on the market, which responded with How to Swap GM LS-Series Engines into Almost Anything.

Author, Jefferson Bryant, covers a wide-range of engine swapping subjects of concern to anyone putting a Gen 3/4 into an older car. A few of the key topics are oil pans, engine mounts, wiring harnesses and cooling systems.

A very useful addition to the book are several sidebar articles about specific engine swap projects but while they're a nice feature, there's not enough of them.

The majority of the material in the book is accurate. No doubt this is because of the Author's experience as a long-time automotive tech writer, however, there is a sprinkling of questionably-researched statements in the book. Examples are Bryant's claim that the Gen 3/4 engines are the first time GM manufactured an aluminum block, that the Gen 2 V8s (LT1/LT4) were poor performers and a blanket statement that GM's Dexcool antifreeze causes cooling systems to "sludge-up". All of those are incorrect.

The other slight problem with How to Swap GM LS-Series Engines is CarTech's limited editing. I think, had this book seen a stronger intervention by someone editing for length, some "wordiness" could have been eliminated making more space for sidebars on specific LSx swaps.

That said, the problems with this book are comparatively modest compared to its significant value as a resource for hot rodders with older cars looking to dump old Small-Blocks and even some Big-Blocks for more powerful and much lighter Gen 3s and Gen 4s.

So, if you're thinking about stuffing an LS9 into that ancient Chevy Vega sitting in your backyard, read this book.

Every potential customer for this book has the crazy idea putting in a great new motor into some classic ride. If you are beginner, like me, trying to understand where to start, this book is an excellent starting point. I did the initial internet research and their are a lot of excellent forums on the web with great info but at first its too much zoomed in detail. What I like about this book is that it allows you to take a step back and understand the details of the swap from a system perspective. It presents all elements that will have to be considered and then presents various solutions and products to address those issues. Now that I have this book as my roadmap I can take the time to zoom in to the individual problems for my applications and make better use of the information on the internet.

The book was worth the amazon price. As others have stated it pushes some companies products FAR more than it should. That said, that company does make solid products...

Overall it covered parts of the swap process that have not been well documented online. I did significant internet scouring and information gathering for weeks before reading this book and this book still addressed a large amount of information that was not readily found while searching. Other parts of the information that is easily found online was laid out well in the book - the sections on the oil pans and accessory layout is very useful and a lot more straightforward than you will find online. The wiring information - something else you can also find online was laid out in a very easy to read and succinct section - much easier than verifying ten different postings on internet forums.

Book provides a complete picture of the available GM LS engine swap options. I like the chapter that discusses engine mounts, adapter plates, and oil pan compatibility. It gave me a good idea of what was needed for swapping an LS-3 into a Gen III Camaro. It was interesting to see many non-GM engine swaps, such as installing the LS into a BMW 3-series, Jaguar XJ, Fiero, and even a Volvo wagon.

I'm amazed by the comments from the first three people.

There is no way that a generic book could cover a specific swap like what they are looking for. The intent of this publication is to illustrate that these swaps can and are being done. (Title might have been worded differently)

Yes, it's slanted towards S&P because they provided a majority of the pictures. They make some nice things, but tend to be on the pricey side. I provided him a couple of pictures also.

This book has some nice illustrations, nice reference pictures and data. But, it is not a book that will actually show you specifically how to install a specific engine is (your) specific car.

I'll read it and then put it on my book shelf in case I need it to generate an idea for another swap.

It may be a good project for him on his next book to take the information in this one and use it to actually document a couple of swaps from start to finish. However, many of the on-line forums have this already. S&P has several swaps fully documented on their site also.

A vast majority of swaps are completed by the "home-builder" who fabricates parts, makes his/her own wiring harness, goes to "junk" yards to find parts, uses the "for-sale" sections on web forums to find parts and ask for help.

It's a good read for a novice.

Book is nice but book http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0760336091 is little better because have more in depth infos. This book have examples which is not focused to USA cars and this is great. But like book from my comparison no any DVD or some do-it-yourself (diy) how to do something. Book writes about compatible parts. For some people which need better info this book is no solution. Much better info you can find on internet in tech articles.
I cant recommend this book despite low price.

This book is just the basics of bolting in an engine. It doesnt really give any really good info on wiring and that is the hardest part of a swap. I ended up finding an LS1 Custom Wiring Harness Manual on Ebay that was alot better help just do a search for it and it should come up.

I really enjoyed this book and the pictures were very good. Also liked the detailed information on each of the LS series engines. Wonderful and detailed coverage of all the LS idiosyncrasies that could cause problems with any swap. Since the author was covering many makes and models beyond the typical GM vehicle it had interesting swap info for Volvo, BMW and multiple vintage GM vehicles. As a Third Gen F body enthusiast there was no one word mentioned about this very popular model and the parts available to make the conversion.

I have ben a fan for the ls1 5.7 ever since it debuet in the 1997 vet.The power and fuel economy is just exelant.Im a chevy man and have done a few engine swaps of my own.mostly olds to chevy sb and yanking out v6s and popping in v8.But now i want to play with the mordern stuff.This book is a good guide for the average person getting in to swaping but for others they may fell that they left some important more informive things out, like in-depthly cutting apart and modifing an existing wiring harness from a average f-boby to give us an idea on how to make it simple like on some forums.don't get me wrong this book talks about computers, pin outs and tell u what the computer controls.I rated this book 4 stars, its good info but not perfect. there are some mispelled words throughout,but very informivive. expecially on motor mounts,oil pans,fuel systems,belt drives and popular aplications.Im intending on swaping an ls engine into a older gm car, like a monte carlo,malibu,or older 2nd,3rd gen comero and wan't to stick with fuel injection and a mordern overdrive or 6 speed manual.This book also does a good job on ID ing the engines,so u can find a used engine trans combo off ebay or a local wreking yard.

getting an engine in a bay is not that difficult if you are ready to make room. but the book reminds you of the little things that we tend to overlook. and i believe those are the things that make or break a professional looking swap. the line between fun and a chore. all books have down sides so i wont get in to that. good book stop