V8 Swap

[FridayNightHeat]

I've been wanting to do a v8 swap to my coupe I'm really wanting to do a ls1 swap but I'm not that baller. So I think I'm going to do a 5.0 swap to it and supercharge it.

[tommy]

I remember a guy maybe 5 years ago that swaped a 350 sbc in a s-12 for drag purpose, think he was using a 2 speed powerglide auto trans... think that guy was overseas, like australia of kiwi land... i'll search for it, but the thread might have been deleted in the 2 or 3 cs12 upgrade of the last couple of years... it was on cs12 if my memory serves me right. 
Post Merge: 10:06:35 AM / 19-Oct-10
here it is... the link does work to cardomain but you have to copy/paste it... I don't know if that car was ever finished....

http://club-s12.org/v3/index.php?topic=8484.0

here is the link...

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/829226

[Deezus]

ls1 or vh. nuff said.

I dont think running a carbd 350 is a wise idea.... heavy... fugly... poopy... but if its free, get it, and put it in like a 70s corolla wagon.

[tommy]

vh45de are "known" to have oil problem when handled like a sports car should be handled, not like in a big 4 door grandma grocery getter... as far as a carbed 350 goes, it'll be a shit load of custom fab to get it there, but same goes with all v8 and being free means that for the price of a vh45, you can slap alloy head and a nice intake and end up weighting maybe a hundred pound heavier then a stock ka24... those bitch are pretty heavy for a 4 cyl anyways... I say if you want a challenge and like to bitch from one fitment problem to the next, do it!, i'd probably do it if I were you....

[Gollum]

Wow, lots of negativity about the V8 swaps. Who here actually has experience with V8 swap costs, particularly when it comes ot SBC's or SBF's? I'm not saying anyone is wrong, I just want to kinda put people into perspective here. If you don't know for sure, then you don't know do you?

A SBC can be swapped into almost anything for under 1k if you're doing your own fab work on the mounts. Even the 5.0 swap into a miata is extremely affordable, and that's a more expensive motor to work with from the get go. One of the big things that makes these swaps cheap is that most parts you'll need can be bought out of a catalog for cheaper than you could probably make it yourself, like exhaust manifolds.

With aluminum heads and intake you can get them in running shape well under 500 pounds, and the bulk of that weight is much lower than most other engine options. And with those little go fast bits you'll probably be over 300hp with ease. Going carb'ed makes them extremely simple on the wiring end. Only need like 3 wires to make the thing run and charge the battery (12V to dizzy, electronic choke wire, alternator BAT cable). This makes them weight/wise comparable to a heavy 4 cylinder, with as good of handling potential as almost any 4 cylinder. The extra 75 pounds or so it adds over the lighter 4 cylinders is closer to the ground and easily able to be compensated for when it comes to chassis tuning at the track.

As long as they FIT into the bay, it's a cheap swap. And I KNOW the S12 can't be THAT tight. So here's a rough cost list (off the top of my head, so forgive me when I forget something)

Motor ~ $0-200
Trans ~ $50-150
Mounts ~ $30 in plate steel
Exhaust Manifolds ~ $250
Exhaust (from shop most likely) ~ $150
Driveshaft ~ $100
Odds and ends (throttle adaption, bolts, etc) $15-100

That's a max total of a whopping $980 if you're budget shopping and being smart. This also requires you either know someone with a welder or own a welder. Most of us have a friend with a welder that would do the work for the price of some beer.

I know i'm from the Z arena, where we have larger engine bays which are easier to do swaps in, but even in the older z cars a SBC swap can be done for literally almost nothing. I've seen it done for under $300 total. That's the appeal. Dirt cheap power with plenty of potential for a light car.


Now, to play my own devils advocate, these swaps aren't for everyone. A V8, especially a carb'ed one, has a very particular nature/character. They're monstrous to drive on a daily basis with a lot of fine tuning, and they're generally loud and obnoxious. But they're a lot of fun in their own way. You can do many other engine swaps for not a whole lot more money and have a completely different car in the end. So any person considering an engine swap needs to really consider what they're about to do. Don't just choose something because it's there and available, unless you're that type of personality and don't mind doing all that work that might just be done over again with a new motor in a few years.


And as to the VH and 1UZ motors, they're awesome. But the manual trans conversion alone is crazy expensive. I'd have a 1UZ in my Z if I could put a manual trans on it for under $500, but it simply can't be done. If you have that 5k budget for a build, sure, consider them. But I wouldn't do a 2k build and spend a third or more just get a trans on it.

[Maxpow]

I will put a 350 in an s12 one day. I think it would be bad ass and cheap.

[sr20sean]

i see your ls1 and raise it an ls2 =]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUs-jDsh49I

[backwoodsbuilder]

^ nice lol , i got an old 300hp sbc 327 sitting in my dads garage maybe after i strip my mk1 of parts ill try to fab something lol it'd make a good yard beater lol

[ROSKOracer]

Ok, Well I am gonna do it. This Summer I am gonna grab my spare s12, and stuff a sbc in there. See what happens right?? Then I will document it and put it up here

[Wolf Dilworth]

Didn't xxstreetbikesxx recently drop from the site?  Too bad...  Collage (sic) can be hard on ones budget.
Post Merge: 01:18:53 AM / 11-Feb-11

...Get a z32 5 speed and mazworx tranny kit...

...Check out the VH/VK section on NICO.

Man... $1200.00 for an adapter plate and headers?  Jeez I thought Dave's VG headers were expensive.  Christ!  Good thing I have access to a lathe/mill and I will do my own headers thank you.

[1NZS12]

if anyone was still interested in this v8 swap, ive just put some photos up of my 1uz swap im doing at the moment..fits like a glove

[rollingstock]

i have a 400hp sbc(has maybe 10miles on the motor) just waiting, im going to swap into a s12 backed with a 4speed. sooner or later


but i need to clear out some projects first. ill post a build thread once i get to that point

[I_heart_VVL]

Man... $1200.00 for an adapter plate and headers?  Jeez I thought Dave's VG headers were expensive.  Christ!  Good thing I have access to a lathe/mill and I will do my own headers thank you.

no headers but other than that same shit as mazworx, but not as overpriced.
http://www.xcessivemanufacturing.com/ONLINESTORE.html?cid=47&step=2

there's a guy on a local forum here that bought a mazworx vh adapter plate and replicated it to sell for cheap as well.

[ls12]

I have stated a LS1 install. I have a build tread on this site..
its a 383 all forged with tvs 2300 supercharger on top. its not to far for finished, but have not done much work on it last year.
I got a new house, a new job and have other projects that needs to be done.  I hope to get some time to get it finish before summer 

[CONEKLR]

Sorry to raise this from the dead, but I was wondering if theres any issues with clearing the steering shaft when you put a v8 in?
I found a 5.0 for really cheap, so I was thinking about picking it up, but if it takes a lot of custom work to get it to fit (IE modifying chassis and/or steering components), I'll just stick with trying to find a KA

[1NZS12]

if you make a custom exhaust manifold you will probably be fine..i used factory manifolds but shifted the rack over and got a shorter tierod end of the right hand side for my 1uz.

[rollingstock]

Sorry to raise this from the dead, but I was wondering if theres any issues with clearing the steering shaft when you put a v8 in?
I found a 5.0 for really cheap, so I was thinking about picking it up, but if it takes a lot of custom work to get it to fit (IE modifying chassis and/or steering components), I'll just stick with trying to find a KA

just run shorty headers.. thats what im doing.. the oil pan is the hardest thing iv found so far.. just trying to find a front slump pan for a sbc is being a pain in the ass

[I_heart_VVL]

i want to do this to my car: http://zilvia.net/f/chat/437053-lsx-z32-stock-tt-transmission.html
somebody tell me why it is a stupid idea.

could probably be even cheaper than a 1UZ?

[1NZS12]

its not a silly idea at all, fucking mean idea if u ask me.

[Rallymodeller]

Resurrecting the thread, 'cuz I have experience in radical engine swaps.

If I were to swap a V-8 into mine, I'd go for a 5.0 H.O. Several reasons, really, but mainly because of the engine height, location of ancillaries (dizzy, alternator, etc) and the injection setup is pretty much self-contained. Plus it's way lighter than an equivalent SBC. I did a 5.0 into FC3 RX-7 swap, and it fit beautifully. They also fit into Miatas with little modification (none external, viz. Monster Miata), so that should tell you something. For a car the weight of the S12, it makes more than enough power, and there are many performance parts available. Also, because the diz is on the front, you can push the engine way back into the bay for better weight distribution -- which suits the short T-5...

Transmission-wise, just go for the T-5. Early ones can be a little fragile, but later ones are built like tanks. Since they were also used in the S130 Turbos (bolted to an L28ET), there's a Nissan connection too. The T-5 is compact, light, almost infinitely variable in configuration and available just about anywhere from Mustangs and 280ZXs to pickup trucks. With the Monster Miata swaps, the shifter was actually in a better position than the stock unit. Pushing the engine/tranny combo further back should cure one annoyance with the S12: the stock shifter is too far away.

Upside here is that all the important parts can be sourced from one car. Find a wrecked Fox-body 5.0 and you have everything you need. There are a number of different oil pans as well, and some really nifty dry-sump setups for it in case you don't want to hack up your crossmember. If you want to go super-exotic while retaining stock short-block bits, there was once a flat-crank conversion available for them that changed the engine to a 180ÂÃ,° firing order for that Ferrari sound and rev-ability. Might still be around.

And as I said, with the stock intake they're not very tall. Even with the GT40 heads the engine should fit under the stock hood, and with shorty tube headers and brown-top injectors that should give you around 300hp and 400-500 lb/ft of torque all day long while retaining everyday driveability.

When I swap out my CA20 next year, I'm seriously thinking of doing this swap. Shouldn't cost much more than doing the KA24DE, just more fabricating.