6.0 block swap

[SWSS]

met a neighbor that drives a TBSS and works at the chevy dealer. we were discussing the ins and outs of engine swaps. he said one of his fellow techs swapped a 6.0 block into his 5.3 hoe. only flashed the ecm (?), used the same harness, etc and did a tune. sounds too easy but I am wondering if there is a big gain to this? does this make it anymore cost effective over shoving parts and money into the 5.3?

 

[TxDrewski]

Depends on how you look at it. Im doing a 6.0 swap now (05 lq9 TO MY 04t Tahoe).
Stock for stock, there is a 50 HP difference. I could have gotten 50hp more from my 5.3 easier and less expensively, however I wanted one engine in the truck and one being rebuilt. My 5.3 has consumption and head gasket issues, the cost of tearing down and building it vs a g00d 6.0 swap was around the same. I decided to swap th 6.0 AND build the 5.3 when I get it out. The LQ9 from the 05 caddy is a direct swap to my Tahoe.

 

[scryfst]

It's been a few years since I sold my 6.0 (LS2), but I've since replaced two 5.3's (LM7) in nbs yukons and the spare harnesses were sold to individuals doing LS2 and LQ9 (6.0) Swaps. All three motors LM7, LS2 and LQ9, plus a handful of others, and gen III so i don't see why you couldn't swap harnesses.

Cost effective? In a modding sense - I've dropped 25K in mods after spending 30K on a car only to turn around and sell her for 21K. Cost effective, the numbers don't say so.... but it was a hell of a lot of fun

If your 5.3 is tired, complete motors, with less than 100,000 miles, can be had for well under $1,000.00 and the swap can be done in a driveway with basic tools and a few jacks.

 

[SWSS]

thanks for the replies. according to the neighbor, he only swapped the motor, i think. i know he used the harness, etc and repopped the brain and got a tune.
could i swap an 8.1 that easy?

 

[TxDrewski]

thanks for the replies. according to the neighbor, he only swapped the motor, i think. i know he used the harness, etc and repopped the brain and got a tune.
could i swap an 8.1 that easy?

I wanna say the 8.1 Motor mounts are different

---------- Post added at 10:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:36 PM ----------

And I think you may have some issues bolting that to the stock trans

 

[SWSS]

If your 5.3 is tired, complete motors, with less than 100,000 miles, can be had for well under $1,000.00 and the swap can be done in a driveway with basic tools and a few jacks.

Nah, she is a 2010 with 55k on her, i just like having fast bastard trucks...that i can drive daily.

 

[TxDrewski]

If your 5.3 is tired, complete motors, with less than 100,000 miles, can be had for well under $1,000.00 and the swap can be done in a driveway with basic tools and a few jacks.

I paid 1600 shipped for my 05 LQ9 with 140k.... Maybe I got a little hasty and spent too much lol

---------- Post added at 10:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:38 PM ----------

Nah, she is a 2010 with 55k on her, i just like having fast bastard trucks...that i can drive daily.

Then Id slap a Magnuson on there and call it a day!

---------- Post added at 10:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:39 PM ----------

Link to my on going build thread if you wanna keep tabs

http://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=68277

 

[SWSS]

I wanna say the 8.1 Motor mounts are different

---------- Post added at 10:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:36 PM ----------

And I think you may have some issues bolting that to the stock trans

yup. plenty of wrecks though, think the harness should be swapped?

 

[TxDrewski]

yup. plenty of wrecks though, think the harness should be swapped?

Depends on the year. With that few miles you could turbo/supercharge it and really not worry about blowing it lol. My 5.3 is coming out because its got issues.

 

[SWSS]

yeah, prolly just get a drop fron Tony, wheels and a few other goodies and run the ***** out of her...

 

[TxDrewski]

I check the For Sale section of Performance Trucks.net every day. There are ALWAYS used turbo/super setups for all the LS stuff...

 

[minytrker]

Im done motor swaps in most of vehicles I owned and dont really regret any of them. In almost every 4th gen camaro I owned I put in either a iron block 6.0 or a ls2 and all the gas trucks except 1 swapped in 6.0 iron blocks, ls3 in my ctsv and list goes on. For me putting in a bigger motor only put that far ahead of the game if you did any other mods plus I always sold my original motor to recoup some of the cost. No mater what you do to your 5.3 if you do the same mods to a 6.0 or 6.2 its going to put out more.
I plan on putting a 6.2 in my 09 tahoe as soon as I get a deal on one.

 

[SWSS]

well, my last love was a 78 square with a 396/400... so i like big motors in my trucks...so the hoe wont be much different.
now i just need to sell a house.

 

[CrashTestDummy]

These engines really respond well to bolt-ons. Long tubes and a cam with a proper tune can probably get you almost 100 more HP. More than that, drop a SC on it. You can get more HP out of a 5.3 than the transmission can handle.

If the existing engine is beat, then by all means, go big. With 55K on the clock, it looks like a prime candidate for some bolt-ons.

I keep fighting the urge to throw some long-tubes under our PPV, but if the engine popped, it'd be getting a 6.2 to replace it.

 

[SWSS]

Nice to know there is plenty they can handle!