LS3 conversion

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I didn't buy it new. And I'm not worried about money. I have no problem spending money on the right stuff. I'd rather buy the new 6.2 for 6k than a used one with 40 k on it for 3. And yes....I'd like to rip out my "new" motor for a 6.2. Like I've said before, I want to make my truck my version of a Tahoe ss. Big brakes, nice suspension, 6.2 motor, 22" GM wheels. Same thing I did with my 2010 camaro. Bought a ss and made it my version of a z28. New suspension, wheels and tires, exhaust, cam.... Lightened it up. GM makes it...I just make it better... I make what they should have made.
 

tx tahoe z71

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Hmmm 7k for a blower or 6k for a new 6.2 with a warranty..... Believe me, I've thought about a blower but it's not as reliable and just more money and more maintenance.

Don't take this the wrong way, but read up on blowers on performancetrucks.net. They are very reliable and zero maintenance. I am the second owner of mine, daily drive it, have put over 40k miles on it, and just got back from a 400 mile round trip weekend in it.

Not to toot my own horn, but I'm making north of 500rwtq and run 0-60 in 4.1 seconds with my $2600 used blower and 138k mile 5.3. You can drop $6k for a 6.2 but a blower (or turbo) on your 5.3 will get you a lot more power. The 6.2 is going to need a cam, headers, and converter to wake it up.
 
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Im not looking for just a lot of power. And I've had supercharged cars...just not what I'm wanting for this. A 6.2 doesn't need that stuff. I don't want a loud exhaust. I want a escalade, in a 2wd/awd Tahoe.
 

tx tahoe z71

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Ok, understand. I saw where you said you wanted a Tahoe SS and assumed you meant fast. The escalade my friend has isn't too quick, so I figured you would immediately want to make it faster after the swap.
 

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You can drop $6k for a 6.2 but a blower (or turbo) on your 5.3 will get you a lot more power. The 6.2 is going to need a cam, headers, and converter to wake it up.

Im not saying that putting a blower or turbo on a 5.3 wont get you more power than a 6.2, but a 6.2 doesnt need that to wake it up. I know someone that ran 14.8 in a bone stock yukon denali.
 
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Ok, understand. I saw where you said you wanted a Tahoe SS and assumed you meant fast. The escalade my friend has isn't too quick, so I figured you would immediately want to make it faster after the swap.

ss doesnt necesarily stand for " just fast". its a whole package. better braking, handling and more power over the standard motor....the 6.2 from the escalade or even a LS3 is a more powerful motor over the 5.3....a good 60-80 horse at least. and swapping a 6.2 in and leaving it alone will definately make it faster than it is now.

---------- Post added at 07:35 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:33 AM ----------

Im not saying that putting a blower or turbo on a 5.3 wont get you more power than a 6.2, but a 6.2 doesnt need that to wake it up. I know someone that ran 14.8 in a bone stock yukon denali.

its all about the other components you have to help it get that power to the ground. just throwing new sway bars on and lowering it will help with power transfer....especially around the corners. the 6.2 is a perfect candidate for a tahoe and i dont think it needs touched at all....just a good tunde and there you go.
 
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Wow! Great deal. Is the transmission needed or can the Tahoe tranny work with the ls3?
 

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You don't need the transmission. Yours will work with it. :)
 

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Just my opinion, but F/I is the better option here.

Your goal is 60-80 HP more, which you would get by swapping the motor, but you could easily get more than that from a blower or turbo setup, which would be just as reliable (especially at lower boost).... with the option of turning up the power with a simple tune and pulley.

Anytime you add power, there will be other components that may not hold up, like the stock tranny... this is something that should be looked at regardless of whch way you go - and if you do get a line on a tranny with a 6.2, may be a good option.

I just get the feeling you want a 6.2 to just say you have a 6.2... that is fine if that is what you want, just state that. as there are other options to get 'escalade' type power from the 5.3 you already have.

I am contemplating a turbo build for my tahoe - these motors are practically indestructible if tuned correctly - I have a procharger on my other car, which has been pushing over 500RWHP on a Stock bottom/heads ls1 for just about 75k miles (car has 99k miles). I have no doubt these motors can be bone stock reliable with the right FI setup/tune. Just something to consider.

The days of 'no replacement for displacement' are effectively over. Guy's are pushing 9's all day in with the litttle 4.8L's.... I know you keep saying you are not interested in the power side of things, just saying there is something to be said for getting fuel economy from a 5.3 just cruising, but power of a pissed off big block when you smash the gas.
 
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im not doing this because i want 100 more hp. i want a 6.2 because its cheaper than a supercharger. i will get much more life out of a new 6.2 than i will a 5.3 with miles and a blower. im not doing this to say i have a 6.2. i have a 6.2 in my camaro. im doing it because i want more power but stock look. if i was making a drag tahoe...sure ill do a blower. but i want escalade power in my tahoe. thats it.
 

reilinjw

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I hear what your saying - i guess i am skeptical of the cost differential between the two... I do not think they are as far apart as you think, but as Supercharged SS has pointed out, there are deals out there, just need to jump on them.

I am curious of how this all turns out, so please be sure to post the after results including all the costs and such - may be very useful for others looking to do this (may already be documented on the other site Superchargedss pointed out)...

Good luck.

FYI - my original FI setup was $2,300 (Procharger gen 1 C5 kit)...I was originally looking at heads/cam for 2500... yes it was lightly used, and a "need cash now" sale - but it has been rock solid reliable. Deals can be had/found on just about anything - just need to be at the right place at the right time.
 
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I'm just not wanting supercharger power and maintanence. That's why the 6.2 will be just enough for me. Just more pep than I have now but not tire shredding power. I have a Car for that. If I do it, I'll keep you all posted. Hopefully ican do it and keep the price reasonable
 
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I had a supercharger before. Their a bit of upkeep. I don't want to mess with belts and changing/ checking oil in the blower and worrying about overheating or boost. This isn't misinformation. Their just more maintanence than a regular motor. Everyone knows that
 

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I had a supercharger before. Their a bit of upkeep. I don't want to mess with belts and changing/ checking oil in the blower and worrying about overheating or boost. This isn't misinformation. Their just more maintanence than a regular motor. Everyone knows that

Apparently I don't. At 135k miles and 40k+ on my second-hand blower, I haven't done anything differently than I would on a stock truck. The only time I have changed belts is when I went to a smaller pulley and the first belt looked great.

You are aware that the Magnacharger service interval is 100k miles, right? :lol2:
 

THE YETI

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I had a supercharger before. Their a bit of upkeep. I don't want to mess with belts and changing/ checking oil in the blower and worrying about overheating or boost. This isn't misinformation. Their just more maintanence than a regular motor. Everyone knows that

You should really get up to date on the newer generation blowers. No belts to change other than your normal serpentine under normal conditions, just like your stock serpentine. No changing or checking oil on any blower that I've owned either. The old school Whipple's (pre-2002 IIRC) used to be like that, but certainly not the new TVS blowers. No overheating issues either, I don't think a supercharger can overheat? I had absolutely zero maintenance to do with my TVS, one of the reasons why I chose it. :)

Not swaying your decision, just correcting a misunderstanding on how superchargers operate.
 
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I would never do a magnacharger. Too much heat soak. Like I said, I just don't want a blower. Why doesn't anyone understand that?
 

THE YETI

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I would never do a magnacharger. Too much heat soak. Like I said, I just don't want a blower. Why doesn't anyone understand that?

I can only speak for myself, I get that you don't want one, nt trying to sway your decision, but you stated misinformation about supercharges in a general theory, was only correcting it in the event someone gets misinformed by reading it. :)

Regarding heat soak, if it's 110 outside and you are running the Tahoe at a track for the day, you will probably get some. But for daily driving and having the power when ready, no way.

On another note, why the hatred towards mangacharger? :(. Or was the heat soak comment meant for them? Their older MP blowers would get that a lot, but te TVS models are pretty efficient with the larger intercooler.
 

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