Going to start the 60 project and at the very least the motor needs to come out to get resealed and may as well do the clutch while I'm in there. To make this a little more drivable I plan on adding a Holly Sniper but since all this stuff is coming out anyway I'm considering a LS swap (probably 5.3 gen3) with automatic trans. I think the cost of the sniper, clutch/machining, and the value of the old 2f/trans should cover the costs necessary for the conversion (minus the engine/trans) so for a few bucks more is the swap worth it or is a 2f running a sniper a good choice?
LS Swap vs Holly Sniper on the 2f (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Lordhelemt
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Two completely different animals. If you have to compare the two, you really need to question what you think it will cost for each. On a good day the whole drivetrain of that combo is $1000-1500 at best. Barely a dent in the Vortec swap.
A 2F with a good tune and EFI will run good, and people even hotrod them further than that.
But it will never be a stock 5.3 Vortec.
A 2F with a good tune and EFI will run good, and people even hotrod them further than that.
But it will never be a stock 5.3 Vortec.
tmxmotorsports
SILVER Star
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I guess I need to double check the needed parts. Tcase adapter is $800, $700 for the harness, $200 for mounts. If the engine trans is worth $800 and the sniper is $1200 then I still have $300 to spend and that’s not including the clutch, reseal kit, and machine work for the flywheel if I keep the 2f.
It costs a minimum $7k to get an ls running and driving in a truck.
It’s always worth getting the 2F tuned out on a budget and enjoying the truck before spending them money and downtime on a swap.
It’s always worth getting the 2F tuned out on a budget and enjoying the truck before spending them money and downtime on a swap.
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- #6
$7k in adaptors? I’m only asking if the cost of the sniper plus the sale of the 2f will cover the ls specific items.
Bama4door
Supporting Vendor
It totally depends what trans and tcase you run. No, it’s not $7k in adapters. You need to look through other people’s LS build threads if you’re serious. There’s a lot more needed than harness, adapters and engine mounts. Are you doing the work yourself?
I’m gathering parts for this swap. I’m going with a Holley Terminator X ($1200ish for computer that controls engine and trans and has a wiring harness) setup to run my LM7 and 4L60E. $7k is a good figure. the factory 4l60’s are notoriously weak so the trans is where you wanna spend money, $1500 for a good rebuilt transmission. Figure about $1k+ for the engine. $800 for the adapter, $300 rebuild kit for the transfercase, new gauges, ECM, etc. New radiator, or repurpose your old, tuning (either dyno or self), fuel delivery (different for FJ62 and FJ60) A/C, and exhaust. This stuff adds up, I think the V8 is worth it in the long run as Chevy parts are easier to find and cheaper to buy especially as these LC’s get older, but the upfront cost of the swap is somewhat steep, even more so if you can’t do it yourself.
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- #9
Yes I'll be doing the swap myself (either sniper or LS). If I go with a LS the plan is get a decent mileage drop out with the 6L80 and use the Toyota TC.
Did the 6L80’s come in the gen 3’s? I think those were standard on the gen4’s
If you are not happy in the slow lane, the answer is clear. LS or Toyota V8. LS is cheaper and easier.
Bama4door
Supporting Vendor
Gen4, but you can still mate them to a gen3
cps432
SILVER Star
Either way you go there will always be gremlins hiding and lurking in the crevices. They will always set you back and steal your money. I’ve come to learn that what you estimate in parts is almost always under bid. You’ve always got to get an extra clamp or hose or tool that you overlooked or broke somehow. Always. That can make a $1500 job turn into an $1850 dollar job really quick and once you’ve pulled things apart sometimes you have no choice but to spend the money to move forward.
I think doing major engine swaps and the like are more of a play toy type thing. It’s like going to Vegas... you know you’re gonna lose your ass but you go anyway because it’s fun.
The nickel and dime stuff add up quickly. Radiator, possible driveshaft modifications, shifter, and on and on. If I were to do it again, I would have rebuilt the 2f, gotten an h55 and would have saved several thousands dollars in the long run or have done a diesel swap.
It’s like house building/renovation. When you run out of money you know you are half done.
OCD is a budget killer. Practical improvements keep it reasonable.
NCFJ
Supporting Vendor
An LS based swap is not cheap, IF you do it right and you do it all at once. You can skimp on all sorts of parts but you will be chasing those cheap parts from the time you start it up on. Do your research! Skip the 4L60E and go to the 4L65E if that is the way you are leaning.
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The GM 4200 is looking like a great option for a swap. It’s lighter inline six. They came in a bunch of models and can be picked up for very little monies. They make max torque around 1600 rpm iirc. The 2006 and up had some Notable improvements but the pre 2006 are still good. They turbo charge well and can handle 300-400 hp but in stock form are in the 200 range. I’ve already found the templates for adapter plates. Some work still to be done for the full manual swap but any swap is a project. But I think it will be a nice power upgrade that benefits from less weight but more power and good torque. Also no info stress on stock driveline and retains the 6 cyl config. While the 1fzfe would be ideal (IMO) they are usually spend unto get a hold of and fairly costly to swap in a manual at this point.
