mod V6 vs LT1 vs LS1 ??????

[lead sled]

Trying to decide on my next project. With rising cost of gas thinking that a F-body is the way to go. Now just trying to decide which model to go with. This is going to be my Daily Driver so gas milage is a top priority drive mostly highway. That being said I still want enough performance to keep it interesting. Not looking to drag race, however I do like going around corners. No matter which model I end up with I will plan to install: a cold air intake, headers and high flow exhaust.

Looking to get the best bang for the buck, what do you guies think, cam and maybe heads install on a 3.8 V6, or just go with a LT1 or LS1 V8????

Any input welcome
Thanks Wayne in Kansas City

[UpOnGaMe]

Re: mod V6 vs LT1 vs LS1 ??????

if gas is your concern go with the 3.8 i was getting 31 highway not bad, i mean you can make a 3.8 kinda quick with just bolt ons i think,

[slow6]

Re: mod V6 vs LT1 vs LS1 ??????

go with a 3.8L v6 but the Y87 model!

the gas mileage on an unmodded v8 isnt that much worse than a v6
its the insurance that'll get ya

[elderon]

Re: mod V6 vs LT1 vs LS1 ??????

3.8 is probably your best bet if you want to compromise. Gas milage isn't going to be a whole lot different though compared to the V8. If you want economy you gotta get a 4 banger. :(

[Mike88]

Re: mod V6 vs LT1 vs LS1 ??????

If you plan on buying a 93-95 V6 model chances are you'll be getting a 3.4 litre. Half way through 1995 they changed the V6 to the much more powerful and slightly more efficient 3.8 litre. I know there are a few guys who have made their 3.4s pretty quick, however I just wanted to warn you that it's no small feat. Go with the 3.8 litre, which has a lot more available parts for modding over the 3.4 if you plan on getting a V6.

[vanbibber]

Re: mod V6 vs LT1 vs LS1 ??????

lead sled- youve made the same post 3 times in 3 different forums. please PLEASE quit doing that. in all honesty i probably should lock this one down like the previous ones have been. but ill let it stay open,pending it doesnt turn into another pissing match like the first one.

my advice, do your homework on each motor.

3.8 = very modable but its not cheap once you get more into heads/cam/FI some of our members are putting out nice numbers with these motors and they seem to take one hell of a beating for what these folks are throwing at them. most bolt on cars see low 15s high 14s at the track depending on the setups. thats not bad in my book. the only down side to most is that the aftermarket isnt as big as the v8 fbodies. but that doesnt stop our guys and gals from being inovative and pushing the envelope in our community.

lt1= also very modable, aftermarket is cheap, but lt1s are hit or miss motors, you may get one that runs like a rapped ape or you'll wind up with one that will ALWAYS give you problems, the big knock on lt1s are the optispark distributor. they are prone to burn out with even the slightest drop of moisture. opti sparks are not chep (about 450 bucks for it) and overall lt1s may be cheap to mod but they arent cheap to fix. i personally have over 3000 dollars into my 95 trans am in just parts in the last year and im once again working out some more bugs.(this is all on stock parts, the car is completely stock) lt1s are nice stop light bruisers on the street and at the track they hold their own pretty nicely with the right mods. keep in mind the lt1 makes peak power down low. in stock form low 14 second-high 13 ets should be the norm if you can drive. auto lt1s put down around 250rwhp and the m6s put down around 260-270rwhp.

ls1= respond well to just about anything you throw at them. compared to the v6 and lt1 though its relatively more expensive to modify. they are alot easier to work on compared to the lt1. in stock form they are typically 13 second cars out of the box. ls1s have excellent top end power compared to the lt1. the ls1 is probably the best bang for the buck in the power department with typically over 300rwhp stock.

all in all each motor has its upside and downside. its your choice really, any way you go you'll be happy. even though having a quick 6er is alot more impressive than having a run of the mill v8.

[lead sled]

Re: mod V6 vs LT1 vs LS1 ??????

I've kept posting because when I went back to check for comments the post was gone. There were no comments telling me that I had done something wrong no email just gone!!!! Wasn't trying to start a pissing match just wanted to tap into the experiance of this forums members. I have done a lot of searches and weeded through a lot of useful information on the different engines, however, what I couldn't determine is if some of these people could do it over again would they pick the car they did?????

There is alot of people who have been down this road before and have experiance on at least two if not all three engines and have good advice to give. Just want to benefit from someone elses hindsight!!!