Convertible turbo V8 backup/street car build! I've always wanted to do a turbo potato potato LSx...finally said hell with it and devised a plan.
Bought this truck in Illinois
Got home with it Thursday, Friday afternoon the 4.8L was out and my backup race motor (LS6) was in and running Saturday afternoon
Picked up this turbo from a buddy with intentions of putting it on said truck...that's on the back burner due to drifting
Devised plan was sweet daily driver truck with race motor, 4.8l truck motor in vert backup car with turbo and other obnoxious stuff. Grabbed a Masterpower T70 turbo for the vert!
LS6 cam for vert
Turbo goodies
Box of Texas Speed & Perf goods
Took this stock silverado y-pipe flange and made a turbo flange/collector
Shipped the T56 off to Rick at RKT56 (
Precision Built Drivetrains | RKT56.com) to have it built. I had my first T56 rebuilt at RKT56 during the middle of the 2010 season and it has been absolutely flawless since then. RKT56 is on board in supporting me this season and they've done another amazing job on my latest T56 for the Vert! If any of you out there are looking to have a T56, T6060, etc rebuilt or built, contact RKT56 (
Precision Built Drivetrains | RKT56.com)!
4.8l on the stand before I tore it down
Started swapping valvesprings with the intention of doing springs, oil pump and cam swap
Pulled the next plug and this ran out
Pulled the paper towels out of the intake and exhaust ports and started poking around...motor came out of my truck, got wrapped up and put in a dry corner of the shop...I still can't figure out how it got this much water in it, even the bad headgaskets shouldn't have cause this much..oh well.
Found this retainer clip of some sort that was in there since whoever did the headgaskets on this motor before I got it
Popped the heads off...gross
Other bank...previous owner had headgaskets done...they used some of the cheapest gaskets and bolts I've ever seen....super lame. Only drove the truck with this motor for three days, coolant dropped a little, but not enough to be alarming in those three days, never overheated...weird.
Valves pulled
Bottom end was still good and fresh looking
After attempting to clean the 4.8l heads and valves to no avail (valves were all pitted and corroded) I decided to just throw on a set of #241 LS1 heads and new GM gaskets and bolts and all that jazz. The only downfall is this drops my compression from stock 4.8l, 9.5:1 to 8.8:1. This is better for boost obviously, but I'm worried about the motor being a bit more of a dog out of boost due to the 4.8l's shorter stroke...only time will tell, I think it'll still be fun regardless, but we'll see.
Motor and turbo mockup
Bracket/flangey collector jobbie made
Hoodstack? Yay or nay? Thoughts?
Only rust on the vert was from where the previous owner let a bad/leaking battery sit and it rotted out the battery tray. So I cut the rust free battery tray from my hatch out and sectioned it into the vert.
Engine bay prepped
All paint done with rattle cans
Basecoat
First coat
Clear
Dried and in some sunlight
Turbo manifold collectors
Passenger side collector and flange/merge pipe thinger
Built trans back from RKT56
Crossover pipe and drivers side collector tacked
