pillagenburn

I just dont understand this ... LS1's make like 350 rwhp with nothing more than bolt-ons whereas LT1's are struggling to make 300 rwhp with every bolt-on imagineable. with a mild cam, LS1's are approaching 400 rwhp whereas LT1's are struggling to make 350 rwhp. Even with heads, LT1's rarely ever go above 400 rwhp (atleast i haven't seen any, and trust me - i LOOK). It takes a stroked 383 with expensive heads to match what LS1's do with just heads and cam on stocker bottom end. So knowing this, wouldn't it be reasonable to say that LS1's are actually in fact cheaper than LT1's for hp, and you get more for your money with LS1's including purchase price of the car?

If it costs $12,000 for a LS1 and you spend another 800 in headers and little mods, you end up with 350 rwhp .... whereas you spend $8,000 for a LT1 (OBD-II so you can cheat the emissions *****) and another $1,000 for cam, rockers etc and another $1500 for ported heads and intake ..... you're quickly approaching the purchase price for the LS1 + mods. I've seen LS1's making 400 rwhp with little more than a cam and bolt-ons, whereas it takes 383 LT1's to do such things. Is the head design of LS1's really THAT much better than LT1's ?

Need some input here, as i've been thinking of dumping the LT1 for a LS1!

thanks!

Kris93/95Z28

The heads on the LS1 are awesome.....

Thebeast431

There is no easy answer to the question, there are way too many variables. For instance; you can buy a 94 LT1 for $5k and put a $800 150hp Nitrous system on it and only pay $5800 total. While you pay $12000 for a 99 Ls1 and pay $800 for the same nitrous system and still have 40 more hp than the Lt1, but you have another $6k for mods for the LT1. It all depends what you want. If you want a quick lightly modded car, get the Ls1, if you a more aggressive drag style car get the Lt1. The LT1 block can handle a lot more abuse than the Ls1, but once you start changing internals, it doesn't matter which one you have.

Travis

ZDriver96

I mean your gonna pay more to buy an LS1. You'd pay less for an LT1 but would have to mod it to match what you could have had with the LT1.

WIth my car (heavy, fully loaded Z28 with RS ground effects) it took Cold air, 1le drive shaft, slp shorty headers, borla exhaust, mail order tune, and free mods to match an LS1.

I have long tubes and a cam now, some brakes and suspension work too.

I just ran one of my buddies modded LS1 cars down the highway with 2 passengers in my car. It was an even race. 1 of my passengers weighs 350 lbs and the other 135 lbs. My friends LS1 had the same long tubes as me (Jet hot), exhaust, lid, 3200 stall torque converter, and better tuning with LT1 edit.

So in short.
Long tubes, exhaust, cold air and some free mods will let you pull on most LS1's.
The lt1 hotcam or CC305 cam with 1.6 rockers bridges the power gap between the ****ty lt1 heads as to the better LS1 heads.

Go test drive an LS1 and see if you like it. Im attached to my LT1 and its a lot of fun beating up on LS1's with just bolt ons.
I went through the same thing as far as wanting an LS1. I was thinking about selling my z28.. But instead i bought the LS1 brakes to put on my car and threw some nice Bilstein shocks and Long tubes on the car. You might want to save up for the 2006 camaro instead of gettin the ls1

grendal

The heads on LS1's rock..... pretty simple.

However, no "mild cam" LS1 makes 400rwhp... that's a lopey-*** beotch w/ some major lift numbers. FYI

However, start looking at what all the LS1 aftermarket parts cost. And if you are interested in serious mods (strokers, ported heads, etc), you had better bend over and put in some lube, because anything that involves modifying the insides of an LS1 motor is gonna cost out the ***, whereas LT1's use the same rotating assembly as a Gen 1 Small-block Chevy, which is the least expensive engine on planet earth to build.

Not to mention you can get a solid running LT1 for $5,000 if you look around.

Basically, if bolt-on power is your game, then sure, get an LS1. But if you ever plan to do major engine work, stay with an LT1 unless Lingenfelter is your uncle.

-Michael

MeanGreen97Z

It depends on what mods you do to your car. The LS1s making the big numbers close to 400 rwhp are using the big numbers in lift and duration. The CC306 is a common LT1 cam and with a good set of heads is an even match for most heads/cam LS1s. When you start modding you can make LT1s just as fast as the LS1s can get. You just have to go with the right parts. It has nothing to do with cylinder head design nce you get into modifying the car. Once you tear into the motor the machines become equal. I've seen 10 second daily driver heads/cam LT1s and 10 second daily driver LS1s so its all about how you want to spend your money.

Heads/Cam for an LT1 to make 400-425 rwhp is about 2000.

Heads/Cam for an LS1 to make 400-425 rwhp is about 3000.

Thats a big price difference. Hell I have seen cams for the LS1 going for 600!

LS1s have higher ration rockers, better heads, and better exhaust stock.

LT1s are iron block, better intake, and stronger bottom end.

Both cars have their ups and downs.

mastrdrver

I forget what mag it was in, was a year or 2 ago, but they did a dollar to dollar for the LT1 vs LS1 for mods and the LT1 went 2 tenths fast then the LS1 for the same amount of money. I do remember that they both had nitrous. I think it may have been Chevy HiPro, but not for sure.

Camarocks

Yes, the aftermarket for LS1s is much more expensive than for LT1s, plus they don't have nearly the amount of add ons that are out there for LT1s.

dnz28

To some people they rather get a less powerful engine and make it into something. Kinda like a sleeper. Plus you get to brag more when you bet the other cars.

chesee48

Its that LS1 that fuels my drive to do all these mods and make my LT1 that much more better and faster

TriPinTaZ

Its not just the peak #s that matter. its also the torque and horsepower curve. while the ls1 with a cam may have a higher hp peak the LT1 with a cam has a broader torque curve and higher torque peak. they are 2 very formatable engines comparitivly.

And about cheaper to mod?? THE LT1 is alot cheaper to make faster then an LS1.

lt4 fd

All this info is just from hanging around the board and looking at random dyno sheets. Seems an lt1 with heads and cam may have 400-425 at the wheels if you have someone REALLY good porting them, and if you have an ls1 with heads and cam with 425rwhp the ls1 peak torque will be close to or atleast 400 and it doesnt take nearly as much cam where as the lt1 will be 380 if that with a pretty big cam. Also ive seen a dyno of an ls1 with a 224/224 cam forget the lift that made 398rwhp and 380 somthin torque. Just somethign to think about. You could prolly swap in an ls1 for less than the difference of buying a newer ls1 car too.

brain

Where does this, "if you tear into the motor, the LT1 is better" nonsense come from? The LS1 is a vastly superior motor in every way, and you can't change the facts. They have 15 degree heads, every port is identical, and they use a direct runner to valve configuration, etc. The bottom end is better, the rods are the strongest chevrolet has used in a small v8. They are manufactured with weight tolerance without balancing than LT1s were with balancing. 6 bolt mains, deep skirt block, and lighter aluminum? No optispark, (which is a great idea, but wasn't manufactured and implemented thoroughly), how much more do you have to hear? Another thing, I forget his name, but one of the guys at SAMs said, "No power is made in the bottom end of a motor", and he's right. As long as it can handle the power, the heads and cam are where the power is made. You're basically trying to compare a 1.5L D15 dual point honda motor to a B18C5 Integra type R motor, but with more differences.

grendal

I didn't say better, I said cheaper.... because of compatability with Gen1 SBC parts...

You can build a 383 stroker LT1 on a budget for less than a simple rebuild on an LS1.... Not gonna argue that the LT1 or Gen1 SBC is a better design. That would be stupid...

FYI, I've owned an LS1... look at my sig. I'm fully aware of the advantages of an LS1.... but I went w/ a truck for a daily driver and for the money, an LT1 can't be beat short of buying a Ford (5.0).

-Michael

ba78ta

Well if you decide to sell, I would be intrested in buying... im in lilburn