Small block Chevy Ideal Setup

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So, Ben...........might there be a Chevy in your future. With your knowledge and experience maybe we could get this LS thing ready for the masses. I think you would agree that a blueprint for a reasonably inexpensive LS would probably go over well because of the relatively inexpensive aluminum block availability. Your Ford is really neat, but
trying to find an inexpensive Ford aluminum block would be harder. You could become the Vangrunsven of the conversion world.

 

FYI..I love the performance and apparent reliability of my 5.4 (long stroke)Triton engine in my truck but I hate some of the design features of it, especially head design and the way the plugs are down in a deep tunnel..and in the truck, if your cop's go bad* and they will sooner or later, its a nightmare changing them out..same goes for just changing plugs

 

And yes..I'm now an LS chevy fan..I've looked into fords, wankels and herds of excited squirrels, and its going to be a chevy LS series engine for me...as an afterthought...what is the possibilty of having a steel crankshaft made the has the nose splined or whatever and take the power off the front end of the engine, where the timing chain is etc etc.?

 

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Hmm..That tells me the top brass at chevy are more interested in big bonuses(for the top brass) and the top brass at ford are more interested in running the company correctly considering recent events

 

Ben, do you get any harmonic vibrations or resonance back through your belt drive??

 

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Reply: Mechanically it could be done but thats the smaller weaker end of the crank and you would have to deal with the water pump and oil pump being in the way. Also the rotation would be in the opposite direction.

 

If you look at enough after market racing stuff available the water pump and oil pump problem goes away..mostly..:grin:

 

What is the advantage of turning the engine around?

 

Well. I dunno..I haven't thought about it for a couple months.....Oh i remember....the front of the block is slimmer and you have a bunch of bolt holes available (timing chain cover on the older small blocks))to bolt on either a reduction drive or make it direct drive...and if your going to the trouble and expense to deal with all this who cares which way it rotates?:gig:

 

I'd think that by the time you hide the engine behind a 14 inch dia spinner the direction the engine faces is largely irrelevant. The only way I can think it would be an advantage is if you were driving the prop directly off the crank with a minimal extension. I have not modeled it, but seems like you could fair it in pretty easily with a modest extension in either case.

 

Well, your're more or less right...I'm very familiar with the shape and geometry of both ends, I've overhauled and built a few of em... just to let ya know I wasn't completely out of my mind to think of that...

 

Not saying you are not familiar... Just trying to get my head around the effort/benefit tradeoff.

One thing the LSx has going for it is its symmetry. If you want to flip the intake manifold around so it is facing the flywheel, that's no problem.
BTW, Have you built a CAD model of the engine yet? Seems like someone with your talent you could whip one up in no time.

 

I dunno....I'm a bit lazy............with autocad, drawing an LS engine accurately with all the details, would be challenging & time consuming to say the least..and that's the problem for me....not enough time.... and when I have the time, not enough energy, or I have something more pressing to deal with when I do have the time...but man, it's not out of the realm of possibility if I get desperate enough..I've looked extensively online for an LS engine done in CAD....few, if any exist for any price..It would be nice to have an accurate 3d model of one so I could get a better idea of how the engine cowling will end up being shaped

 

I admit the crank would have to be completely custom made (front end especially) and would cost a bunch