What are all the extra parts needed/ what all needs to get done to do the swap?? I've read the 4.8 to 6.0 swap so I know how to get there. Also, Is the drivetrain the same as the 4.8? Like tranny and rear end? Can I still do a 14-bolt swap?

BTW, this is in a NBS RCSB A4.

Thanks,
Eric

 

eric, not to be a kill joy or anything, but you are better off buying a new truck with a 6.0 already in it. 4.3 swap to an 8 swap is a HUGE pita. you need new everything in the engine bay, and its gunna cost you more money than you truck is worth. i would know, i had first hand experiance.

 

so, it would be more cost effective and easier to get a reg cab w/ the 4.8??

 

yep. the 4.8 is essentially the same motor in design. pretty much a direct swap with a few small easy differences. the 4.3L is completely different.

 

I would only plan on doing the 4.3-6.0 swap if you had another vehicle to drive and wanted something to do, or if the truck had sentimental value.

I plan on doing the swap, it's not as hard as everyone says it is according to this thread: https://www.performancetrucks.net/fo...d.php?t=378643

I'm not letting go of my truck to make a motor swap easier...

 

Thanks, That's what I needed. I couldn't find that when i seached.

 

if your gunna do it right, at a minimum your lookin at spendin around 5 grand. u could buy my motor i built

 

At the least that much with performance parts involved (exhaust, headers, cam, PCM tune, transmission if you decide to buy a performance trans, torque converter, etc..) A lot of the little stuff will stack up the price too, like the motor mounts, fuel lines, flexplate, etc...

Motor itself should run between 600-1000 (depends on where you get it, the condition its in, the miles, etc...)

 

hell yes its the little things that stack up. starter, ac system, harness, pcm, tune, headers, new radiator, new mounts, new trans for when yours blows up.... the list goes on and on.... i started from scratch and had a 5.3 rebuilt. buy it!! lol. has heads cam all sorts of neat stuff its fully built except for bein forged.

 

Im currently wrapping my v6 to v8 swap up. i ran into a problem where the v6 on my 2003 was a return style fuel system and the 2004 v8 i purchased is a returnless. this required new fuel lines, new fuel pump, new chassis harness, and a new fuel tank. of course, the tank vents through the evap system, so even though i have it tuned out, i still wanted to run it vs. drilling a hole in my gas cap. the evap system is different and is located on a bracket my truck didnt have, so we had to fab that up as well. since the wiring harness was different for the v8 motor on the 04, i also had to buy the neutral safety switch for my 4l60e because the plug on the 04 harness is different from the 2003's.

the AC canister is different but you can slightly bend the hose out of the way of the v8 dipstick.

the throttle body on my 04 was electric vs the 03 being cable so that required the module, gas pedal, and harness as well. plus the pedal doesnt bolt right up, so we welded it to the v6 style mount around the column.

im sure if u kept the same year motor and truck it would work much easier