I recently saw a Silverado for sale with no engine but it came with a transmission. I feel tempted to buy it and stick a 6.0 into it, and put all the bolts on it as a daily driver. Now I've been searching up on the 6.0 engines and I really want an LQ9 since it has more power but what do you guys think? The roller is a 2003rcsc. Should it be a plug and play situation for the swap? Also would I need to remove a head to see the Pistons or remove the pan to see the inside, so I know what engine I'm buying.

 

Bore scope in the spark plug hole. The only difference in the two is the flat top pistons and a more aggressive tune in the LQ9. I wouldn't turn down an LQ4.

 

A later year LQ9 will have a stronger bottom end too if that matter to you at all. More so if you want to push serious horsepower with like a turbo in the future.

 

Was truck originally a v8 or 4.3?? That will make a difference in how direct it will be....

 

Used to have a 5.3 in it.

 

Then bolt it in and run it... Done yet?? Lol!!

 

03 LQ9's have full float rods in them... at least the one I have had apart did.. and it's in a friend's truck. Verifiable that old simply because it had the old block with the unequal length head bolts still. Guy still had the Escalade it came from... just was Duramax swapping it. 04 calendar year LQ4's have the full float rods as well which at that point the only difference is the piston... which isn't worth the price difference people instill on them. Plenty of Gen 3 6 liters have the good rods installed.. just seems people are always hawking only ancient junk on these buy sells lol.

 

I beg to differ my 04 "lq9" out of a caddillac according to vin on the block had dished pistons and pressed rods.... If i had planned on fi on it i would have dug deeper to get a set of floating rods, but unless a miracle happens i will probably kill this engine before i go fi on that truck anyway..... Camaro or yukon may end uo being a different story but they both already have floating rods anyway!!!!

 

Probably swapped... I read that you found all that which makes it an LQ4... there is always "one" guy that is different. Beg to differ all you want.... Heres a fun fact for that vin on the block.. my LQ9 is from am 05 Escalade and a few years after buying it I decided to decode the supposed vin stamp on the block. It's pretty cut and dry as to what characters are printed on there. I watched the girl type it in at GM... so it was exact.. came back as an 05 Tahoe and my engine was a 4.8. I was sure she wss wrong or typed it wrong so i checked it again... nope.. same thing. Well.. the flat tops, full float rods and 6.0 cast in the block beg to differ lol.

So I can tell peoplet is a 4.8... because the vin digits on the block said so lol.

 

Pount is, to say that all blocks starting this year have this or that may not be compeltely accurate.... You said 03 started with equal length bolts and floating rods, my 04 had equal length bolts and pressed rods, maybe was swapped who knows....