Error304

I practically have 0 experience or understanding of how to do an ls swap. The thought of swapping in 5.3 with a 4l80e into my 78 c10 has crossed my mind but I don’t necessarily know what exactly is needed for the swap. I know the basics but that’s about it. I want to learn more about the process and what to look out for and what will be needed before I actually try the swap. Unfortunately I am a broke college student so I want to keep around a 5k budget. Any tips/ info will be greatly appreciated.

arthursc2

iTrader: (5)

I would try to find a donor 2500 with the 6.0/4L80. Harness and trans tuning will already be appropriate, you will be ahead of the game engine wise and the swap will be easier because almost no additional wiring aside from the standalone conversion will be needed

ezdaar

iTrader: (1)

Do the three wore mod to LS harness.
motor mounts.
conversion headers and exhaust.
tran crossmember mod.
driveshaft length change and the conversion u joint.
be redy to nuke the rear axle.
inline electric fuel pump.
good trans cooler.
electric fan setup.
the hardware to convert the electric speed sensor to manual style speedo and tach.
what ever else you want todo for gauges like oil, fuel lvl engine temp.

highly advise read and watch conversion videos until you pule and have night ares about ot.

TXsilverado

iTrader: (19)

What's the intentions of the truck? big power, or just a dependable cruiser?

simple route = carbureted LS on stand alone computers.
tougher route= EFI. not impossible, but more involved.

figure out what motor mounts, transmission mount and exhaust that work together for your combo. From there it's all down hill. I really like the Dirty Dingo mounts. they allow you to slide your motor forward and backward which can help massage things into place like driveshaft length, header fitment etc etc.

If holley makes anything for that series truck, you can basically take it to the bank that everything will fit perfect as it should...but $$$$$$$. they've been making packages that include the conversion mounts, transmission mounts and header's that fit great and put the driveline where it needs to be. it comes with a price tag though.

TXsilverado

iTrader: (19)

here is one of the easy buttons...but $1,500 for motor mounts, transmission mount, longtubes and oil pan. guaranteed to fit like a glove though. I went through 3 or 4 different longtube headers and spent hours researching different headers for my 69 camaro. if it's a cruiser, there are cheaper header options.

https://www.holley.com/products/ls_p...ap_components/

silver-mod-o

iTrader: (15)

I just got done swapping a GEN 4 engine into a 72’ C10 running an 0411 PCM speed density. It’s really a simple deal if you do some homework and aren’t scared to buy a few certain things that’ll make your life easier. I’ll admit. I bought a harness from complete performance but it’s probably the best thing I did for the truck. It fit perfectly, Looks nice and is labeled with every connection. Tell them what you’re building and they’ll make it for your build.

Other than that, headers, oil pan, mounts, fuel system, trans adapting, and front accessory drive depending on how you want to do that. Not much to it.

Error304

Yeah I’ve been looking into that as well. It’s honestly not a bad idea. Thank you

Error304

Thank you.