3 weeks and needing advice!

[stokes_osu]

Huh

[tom4bren]

Use the search function on the home page using axiom engine as the criteria. That will probably be your best choice.

This is the thread I was thinking of:

http://www.vehicross.info/forums/sho...t=axiom+engine

[Triathlete]

The Ax engine is not a V8.
Osu...do a search of CoachReed. He actually had a V8 in....just couldn't get the wiring re-done (he butchered the harness). The VX is now owned by AlaskaVX...you might PM/email him for pics.
Ascinder is in the process of stuffing a 6.0 into his. Search the site for his build thread and maybe drop him a PM.
It is not an easy task but can be done. You will have to not be affraid to do some cutting and relocating under the hood though and fab up motor/tranny mounts etc.

[stokes_osu]

I am not too scared of cutting and chopping I just look at all of the talk and no one has any pic to show it can be done in a timely manner. I think I al leaning toward the oem swap if I could just find something that was worth the $$$ low miles and close to me…

[vt_maverick]

I am not too scared of cutting and chopping I just look at all of the talk and no one has any pic to show it can be done in a timely manner.

+1 - Lots of talk, little action... so far. We have several guys more than capable of doing it, but I doubt any one of them would tell you that a 3 week timeline to figure everything out AND get it all done is realistic. But hopefully Ascinder, Zeus, or BigMeat will weigh in as they are the subject matter experts.

[tom4bren]

The Ax engine is not a V8.

True. I just read his intentions as mutually exclusive requirements. V8 or 3 weeks. I assumed that the 3 week requirement took priority.

[AlaskaVX]

I am not too scared of cutting and chopping I just look at all of the talk and no one has any pic to show it can be done in a timely manner.

Pic to show timely matter I have been sitting on this project for years (AND IT WAS HALF DONE WHEN I GOT IT!) but now I finally have a house with a garage to work on it so maybe this winter/or next.

Well if you read Triathlete's post and searched their gallery you would have seen pics. Here let me do this work for you, LS-1 in VX:





The LS-1 is as far back as it can go (less than an inch clearance to firewall)

I agree with the no way in hell you will get it done in 3 weeks, there is a LOT of work to be done. Hell, trying to do all the wiring takes a lot of time and to have someone build a wiring harness, machining/fab up adapter plates, etc. its just not really possible.

[D-19]

WHAAAAaaaaa..... my vx needs a rebuild, at first a ls1 looked cheaper and more fun, but with all of this it looks like a swap would cost WAYYY too much money and time

P.S. did coachreed just up and disappear?

[RamAirZ]

I agree with the no way in hell you will get it done in 3 weeks, there is a LOT of work to be done. Hell, trying to do all the wiring takes a lot of time and to have someone build a wiring harness, machining/fab up adapter plates, etc. its just not really possible.

I will disagree ONLY IF you have done a similar swap before, have the money to order all parts at once and have plenty of time to tackle it. Like you work nights and can spend ALL day working on it. Personally, if I had the money for everything all at once, and it was JUST the engine/trans swap, I could have it done in under 3 weeks. I had my LS1/T56 conversion done in my old car (swapping from auto to manual at the time too) done in 1.5 weeks, the car wasn't finished as I was doing lots of other stuff but the swap was complete and I even built my own long tube headers. But I had LOTS of time and had all the parts before I started and I had done a similar swap before so most of the "engine specific" headaches I was already aware of before hand.

[SlowPro48]

Tell me what to do?

Bail out on the V8 swap. It can't be done in three weeks (or even three years, apparently) so just get a rebuilt 6VE1 short block, an oil pan and some gaskets and have at it. Less than $2000 and a week of wrenching and you'll be rolling again!

Hey - you asked!

[Ascinder]

There is absolutely no way in the world you're going to cram a V8 into a VX in three weeks, let alone before winter. Fwiw the 5.3 is the same size physically as the 5.7 or 6.0. The measurement I didn't like when I was speccing mine out was the depth front to rear. I fixed mine by swapping over to the corvette accessory layout which gives you a couple of valuable inches, but at a very hefty pricetag and a lot of scavenging(time). I also switched to the corvette "batwing" oil pan which has a much shallower, yet much wider sump so you lose some inches vertically. This let me sit the engine down lower to help with the center of gravity and allow me to run the much taller and more free flowing l92 truck manifold and still clear the hood. The problems you haven't even realized yet is that the stock transmission/transfer case aren't going to bolt right up to a V8, and won't even come close to holding up against one. Unless you have a fully outfitted shop, plenty, and I do mean plenty of down time, an unlimited budget, and an unnerving way of doing nothing but work on your VX nonstop for several months, then a V8 swap probably isn't for you. It takes so much more than people think that it isn't even funny. There is just no cheap, easy and quick swap out there for a V8.

[Robbomaz]

Nice supercharged 3.5

[RamAirZ]

agree 100%. That's why so many projects get sold unfinished because the original owner didn't know what they were getting into. Sometimes you have people that stick it out anyway and finish but it takes longer than expected.