LS1 Conversion

[xjrob]

Any chance of some pics and an explanation of the issues and solutions.

After all that blood, sweat, tears and beer brag a bit and let us know how you overcame the dramas, and did i say lots and lots of pics

[Clint87]

Yeah the more pics info on this the better!

[COFFMAN]

Hi all,
The main reason for my original post was to show what I had done for my accessories/belt drive, which I could not find a bolt on kit to achieve what I needed. The A/C being a big issue to move & secondly the alternator & belt tensioner which was custom made. These small issues put my project on hold for 12 months until I had it resolved. My GM engine spares pile has grown quite large as the water pump which needed to be replaced anyway also needed to be modified for my heater hose routing.
The LS1 into the MJ using a left hand drive kit (which is a great product) took quite a bit of tweaking to get the required clearances.
I have found the right hand drive XJ fire wall to protrude out more than the left hand side. Which is the opposite to a left hand drive vehicle. Also the right hand head on the LS1 sits back further,(a double whammy for us "Skippy's") creating clearance issues (fire wall, foot well, & unibody) the is all regardless of steering shaft to header clearances. So firstly to get my motor in the "sweat spot" I moved it forward approx. 12mm up & over to the left hand side approx. 20mm.
This is all regardless of sump clearances which will be another issue which I will be quite happy to modify to suit.
In regards to the steering shaft, unless one is happy to put a snake in it, not so in my case. The only option is to cut, heat, bend, re-weld & machine headers. Come up a treat, have heaps of clearance.
In the conversion world I think it would be fair to say that no two conversions are the same & depending on ones wants & needs, it can be done in many ways.

[swampy]

looking good there mate , what did it cost to modify your headers ?

[COFFMAN]

That's a long story.................................. Get in good with a good machine shop. You will need it. What I should of done was get a old LS1 head bolt the headers on mark where I needed to gain 25mm clearance and took it to my machine shop. Tube 1 & 3 need to be moved but in doing that 2 also needs to move 4 is good. I used my exhaust shop taken them back and forth 3 times, when the correct result was achieved my sealing surface was badly warped. The sanders headers use a raised welded ( machined ) bead for the seal, no gasket required only H/T silicon. So then off to my machine shop build the welds up and re machined.... So it cost a lot more than it should have

This conversion is not plug & play bolt it up in a weekend. The Novak product is great, But built for LEFT H/D XJ. Can be made to fit R/D but takes a little work................its all fun man.................

[swampy]

cool sounds like fun

[swampy]

Any updates on this one mate ?