Stock GM LS7?

[pimlico]

Ntnt

[Stuart Adams]

Abuse and 100 K - good luck with that. I had a stock LS7, great reliable motor, never leaked, not fast, good mileage, quiet.

Easy to gain lots pf hp with heads, cam, etc. Lots of potential.

[Stuart Adams]

It was fast enough. Needed at least 100 more and preferably 175 more ponies IMO. It sounds like it will work perfect, and its easy to add hp if wanted.

[youthpastor]

do you want to run a dry sump engine?
there are alot of options out there to get power from an LS. Mast make a nice wet sump LS7 with great internals that will make power and reliability

[Solid LT1]

Why is everyone so afraid of running a simple 2 hose GM dry sump set up? Tanks are readily available and you get lots of extra reliability from the system especially if your planning on pulling some LATERAL Gs with the finished build. I have a 09 Z06 Vette running it up to redline puts a big smile on my face. LS7s do have a reputation for some reliability problems, there were rocker arm failures in 2007 build motors and it seems there were some mis machined rocker mounting pads on some motors. GM has a warranty check for excessive valve guide clearances and my buddies machine shop has done 4 sets of LS7 heads in the past year and a half for the Chevy dealer. Nothing wrong with the output of a stock LS7! Check the C6 Z06 section of The Corvette Forum for LS7 technical information.

[im4u2nvss]

Another to consider-

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-19301360/overview/

525hp 489ft

Slightly better power then the ls7's

505hp 470ft

[INTMD8]

Hi all,

As you probably seen I'm still in the middle of deciding what engine to use in my 67 Camaro. Running an AME Max-G chassis and T56 L5 transmission.

Does anyone here run a stock GM LS7? Do you like it? Any problems?

I'm looking for a very, very reliable engine.

Are there any upgrades/modifications to increase the HP of the stock LS7, but doesn't impact the reliability of it?

I'm looking to get over 100,000 miles out of the engine, but be able to abuse it a bit.

Stock LS7 is bad ass. As for upgrades and reliability-

There have been quite a few with valve guide issues which ultimately result in a broken exhaust valve and a broken engine. Whether or not this is a "valid" issue is a debate among many but I have seen several with my own eyes.

Considering that, I would do a few things for reliability.

-Install bronze guides and stainless exhaust valves

-Replace stock oil pan with ARE unit.

The stock pan is a poor design. You have one stage of scavenging and basically a wet sump pan with a big open area around the pickup. Not efficient at returning oil to the tank, especially in a continual 'lateral-g' situation :)

As for a cam, you have a lot of different choices.

I built/tune these for a living and in my experience a stock C6Z will be in the 465rwhp range. With a dyno tune, around 480rwhp. With an induction add 10-15 to that.

I designed a cam which is 227/243 .649/.660 115.5lsa which has a nice sound at idle but has near stock driveability.

Basically with a cam swap you are trading out the rpm range it is most efficient. This is just a simple explanation but as you go up in cam size you will trade low speed smoothness for high rpm power. Go to big and it will surge and chop at low cruise rpm's. This is a characteristic I prefer to avoid, especially with a manual trans.

With the above cam in a C6Z with headers and induction it will typically make 525-535rwhp. With ported/milled heads and fast intake/NW throttle body it has made over 590rwhp.

One more thing to consider as far as overall reliability. It will take much longer to reach minimum oil temp with a dry sump system. Keep that in mind and keep load/rpm down until it is up to temp and you will help engine life dramatically.

[Blake Foster]

Why is everyone so afraid of running a simple 2 hose GM dry sump set up? Tanks are readily available and you get lots of extra reliability from the system especially if your planning on pulling some LATERAL Gs with the finished build. I have a 09 Z06 Vette running it up to redline puts a big smile on my face. LS7s do have a reputation for some reliability problems, there were rocker arm failures in 2007 build motors and it seems there were some mis machined rocker mounting pads on some motors. GM has a warranty check for excessive valve guide clearances and my buddies machine shop has done 4 sets of LS7 heads in the past year and a half for the Chevy dealer. Nothing wrong with the output of a stock LS7! Check the C6 Z06 section of The Corvette Forum for LS7 technical information.

The dry sump unfortunately is not just a simple 2 hose system, for starters the corvette pan will not fit "Most" chassis it mat fit the OP Morrison I am not sure. the tank does not fit the Camaro with out major modifications Speedtech sells a drysump pan and retrofit tank that will fit the Camaros we can also supply the fitting and hose list required to do the swap

[Solid LT1]

Just logged a 540 mile trip to sell my C6 Z06 to a buyer in Las Vegas I did the trip in just over 8 hours. 1 pit stop/refuel in Bakersfield 69 MPH speed average at 27MPG fuel economy........in my book the LS7 is the most KICK ASS motor to ever come from GM. My old Audi R8 buddies with their 420HP 8100RPM redline 18MPG 4.2L V8s used to be in complete disbelief at the mileage and power of this 7L monster! I'm glad the 2014 Z28 has extended the production of this awesome unit.
I don't think the new generation of Direct Injection motors will have the same legacy...for starters who in gods name decided to put the water pump in the stupid location! Don't even get me started on the issues Direct Injected motors have with build up on the backs of the intake valves.....a MAJOR problem that has yet to be solved by GM, VW, Audi, Porsche, Toyota, BMW.....they all have build up problems! Want to tune a DI motor....I'll bet those tool steel cam cores will run $750.....make sure to get the high pressure pump cam lobe right......

[Bigbore500r]

Have the stock heads sent to WCCH. They will install new SS exhaust valves, Re-polish the factory intake valve stems to the correct RA finish to keep the guides from being torn up. Common problem with factory LS7 motors, especially when run hard. Supposedly this has been corrected by GM on the motors build within the last 2-3 years, but I cannot speak to that personally. Considering the price of these motors, its worth it for the piece of mind to me. When they stick in the worn guide and fail....it is a major motor explosion that usually windows the block.