L98 into VE Thunder ute 2011

[REXDRUMMER]

Hey all Im sure this has been discussed but i cant finf it,,so I have a ve thunder ute with 6cyl and 6sp,,wanting to put 8 in there but have questions,,id prefer a ls2 but will settle for ls1,,do the ls1 fit in the ve,,is there anything on the engine needing changing befire i goes in,,also wiring loom has to be changed,,do i have to get the ss ute loom,,ecu bcm etc,,if anyone could give me a rundown on the procedure for the swap as i want to start pricing parts etc so i can work out 1 if its a good idea,,and 2 weather i can afford it,,cheers for reading

 

[gossie]

Waste of time and money.
Sell what you have and buy a proper V8 utility.

 

[someguy360]

You really need the whole donor car not just the engine, loom and ECU.

theres so many differences between the two cars with VE's as canbus means theres dozens of modules in the car all interlinked meaning they all need to communicate together.

Also you'll need a V8 transmission you can't bolt a v8 to a v6 transmission, probably a tailshaft, mounts, k frame, crossmember, exhaust, instrument cluster, cooling system, power steering pump, alternator, brackets etc.

You'll pay more than it will cost to buy a V8 ute if you start to piece all this together yourself let alone getting the electrics running. For example even the IQ headunit is coded to the ECU's so theres a few hundred just there to get a dealer to code that into the new ECU just to get radio/HVAC etc back up and running again, and a lot of the security of the car runs through the headunit so it may not even start.

It's not like the old days where you just drop the v8 in, wire it up and off you go.

The only way you'll get this done for under say $20-30k is to buy a wrecked V8 VE and transfer quite literally everything over.

You also won't be able to register an LS1 legally in a VE, you'll need an engine from a VE S2 or newer.

 

[losh1971]

Yep, you will need a donor, I have seen donor VF's sell for around $18k VE won't be as much but won't be far off. Could go to a few auctions and see what a VE write off sells for. Sounds like you will need to pay someone, so best speak to a garage about how many days it will take them to do the job, but at a guess it will be close to a week. You will then need it passed for a roadworthy. I'm with Gossie, I think you will find it's cheaper to buy an SS for $22-23k. I doubt there will be much if any change from $23k if you do a V8 swap into yours.

 

[keith reed]

If you do go down that track you will still have a v6 that has been fitted with a v8. It will never be worth the same as a genuine v8.

Remember you are getting advice from people who are experts at wasting money on cars and none think it's a good idea.

 

[REXDRUMMER]

Yep, you will need a donor, I have seen donor VF's sell for around $18k VE won't be as much but won't be far off. Could go to a few auctions and see what a VE write off sells for. Sounds like you will need to pay someone, so best speak to a garage about how many days it will take them to do the job, but at a guess it will be close to a week. You will then need it passed for a roadworthy. I'm with Gossie, I think you will find it's cheaper to buy an SS for $22-23k. I doubt there will be much if any change from $23k if you do a V8 swap into yours.

hmm maybe i should have mentioned i will do all the work myself,,where exactly do you get 20 to 30 k to put a motor in a car,,ls2 with manyal ive seen sell for 7 to 10k,wiring looms ive seen for 200 ecu ive seen for 3 to 500,main ingredients done rite there,,why does the bcm module have to be reprogrammed,its only yhe engine and gearbox getting changed,,have you guys actually done the conversion or are you taking a punt at a guess,,the same thing happened with a fg xr6 into turbo and 5 to 6sp box and it cost me a third of the price and didnt have to change half of what people were saying,and also there are garages advertising the conversion for 12k just doesnt make sense to me

 

[losh1971]

If you can find a place to do the conversion for $12k then do that.
Also why would you ask for prices on this conversion if you reckon you can do it cheaper. No offence but you didn't cone across capable of doing the job yourself when you asked questions that suggested you hadn't even looked into what is needed.

 

[losh1971]

Not sure who quoted you the prices but an LS 2 alone is $8k if you find one privately, a 6060 SH sell for around $2.5-$3, then you need a diff, or at minimum a flange they sell for about $300 or so IIRC. A tailshaft will be $1000 or more, as it will need a bearing and balance and bushes, all things the average garage can not do, with 95% of people at home having no chance.
I think more research is needed. But of you think you can pull it off for the budget you have in mind I and many others would love to read your build thread.

 

[someguy360]

You’ve clearly never worked with CANBUS systems OP.

VE’s are that complex even a minor fault in the stereo can render the car immobilised.

The stereo and BCM are both coded to the ECU, by changing the ECU you need to have everything resynced together it’s not something you can do yourself. I know because I’ve had to replace these types of modules before

Even taking a stereo from another VE you can’t just plug it in, that’s how complex this is even the stereo has to be coded to the car or it won’t even power up.
VE and VF electrical systems are ridiculously over complex. For example if you roll the car more than a few metres without the key in the ignition it will immobilise itself and go into theft mode.

Your still ignoring the fact you need all the V8 bolt ons, these aren’t interchangeable between v6 and v8.

The fuel system between the SIDI direct injected engine and a standard multi point V8 is completely different.

The transmissions have their own transmission control modules which will need to be swapped over as the v6 and V8 transmissions aren’t even made by the same company.

It all adds up quickly remember you need a v8 kframe not just v8 engine mounts, by the time you source a k frame then buy new v8 mounts your probably in for $500 just in that if not more.

I can guarantee you the places doing the conversions of $12k aren’t including the engine and gearbox that will be the cost of the conversion itself.

It’s in no way as simple as removing the v6 and trans, bolting the v8 trans and engine in and throwing the wiring loom at it. You need to look at the bigger picture here not just the engine trans and ecu

 

[Commo64]

hmm maybe i should have mentioned i will do all the work myself,,where exactly do you get 20 to 30 k to put a motor in a car,,ls2 with manyal ive seen sell for 7 to 10k,wiring looms ive seen for 200 ecu ive seen for 3 to 500,main ingredients done rite there,,why does the bcm module have to be reprogrammed,its only yhe engine and gearbox getting changed,,have you guys actually done the conversion or are you taking a punt at a guess,,the same thing happened with a fg xr6 into turbo and 5 to 6sp box and it cost me a third of the price and didnt have to change half of what people were saying,and also there are garages advertising the conversion for 12k just doesnt make sense to me

The point is, it's really not worth doing this conversion as it's never going to be a genuine V8... You might as well sell this car and save the 12k so you can buy a factory produced V8, rather than a backyard hack job frankenstein of a car...