Books for LS1 performance

[TheNeedForZ]

New owner to a 98 LS1, Now I need to read more about them.

 

I have found a few books on LS1 on Amazon, but let's hear your recommendations first.

 

Thanks

[Pop N Wood]

I have this book

 

 

Pretty much a must have book, even though it is a little older and doesn't talk about LS2 motors. They have a detailed section on how to pull an LS1 out of an F body. Has a good history of the design features in the motors. I learned a lot from this book.

 

I also bought the GM LS installation guide. Was like $40. It is primarily part numbers and has good info about the differences between the Fbody-Vette-Truck parts. But overall not worth the 40 bucks.

 

Beyond that I am looking for good books myself.

[TheNeedForZ]

Beyond that I am looking for good books myself.

 

I noticed the book you recommends and that looks like a great book. That's the one I am going to buy.

 

I am also tempted by this book :

 

http://www.amazon.com/Dyno-Proven-Thru-Performance-Parts-Design/dp/1932494405/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-7564617-9994521?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1174242449&sr=8-1

 

Basically a "this bolt-on makes this much power" book. Should be close to a shopping catalog backed by dyno tests. It's a new book (feb 1st 2007), so no feedbacks yet, but it's only 16.47 for 160 pages. If no one says anything bad about this book then I'll prolly buy it too.

[Kevin Shasteen]

Thanks for posting about the new LS1 "Dyno" book. I have been collecting magazine articles on the LS performance builds for a few years now.

 

That is one book I have not seen on the book racks yet.

 

The interesting thing about the LS engine, which Will Handzel points out, is that the LS's volumetric efficiency is so high it tends to bend the rules relative to the old school v8's. Interestingly the intake ports were not designed the way they are because the engineers thought they would be more efficient, rather - they were designed that way out of neccessity. The efficient intake port design was accidental/experimental...not intentional.

 

Another interesting fact Will Handzel points out about the LS engine during engineering - had little to no friction between the pistons and cylinder walls causing no piston/rod loading as the piston went from TDC to BDC and they, the engineers, actually had to design friction into the piston. I thought that was interesting.

 

This means the LS engines have only enough FMEP required to keep the wrist pin/piston intact and no more. Ergo, less FMEP robbing tq/hp allowing more torque applied to the IMEP creating more BMEP at a greater ratio...changing the tq/hp formula to the users benefit.

 

I really like the LS engines. Its no wonder GM is putting them in just about everything they can get away with.

 

Thanks again for posting the news about the new book.

 

Kevin,

(Yea,still an Inliner)

[Pop N Wood]

I saw that dyno book when I was searching for a pic of the book I posted. That is a really new book. Might pick that one up myself.

 

Amazon turned up a third book, but unfortunately it got flamed in the amazon review. Funny how people always complain about books having info that "can be found on the internet". Yeah, maybe it can, but sometimes it is nice to have it all in one place and hopefully from a trusted source.

 

The book I posted above says the cathedral ports came about because the designer mandated that the valve train be "in line", i.e. the pushrods could not be offset from the valves. That meant the intake ports had to be narrow to fit, so the only way to make them bigger was to make them taller. I have read other things stating the original designers were amazed at how well the head worked with the carburated intake. Something about how the heads were designed to work with the injector.

 

But the LS7 heads (and now L92 heads) have offset rockers allowing a more rectangular intake port.