LY6 Swap - Is this the one?

[ajgriffin]

Hey folks, I'm looking to swap a LY6/6L80 into my Suburban, but I need to source the combo from somewhere. I've got my eye on one, but want to get feedback as this will be my first attempt at an LS swap. Here are the details:

LY6 w/2wd 6L80 trans
2008 Chevy Silverado 2500HD (was a street sweeper, not a normal P/U)
150k miles
involved in a rollover accident

Is this worth buying? Too many miles? What would be a fair price? Any non-negotiable repairs before the swap? Anything I'm not thinking of? Any help is greatly appreciated!

I've also attached a video of it running. Here: https://youtu.be/ZS7y9sjQdEU

[jrusher]

I used a Ly6 for my swap it was out of a van . Had high miles so I freshened up engine put a ls3 intake, Tb and injectors and a bigger cam . Great engine and heads are basically ls3 heads. Yours has low miles I would just drop it in and go

[Rich84]

I love how you can find these engines hiding in all sorts of vehicles. My 2005 LQ4 with an fbody oil pan and manifolds was sitting in an Isuzu box truck. It was T-boned after the owner put a bran new 4l80 in it.

[ls1nova71]

A street sweeper with 150k miles has probably got a TON of hours on it, so I would check it out good.

[ajgriffin]

Originally Posted by ls1nova71

A street sweeper with 150k miles has probably got a TON of hours on it, so I would check it out good.

Excuse the dumb question, but what does check it out good mean? I've gotten the video of it starting and running, its been compression and leak checked, scanned with no codes.

I did notice some smoke coming from the engine, but that's likely oil burning off from the truck being flipped over. Why would street sweeper 150k be different that anything else? I'd imagine they get driven pretty steady (not a lot of stop and go) and have some type of maintenance crew to keep them on the road?

Thanks for all the responses so far, keep them coming!

[ajgriffin]

Originally Posted by jrusher

I used a Ly6 for my swap it was out of a van . Had high miles so I freshened up engine put a ls3 intake, Tb and injectors and a bigger cam . Great engine and heads are basically ls3 heads. Yours has low miles I would just drop it in and go

Looks great! What did you do to freshen the engine and what do you consider high mileage?

[jrusher]

Originally Posted by ajgriffin

Looks great! What did you do to freshen the engine and what do you consider high mileage?

Mine had over 300 thousand km supposedly. I could not hear it run engine was already out of van. Glad I tore it down one of the main bearings was worn really bad. Polished crank journals, honed cylinders , rebuilt heads. New pistons, rings, bearings , chain . TSP vvt cam, heavier valve springs, the list goes on . I’m doing another swap a 5.3 this time an lower miles in the wife’s truck and I’m not opening this one up drop in an go . I think you’ve verified your engine condition enough I wouldn’t hesitate to just run it as is unless you wanna make some bigger hp

[1971Stepside]

I know when the street sweeper comes by my house the engine is running high RPMs as he is creeping down the street. Lots of stop and go. These engines are pretty solid and I'm sure it was well maintained being a tax payer vehicle. At the end of the day you have to be comfortable with it. The one I purchased was very clean, but it is still a bit of a gamble no knowing the full history. Just go in with your eyes wide open and expect to spend more money that you thought you were going to.

[BR3W CITY]

The question stuck in my mind.....how did they roll a street sweeper?!?!?><

[ajgriffin]

Originally Posted by br3w city

the question stuck in my mind.....how did they roll a street sweeper?!?!?><

i wanna know too!!! Lol

[Clyde65]

Originally Posted by BR3W CITY

The question stuck in my mind.....how did they roll a street sweeper?!?!?><

I would think very very slowly!

[nsb29]

All the street sweepers that I have seen do not use the engine in the truck but a standalone engine to run the sweeper and vacuum

[ls1nova71]

Originally Posted by ajgriffin

Excuse the dumb question, but what does check it out good mean? I've gotten the video of it starting and running, its been compression and leak checked, scanned with no codes.

I did notice some smoke coming from the engine, but that's likely oil burning off from the truck being flipped over. Why would street sweeper 150k be different that anything else? I'd imagine they get driven pretty steady (not a lot of stop and go) and have some type of maintenance crew to keep them on the road?

Thanks for all the responses so far, keep them coming!

Its not a dumb question, I probably should have been a little more clear. With a truck that just creeps along all day, it will have more hours on it, which doesn't necessarily hurt it, but a normally driven truck is just more desirable in my opinion. This could be because I work on fleet vehicles for the government, so they should be the best vehicles on the road, but they are far from it. The drivers of them don't care what happens to them, because we'll fix what ever stupid thing they do to them. I just watched your video on LS1Tech and it sounds like a good running engine, so as long as you're comfortable with it I would go for it. Is there any chance they would let you drive it around the yard? That way you could get a feel for the transmission. The 6l80 is a good trans, but 150k is on the high end for them, the engines usually outlast them by a considerable amount of miles. I wouldn't worry about the smoke in the video, that is probably just residual oil or coolant burning off the manifolds from the wreck. If you can, I would pull the valve covers and look under them, vehicles that aren't run at highway speeds and do a lot of idling will sludge up if not serviced regularly. If you cant pull a valve cover, pull the oil fill tube, (the tube, not just the cap) and look in it with a flashlight. Now, being a fleet vehicle paid for by tax dollars you would think it would have been very diligently maintained, but sometimes the head idiot in charge will say "it doesn't have that many miles on it, let it go" just so they can write the service off as completed, and save some money at the same time, which makes them look good in the eyes of they're superior, who probably knows nothing about automobile maintenance.... But that's probably too much rambling, so I will shut up now!

Like I said, it sounds like it runs good, so if you think it will work for you, go for it. I would change a few gaskets, intake, exhaust, and anything that looks like its leaking oil, and run it. No reason to mess with the injectors in my opinion since it sounds like it is pretty smooth running.

[57taskforce]

I’ve got one going in my K20. Sounds like it could be a good deal to me. Personaly I think the ly6 is a gem that is often over looked. Ls3 heads, vvt, and the beefier gen 4 rods. They are ready to handle as much power as you want to throw to them, want a high lift cam? Delete the vvt and run an ls 3 spec cam and springs. There are serveral unique options with this motor and they are usually pretty reasonably priced compared to the car engines. If it were me I’d pull the pan and make sure everything looks good, slap some new gaskets and seals on it and let it eat if it all looks good. I personally like to know exactly what I have on my hands with a used engine.