My 2001 Tahoe LQ4 swap saga (lots of pics)

yota · 10-03-2011, 11:27 AM

First off, i want to give a HUGE thanks to Shawn and Colin for the help... without you guys, this swap would have never happened

So, Saturday morning Shawn and I showed up at the shop to start on the engine swap. There was a crispness in the air, the weather was beautiful and we had a wide open shop with plenty of tools at our disposal, life was good and we started the tear down.

Excuse the pics as all i had was my ipod...

The top end came apart fairly easily. Decent amount of grime built up but it did have 198,500 miles on it and still ran awesome.

Shawn trying to get the y-pipe off. Stupid rusty bolts!

Well the bolts weren't budging on the collectors so we had to cut the y-pipe off. Who knew I had high flow cats this whole time?!?

A couple more bolts and some vertical persuasion from the forklift and it was out! Hellz yeah, hot damn!

yota · 10-03-2011, 11:33 AM

The new engine sitting on the bench.

At this point, the stock exhaust manifolds had been pulled off since I was installing long tubes with the new engine. Unfortunately, the rear manifold bolt broke on BOTH SIDES!!! Some very careful and tedious drilling, heating with a torch, and an easy out got them out though. Good job Shawn and Colin!!!

Beefy flanges on the headers and so shiny!!!

Matt stopped by to check things out. Notice who is actually working in this picture.....

Stock converter, 1800 stall? That has got TO GO!!!

yota · 10-03-2011, 11:38 AM

Time to drop the new motor in. Smooth like butta!

Here we ran into a little issue. We got the engine mounts and bellhousing bolts in and snugged. Only thing left to do on the bottom side of the engine other than exhaust is to bolt up the converter and call it a night. SIMPLE, right? Ummm, no. We go to turn the flywheel and it won't budge. WTF? Lets pull the plugs and see what they look like. I think these pictures speak for themselves....

BAD BOB · 10-03-2011, 11:51 AM

looks like everything went smooth! a damn lift would of been very very very nice!

yota · 10-03-2011, 11:51 AM

At this point, we are both contemplating rolling the truck outside and setting it on fire. I call the guy I bought the motor from and explain what is going on and his response, verbatim, is "I don't know what to tell you bo, it was fine when I had it." WTF is that bullshit? Moody gets to thinking and we decide to drown the engine in PB Blaster and let it sit overnight. I didn't take any pictures yesterday but when we got back to work on it, the crank came free and rotated smoothly after a few stressfull minutes of turning it. So now the engine turns freely and we can bolt up the converter. Shawn crawls under the truck and does the honors whole me and my friend start assembling the top end. At this point, we are cruising right along, the headers go in and get bolted to the rest of the exhaust, the accessories go on and life is good once again! We decide to leave the plugs out and spin the engine over to pump out most of the PB Blaster. Great success and the engine sound nice and smooth turning over with the starter! YESSSS!

So, we get to work installing the plugs and wires, make one last check of everything and I climb in the truck to turn the key over. The solenoid on the starter clicks in and after about a second of cranking the engine ROARS to life! I quickly shut it off as a huge grin spreads across my face. My tahoe sounds like a BAD MUTHA right now! I'm on cloud 9 right now, MY 6.0 LIVES!!! So i spin it over again, watching the oil pressure gauge intently as the motor roars to life once again. Oh shit.... no oil pressure so I kill it again. We talk about it and decide that maybe it just hasn't had time to pump it through the engine so we try again. Still nothing.

So, that's where we are at now. "New" engine with no oil pressure. This was basically my last view as Shawn towed it to HHP this morning for them to diagnose the oiling issue. Hopefully it's a simple fix like throwing a new oil pump on there and she will be on the road again. Fingers crossed on that one...

BAD BOB · 10-03-2011, 12:01 PM

try a different sending unit?

yota · 10-03-2011, 12:11 PM

filter was bone dry and no oil visible in the valve train when looking through the oil fill hole, plus the sending unit came off of my running 5.3 and was a known good unit

the pump simply isnt pumping...

1998ta__1991rs · 10-03-2011, 12:43 PM

with the motor being full of water like that, and no oil pressure, it sounds like you bought a core motor from someone. Did you buy it from a junkyard or individual?

yota · 10-03-2011, 01:15 PM

i bought it from an individual who got it from a wrecked truck at the junkyard... he pretty much told me to fuck off (in not so many words) and that the motor was "fine when he had it", implying that somehow the rust in the cylinders, etc was somehow my fault and happened in the 2 days i had the motor in my possession since driving to mooresville, nc and picking it up from him (at a cost of ~$150 and a whole day of driving on my part)... basically, it's mine now and on me to get it going as he has washed his hands of it when i drove off with it from his house... i just hope and pray that the guys at HHP have good news for me when they get into it and that it just needs an oil pump or something simple... i will be saving for a rebuild down the road if we can get it going... for now, lets just hope the oil starts flowing and nothing is majorly wrong to the point that i can't run it... i have to move to new york a week from this friday so, yeah....

Sean · 10-03-2011, 01:29 PM

Your problem is Matt touched the truck.

chrisheltra · 10-03-2011, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sean

Your problem is Matt touched the truck.

+1

bwelch · 10-03-2011, 01:52 PM

Pick up tube could be clogged or its the oil pump. The only problem with it not pumping oil is it could have a spun bearing. The 6.0 I had a bad oil pump and it spun a main because of the oil pump. I had to get a new block because it tore up the main so bad. If you need it rebuilt I would go with Honeycutt in Columbia. He has great prices and does good work.

bwelch · 10-03-2011, 01:55 PM

I had to pull the transmission out of my truck last week and I had to PB blast the bolts like ten times just to get them free. I almost cut the pipe so I would have an excuse to buy headers and a y-pipe.

ShawnBoyMoody · 10-03-2011, 02:49 PM

Thanks for the props Aaron. Sorry this shit happened to you bro. Guys, this man has the patience of a saint. After everything that happened he never once got mad or lost his temper. Im sure it will all work out for you in the end. Keep the Ranger as long as you need, and let me know if there is anything I can do.

Blue Skunk · 10-03-2011, 02:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yota

i bought it from an individual who got it from a wrecked truck at the junkyard... he pretty much told me to fuck off (in not so many words) and that the motor was "fine when he had it", implying that somehow the rust in the cylinders, etc was somehow my fault and happened in the 2 days i had the motor in my possession since driving to mooresville, nc and picking it up from him (at a cost of ~$150 and a whole day of driving on my part)... basically, it's mine now and on me to get it going as he has washed his hands of it when i drove off with it from his house... i just hope and pray that the guys at HHP have good news for me when they get into it and that it just needs an oil pump or something simple... i will be saving for a rebuild down the road if we can get it going... for now, lets just hope the oil starts flowing and nothing is majorly wrong to the point that i can't run it... i have to move to new york a week from this friday so, yeah....

I would put that suckers address in my GPS and blaze a trail directly to him and open up a 6 pack of whoop ass on him over this.

whoopass.jpg

Good luck with it.

chrisheltra · 10-03-2011, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blue Skunk

I would put that suckers address in my GPS and blaze a trail directly to him and open up a 6 pack of whoop ass on him over this.

Attachment 760

Good luck with it.

Buyer beware.....

Blue Skunk · 10-03-2011, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisheltra

Buyer beware.....

Seller beware. Tell the truth or feel the wrath.

ShawnBoyMoody · 10-03-2011, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blue Skunk

Seller beware. Tell the truth or feel the wrath.

This. Tell the truth or get your skull cracked.

Matts94Z28 · 10-03-2011, 03:56 PM

SMMS helping the community again!

Aaron, I hope you get it worked out and its nothing too crazy. Let me know if you need anything, I still have a few parts laying around.

bwelch · 10-03-2011, 04:09 PM

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SLP-H...item19c960142e

Best deal on an oil pump I have found

10-03-2011, 11:27 AM	#1
yota Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Va Posts: 1,049	My 2001 Tahoe LQ4 swap saga (lots of pics) First off, i want to give a HUGE thanks to Shawn and Colin for the help... without you guys, this swap would have never happened So, Saturday morning Shawn and I showed up at the shop to start on the engine swap. There was a crispness in the air, the weather was beautiful and we had a wide open shop with plenty of tools at our disposal, life was good and we started the tear down. Excuse the pics as all i had was my ipod... The top end came apart fairly easily. Decent amount of grime built up but it did have 198,500 miles on it and still ran awesome. Shawn trying to get the y-pipe off. Stupid rusty bolts! Well the bolts weren't budging on the collectors so we had to cut the y-pipe off. Who knew I had high flow cats this whole time?!? A couple more bolts and some vertical persuasion from the forklift and it was out! Hellz yeah, hot damn! __________________ 1999 Trans Am 2007.5 Dodge Mega Cab Cummins

10-03-2011, 11:33 AM	#2
yota Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Va Posts: 1,049	The new engine sitting on the bench. At this point, the stock exhaust manifolds had been pulled off since I was installing long tubes with the new engine. Unfortunately, the rear manifold bolt broke on BOTH SIDES!!! Some very careful and tedious drilling, heating with a torch, and an easy out got them out though. Good job Shawn and Colin!!! Beefy flanges on the headers and so shiny!!! Matt stopped by to check things out. Notice who is actually working in this picture..... Stock converter, 1800 stall? That has got TO GO!!! __________________ 1999 Trans Am 2007.5 Dodge Mega Cab Cummins

10-03-2011, 11:38 AM	#3
yota Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Va Posts: 1,049	Time to drop the new motor in. Smooth like butta! Here we ran into a little issue. We got the engine mounts and bellhousing bolts in and snugged. Only thing left to do on the bottom side of the engine other than exhaust is to bolt up the converter and call it a night. SIMPLE, right? Ummm, no. We go to turn the flywheel and it won't budge. WTF? Lets pull the plugs and see what they look like. I think these pictures speak for themselves.... __________________ 1999 Trans Am 2007.5 Dodge Mega Cab Cummins

10-03-2011, 11:51 AM	#4
BAD BOB Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: SUMMERVILLE Posts: 3,681	looks like everything went smooth! a damn lift would of been very very very nice! __________________ IM BAD BOB

10-03-2011, 11:51 AM	#5
yota Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Va Posts: 1,049	At this point, we are both contemplating rolling the truck outside and setting it on fire. I call the guy I bought the motor from and explain what is going on and his response, verbatim, is "I don't know what to tell you bo, it was fine when I had it." WTF is that bullshit? Moody gets to thinking and we decide to drown the engine in PB Blaster and let it sit overnight. I didn't take any pictures yesterday but when we got back to work on it, the crank came free and rotated smoothly after a few stressfull minutes of turning it. So now the engine turns freely and we can bolt up the converter. Shawn crawls under the truck and does the honors whole me and my friend start assembling the top end. At this point, we are cruising right along, the headers go in and get bolted to the rest of the exhaust, the accessories go on and life is good once again! We decide to leave the plugs out and spin the engine over to pump out most of the PB Blaster. Great success and the engine sound nice and smooth turning over with the starter! YESSSS! So, we get to work installing the plugs and wires, make one last check of everything and I climb in the truck to turn the key over. The solenoid on the starter clicks in and after about a second of cranking the engine ROARS to life! I quickly shut it off as a huge grin spreads across my face. My tahoe sounds like a BAD MUTHA right now! I'm on cloud 9 right now, MY 6.0 LIVES!!! So i spin it over again, watching the oil pressure gauge intently as the motor roars to life once again. Oh shit.... no oil pressure so I kill it again. We talk about it and decide that maybe it just hasn't had time to pump it through the engine so we try again. Still nothing. So, that's where we are at now. "New" engine with no oil pressure. This was basically my last view as Shawn towed it to HHP this morning for them to diagnose the oiling issue. Hopefully it's a simple fix like throwing a new oil pump on there and she will be on the road again. Fingers crossed on that one... __________________ 1999 Trans Am 2007.5 Dodge Mega Cab Cummins

10-03-2011, 12:01 PM	#6
BAD BOB Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: SUMMERVILLE Posts: 3,681	try a different sending unit? __________________ IM BAD BOB

10-03-2011, 12:11 PM	#7
yota Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Va Posts: 1,049	filter was bone dry and no oil visible in the valve train when looking through the oil fill hole, plus the sending unit came off of my running 5.3 and was a known good unit the pump simply isnt pumping... __________________ 1999 Trans Am 2007.5 Dodge Mega Cab Cummins

10-03-2011, 12:43 PM	#8
1998ta__1991rs Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: West Ash Posts: 4,283	with the motor being full of water like that, and no oil pressure, it sounds like you bought a core motor from someone. Did you buy it from a junkyard or individual? __________________ Funny

10-03-2011, 01:15 PM	#9
yota Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Va Posts: 1,049	i bought it from an individual who got it from a wrecked truck at the junkyard... he pretty much told me to fuck off (in not so many words) and that the motor was "fine when he had it", implying that somehow the rust in the cylinders, etc was somehow my fault and happened in the 2 days i had the motor in my possession since driving to mooresville, nc and picking it up from him (at a cost of ~$150 and a whole day of driving on my part)... basically, it's mine now and on me to get it going as he has washed his hands of it when i drove off with it from his house... i just hope and pray that the guys at HHP have good news for me when they get into it and that it just needs an oil pump or something simple... i will be saving for a rebuild down the road if we can get it going... for now, lets just hope the oil starts flowing and nothing is majorly wrong to the point that i can't run it... i have to move to new york a week from this friday so, yeah.... __________________ 1999 Trans Am 2007.5 Dodge Mega Cab Cummins

10-03-2011, 01:29 PM	#10
Sean Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Wilmington, NC Posts: 918	Your problem is Matt touched the truck. __________________

10-03-2011, 01:52 PM	#12
bwelch Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 3,774	Pick up tube could be clogged or its the oil pump. The only problem with it not pumping oil is it could have a spun bearing. The 6.0 I had a bad oil pump and it spun a main because of the oil pump. I had to get a new block because it tore up the main so bad. If you need it rebuilt I would go with Honeycutt in Columbia. He has great prices and does good work. __________________

10-03-2011, 01:55 PM	#13
bwelch Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 3,774	I had to pull the transmission out of my truck last week and I had to PB blast the bolts like ten times just to get them free. I almost cut the pipe so I would have an excuse to buy headers and a y-pipe. __________________

10-03-2011, 02:49 PM	#14
ShawnBoyMoody Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: In the lab.... Posts: 8,159	Thanks for the props Aaron. Sorry this shit happened to you bro. Guys, this man has the patience of a saint. After everything that happened he never once got mad or lost his temper. Im sure it will all work out for you in the end. Keep the Ranger as long as you need, and let me know if there is anything I can do. __________________ The Krusty Koupe "Luck favors the oblivious, and boy am I lucky!" Last edited by ShawnBoyMoody; 10-03-2011 at 02:53 PM.

10-03-2011, 03:56 PM	#19
Matts94Z28 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Summerville Posts: 12,039	SMMS helping the community again! Aaron, I hope you get it worked out and its nothing too crazy. Let me know if you need anything, I still have a few parts laying around. __________________ Charleston Performance Solutions 4560 Rivers Ave. N. Charleston SC 29405 843-225-1142 https://www.facebook.com/CharlestonPerformanceSolutions www.facebook.com/Selepack

10-03-2011, 04:09 PM	#20
bwelch Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 3,774	http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SLP-H...item19c960142e Best deal on an oil pump I have found __________________