Thread: My slow LQ4 build

So Sunday I picked up an LQ4 for really cheap knowing that there was an issue. Upon getting it to my house and in the garage, I pulled off the heads to see what I will be working with. This will be a father and son project, so it will get worked on when we have time. I will update when more progress happens. I'll let the pictures do the talking.








Also got this little guide. Looks like I will be reading up before we go any further.

Welcome to the 6.0 club! Did you get the harness with the engine? What's this thing going in?

No harness or trans. I don't have anything to put it in. I sold the Camaro it was going to go in to when I lost my job. Now, it will slowly get torn down and put back together. I'd like to find another clean 3rd Gen for cheap, but I am leaning towards a mid 90's TransAm. This body style...

I really like that body style

No pictures, but pistons showed up today. Found a full set (pistons, rods etc...) for $80 shipped to my door. Also, bought another set of 317's today for $130 shipped. Seeing Brandon's thread has motivated me to get mine back together.

That's great.. now all you need is to get it running by next week. That way Scott and I will be happy.

Originally Posted by Below Average Joe

No pictures, but pistons showed up today. Found a full set (pistons, rods etc...) for $80 shipped to my door. Also, bought another set of 317's today for $130 shipped. Seeing Brandon's thread has motivated me to get mine back together.

Originally Posted by BillBoost37

That's great.. now all you need is to get it running by next week. That way Scott and I will be happy.

Working 7 days a week and carrying 12 credit hours of school this semester really hinders my working on it abilities. No excuses i know.... Right now i'm gathering parts. Hopefully once this semester is over i will have time to work on it. Remember, this will be a slow process. I have never done this before and will be doing it with my 8yr old. I'm slowly trying to pull him to the dark side.

dont drag me into your eagerness Bill lol take your time. i get it. hell you dont even have a car yet. i can wait to see results. first things first, parts are needed still.

So my heads came in yesterday. One head looks great, while the other has cracks between each valve. The person I bought them from is going to send me another head to replace the cracked one. Here is a pick of the good head.



Here is a picture of one of the cracks.

Cylinder wall looks good. No damage surprisingly. Not sure what the difference is between 317's and 243's. I just wanted to put on what was damaged. I can home myself if it needs it. I'd just have to buy the tool.

317's have bigger chambers and make less compression on a 6.0 compared to a set of 243/799 heads. They flow just about the same though.

Most people mill the heads a little bit if they wanted to raise compression.

So here is what i have so far: New heads, new pistons and rods, new head studs, new head gaskets and a new hone. I still have about $100 saved just in case i need something I missed. Can't wait until it gets warm so i can start the rebuild.

Over a year now... Updates?

Well done and a lot less work!