Supercharged your LS Engine? Any regrets

[whitels1ss]

Going by white lie's post it seems that the 1900 is the perfect size for a 5.7L

Have seen some pretty good results running the 1900 on 6.0 & 6.2 litre engines as well.

[mechatron]

Have seen some pretty good results running the 1900 on 6.0 & 6.2 litre engines as well.

That's good to know. So can I assume that having a blower feels like having a much bigger engine under the bonnet? ie meaning you dont actually feel the boost come on like in turboed cars but you've still got bucket loads of torque on tap?

[whitels1ss]

That's good to know. So can I assume that having a blower feels like having a much bigger engine under the bonnet? ie meaning you dont actually feel the boost come on like in turboed cars but you've still got bucket loads of torque on tap?

Yeah, not the same as a turbo.

[mechatron]

Thanks mate,
Does anyone else want to share their experience/s?

[white lie]

Here's my bay



With regards to the fuel system, I went with ASE's surge tank which mounts near the diff and has two Walbros inside. More than enough flow, whisper quiet and doesn't take up any boot space as I've also lost that to audio gear

[mechatron]

What a beautiful looking engine bay....very impressive...thanks white lie.

And that's good to know about the ASE surge tank

[white lie]

Would probably look a bit less cluttered if you kept the factory header tank and use the Maggie coolant reservoir which mounts in top of the battery but it didn't fit with my battery and terminals

[feistl]

I regret going a LSX427 with a Harrop 2300. Primarily because despite colossal budget, literally thousands of man hours of work and only the best quality parts used i still cant get all the small niggles ironed out. I would be happy adding a charger, small cam, upgraded springs and better exhaust to a stock engine but i wouldn't build one to make over say 375rwkw again. There are just too many issues you dont expect to encounter when going really high performance and as a result the cost and complexity get out of hand.

So i guess what i am saying is to everyone who wishes they had more power, becareful what you wish for. The small moments of outright joy are far outweighed by the demoralizing moments of despair.

And finally let me put it to you this way, i am having so much more fun playing around in a 40 year old $10k 4WD that my 6 figure supercharged V8 hasn't been driven in months. If i was you, id spend $3k on an exhaust, intake, tune and better brakes but keep the car otherwise standard. Take the $9k you were going to spend and buy yourself a classic 4WD, put it on club plates and spend the weekends bouncing around in the bush. There are no issues with cops, no speeding fines, its much much cheaper and overall more fun.

[v8fazz]

I have been very happy with mine, and it still bring a smile to my face every time I drive it!

VY SS Ute - LS1, Harrop 1900, Standard diameter balancer, 80mm front supercharger pulley, 1.14:1 toother rear belt drive (1.14:1 OR 1.03:1 ratios available), boost friendly cam designed for low and mid range torque, M6, 3.9 Trutrac, 98 fuel = a touch over 400 rwkw and a little over 1020 rwtq at 10psi.

I didnt even consider 6psi and went straight to 10psi, but I tried to upgrade the rest of the set up at the same time to avoid any issues. If you dont mind a bit of belt whistle to go with your blower whine then the toothed rear belts are a good upgrade and will remove the chance of any belt slip at the back, but they are definitely a lot louder than the standard rear belts. They also gives you a little bit of overdrive as well for a slight increase in boost. There are pics of the toothed rear belts HERE

If you do step it up to 10 psi with the smaller pully I'd also highly recommend the front belt idler re-wrap kit that re-routes the front belt under the radiator hose and gives you a lot more belt wrap around the front pulley. Ive had no signs of any belt slip front or rear with this set up at 10 psi. Also pinning the crank/balancer is highly recommended. HDT fuel system was also fitted.

Is your car auto or manual? Either way you will have to budget some $$$ for a gearbox/clutch or trans that can handle it. My T56 has been dying a slow death since the blower install. Its still drivable but is noiser and notchier than it should be, and getting worse. Over the next month or so I'll be changing the diff gears from 3.9 back to 3.46 and fitting a Mal Wood close ratio T56 Magnum. Not cheap but should be able to handle the torque a lot better.

I had a sealed catch can before the blower, but was advised a breather would be a good idea with boost. I went through various different breathers but all allowed some fuel fumes into the cab to some degree. I have recently fitted a 'boost proof' catch can from Mightymouse Solutions and can honestly say I havent noticed any fumes since. Great product and they are great to deal with.

[v8fazz]

Regrets - only when I start adding up what Ive spent on it, even though it would only be a fraction of the cost of Feistl's beast.

Not that its something I think about to often, I prefer to just drive and enjoy! And it never fails to put me in a good mood!

And I'll share a couple of pieces of advice from my tuner - always feed it good 98 ron fuel, and stay off the rev limiter (fuel cut off) and all will be fine

[ls2 cruiser]

What small niggles you got there Fiestl ? I build my own stuff now and tune as well. Might be able to help you, you never know. The 1900 would be the pick for the 5.7 litre and stock 6 and 6.2 litre engines. The 2300 is for headed , cammed 6 - 7 litre engines. Also just my opinion of the toothed rear drive was it was just too loud for the street. Even my neighbours said get rid of it. lol

[white lie]

As an aside, the belt re-wrap kit only applies to the Harrops.
I did throw a lot of belts on hard gear changes with the stock Maggie tensioner and eventually changed it to an aftermarket one I got from the states (can just see it in the pic I posted above). No issues since and zero belt slip. The Maggie's also never require the radiator hose to be removed with their belt routing.

[ls2 cruiser]

One thing I did notice when I was building my 404 cast iron block was that the pulleys did not line up exactly. I run the 8 pk harrop pulley set up with the powerbond 8 pk damper. I had to machine .060" off the back of the powerbond damper to make everything line up perfectly. I have never had any problems with the drive belt (gates) and I gather it is a good idea to check if the pulleys line up. I am using the stock GM tensioner with no wrap around kit. Mine is all aftermarket though so everything has to be measured or you are asking for trouble. Mine is also auto. I only rev mine to 6800 rpm so it is fairly sedate lol

[mechatron]

I regret going a LSX427 with a Harrop 2300. Primarily because despite colossal budget, literally thousands of man hours of work and only the best quality parts used i still cant get all the small niggles ironed out. I would be happy adding a charger, small cam, upgraded springs and better exhaust to a stock engine but i wouldn't build one to make over say 375rwkw again. There are just too many issues you dont expect to encounter when going really high performance and as a result the cost and complexity get out of hand.

So i guess what i am saying is to everyone who wishes they had more power, becareful what you wish for. The small moments of outright joy are far outweighed by the demoralizing moments of despair.

And finally let me put it to you this way, i am having so much more fun playing around in a 40 year old $10k 4WD that my 6 figure supercharged V8 hasn't been driven in months. If i was you, id spend $3k on an exhaust, intake, tune and better brakes but keep the car otherwise standard. Take the $9k you were going to spend and buy yourself a classic 4WD, put it on club plates and spend the weekends bouncing around in the bush. There are no issues with cops, no speeding fines, its much much cheaper and overall more fun.

What an awesome setup mate. And I'm also sorry to hear how disappointed you still are considering the amount of money you've thrown at it already. Stick with it mate, surely you're close to ironing all the issues out.

As for my car ( manual VY SS), I've already done all the boltons...headwork, cam, full exhaust, OTR, Tex Z, RIP, 3.9s & TrueTrac, Bilsteins, sway bars etc, etc, etc....however I'm still left wanting more

[mechatron]

I have been very happy with mine, and it still bring a smile to my face every time I drive it!

VY SS Ute - LS1, Harrop 1900, Standard diameter balancer, 80mm front supercharger pulley, 1.14:1 toother rear belt drive (1.14:1 OR 1.03:1 ratios available), boost friendly cam designed for low and mid range torque, M6, 3.9 Trutrac, 98 fuel = a touch over 400 rwkw and a little over 1020 rwtq at 10psi.

I didnt even consider 6psi and went straight to 10psi, but I tried to upgrade the rest of the set up at the same time to avoid any issues. If you dont mind a bit of belt whistle to go with your blower whine then the toothed rear belts are a good upgrade and will remove the chance of any belt slip at the back, but they are definitely a lot louder than the standard rear belts. They also gives you a little bit of overdrive as well for a slight increase in boost. There are pics of the toothed rear belts HERE

If you do step it up to 10 psi with the smaller pully I'd also highly recommend the front belt idler re-wrap kit that re-routes the front belt under the radiator hose and gives you a lot more belt wrap around the front pulley. Ive had no signs of any belt slip front or rear with this set up at 10 psi. Also pinning the crank/balancer is highly recommended. HDT fuel system was also fitted.

Is your car auto or manual? Either way you will have to budget some $$$ for a gearbox/clutch or trans that can handle it. My T56 has been dying a slow death since the blower install. Its still drivable but is noiser and notchier than it should be, and getting worse. Over the next month or so I'll be changing the diff gears from 3.9 back to 3.46 and fitting a Mal Wood close ratio T56 Magnum. Not cheap but should be able to handle the torque a lot better.

I had a sealed catch can before the blower, but was advised a breather would be a good idea with boost. I went through various different breathers but all allowed some fuel fumes into the cab to some degree. I have recently fitted a 'boost proof' catch can from Mightymouse Solutions and can honestly say I havent noticed any fumes since. Great product and they are great to deal with.

Thanks buddy for the detailed reply. And that's great to know that it still brings a smile to your face. Up until now I didn't even consider a gearbox rebuild. My car is manual and currently has a fairly old Tex Z Grip so that may or may not stand up to the abuse of the charger.

From what white lie & yourself are telling me, if I go with the Maggie 1900 I'll definitely be going straight to the 10psi upgrade. Thanks guys