devilfish

Is it all in the intake? Or do you have other goodies on the LT1?
And will a L98 with miniram,cam,heads outrun a LT1 even from 90-150, where the LT1 shines? And how about a stock L98 with minram or superam?

Regards

Nathan Plemons

The LT1 has a few little tricks to make it different. The block is a different casting, it has no provision for a mechanical fuel pump. The heads are different although I'm not sure what exactly is different other than the coolant passages. The LT1 motor is reverse cooled and there is no coolant flowing through the intake manifold.

The water pump is driven from the timing chain, not a belt. Thus on an LT1 your belt can break and you can still get it home, or at least to a parts store. The battery might not like you, but the motor won't overheat. You can also add an electric water pump very easily as you don't have to fight with changing the belt routing.

As for an L98 with a different intake setup, that's a tough call. The LT1 had a little more compression because of the reverse cooling, so there are many variables. I also don't really know of anybody who has installed a different intake on the L98 and not replaced the cam at the same time, this makes a huge difference.

I would very much like to see the results of an L98 with a mini ram and an LT1 cam, I'd be willing to bet that they are pretty even. I still think the advantage would have to go slightly to the LT1 because it's most likely a slightly better head design, and if nothing else the intake won't have any coolant going through it, so the intake charge will be cooler.

vader86

Yeah the whole intake is what screws up an L98, otherwise it would put out a little less than the LT1. The whole block, heads, ignition are totally different. With a MR the L98 could run with an LT1 up top a little while. The real HP numbers almost always come from cam. The LT1's is better. If an L98 with MR took an LT1, you can bet it didnt have the stock cam.

devilfish

So a L98 with ported heads, zz9 cam, and a miniram would take down a stock lt1 0-60 AND 90-150?

Regards

GusBustamanteJr

I have an L98 stock, and if I put on a MR and HOTCAM it will beat C-5's. It already does 13.7 with wheelspin, If I do those mods, it will definitely get into the 12's. I am planing to do these very mods once I get the cash. Why doesnt the Forum members sponsor me and I will do adocumentary, and tech article with performance tests!!!!!!

I love L98's - LT-1 = Headache!!

Opti-crap, Reverse cooling, MAF, Electronic Tranny, Traction control, the whole car is much more difficult to maintain and work on. My 91 looks the same, and is a breeze to work on.

devilfish

nice :) I like my 91 to. But I whant to fix this "dead" spot after 5000rpm..

soundkillr

I agree totally, the L98 can be made to be a monster, as a general rule, it usually just needs intake work and a cam....

ANTI VENOM

If you want to even the playing field, you can put a LT-1 manifold on a L98. Throw a cam and some head work in there and you will be crushing stock LT-1's all day long. I own one of each. The TPI is great for trucks, but I don't think they should be in corvettes. Just my .02

Nathan Plemons

It's been my experience that the L98's have some real PITA bolts around that strange intake. In the case of my 92 there is no maf, it's a manual tranny and traction control is hardly an issue, it's out of the way to the side.

Reverse flow cooling is not hard to work on and it allows you to run a little more compression, and so what if you have to replace a distributor every 100k miles. It's in a bad spot but it's not exactly "hard" to do. Just my $.02 the LT1 is a very easy motor to work on.

Seems like the headache would come in the form of having to replace the entire intake with something different.

Just my $.02 that the LT1 is no harder to work on than any other motor, except for maybe the 235 straight 6 in my dad's 46 pickup. Any C4 is really a dream with that hood that uncovers the entire engine. The LT1 has it's share of quirks, but even the really nasty powerful ones can look stock under the hood, meanwhile every seriously modded L98 has a different intake.

It's only natural to want what you own to be the best, it makes you feel better about yourself. For example I love the sports seats in mine over the newer C4 seats. I come up with my own reasons, but in reality newer is better. I have a lot of reasons not to like the LS1, but I know it's a better design, I just don't want to believe it.

soundkillr

See I dont agree with that at all. I had my choice of a 93 or my 91 L98, the L98 was stronger than the 93 and I think its alot easier to work on. I dont think newer is always better, the more pipes they put in a sink the easier it is to clog.
As a general rule that is true, but I dont think so in the case of the LT1 and L98 they both have there pros and cons, but I do think the L98 is more reliable in the long run.

Nathan Plemons

Stronger in what respect? Low end torque is great and all, but the LT1 makes 300 pounds of torque over a much larger area. So sure it might lose off the line it'll quickly make it back up with a vengance.

I know plenty a LT1 with well over 100k miles with no problems whatsoever. Many of them are even poorly maintained with crappy dino oil.

I'm not trying to disrespect the L98, it's a fine motor, there are just better ones out there, just like the LS1 is better than my LT1, no matter how much I don't want to admit it.

soundkillr

Maybe I am not being fair. My L98 has a stock ported intake. It does not fall off, like other l98's and it is very quick. The Ls1 is another story. That motor, is mean! I drove one the other day, and they will flat MOVE. I dont know about reliability on that car, but I know they are in no league with the older engines as far as power is concerned. They are really smooth and really quick.

GusBustamanteJr

Yes, many of your points are true, but for the money, i would rather have my Speed Density L-98 that looks just like everbodys LT-1. I would really love a LS-1 but then we are talking a whole different ballgame. The L98 and LT1 are same generation. The Opti-spark is too risky for me down here in FL with all the rain, and changing wires should not be so difficult as it is with an Opti-crap. One thing i do like about the LT1 are the fancy covers on the intake, the nice doorpanels (which fit on mine also) the seats.........some are nice, others arent so nice, and the mufflers and tips are also lighter and better flowing and looking. Still not as good a deal as my $9000 91 that runs 13.7 and reliable as a Toyota.

With $2000 I can make it run with LS1's. Still cheaper than most LT1's.

Oh, I also like the keyless entry on LT1's!

I can do the same for about $150-200 for a nice alarm.

XtremeVette

I must agree.....i have ridden in a LT1 and must say....I can't really justify to say one way or the other which is better/faster/more reliable....the engines are different but end results are so much the same.....to me its almost not worth trying to put a lable on....

Sure I felt a pretty sharp...put you in the back of your seat pull with my L-98 and did not feel that with his LT1....but at the same time....his car seemed to go just as fast as mine.....MPH to MPH i did not see much difference....

so apples to oranges guys.....the two cars seem soo damn close....well street driving and highway driving anyways....iam not talking tenths here or racetrack timeslips.....just everyday stuff....

the LT4, LT5, LS1, and LS6....well those engines.....yes I agree.....you can definitely feel a difference and see it when you are side by side....

just my personal experiences
jeff :cool: :cool:


[Modified by XtremeVette, 1:18 AM 5/6/2002]

Aggravated4life

Ive always liked reading these kind of threads because they have both pros and cons as to what different people like prefer.Yeah,sometimes they get into a pizzing contest but thats part of the fun.

My take is you can build any C4 vette any way you want it to be.I dont think there is a big difference in working on the 2 engines such as the L98 or LT1.It depends on your mechanical skills.The more you work on them,the faster you get at taking things apart and putting them back together.

What you once thought was a PITA is now a simple job with the right tools and knowing what to move or take off.What used to take me 3 hours can now take me 30-45 minutes for a certain job to tear down parts.

Either engine is great,but the LT1 does pull harder and makes more HP in complete stock form.While im a fan of torque,a WOT run with an LT1 always puts a slightly bigger smile on my face as compared to my L98.
Which is why my future mod will be either a miniram or LT1 intake conversion.Ive already got the 3.73 gears and sure the engine would love the right intake to match.
:)

devilfish

ok. Thanks for the feedback. But lets go back to my question again.
Will a mini-ram l98 with ported l98 alu heads, zz9 cam outrun a stock lt1 on the higway?

XtremeVette

well it depends..... driver, how fast when you say highway....55-100....65-120.....80-145?

big difference....

with the mods you listed I would think yes up to a certain speed...I know pretty much stock L-98's with small mods done to them...65Z01 and VIC are proof of this.....that will run with those LT1-s and LS1's up to around 120. Hopefully someone who has done the mods you listed can give you a better idea....

jeff

devilfish

well I mean at ALL speeds. A L98 with heads,cam,intake must make more hp then a stock LT1. And with the superam or miniram it would pull as hard as a lt1 even abow 5000rpm? Thats what I have heard. I cant be impossible to get a l98 to run as good as a lt1 up high?! or.......

devilfish

tt?

soundkillr

based on what I am hearing, and what I have been saying all along, is that with a few mods, not including intake, and a assuming you have a healthy strong car, your l98 is going to outrun an lt1 definitely out of the hole, and you are going to give it a run on the highway. With an intake and cam, there is no question in my mind you are going to outrun a (stock) lt1 anywhere....


[Modified by soundkillr, 3:36 PM 5/6/2002]