blueyeszr1

I am in the process of buying another Corvette due to losing mine in the recent flooding in TN. I want an 08 because of the LS3 but I have found a very nice 07 for a few thousand less.
Can some of you LS3 owners that have had an LS2, tell me if there is that much of a difference in the engine. I know the LS3 has more HP, but a friend told me from a driving experence, that he did not notice that much difference.
Thanks

Epic_C6

If you are talking only engine to engine then no there is not that much difference between the LS2 and LS3. I had a 2005 and now have a 2008 and I can tell a little difference but nothing huge. There were a couple things they changed in 2008 other than going to the LS3 like the manual transmission shifting, air intake, and a few other things. If it were me I would buy an LS3 unless you found a great deal on an LS2.

66yellowstingray

Don't the LS3s dyno 40 whp or so more than the LS2s? Most stock LS2s seem to dyno around 345 or so. LS3s around 380?? I seem to recall LS3s getting to the 400 whp mark with just headers/tune. No way in hell an LS2 can reach that with just headers/tune. I don't see how 40 whp can be unnoticeable. Personally, I would get a LS3.

With that being said I love my 07. I plan on doing intake (already have), stage 2 ported IM, ported TB, Vararam TB spacer, longtubes, and tune JUST to match a stock LS3 in dyno numbers (385 or so). An LS3 with those same mods is much more beastly.

lkelliott

I have seen dyno numbers for a stock 08 LS3 with a manual transmission and pulling the air cleaner. The dyno chart showed 398 hp at the rear wheels. The transfer loss for the driveline is around 15% so the actual crank horsepower is close to 460hp stock.

The LS2 will not come close to that on any good day so buy the LS3.

MADinAK

Let's just pull that ol' pesky serpentine belt and factory exhaust manifold while we're at it. The 430/436 rating is a certified rating - can't remember SAE #. Look up what this means and you'll see GM can't stretch the thruth on HP ratings.

carjo

Get the LS3. They have other improvements worth having: shorter throw shifter, better steering and chassis, etc. The extra power won't hurt either.

bps999

the hp diff. is there, but it's not huge. I think we can trust GM that it is 30hp, or 36hp with optional exhaust, at the crank... I don't think the other changes are huge either. It comes down to which is a better deal. I would pay 2k more just for the fact that an 08 is one year newer, and on top of that I would pay at least 2k to have the LS3 over the LS2. So, for an 07 to make sense, assuming mileage and options etc. are the same, I would want it to be at least 4k cheaper than an 08.

0Andrew6@TheDoubleAA

My LS3 was at 381 stock RWHP. After the EnglandGreen Dyno/tune I was at 400.1 at the wheels. All that I've had done was the CAI and I don't think that makes much of a difference on a Dyno Tune. LS3 is just a BAMF motor.

All that being said I've never owned an LS2 but have a buddy that has one and seems my automatic LS3 will smooth out power his LS2 standard.

GotVett?

I have an '07 and it's my vette but what the heck . . . get the LS3 just because.

TexasMadMan

I went with an 07 and saved about $7k-8k on the price VS an 08.

For that kind of money you can buy a lot of horsepower.

res0n0xg

call it what you will there chief, just because you don't have an LS3, don't knock it. LS2's dyno 330-350rwhp. LS3's dyno 370rwhp-mid 390's, that's 40-50rwhp difference on many different dyno's across the country. Most LS2's after intake/long tubes/tune only get to 380-390rwhp, which is what LS3's make at the wheels stock. Look it up.



I dyno'd over 390rwhp bone stock in my 08 c6 through the AUTOMATIC.

WestCoastCarNut

Most LS2s dyno around 340 to the wheels and most LS3s dyno around 380 to the wheels. The LS2 is a good motor, but the LS3 is a better motor. With the '08 you also get a better steering rack, carbon interior console, short throw shifter, X-pipe NPP exhaust option and I am probably forgetting a couple other things.

C6Buddy

I would go with the cheapest one you can find. The LS3 should have been at 500HP mark. 30-40 HP is not enough IMHO for spending a bit more money.

StanNH

I'm personally not too concerned with the numbers. Having owned both a 2005 and a 2009, I can tell you that there is little felt difference between the two. My LS2 felt great and pulled nicely through all gears. My LS3 feels very much the same with perhaps a bit more pull in the higher gears. Reported/recorded tenths of a second differences in 0-60 or quarter mile times mean nothing unless you're into racing.

My LS2 got about 1-2 mpg better full economy, but that's about the only measurable difference I can see. I don't track my car so I don't have any numbers to back up my impressions, just "seat of the pants" feel. From a construction point of view, the LS3 is supposed to be the more robust design.

There were other changes in the 2008 and 2009 model years which further refined the car; such as a smoother shifting manual gear box and slightly better steering, but these were not OMG! upgrades, just minor improvements. Generally it's a good idea to get the latest model year if you're buying used, but there really are no "bad" years for the C6 providing the car has been well maintained and all TSB's and recalls taken care of.

GARYFINN

LS3 Period !!!!!

AFVETTE

Best advice I have been given and give. Buy the newest vette you can afford and stop worrying about the other guy. You'll go broke "Jonesing".

Tom

jimmie jam

yes 30-40 HP is alot. however, you have to put it is proper perspective. take 250HP add 30-40 - BIG difference. add the same to 400HP, not so much. i can't see that 10% or less additional HP is noticed in the seat of your pants, just can't. of course LS3 owners will have a different opinion...because they have to .

purchase the best car that you can find for the money. my 07 is a great car....so are the 08's.

haljensen

The LS3 starts out stock where a bolt on modded LS2 ends up. LS2 + $3,000+ in mods = LS3.

66yellowstingray

Again, 30 - 40 whp is a big difference I don't care what anyone says. I own a LS2 and I'm saying get a LS3. Yeah, if its a 4K - 7K difference then obviously that needs to be considered. However, I'm probably going to spend close to 2K to get that 30 - 50 whp that "doesn't matter" .

Every LS2 that gets longtubes/tune raves about the power increase. Thats about 30 whp increase. So how does the LS3 not feel different with its 30 - 40 whp advantage??

peter pan

Get the one you can afford and newest one after that