My 1983 LQ4 944 Project

For as long as I've owned my 944, the V8 swap was always in my mind. Well now, that dream has become a reality.

Platform:
• 1983 Porsche 944 N/A
• LQ4 Motor
• Upgraded spring kit w/ retainers, seals, and locks.
• Mild Cam
• Texas Performance Concepts Conversion Kit

Suspension/Brakes:
• 944 Spec 1 Koni Kit w/ 350# springs and 30mm Torsion Bar
• Wilwood 4 Piston Calipers w/ SS Braided Lines


Transmission:
• AOR code 951 transmission w/ LSD, oil cooler, and hardened 1st and 2nd Gears.
• Lindsey Racing CV Shafts

Body:
• Broadfoot Racing Wide Body Kit
• Fifteen52 Formula LTW wheels

As I progress further, there will be many other new parts and I will post pictures as I go along. This build is projected for November of this year, and I have already begun purchasing the parts. The only thing I have yet to purchase is the crate motor. If anyone has any suggestions or pointers that they would find prudent in my build, please let me know!

Welcome

Welcome to the mad house...

Good luck on the build, and I look forward to seeing that dream become a reality... take lots of pictures and videos!

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Got my first part in the mail today. The rest should be coming soon! It never seems to it until the parts come in.

You'll get to know your UPS guys well - welcome!

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More new parts: AOR Code Transmission, with sway bars and torsion bars.

Now seeing as I will be near the 500HP mark, is there any way to strengthen the TT or Transaxle? I will be buying the Lindsey Racing CV shafts and the AOR Tranny has strengthened 1st and 2nd gears, but my main concern is the torque tube. Any suggestions? I saw online a company sells "super bearings" for the tt but will that really even strengthen it?

Why do you feel the need to strengthen it? I've got 5 race seasons on mine, no issues. some guy that's not on this site has had no issues and neither have the rest of us...

Well things have started moving forward. [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I picked up a LQ4 block with 243 heads, BTR .660 dual springs, Ls7 lifters, TSP 228R cam, measured pushrod length for new heads and lifters, ls6 valley pan, and new knock sensors under the valley pan (preventative measure). Coming complete with harness and accessories as well.

My only issue I see is fitting the accessories under the hood. As this is a truck block, the arrangement is more spaced out and I am looking for a F body style compact-ness. Does anyone know what the best way to do this is?

In other new, I have swapped the suspension, brakes, and 951 transmission. Still trying to figure out how to run power brakes. I'm assuming I will use the P/S Pump to run hydroboost and plug the other port as I am running a manual steering rack. Pictures to come soon.

Get the F body accessories and accessory bracketry.  Get a Turn One PS pump...

944_GASM wrote:I will use the P/S Pump to run hydroboost and plug the other port as I am running a manual steering rack. Pictures to come soon.

Do not plug the unused pressure line. Run it into an oil cooler/filter and back to the reservoir. Also, it's not a good idea to "T" into the reservoir. The reservoir should have two return lines.

The front end accessory drive (FEAD) seems to be a common hang-up for truck based swaps.  Here is a  thread that talks a bit about it.  I was planning to include a second thread as well, but can't seem to locate it it right now.  You can also search a bit to find more information, but may need to crawl through the various build threads.  My hope with the first thread was to try and centralize some of the information for what ends up being a pretty common question.

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erioshi wrote:The front end accessory drive (FEAD) seems to be a common hang-up for truck based swaps.  Here is a  thread that talks a bit about it.  I was planning to include a second thread as well, but can't seem to locate it it right now.  You can also search a bit to find more information, but may need to crawl through the various build threads.  My hope with the first thread was to try and centralize some of the information for what ends up being a pretty common question.

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Thanks! I will look into this. It looks like the CTS-V brackets will be my route as well... I will be able to sell the Truck accessories and brackets to make up for the loss. In order to fit a F-Body/Corvette style intake, I will have to change out the water pump as well.

I am currently deciding on what intake manifold to go with. I've heard LS1, LS2, and LS6 mate the best for the LQ9 platform, with the water pump being changed that is.

spence wrote:

944_GASM wrote:I will use the P/S Pump to run hydroboost and plug the other port as I am running a manual steering rack. Pictures to come soon.

Do not plug the unused pressure line. Run it into an oil cooler/filter and back to the reservoir. Also, it's not a good idea to "T" into the reservoir. The reservoir should have two return lines.

Thank you for the advice. The more I look at the system, that seems to be the way to go.

If you're considering part swapping be sure to check part numbers and dimensions. I think some of the CTS-V accessories may be physically smaller than F-Body parts. I have no hard data to back that up, but when I first started looking into all of this I remember it being kins of a mess. Of course the whole LS thing is new to me, so I'm still learning.

erioshi wrote:If you're considering part swapping be sure to check part numbers and dimensions.  I think some of the CTS-V accessories may be physically smaller than F-Body parts.  I have no hard data to back that up, but when I first started looking into all of this I remember it being kins of a mess.  Of course the whole LS thing is new to me, so I'm still learning.

Yeah the LS stuff is all new to me too.. I'm constantly browsing between here and LS1tech.com. But I think I am going to be okay with all new accessories with the kit, as I know someone locally who wants the truck accessories for his build so I can make some of the money back. And I guess from a fitting standpoint, smaller fits better, correct?

Right now I am focusing on the body/paint as I'm doing the 951 front end. I bought the bumper support and shocks off a 951, headlight covers, and header panel. I will be retrofitting and the fenders I have since I am running the broad foot kit anyways, and then I just need to find a 951 bumper. Does anyone know if the bumper support will just bolt onto my front end?

I'm working on the turbo bumper conversion too. The bumper bar and shocks bolt right on. There are some different ducting pieces around the radiator. I have a rough cut of the fenders done and am working on cleaning that up. Have some metal work to do on a rear fender too before paint.

Rich

I'm following your progress. Thanks for posting.

Sounds like you're doing this right.
Especially the LS3 and wide body kit.

Can't wait to see photos of this finished.

jHo wrote:Sounds like you're doing this right.
Especially the LS3 and wide body kit.

Can't wait to see photos of this finished.

Thanks!

I actually changed the route I was going from the motor side of things and went with an iron 6.0 block and built it up from there. The extra pounds don't really bother me, and the I was able to pick it up for a steal.

Yes, the wide body will give it the mean look I wanted, and fitted with Formula LTW's from fifteen52 (I'm friends with a local rep) to finish it off. I am also in the progress of switching over to the 951 bumper to give it a better appeal as well.

It's definitely a long process, and I have only been knee deep for a couple of months, but over the course of the year I'm sure plenty will get done. Thanks for following!

- Earl

Don't suppose you have an update?

I'm running into an issue where I have the same (or really similar) throttle body as you and I don't have enough hood clearance to close. The top of the Throttle body hits. Wondering if you ran into this issue and if you reached a successful solution

with 1/2 inch spacers u have to cut the hood reinforments or and trim the top of the TB in ur using a truck one

FrostedFlakeJake wrote:Don't suppose you have an update?

I'm running into an issue where I have the same (or really similar) throttle body as you and I don't have enough hood clearance to close. The top of the Throttle body hits. Wondering if you ran into this issue and if you reached a successful solution

I have not made it that far due to a recent move into a new house... but that is an interesting issue. So you are running a drive by wire setup on you TB? I would be interested in a fix as well.

I have made some progress once the car was put in my new garage and taken apart, again...

The dash is now apart so I am going to try and re-do it so it looks a little nicer and can manage that as a side project during the winter.
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I also pulled my transaxle and plan on swapping the 5th gears, and sending it off to Kevin Gross for a rebuild. I am still in the market for upgrading the diff, but was unsure of what everyone gets (Help?)
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I did have some issues with the Sway bars I got from Paragon, but Jay was an excellent help and sent me over some missing hardware. I hope to put these together along with new control arms, bushings, struts, springs, etc.
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I am starting to find more time to take things apart and get new parts, so that is exciting. I plan on dropping the torque tube for a rebuild with super bearings, and attempt the notorious torsion bar that came with the Spec 1 kit.

I have yet to purchase any swap components, so if anyone has a couple laying around, let me know!

Currently I have the AOR transaxle, wilwood brakes, LQ4 motor, and suspension/sway bars all purchased.

So I apologize for the lack of updates on this thread. I have a local forum that I tend to document my build more in depth, since I know a lot of the guys personally, and have an easier time with local ‘help’. But since I am starting to get into the nitty gritty, per say, I want to document more on here, since there is more visibility for other builders.
Since my last update, I was able to drop the motor out of the 944. Wanted to bring it up and over but the motor had different plans for me. If removing from the top, you need to separate the bellhousing from the block to get the room. I could't get that sucker to separate after removing all the bolts and was about to lose my mind, before finding the problem. Where the reference and speed sensors are located by the flywheel, there is a bracket that holds them, connecting the bellhousing and block. I couldn't get an allen key in there, so I decided to just drop it...
After removing the 4 bolts for the crossmember, she basically broke apart from the torque tube and dropped with no problems. All I did was drop it onto some cardboard and got my free workout, pulling it out from underneath ha.
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Currently playing musical motors and transaxles in my garage with the 2.5 Porsche motor, the LQ4, and two (2) Porsche Transaxles. I will be putting the LQ4 on the engine stand to start swapping the F body accessories, along with the intake, oil pan, etc. Looking to just dump the 944 Engine and make a quick buck (anyone need one?!), and going through the transaxles.
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I was FINALLY able to remove the torque tube from the car. After a few days of swearing and using a pry bar, I was able to drop the complete rear suspension and get it out. I will be sending this complete unit to a Black Sea R&D who rebuilds these with “super bearings”.
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Completed some minor aesthetics during my time off of work for the holidays. Went back and forth with getting a new carpet, but for the $700 that they want, I explored other options. I read some posts from some people just dyeing the carpet back to original, if the carpet was use-able, so that's what I did!
I initially went to Walmart to just see what they had, and came home with a couple bottles of 'Rit' @ $3 a bottle. Now since this was used for clothes, I had to improvise my mixture. I wanted a dark, true color, so I mixed a fairly heavy 1 to 1 ratio of dye and hot water, in a spray bottle. The directions were saying to use a teaspoon to a gallon of water, but I felt I wouldn't get the dark brown that I wanted. Well my way seemed to work and here are the results.
I still have the lighter carpets to do but you can already see the difference in the ones that are dyed brown. It literally looks right out of the factory, and it hasn't flaked off or damaged the original texture. Very pleased and recommend it to anyone! The brown ones were originally the nasty faded/stained.
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And here is the final product! Super happy with the results! Since the car is stripped, I am focusing on upgrading some wiring, and laying some Polyken Butyl Tape and Foam. I read some forums where people were using a CCF for sound deadening, but was unsure of any good brands to go with. Does anyone have recommendations? I am in buying the remaining parts of Tim (Lemming) so my exhaust is going to be loud, so was hoping to remove as much noise from the cabin as possible. The Butyl tape is a lot cheaper than dynamat, and heard better reviews from the tape. The foam will actually deaden the noise, so that is the more important of the two.

Ive been using the same butyl sheet tape on some metal speaker driver baskets to great affect. Was from same roll I used for the wheel well sub install.

love the carpet, they look great. i may have to try that as my tan carpets look terrible.

for sound deadening, look into boom mat products. the peel and stick sheets (like dynamat) but they have some really good carpet underpad and tunnel shield stuff that really works well for sound and heat.