Thread: what mods should i do next?

whats the l26? is that the series 3 3800's ?

yeah the l26 is the series 3 na. they have weaker rods though and is the least desirable block to have

then why would i want to top swap my stuff onto that block ? im rebuilding my engine im not paying someone to do it lol ive done all the work and i just recently put the pistons crank cam and balance shaft in and boy that is a smooth turning engine. im pretty proud of my self here is the link to my Photobucket if you guys wanna check it out http://s889.photobucket.com/user/dou...?sort=3&page=1

Amazing progress on that engine. What did you use to clean the block?

Originally Posted by Jevik

Amazing progress on that engine. What did you use to clean the block?

thanks man all done by move i even installed the cam bearing my self as well. i cleaned it using my dads part washer at his shop i think it gets up to like 150 degrees or something so it took all the gunk and crap out of the block and cleaned it amazingly well. were so close to being done all im waiting is on a new supercharger my arp header bolts and my new valve seals because i messed 1 of them up installing them so i had to buy a whole nother set.

Low mileage L26 short blocks can be had for 200-300 bucks, a properly tuned top swap will have no problems, I haven't heard of any motor failure because of weaker rods, except in high power turbo setups, Just my .02. If your doing it all yourself you should also try your hand at porting the heads.

I've broken 2 L36 rods so far... Granted my first one failed to water in the cyl, compressing the rod and it snapped when it came back down and was to short to clear... lol BUT my second one broke driving up a mountain under normal driving conditions... Rod is in 3 pieces...

I'd like to see the L32/L26 rods side by side. I think they are the same, but L32's are a tenth shorter:

5.638-5.642 center to center for L32
5.740-5.744 center to center for L26

Both are Powdered metal rods, and if powdered metal is good enough for the Z06, it's good enough for me!!! PM rods are also used in the Duramax Diesels to... ;-)