My Camaro went home to Oshawa to die......

[Camarowguy]

So most of the failures are ls3's.....interesting. Any links to threads where I can see their damage. I'm interested to know if there is possibly a related trend.

[Huggerorange73]

Originally Posted by Camarowguy

Huggerorange, I know your getting annoyed at my diagnosis. And I understand why. But the harsh reality is you don't know for sure you had clearance. You didn't check it yourself (no offense meant). You probably have alot of faith in your shop that did the cam install for you (I'm not bashing them either, I've made mistakes too.) and that's ok....but I feel confident what happened. It's not saying they don't know what they are doing either, they may have done this setup time and time again with no issue. But I'm here to tell you, even tho two engines are the same....they still are not exact. That's why some same cars are faster or slower.

Your cam may not have monster lift, but it does have a good amour of duration on the exhaust. A simple thing as not degreeing the cam could cause issues too. The cam manufactorer could have ground the cam a little off (I used to work for cam motion, and it's possible) bottom line is man, I'm sorry for your loss by all means, but after seeing your pics, I feel confident what happened because I have seen it a few times. I wouldn't be scared to put a cam in your new engine, I would however, degree it on the stand and check the piston to valve clearance. Also, make sure Your springs are correct. I myself, when setting up a set of heads, like to find a set of stiffer springs that what recommended. Let me elaborate slightly. Say your cam is recommended with 160lbs seat pressure and 350 open pressure. I like to add about 20lbs on the seat and around 30-50lbs open pressure. It makes me feel better. I do like to rev my engines to the moon. My 383sbc was shifted at 7800rpm on an everyday basis. I drove it everyday and smashed it more than I should have!

Anything is possible......I never say never!

Originally Posted by Camarowguy

So most of the failures are ls3's.....interesting. Any links to threads where I can see their damage. I'm interested to know if there is possibly a related trend.

Maybe we need to start an LS3 thread of destruction

[mikeSS]

Originally Posted by Camarowguy

So most of the failures are ls3's.....interesting. Any links to threads where I can see their damage. I'm interested to know if there is possibly a related trend.

i think the trend is people under estimating how important it is to get the right parts and right people to install them. not saying this guy didn't do this. but from past threads.

[Huggerorange73]

Originally Posted by mikeSS

i think the trend is people under estimating how important it is to get the right parts and right people to install them. not saying this guy didn't do this. but from past threads.

I think the other part is people are blowing past the limits of the OEM rods & pistons.

The cranks are good to around 900HP...the rods & pistons...not so much.

[Toasty]

I've been doing some reading, and it seems like there are becoming more and more LS3 valve failures on cars with bolt ons/mild cams. seeing the missing valve head makes me wonder if that may have started the chain of events.... a valve head floating around in a motor can be a bad bad thing. seeing as how they are the hollow/sodium filled type... seems this may be a weak point.

[mikeSS]

Originally Posted by Huggerorange73

I think the other part is people are blowing past the limits of the OEM rods & pistons.

The cranks are good to around 900HP...the rods & pistons...not so much.

for sure. but i upgraded my rods. how much you think pistons can handle ?

[Huggerorange73]

Originally Posted by Toasty

I've been doing some reading, and it seems like there are becoming more and more LS3 valve failures on cars with bolt ons/mild cams. seeing the missing valve head makes me wonder if that may have started the chain of events.... a valve head floating around in a motor can be a bad bad thing. seeing as how they are the hollow/sodium filled type... seems this may be a weak point.

Only the intake valves are hollow on the LS3, not the exhaust valves.

Originally Posted by mikeSS

for sure. but i upgraded my rods. how much you think pistons can handle ?

Connecting rods and pistons look to be good to about 600 rwhp.

read all about it here http://www.hotrod.com/techarticles/g...ure/index.html

[Camarowguy]

What valves broke? Intake or exhaust?

[mikeSS]

thanks for the info, but 550-600+HP is when those should fail. most cars i have seen on here fail with N/A setup do not have even have 550HP.

[Huggerorange73]

Originally Posted by Camarowguy

What valves broke? Intake or exhaust?

Exhaust valves in cylinders # 1, 7 & 2.

Intake valves bent, but did not break.

[snowtrill]

Originally Posted by PQ

L99s have the lifter issue. Maybe it's just because the L99s give more warning.

LS3's have the lifter issue as well. I ended up with a new engine thanks to a broken lifter.

[Huggerorange73]

Originally Posted by snowtrill

LS3's have the lifter issue as well. I ended up with a new engine thanks to a broken lifter.

For a "bulletproof" engine...the LS3 has a couple of flaws.

[snowtrill]

Originally Posted by Huggerorange73

For a "bulletproof" engine...the LS3 has a couple of flaws.

Yeah, Mine is/was fully stock and it broke just before 6K miles on the odo. I didn't get pics of the old engine so I can't help much with any comparisons.

[Toasty]

Originally Posted by Huggerorange73

Only the intake valves are hollow on the LS3, not the exhaust valves.

err yeah, had LS7 on the brain