Engine Build - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

taz · 12-17-2012, 04:12 AM

Hi All,

I was wondering for those of you who have ordered a custom built engine, how long does it usually take to build?

I am having a 446/RHS engine built and will be hanging twin turbos for power adders. The deposit for the build was submitted in May and so far i've been told dyno is broken, gotta replace the pistons (dont know why), two weeks ago was told that they are balancing or rotating the block? And now that my installer might have to fly to North Carolina to finish the engine build? The build request was to have the engine produce 600+hp NA so that we wont need to add alot of boost so that it will take some of the strain off the engine. We requested that the engine be broken in and tested. Wanted to have everything double checked since its shipping to Hawaii and kinda expensive to send it back to Kirk who is building the engine in North Carolina if there is a major issue.

Was wondering if this is normal to have an engine take 7+ months to build and still not ready yet? Not sure if I should ask for my money back and find another builder. What do you think I should do? Ive never heard of having the installer having to fly over to the mainland to finish the build? My car has been sitting in the shop since 25 July for other installs and is still sitting waiting for the engine to come in. What do you guys think?

P.S. The builder is a friend of the installer. He recommended him as a good builder so we went with him.

Thanks,
Taz "Fustrated"

taz · 12-17-2012, 04:15 AM

Forgot to mention. If I need to, can anyone recommend a good builder if I need to go to that route. Someone who isnt backlogged and can build an engine fairly quickly.

Thanks,
Mike

Unreal · 12-17-2012, 07:56 AM

Who is building it?

Mine took ~16 weeks but that was because Calles was backordered on cranks. They were just waiting for parts. Once the parts showed up it was 5-6 days to ship it out.

Livernois did mine. Texas speed, HKE, ERL, Mast, AES, Kurt Urban, and the list goes on and on for high end LS builds.

realcanuk · 12-17-2012, 08:27 AM

Definitely doesnt sound right. Who is doing that builld ??

LME is building my shortblock and it is supposed to be around 6 weeks from order to finish.

taz · 12-18-2012, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Unreal

Who is building it?

Mine took ~16 weeks but that was because Calles was backordered on cranks. They were just waiting for parts. Once the parts showed up it was 5-6 days to ship it out.

Livernois did mine. Texas speed, HKE, ERL, Mast, AES, Kurt Urban, and the list goes on and on for high end LS builds.

Kurt Urban is the one doing the build. He has had good reputation on his builds, but dont know why he has problems with mine. Anyways my installer flew to NC on saturday and should be back either today or tommaro. Hoping he brought back an engine.

Taz

taz · 12-22-2012, 08:22 AM

Thanks all,

Still no engine and no updates.

Still no engine.

Was wondering if its considered bad faith if I give him a deadline to build an engine and delivered to Hawaii by 15 January. If he cant make the deadline to have the build cancelled so that I can have another builder start the build? I don’t want to have to wait another 7 months and still have no engine built. Its been hard on us having my car sitting in the shop since July and my girlfriend and I swapping cars to get to work and doctors appointments. The camaro is our daily driver so the longer it sits waiting for an engine is that much more time we have to work around the situation.

Anyways, the parts for the front splitter, rear spoler and RAD unit arrived yesterday, so ill be dropping off the parts for paint and then install sometime next week.

This is what we requested for the engine build. Not sure if there is a specific part that takes a long time to order that holding up the build or what. Initially thought the delay was because I submitted the build duriing the racing season. Since the NHRA and Nascar events are completed, thought completing builds would be faster.

LSX series of engine custom built 446 CI for specific
application and horsepower level, rhs standard deck
block, RHS timing set, Custom Camshaft, LS7 front /
rear / valley covers, 2010 Camaro Oil pan, LS3 Pump
LS7 rocker covers, ATI Balancer, TEA 235cc cylinder
heads, 1/2" head studs, Callies Ultra billet Crankshaft,
Oliver speedway connecting rods, KUP Spec Boost
Pistons, Pistons Oiler set, Tool steel wrist pins, coat
pistons, Manton Series 5 pushrods, Morel Tie Bar
Lifters, Jesel Rockers, Crankshaft and Camshaft sensors, Main bearings, cam bearings, rod bearings, MLSHead gaskets, related gaskets and seals.ARP bolts, Machine block /heads for lifters, pushrods, studs, etc., Balance rotating assembly, assemble and set critical tolerances.

Boost application parts and installation done by our local shop

*Custom Twin Turbo System
*2 Garrett GTX3582R Ball bearing Turbos and housing.
*2 Turbosmart wastegates
*Custom Intercooler and piping (T304 Stainless steel)
*2 A1000 fuel pump and pump control unit.
*Custom T304 Exhaust manifolds and downpipes TIG
welded (ceramic coated)
*Electronic Boost Controller
*Fuel rails with AN8 feed and crossover / AN6 return
*High Flow Induction an filter system
*100mm LPE MAF, 80lb Fuel Injectors
*Turbo blankets,etc.

If there are any builders out there who might be able to handle this type of build, please let me know. Ill know for sure in January which way I will go.

Thanks,
Taz

JLE58 · 12-22-2012, 08:35 AM

Kurt Urban is one of the best if not the very best LSx builder in the country. It's not as big a deal with the power you want to make but if you were building a 2500hp LSx that's where you separate people like kurt and everyone else. Most smaller highend shops like Kurt or even hke you gonna have a Long wait kinda of the norm with these guys. Once Lamar walden got my block And parts in he built the engine in less than a week.

SC2150 · 12-22-2012, 08:46 AM

We usually complete them in 4-8 weeks from deposit depending on the components chosen etc.

taz · 12-22-2012, 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JLE58

Kurt Urban is one of the best if not the very best LSx builder in the country. It's not as big a deal with the power you want to make but if you were building a 2500hp LSx that's where you separate people like kurt and everyone else. Most smaller highend shops like Kurt or even hke you gonna have a Long wait kinda of the norm with these guys. Once Lamar walden got my block And parts in he built the engine in less than a week.

Thats what I have heard. Thats why we chose Kurt over Nelson Racing (Nelson Racing quoted 6-9 months to build which was to long of a wait and was one of the reasons going with Kurt). The engine was built about 3 months ago and at that time waiting to fix the dyno for engine break-in, then was told needed to replace the pistons and later (about 2 months ago) was told pistons are in and engine would ship in one-two weeks. No updates since then. Currently have no updated info on how much longer of a wait or whats the issue. Guess I wouldnt be so upset if I was better kept in the loop and I didnt have the car sitting in the shop since july just waiting for an engine. If I knew whats going on with the build, I wouldnt have a problem. Wish he would at least call and say "engine should ship on month/day. At least I could make plans and if I ever need to do this again, to continue to drive my car until the engine arrives.

Taz

realcanuk · 12-22-2012, 09:08 AM

That's a sweet list of parts and should make one awesome daily driver. Knowing what it cost to do an engine like that I would be way more upset than you seem to be. Problems can arise and delay a build but there is no excuse for not keeping a client updated on a project.
If the engine I'm having built now ran that far over schedule, and my builder left me hanging like that, I would be getting my money back and shopping elsewhere just on principle.
I hope things get back on track for you.

PoleCat2SSRS2010 · 12-22-2012, 03:44 PM

An RHS based build is not of the average variety. It requires meticulous attention to detail and excellent engineering aptitude is a big plus for adaptation. The block itself comes with an extensive set of instructions and lots of parts for it are proprietary and tend to have a wait on the "next production run" order for parts process. Hopefully, your installer will have encouraging information.

Good luck Taz. You have a nice list.

Mr. Nasty · 12-22-2012, 06:55 PM

If you dont mind what the price for a build like that?

Unreal · 12-22-2012, 10:59 PM

Fully done RHS longblock with those quality parts? I would estimate $16-20k.

taz · 12-26-2012, 04:59 AM

Thanks everyone for their inputs. Right now im going to wait until the holiday season is over and then try to contact them again. I think it must be bad news since the installer got back from North Carolina and never responded back to me for update requests.

Thanks for the updates of other excellent builders to check out. I did contact RPM motorsports and they have a 440ci LSX tall deck already built and ready to ship. Im having my installer contact RPM to see if this engine will meet our needs.

Not sure the cost of the engine, but the total engine build including the custom twin turbos and labor is running me around $60K.

Mahalo,
Taz

12-17-2012, 04:12 AM	#1
taz Taz Drives: 2010 RS/SS Camaro Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Honolulu, Hawaii Posts: 537 View My Garage	Engine Build Hi All, I was wondering for those of you who have ordered a custom built engine, how long does it usually take to build? I am having a 446/RHS engine built and will be hanging twin turbos for power adders. The deposit for the build was submitted in May and so far i've been told dyno is broken, gotta replace the pistons (dont know why), two weeks ago was told that they are balancing or rotating the block? And now that my installer might have to fly to North Carolina to finish the engine build? The build request was to have the engine produce 600+hp NA so that we wont need to add alot of boost so that it will take some of the strain off the engine. We requested that the engine be broken in and tested. Wanted to have everything double checked since its shipping to Hawaii and kinda expensive to send it back to Kirk who is building the engine in North Carolina if there is a major issue. Was wondering if this is normal to have an engine take 7+ months to build and still not ready yet? Not sure if I should ask for my money back and find another builder. What do you think I should do? Ive never heard of having the installer having to fly over to the mainland to finish the build? My car has been sitting in the shop since 25 July for other installs and is still sitting waiting for the engine to come in. What do you guys think? P.S. The builder is a friend of the installer. He recommended him as a good builder so we went with him. Thanks, Taz "Fustrated"

12-17-2012, 07:56 AM	#3
Unreal Drives: 2006 Z06 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 5,712	Who is building it? Mine took ~16 weeks but that was because Calles was backordered on cranks. They were just waiting for parts. Once the parts showed up it was 5-6 days to ship it out. Livernois did mine. Texas speed, HKE, ERL, Mast, AES, Kurt Urban, and the list goes on and on for high end LS builds. __________________ Nick Corvette Z06 -1200ish rwhp

12-17-2012, 08:27 AM	#4
realcanuk Drives: 2007 Corvette C6 983 RWHP Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Montreal, Canada Posts: 690	Definitely doesnt sound right. Who is doing that builld ?? LME is building my shortblock and it is supposed to be around 6 weeks from order to finish. __________________ 2007 C6 vert, auto, F55, LT3 LME LS402 , WCCH 245 Heads, Pat G. Custom cam YSI / 3.0 pulley, ARH 1 7/8 headers, NPP Dewitts / dual spals, A&A dual pump fuel system. 3.42 polished gears, hardened shafts, Alky control meth, Cartech line lock, ECS axle loops, Trans brace, 6L80 built by me. ID 1000 injectors, comp rockers, Morel lifters, BT springs, Trend 3/8 pushrods, ATI 10% OD Damper Circle D Triple Disc stall 1009 RWHP @ 7000, 817 RWTQ @ 6000,

12-22-2012, 08:22 AM	#6
taz Taz Drives: 2010 RS/SS Camaro Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Honolulu, Hawaii Posts: 537 View My Garage	Update: Thanks all, Still no engine and no updates. Still no engine. Was wondering if its considered bad faith if I give him a deadline to build an engine and delivered to Hawaii by 15 January. If he cant make the deadline to have the build cancelled so that I can have another builder start the build? I don’t want to have to wait another 7 months and still have no engine built. Its been hard on us having my car sitting in the shop since July and my girlfriend and I swapping cars to get to work and doctors appointments. The camaro is our daily driver so the longer it sits waiting for an engine is that much more time we have to work around the situation. Anyways, the parts for the front splitter, rear spoler and RAD unit arrived yesterday, so ill be dropping off the parts for paint and then install sometime next week. This is what we requested for the engine build. Not sure if there is a specific part that takes a long time to order that holding up the build or what. Initially thought the delay was because I submitted the build duriing the racing season. Since the NHRA and Nascar events are completed, thought completing builds would be faster. LSX series of engine custom built 446 CI for specific application and horsepower level, rhs standard deck block, RHS timing set, Custom Camshaft, LS7 front / rear / valley covers, 2010 Camaro Oil pan, LS3 Pump LS7 rocker covers, ATI Balancer, TEA 235cc cylinder heads, 1/2" head studs, Callies Ultra billet Crankshaft, Oliver speedway connecting rods, KUP Spec Boost Pistons, Pistons Oiler set, Tool steel wrist pins, coat pistons, Manton Series 5 pushrods, Morel Tie Bar Lifters, Jesel Rockers, Crankshaft and Camshaft sensors, Main bearings, cam bearings, rod bearings, MLSHead gaskets, related gaskets and seals.ARP bolts, Machine block /heads for lifters, pushrods, studs, etc., Balance rotating assembly, assemble and set critical tolerances. Boost application parts and installation done by our local shop Custom Twin Turbo System 2 Garrett GTX3582R Ball bearing Turbos and housing. 2 Turbosmart wastegates Custom Intercooler and piping (T304 Stainless steel) 2 A1000 fuel pump and pump control unit. Custom T304 Exhaust manifolds and downpipes TIG welded (ceramic coated) Electronic Boost Controller Fuel rails with AN8 feed and crossover / AN6 return High Flow Induction an filter system 100mm LPE MAF, 80lb Fuel Injectors *Turbo blankets,etc. If there are any builders out there who might be able to handle this type of build, please let me know. Ill know for sure in January which way I will go. Thanks, Taz

12-22-2012, 09:08 AM	#10
realcanuk Drives: 2007 Corvette C6 983 RWHP Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Montreal, Canada Posts: 690	That's a sweet list of parts and should make one awesome daily driver. Knowing what it cost to do an engine like that I would be way more upset than you seem to be. Problems can arise and delay a build but there is no excuse for not keeping a client updated on a project. If the engine I'm having built now ran that far over schedule, and my builder left me hanging like that, I would be getting my money back and shopping elsewhere just on principle. I hope things get back on track for you. __________________ 2007 C6 vert, auto, F55, LT3 LME LS402 , WCCH 245 Heads, Pat G. Custom cam YSI / 3.0 pulley, ARH 1 7/8 headers, NPP Dewitts / dual spals, A&A dual pump fuel system. 3.42 polished gears, hardened shafts, Alky control meth, Cartech line lock, ECS axle loops, Trans brace, 6L80 built by me. ID 1000 injectors, comp rockers, Morel lifters, BT springs, Trend 3/8 pushrods, ATI 10% OD Damper Circle D Triple Disc stall 1009 RWHP @ 7000, 817 RWTQ @ 6000,

12-17-2012, 04:15 AM	#2
taz Taz Drives: 2010 RS/SS Camaro Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Honolulu, Hawaii Posts: 537 View My Garage	Forgot to mention. If I need to, can anyone recommend a good builder if I need to go to that route. Someone who isnt backlogged and can build an engine fairly quickly. Thanks, Mike

12-22-2012, 08:35 AM	#7
JLE58 Drives: CGM,twin turbo, cam 2010 SS/RS Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: ROCKMART, GA Posts: 2,185	Kurt Urban is one of the best if not the very best LSx builder in the country. It's not as big a deal with the power you want to make but if you were building a 2500hp LSx that's where you separate people like kurt and everyone else. Most smaller highend shops like Kurt or even hke you gonna have a Long wait kinda of the norm with these guys. Once Lamar walden got my block And parts in he built the engine in less than a week.

12-22-2012, 08:46 AM	#8
SC2150 Account Suspended Drives: 2012 Camaro RS, RX supercharged Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Bradenton, FL Posts: 6,063	We usually complete them in 4-8 weeks from deposit depending on the components chosen etc.

12-22-2012, 03:44 PM	#11
PoleCat2SSRS2010 R6P Marketing Lab Rat Drives: sometimes Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Texas Posts: 339	not your average ls build An RHS based build is not of the average variety. It requires meticulous attention to detail and excellent engineering aptitude is a big plus for adaptation. The block itself comes with an extensive set of instructions and lots of parts for it are proprietary and tend to have a wait on the "next production run" order for parts process. Hopefully, your installer will have encouraging information. Good luck Taz. You have a nice list. Last edited by PoleCat2SSRS2010; 05-19-2013 at 09:00 AM.

12-22-2012, 06:55 PM	#12
Mr. Nasty Emerald Coast Camaros Drives: 2010 RS/SS Rally Yellow & 68 SS Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Woodville,FL. Posts: 1,814	If you dont mind what the price for a build like that?

12-22-2012, 10:59 PM	#13
Unreal Drives: 2006 Z06 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 5,712	Fully done RHS longblock with those quality parts? I would estimate $16-20k. __________________ Nick Corvette Z06 -1200ish rwhp

12-26-2012, 04:59 AM	#14
taz Taz Drives: 2010 RS/SS Camaro Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Honolulu, Hawaii Posts: 537 View My Garage	Thanks everyone for their inputs. Right now im going to wait until the holiday season is over and then try to contact them again. I think it must be bad news since the installer got back from North Carolina and never responded back to me for update requests. Thanks for the updates of other excellent builders to check out. I did contact RPM motorsports and they have a 440ci LSX tall deck already built and ready to ship. Im having my installer contact RPM to see if this engine will meet our needs. Not sure the cost of the engine, but the total engine build including the custom twin turbos and labor is running me around $60K. Mahalo, Taz