2001 Monte Carlo LS

La1 3.4 (blown headgasket,thrown rod)

my gf had a monte carlo until I took it over she drove it for about 9 months and a month solid with it overheating and rod knocking so now its been sitting up for about 7 months,i recently started cleaning up the engine bay a little and some interior work then I started research on a new engine,got quoted $2500+ to pull the engine and replace it with a used 3.4 I kinda thought that it was a little too high to do just the basic replacement then I came across the MMS LA1 to LX9 swap they have the engine and complete kit for all the brackets and fittings for an engine with 60-80k miles everything would be $1200 (that's the price of a 3.4 with decent miles) so my questions are has anybody ever dealt with this kit specifically from MMS? it doesn't specify what car/year model it would come from and my best guess would be a 2004 Malibu,BTW sorry for the long post..just trying to catch someones attention on this thread,i need every opinion and option I can get..thanks

 

Most of the compatibility issues are taken care of if you get the Milzy MMS 3500 swap kit from Milzy Motorsports that has almost every part you will need in one kit. Yes... you can buy some of the parts separately from others, but having everything you need in a kit form is very convenient. Do some research both here and over on 60degreeV6 forum since every aspect of doing either the 3500 top swap or complete engine swap is covered.


If you are comparing apples to apples, a 3500 will always rank higher than a 3400.
But swapping the entire motor does present some challenges. You don't need a completely new wiring harness, but the 3500 uses a different MAP sensor (you can get the pigtail to splice it in for a few bucks), and the CTS (coolant temperature sensor) is relocated to the rear cylinder head (instead of the lower intake manifold). You also need to get a 7x trigger wheel and sensor mount from TCE to bolt to the harmonic balancer - the 3500 crank has a different trigger wheel built onto the crank, so your normal 7x sensor won't work.
With either option, uou need to use a 3400 throttle body with a TCE adapter - the 3500 TB is drive-by-wire. Also the 3400 fuel rail and pressure regulator must remain, as 3500 cars used a returnless fuel delivery system. Some grinding of the 3500 UIM and a FPR relocation bracket are needed for clearance. You cannot mount your coil packs to the 3500 UIM, but you can still use the standofffs in the rear head.

Top-swap is easier, but you don't get the small bump in displacement and compression ratio goes down a bit. But most engine builders agree that the heads are more condusive to power than the bottom-end.
Either solution needs tuning to run it's best.

 

The first thing you should know is that the LX9 swap is not for beginners. If you wouldn't dare put heads on your car, then this is definitely not for you either.


Here is a link to a write up someone posted on another forum and it has a link to a youtube video so you can see what he is talking about.

HOW TO: Swap in a 3500 (LX9) - GrandAmGT.com Forum


Hopefully this answers your questions and helps you in the decision process

 

Welcome to the Forum..

 

thanks,id like to do the top swap but id still have bad rod bearings I think the mms kit has the trigger wheel and the MAP extension,ive never pulled a motor but my first vehicle was a 86 c10 swb 350 and I had to figure out how to do a lot of tinkering with it to make it run,ive always been around engines and always listened when someone talked about rebuilding one,my plan right now is to pull the 3400 out by myself with the right tools,patience, and a few packs of cigarettes lol,then il order the 3500 kit and swap parts onto the 3500 then il probably let the shop finish it up,i have roughly around $3000 to spend on the whole swap,kit being around $1200 labor between $800-$1000 and use the rest for tuning cost and a few other unexpected things