Ultima Engine provider-Again!!
Discussion
A few builders have source from these chaps before and haven't had any issues.
Are the AS, AB and GD LS3 packages configured especially for the Ultima chassis? I was under the impression that an LS3 was an LS3 and didn't realise that it came in different variants?
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Are the AS, AB and GD LS3 packages configured especially for the Ultima chassis? I was under the impression that an LS3 was an LS3 and didn't realise that it came in different variants?
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
American Speed , these are bullet proof and the comment "buy cheap pay twice" is really good advice
Building has other issues, a motor would be just frustrating. I can't speak for the builders in your country and I am sure they are just as qualified, maybe more so given what we produce as "cars".
Since the LS line is sourced here I prefer to buy here, besides you continue to put the wheel, the car on the wrong side, even the friggin shifter sometimes!
BUT we continue to hire Mexican street sweepers & refuse PU rather than Brits. (Right hand drive) The jobs you are passing up………
Building has other issues, a motor would be just frustrating. I can't speak for the builders in your country and I am sure they are just as qualified, maybe more so given what we produce as "cars".
Since the LS line is sourced here I prefer to buy here, besides you continue to put the wheel, the car on the wrong side, even the friggin shifter sometimes!
BUT we continue to hire Mexican street sweepers & refuse PU rather than Brits. (Right hand drive) The jobs you are passing up………
My LS7 came from PWP and I had no issues dealing with them.
I must add that it was a replacement engine in a car I was rebuilding, not a new build so no IVA. However, I used a standard GM ECU so there is no reason why it you have an issue passing IVA. MOT's are no problem though.
It is a case of 'how confident or proficient are you'. If you try to be a clever bugger and build a trick engine then expect issues on emissions.
If you go the AS route do not expect to see the same level of hp on a British rolling road as your dyno sheet from AS.
I suspect my above comment will generate some bile, but too many have been disappointed by the figures their car has produced when tested over here.
Paul
I must add that it was a replacement engine in a car I was rebuilding, not a new build so no IVA. However, I used a standard GM ECU so there is no reason why it you have an issue passing IVA. MOT's are no problem though.
It is a case of 'how confident or proficient are you'. If you try to be a clever bugger and build a trick engine then expect issues on emissions.
If you go the AS route do not expect to see the same level of hp on a British rolling road as your dyno sheet from AS.
I suspect my above comment will generate some bile, but too many have been disappointed by the figures their car has produced when tested over here.
Paul
barriejames said:
Corsair613 said:
My AS LS7 will be here on Monday. I'm looking forward to a painless, plug and play installation. I only wish I was ready to install it.
Ken
That's a great build site you have put togetherKen
I've been slacking a bit these last few weeks, both on the project and the website. I was distracted by a minor (as it turned out) medical issue, but will be back in the garage today making progress (hopefully).
Ken
Thanks, again, for all the kind words. There are some really good build sites out there, but they're all a few years old and RHD. My objective with this site is to document a current LHD build.
Though the photos I've used are only iPhone snapshots, I've always been a photographer and do enjoy thinking about lighting and framing, etc. Glad they've been of some use (even if only entertainment) to someone!
Ultima-Builders.com
Ken
Though the photos I've used are only iPhone snapshots, I've always been a photographer and do enjoy thinking about lighting and framing, etc. Glad they've been of some use (even if only entertainment) to someone!
Ultima-Builders.com
Ken
Ultima factory said:
To clarify to all the readers:
There is no need to ask the factory directly about the UK emissions of any listed LS engine supplied by American Speed, we 100% guarantee a pass at the UK IVA Test on all of their listed LS engines regarding emissions and noise
Thank you very much for this clarification. Could you please clarify whether this also includes the Euro 6 norm (-> particulates), which I guess is applicable in the UK, too? There is no need to ask the factory directly about the UK emissions of any listed LS engine supplied by American Speed, we 100% guarantee a pass at the UK IVA Test on all of their listed LS engines regarding emissions and noise
The reason I am asking is that even Chevy's latest V8 engine (LT1, C7 Corvette) is merely compliant to Euro 5 (see http://www.chevrolet.co.uk/cars/corvette/features-... - so registration is only possible via the temporal exemption...
Thanks in advance
Ultima factory said:
Ult-Jim said:
Supercharged engines packages as well as listed? It was not long ago I was dreaming about owning well spec Ultima, now dreaming about a monster of an Ultima
Yes even the newly listed 1000bhp LS supercharged engine will pass a UK IVA Test in terms of both emissions and noise.A lot of R&D went into ensuring that one.
Every single Ultima customer LS engine package supplied by American Speed is fully dyno tested on their in house dyno which includes a careful new engine bedding in procedure (something that can be tricky to carry out correctly in a public road environment) and is also 100% emission checked as standard practice prior to release to the customer.
Essential ingredients for a consistently successful plug and play package in our view.
Regards to all,
Can i join in at this junction to add my experience to the above comments.
I have created a Facebook page recording the trials and tribulations of fitting an LS engine in an Ultima Can-Am and I decided to do this because there seemed to be a distinct lack of information about it on the web.
My F/book page is as follows if you wish to see how it's going or if you want to see what's involved if you fancy going down this route for yourself:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ultima-LS37-install...
The facory HAS to offer a full package for the car and one that is as simple as possible for the builder and that is why they have American Speed. But with that there will ALWAYS be alternative packages available from 3rd party companies... and so we have AB and GD.
Yes, all of these companies offer great products and services... However, If i wanted an off the peg super car, yes, it would probably have a few more whistles and bells (even if it isn't as fast as an Ultima!)but it would cost me 3,4,5...times the price, and the same applies with these engines. If i want to buy an off the peg engine, the fact is that it's going to cost me more, but that doesn't mean it's going to be any better than a standard crate engine as they are all the same basic engine to start with, it's just that some have a few whistles and bells added before they're sent out and you're paying quite a bit extra to have these add-ons at the start whilst managing to keep to within the emissions limits for your IVA.
Remember, a basic LS3/7 will pass the IVA with little to no problems, the proof is that it's been done many times up till now, and after that you can modify it as much as you like without any worry.
So my story:
The basics of it are: I am currently installing a PWP bought LS3 435hp crate engine which was bought for around the £5k mark along with £700 of wiring loom, ECU and fly by wire pedal.
Up till now i have had a few minor hiccups but nothing disasterous and all were easily resolved with little to no technical skills and to be honest I have only now hit my first major issue which when resolved should allow me to fire it up for the first time.
This 'big problem' is that i need an exhaust system and i was hoping to be able to source a set of off the shelf headers and then make up the rest of the system myself, but this is proving to be difficult and it looks like i'm going to have to make my own headers as well. But if i wasn't capable of doing this job, then i could quite easily just buy a full exhaust syatem from either the factory or AB... so it's not actually a major problem and if i had an off the peg engine package i would have to spend £2-£3k on an exhaust anyway.
So to sum up, i was full of trepidation when i decided to go down this route, but i have managed to work out all the tricky little bits for myself with regards fitting a non plug and play engine and i'm sure absolutely anyone else can do it too, but if you still think that it would be too difficult, then just refer to my Facebook build page and you should find all the information and answers you need there... but if it still looks like too much, then you'll have to speak to AS,AB or GD.
On a final note, i'm sorry but i totally disagree with this 'Buy cheap pay twice' comment, it couldn't be further from the truth in my experience. I would put it more like this: 'Buy cheap, small amount of extra work to do, save a fortune'
Oh and you probably get slightly more satisfaction than the plug and play guys when you fire it up for the first time...although i'm still to experience that one for myself.
I have created a Facebook page recording the trials and tribulations of fitting an LS engine in an Ultima Can-Am and I decided to do this because there seemed to be a distinct lack of information about it on the web.
My F/book page is as follows if you wish to see how it's going or if you want to see what's involved if you fancy going down this route for yourself:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ultima-LS37-install...
The facory HAS to offer a full package for the car and one that is as simple as possible for the builder and that is why they have American Speed. But with that there will ALWAYS be alternative packages available from 3rd party companies... and so we have AB and GD.
Yes, all of these companies offer great products and services... However, If i wanted an off the peg super car, yes, it would probably have a few more whistles and bells (even if it isn't as fast as an Ultima!)but it would cost me 3,4,5...times the price, and the same applies with these engines. If i want to buy an off the peg engine, the fact is that it's going to cost me more, but that doesn't mean it's going to be any better than a standard crate engine as they are all the same basic engine to start with, it's just that some have a few whistles and bells added before they're sent out and you're paying quite a bit extra to have these add-ons at the start whilst managing to keep to within the emissions limits for your IVA.
Remember, a basic LS3/7 will pass the IVA with little to no problems, the proof is that it's been done many times up till now, and after that you can modify it as much as you like without any worry.
So my story:
The basics of it are: I am currently installing a PWP bought LS3 435hp crate engine which was bought for around the £5k mark along with £700 of wiring loom, ECU and fly by wire pedal.
Up till now i have had a few minor hiccups but nothing disasterous and all were easily resolved with little to no technical skills and to be honest I have only now hit my first major issue which when resolved should allow me to fire it up for the first time.
This 'big problem' is that i need an exhaust system and i was hoping to be able to source a set of off the shelf headers and then make up the rest of the system myself, but this is proving to be difficult and it looks like i'm going to have to make my own headers as well. But if i wasn't capable of doing this job, then i could quite easily just buy a full exhaust syatem from either the factory or AB... so it's not actually a major problem and if i had an off the peg engine package i would have to spend £2-£3k on an exhaust anyway.
So to sum up, i was full of trepidation when i decided to go down this route, but i have managed to work out all the tricky little bits for myself with regards fitting a non plug and play engine and i'm sure absolutely anyone else can do it too, but if you still think that it would be too difficult, then just refer to my Facebook build page and you should find all the information and answers you need there... but if it still looks like too much, then you'll have to speak to AS,AB or GD.
On a final note, i'm sorry but i totally disagree with this 'Buy cheap pay twice' comment, it couldn't be further from the truth in my experience. I would put it more like this: 'Buy cheap, small amount of extra work to do, save a fortune'
Oh and you probably get slightly more satisfaction than the plug and play guys when you fire it up for the first time...although i'm still to experience that one for myself.
Edited by chucknorris on Tuesday 17th February 21:30
chucknorris said:
Can i join in at this junction to add my experience to the above comments.
I have created a Facebook page recording the trials and tribulations of fitting an LS engine in an Ultima Can-Am and I decided to do this because there seemed to be a distinct lack of information about it on the web.
My F/book page is as follows if you wish to see how it's going or if you want to see what's involved if you fancy going down this route for yourself:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ultima-LS37-install...
The facory HAS to offer a full package for the car and one that is as simple as possible for the builder and that is why they have American Speed. But with that there will ALWAYS be alternative packages available from 3rd party companies... and so we have AB and GD.
Yes, all of these companies offer great products and services... However, If i wanted an off the peg super car, yes, it would probably have a few more whistles and bells (even if it isn't as fast as an Ultima!)but it would cost me 3,4,5...times the price, and the same applies with these engines. If i want to buy an off the peg engine, the fact is that it's going to cost me more, but that doesn't mean it's going to be any better than a standard crate engine as they are all the same basic engine to start with, it's just that some have a few whistles and bells added before they're sent out and you're paying quite a bit extra to have these add-ons at the start whilst managing to keep to within the emissions limits for your IVA.
Remember, a basic LS3/7 will pass the IVA with little to no problems, the proof is that it's been done many times up till now, and after that you can modify it as much as you like without any worry.
So my story:
The basics of it are: I am currently installing a PWP bought LS3 435hp crate engine which was bought for around the £5k mark along with £700 of wiring loom, ECU and fly by wire pedal.
Up till now i have had a few minor hiccups but nothing disasterous and all were easily resolved with little to no technical skills and to be honest I have only now hit my first major issue which when resolved should allow me to fire it up for the first time.
This 'big problem' is that i need an exhaust system and i was hoping to be able to source a set of off the shelf headers and then make up the rest of the system myself, but this is proving to be difficult and it looks like i'm going to have to make my own headers as well. But if i wasn't capable of doing this job, then i could quite easily just buy a full exhaust syatem from either the factory or AB... so it's not actually a major problem and if i had an off the peg engine package i would have to spend £2-£3k on an exhaust anyway.
So to sum up, i was full of trepidation when i decided to go down this route, but i have managed to work out all the tricky little bits for myself with regards fitting a non plug and play engine and i'm sure absolutely anyone else can do it too, but if you still think that it would be too difficult, then just refer to my Facebook build page and you should find all the information and answers you need there... but if it still looks like too much, then you'll have to speak to AS,AB or GD.
On a final note, i'm sorry but i totally disagree with this 'Buy cheap pay twice' comment, it couldn't be further from the truth in my experience. I would put it more like this: 'Buy cheap, small amount of extra work to do, save a fortune'
Oh and you probably get slightly more satisfaction than the plug and play guys when you fire it up for the first time...although i'm still to experience that one for myself.
I have to agree with Pete's comments.I have created a Facebook page recording the trials and tribulations of fitting an LS engine in an Ultima Can-Am and I decided to do this because there seemed to be a distinct lack of information about it on the web.
My F/book page is as follows if you wish to see how it's going or if you want to see what's involved if you fancy going down this route for yourself:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ultima-LS37-install...
The facory HAS to offer a full package for the car and one that is as simple as possible for the builder and that is why they have American Speed. But with that there will ALWAYS be alternative packages available from 3rd party companies... and so we have AB and GD.
Yes, all of these companies offer great products and services... However, If i wanted an off the peg super car, yes, it would probably have a few more whistles and bells (even if it isn't as fast as an Ultima!)but it would cost me 3,4,5...times the price, and the same applies with these engines. If i want to buy an off the peg engine, the fact is that it's going to cost me more, but that doesn't mean it's going to be any better than a standard crate engine as they are all the same basic engine to start with, it's just that some have a few whistles and bells added before they're sent out and you're paying quite a bit extra to have these add-ons at the start whilst managing to keep to within the emissions limits for your IVA.
Remember, a basic LS3/7 will pass the IVA with little to no problems, the proof is that it's been done many times up till now, and after that you can modify it as much as you like without any worry.
So my story:
The basics of it are: I am currently installing a PWP bought LS3 435hp crate engine which was bought for around the £5k mark along with £700 of wiring loom, ECU and fly by wire pedal.
Up till now i have had a few minor hiccups but nothing disasterous and all were easily resolved with little to no technical skills and to be honest I have only now hit my first major issue which when resolved should allow me to fire it up for the first time.
This 'big problem' is that i need an exhaust system and i was hoping to be able to source a set of off the shelf headers and then make up the rest of the system myself, but this is proving to be difficult and it looks like i'm going to have to make my own headers as well. But if i wasn't capable of doing this job, then i could quite easily just buy a full exhaust syatem from either the factory or AB... so it's not actually a major problem and if i had an off the peg engine package i would have to spend £2-£3k on an exhaust anyway.
So to sum up, i was full of trepidation when i decided to go down this route, but i have managed to work out all the tricky little bits for myself with regards fitting a non plug and play engine and i'm sure absolutely anyone else can do it too, but if you still think that it would be too difficult, then just refer to my Facebook build page and you should find all the information and answers you need there... but if it still looks like too much, then you'll have to speak to AS,AB or GD.
On a final note, i'm sorry but i totally disagree with this 'Buy cheap pay twice' comment, it couldn't be further from the truth in my experience. I would put it more like this: 'Buy cheap, small amount of extra work to do, save a fortune'
Oh and you probably get slightly more satisfaction than the plug and play guys when you fire it up for the first time...although i'm still to experience that one for myself.
Edited by chucknorris on Tuesday 17th February 21:30
It is not rocket science fitting an LS engine and getting it to work. You may need to spend more time on research and head scratching/measuring/problem solving, but you don't self-build a car if you want an easy life....do you.
I would say though, don't let it give you sleepless nights. The idea is to enjoy the process.
Paul
chucknorris said:
Can i join in at this junction to add my experience to the above comments.
I have created a Facebook page recording the trials and tribulations of fitting an LS engine in an Ultima Can-Am and I decided to do this because there seemed to be a distinct lack of information about it on the web.
My F/book page is as follows if you wish to see how it's going or if you want to see what's involved if you fancy going down this route for yourself:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ultima-LS37-install...
The facory HAS to offer a full package for the car and one that is as simple as possible for the builder and that is why they have American Speed. But with that there will ALWAYS be alternative packages available from 3rd party companies... and so we have AB and GD.
Yes, all of these companies offer great products and services... However, If i wanted an off the peg super car, yes, it would probably have a few more whistles and bells (even if it isn't as fast as an Ultima!)but it would cost me 3,4,5...times the price, and the same applies with these engines. If i want to buy an off the peg engine, the fact is that it's going to cost me more, but that doesn't mean it's going to be any better than a standard crate engine as they are all the same basic engine to start with, it's just that some have a few whistles and bells added before they're sent out and you're paying quite a bit extra to have these add-ons at the start whilst managing to keep to within the emissions limits for your IVA.
Remember, a basic LS3/7 will pass the IVA with little to no problems, the proof is that it's been done many times up till now, and after that you can modify it as much as you like without any worry.
So my story:
The basics of it are: I am currently installing a PWP bought LS3 435hp crate engine which was bought for around the £5k mark along with £700 of wiring loom, ECU and fly by wire pedal.
Up till now i have had a few minor hiccups but nothing disasterous and all were easily resolved with little to no technical skills and to be honest I have only now hit my first major issue which when resolved should allow me to fire it up for the first time.
This 'big problem' is that i need an exhaust system and i was hoping to be able to source a set of off the shelf headers and then make up the rest of the system myself, but this is proving to be difficult and it looks like i'm going to have to make my own headers as well. But if i wasn't capable of doing this job, then i could quite easily just buy a full exhaust syatem from either the factory or AB... so it's not actually a major problem and if i had an off the peg engine package i would have to spend £2-£3k on an exhaust anyway.
So to sum up, i was full of trepidation when i decided to go down this route, but i have managed to work out all the tricky little bits for myself with regards fitting a non plug and play engine and i'm sure absolutely anyone else can do it too, but if you still think that it would be too difficult, then just refer to my Facebook build page and you should find all the information and answers you need there... but if it still looks like too much, then you'll have to speak to AS,AB or GD.
On a final note, i'm sorry but i totally disagree with this 'Buy cheap pay twice' comment, it couldn't be further from the truth in my experience. I would put it more like this: 'Buy cheap, small amount of extra work to do, save a fortune'
Oh and you probably get slightly more satisfaction than the plug and play guys when you fire it up for the first time...although i'm still to experience that one for myself.
Readers may like to look at all the posts that Chuck made in THIS thread, in order that they get the whole picture I have created a Facebook page recording the trials and tribulations of fitting an LS engine in an Ultima Can-Am and I decided to do this because there seemed to be a distinct lack of information about it on the web.
My F/book page is as follows if you wish to see how it's going or if you want to see what's involved if you fancy going down this route for yourself:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ultima-LS37-install...
The facory HAS to offer a full package for the car and one that is as simple as possible for the builder and that is why they have American Speed. But with that there will ALWAYS be alternative packages available from 3rd party companies... and so we have AB and GD.
Yes, all of these companies offer great products and services... However, If i wanted an off the peg super car, yes, it would probably have a few more whistles and bells (even if it isn't as fast as an Ultima!)but it would cost me 3,4,5...times the price, and the same applies with these engines. If i want to buy an off the peg engine, the fact is that it's going to cost me more, but that doesn't mean it's going to be any better than a standard crate engine as they are all the same basic engine to start with, it's just that some have a few whistles and bells added before they're sent out and you're paying quite a bit extra to have these add-ons at the start whilst managing to keep to within the emissions limits for your IVA.
Remember, a basic LS3/7 will pass the IVA with little to no problems, the proof is that it's been done many times up till now, and after that you can modify it as much as you like without any worry.
So my story:
The basics of it are: I am currently installing a PWP bought LS3 435hp crate engine which was bought for around the £5k mark along with £700 of wiring loom, ECU and fly by wire pedal.
Up till now i have had a few minor hiccups but nothing disasterous and all were easily resolved with little to no technical skills and to be honest I have only now hit my first major issue which when resolved should allow me to fire it up for the first time.
This 'big problem' is that i need an exhaust system and i was hoping to be able to source a set of off the shelf headers and then make up the rest of the system myself, but this is proving to be difficult and it looks like i'm going to have to make my own headers as well. But if i wasn't capable of doing this job, then i could quite easily just buy a full exhaust syatem from either the factory or AB... so it's not actually a major problem and if i had an off the peg engine package i would have to spend £2-£3k on an exhaust anyway.
So to sum up, i was full of trepidation when i decided to go down this route, but i have managed to work out all the tricky little bits for myself with regards fitting a non plug and play engine and i'm sure absolutely anyone else can do it too, but if you still think that it would be too difficult, then just refer to my Facebook build page and you should find all the information and answers you need there... but if it still looks like too much, then you'll have to speak to AS,AB or GD.
On a final note, i'm sorry but i totally disagree with this 'Buy cheap pay twice' comment, it couldn't be further from the truth in my experience. I would put it more like this: 'Buy cheap, small amount of extra work to do, save a fortune'
Oh and you probably get slightly more satisfaction than the plug and play guys when you fire it up for the first time...although i'm still to experience that one for myself.
Edited by chucknorris on Tuesday 17th February 21:30
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
That's interesting stuff Dom, i'm not sure if building the headers out of lego first will quite suit my style of exhaust building which is usually: Measure, cut, throw away, remeasure, cut again and tack to the last piece i got right. 
As for JP, doh! i called them yesterday to price up 4 into 1 collectors, i didn't think to ask about a system...i just assumed it would be a no as it's too unique!
As for JP, doh! i called them yesterday to price up 4 into 1 collectors, i didn't think to ask about a system...i just assumed it would be a no as it's too unique!
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