Here is a video of our Pantera with the LS9 conversion and cable shifter. It has a pretty awesome sound to it (and we haven't even worked on the exhaust yet).
Here is the video: https://vimeo.com/133242418
Also, we get the question a lot on why we chose the LS9 engine and I just wanted to give a quick bullet point list on why we chose the LS series over anything else:
- Our first thought was to build a beefy Cleveland motor but we knew that it would not be able to make as much power as reliably as a crate motor and reliability was one of our top 3 concerns. So that meant we needed to start looking at crate motors.
- The LS series is an extremely compact series of engines. Further, the new LT series of Chevy crate motors is even more compact than the LS series. This was the main reason why we chose the Chevy. It offers the best packaging of any crate motor that was on the market at the time. We did consider going with the very common 5.0 Coyote crate motor but we didn't because it is a lot bigger of an engine (wider/bulkier/heavier).
- The LS series also offered the best value based on the power to cost ratio. When comparing engines, the LS offered the most power for the price. When looking at the Coyote motor, it was almost double the cost of the LS3 that we originally installed in the car and offered less horsepower and much less torque.
- When we got tired of the LS3 power, we chose the LS9 because..... well just because it would be cool... lol. It was a logical extension from our original LS3 installation. The LS9 has a similar block design as the LS3 which allowed the engine to fit extremely well, even with the supercharger installed. Now that the LT4 is out, that engine offers even more power in a more compact package than the LS9 so it is a great choice to swap into the Pantera.
This is all information that we have talked about in our threads before but I feel like it was necessary to reiterate the information as more people are interested in swapping an LS/LT motor into their car.
The way we look at it is it's our car and we are going to make it how we want it no matter who likes it or not. We are in no way married to the idea of the Chevy crate motors but until another company makes a comparable engine with the value-to-power-to-packaging value that Chevy does, it will remain as one of the best options.