Not sure how I missed this thread. I actually had the exact same question on my mind a few months ago: LS7 or ZL1. I've had my heart set on the ZL1 for years now and had planned to purchase the new GM ZL1 block as soon as I had the money, however I watched Mark Stielow get 800HP out of a supercharged LS7 block and the engine had awesome street manners. That really impressed me and gave me strong second thoughts about the ZL1 route. The new ZL1 block is rated up to 650HP by GM, so I wouldn't want to go past 700HP with that block, but then I had to ask myself, "How much horsepower do I really need?" I thought long and hard about that and realized 650HP was more than enough to kill me, so the ZL1 block had all the potential I needed. As far as street manners and gas mileage, well, I would go multiport fuel injection with either engine, so I think both would be street friendly, but of course the LS7 would probably get better gas mileage(which means jack squat to me). Somebody mentioned the ZL1 would run hotter and have oil leaks, but I have a new GM ZZ454 crate motor and that never runs hot(and it's an iron block) and has not had a single oil leak, so I don't know if that's much of a concern with all the newer gasket and seal technology and the fact that the newer ZL1 block(GM #12370850) has some improvements over the old.
So, knowing that both blocks could do I wanted in terms of horsepower and street manners, I then considered 2 things:
1. Price - Pricing out a 650HP ZL1 motor and 650HP LS7 motor came out to be just about the same. Maybe a little cheaper for the LS7 motor, but not much. Like your situation, a ZL1 would swap right in for me and no changes would be necessary, so that makes the overall price probably even.
2. Cool factor/re-sale value/etc - Since everything else was even to me, this is the factor that caused me to choose the ZL1 block. The LS7 engine is a great engine, but then there's the LS9, and then there will be the LS11 and the LS13 and it goes on and on, and then where will the LS7 engine stand? As they continue to improve technology(direct injection engines next?), I just wonder about the heritage of the LS7 motor. I have to wonder about this because this is a huge investment for me and I'm thinking very long term as this will be the final motor for this car. With the ZL1, I would never have to worry about heritage or wow factor or whatever. It's a vintage engine, it's rare, and it has historical significance for our Camaros. It's always going to be a kickass engine to own and I'll never have to worry about keeping up with the latest LS# engine block or technology or whatever. Of course, that's just my opinion only! Other people will have different scenarios and want completely different things out their engines, so my arguments here won't apply to them.
The LS7 is technically a better engine than the ZL1, but for me, and what I want out of my Camaro now and in the future, I'll take the ZL1 all day. I finally bought my ZL1 block in December thanks to that 15% Summit discount code somebody posted(thanks!!!) and it's now sitting in my garage and I look forward to building her out next year.
Good luck with your decision! Let us know what route you choose. They're both great engines, so either way, you can't lose.
Brian Hobaugh SCCA National Tour June 2014
First Hemi 'Cuda Convertible Ever Built
Short clips: Goodguys Pleasanton autocross and pit videos
Mainly the pistons, heads, carb, and fuel system. Going 540 meant these part wouldn't work. When I mat this thing and row through 4 gears, it's on the edge of scaring my into soiling my pants as-is. 666hp is plenty for this chassis. Sure Mark is usiing 800hp but he's clearly the best driver around. Are you?
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