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Written by Brett Foote
Watch as this featherweight econobox evolves in a never ending quest for maximum power!We’ve seen all kinds of LS-swapped creations here at LS1Tech. From logical ones all the way down to the most insane madman Frankenstein-like efforts you can possibly imagine. But while mega horsepower Camaros and Corvettes are cool and all, there’s just something about a tiny, light little econobox stuffed with big horsepower that really speaks to us. Like this little Ford Focus hatchback project recently shared with us by LS1 Tech member topspeed1.“I have a small block Chevy Ford Focus I built a year ago. Instead of building the small block, I decided to go LS. I am using a 5.3-liter TrailBlazer aluminum motor with a Holley intake, Painless wiring harness, Lingenfelter GT1-1 cam, and Garrett GTX42 turbo. As it sits, the car weighs 2,638 pounds. Hopefully I will lose a little weight in the swap. There are still some things that need to be cut out of the car.”Pretty sweet project as is, we must say. And the beginning specs aren’t too shabby for such a lightweight car, either. Especially for what appears to be a real budget build. At least at first.“Current motor makes 240 whp. It’s a stock 5.7 Vortec from a ’98 truck with a Summit dual plane intake, Holley 650 cfm carb, and eBay headers.”And with that starting point, work on the new motor began in earnest.“I got the cam and springs installed. Alternator bracket and throttle body came in.”We’d say it looks a lot better sitting under the hood of the little Ford Focus than the carbed motor, too!Right off the bat, the new LS motor proved to be a big upgrade over the old mill on the dyno.“I had some really good results on the dyno today. All runs were done in 2nd gear. I think it would make a little more in 3rd gear. But with the current gear it turns over 170 in third. I am swapping a 3.73 in later this week and will put it back on the dyno after that. Best run was 386 whp.”But the next step was actually non-power related. Instead, the OP worked on shaving weight off the already light Ford Focus.“Made new door panels today to clear the door bars. Also took a little more weight out of the car.”A little bit of stripping got weight down to a svelte 2,448 pounds. After playing around with turbo placement, it was time for a little trial and error with an eye toward extracting more power from the LS mill.“I decided to do everything in steps to see what makes gains and what doesn’t. Bought a set of PRC 5.3 heads to try out. I cc’ed the combustion chambers and they ended up being 63cc. Checked my PTV clearance and I am able to use a .040 head gasket. This combination gets my compression ratio back to around the stock 9.5, which sucks.If my head gaskets come in tomorrow I am going to try and get it back together and get some numbers by Friday. I’m hoping to see 20 or so hp from the heads, but who knows? Also, my collectors came in today. I’m gonna machine some head flanges this weekend and try to start on my new headers and exhaust next week. Then, I’m gonna source a new 5.3 block and start building the bottom end.”Needless to say, his work paid off.“Well, I had a pretty interesting day today on the dyno. I swapped the new heads on and after a little tuning I made 417 whp uncorrected. My previous uncorrected number was 378 whp. Pretty awesome gains for just ported heads.I then decided to swap out the 93 octane for E85. After some tuning, I made 425 uncorrected. The E85 picked up a ton of midrange power and a decent amount up top. The tune needs more work, but I had to go home early.”Soon, the custom header flanges were milled and ready to roll. But all of a sudden, the OP switched gears and picked up a 6.2-liter LS3 to build. The plan this time around is to go with a higher, 13:1 compression ratio. And it wasn’t long before the new motor was already in the mockup phase.Next, a new 3-inch exhaust with Magnaflow mufflers was installed. With the new engine buttoned up, it was time to hit the dyno once again. This time around, the Ford Focus put down 550 whp, but a broken valve guide damaged one of the pistons and heads. With those pieces sent off for repair, the OP decided to also switch to a roller cam.And that’s where this insane Ford Focus sits as of now! But you can bet we’ll be following along as this beastly little hatch continues to evolve for the better. You can (and should) do the same by heading over here!Join the LS1tech forums now!Tags: Builds, Focus, Ford, LS(, Swaps, Turbo
Date written: June 7, 2018
More of this article on the LS1 Tech website
ID: 12131
Watch as this featherweight econobox evolves in a never ending quest for maximum power!We’ve seen all kinds of LS-swapped creations here at LS1Tech. From logical ones all the way down to the most insane madman Frankenstein-like efforts you can possibly imagine. But while mega horsepower Camaros and Corvettes are cool and all, there’s just something about a tiny, light little econobox stuffed with big horsepower that really speaks to us. Like this little Ford Focus hatchback project recently shared with us by LS1 Tech member topspeed1.“I have a small block Chevy Ford Focus I built a year ago. Instead of building the small block, I decided to go LS. I am using a 5.3-liter TrailBlazer aluminum motor with a Holley intake, Painless wiring harness, Lingenfelter GT1-1 cam, and Garrett GTX42 turbo. As it sits, the car weighs 2,638 pounds. Hopefully I will lose a little weight in the swap. There are still some things that need to be cut out of the car.”Pretty sweet project as is, we must say. And the beginning specs aren’t too shabby for such a lightweight car, either. Especially for what appears to be a real budget build. At least at first.“Current motor makes 240 whp. It’s a stock 5.7 Vortec from a ’98 truck with a Summit dual plane intake, Holley 650 cfm carb, and eBay headers.”And with that starting point, work on the new motor began in earnest.“I got the cam and springs installed. Alternator bracket and throttle body came in.”We’d say it looks a lot better sitting under the hood of the little Ford Focus than the carbed motor, too!Right off the bat, the new LS motor proved to be a big upgrade over the old mill on the dyno.“I had some really good results on the dyno today. All runs were done in 2nd gear. I think it would make a little more in 3rd gear. But with the current gear it turns over 170 in third. I am swapping a 3.73 in later this week and will put it back on the dyno after that. Best run was 386 whp.”But the next step was actually non-power related. Instead, the OP worked on shaving weight off the already light Ford Focus.“Made new door panels today to clear the door bars. Also took a little more weight out of the car.”A little bit of stripping got weight down to a svelte 2,448 pounds. After playing around with turbo placement, it was time for a little trial and error with an eye toward extracting more power from the LS mill.“I decided to do everything in steps to see what makes gains and what doesn’t. Bought a set of PRC 5.3 heads to try out. I cc’ed the combustion chambers and they ended up being 63cc. Checked my PTV clearance and I am able to use a .040 head gasket. This combination gets my compression ratio back to around the stock 9.5, which sucks.If my head gaskets come in tomorrow I am going to try and get it back together and get some numbers by Friday. I’m hoping to see 20 or so hp from the heads, but who knows? Also, my collectors came in today. I’m gonna machine some head flanges this weekend and try to start on my new headers and exhaust next week. Then, I’m gonna source a new 5.3 block and start building the bottom end.”Needless to say, his work paid off.“Well, I had a pretty interesting day today on the dyno. I swapped the new heads on and after a little tuning I made 417 whp uncorrected. My previous uncorrected number was 378 whp. Pretty awesome gains for just ported heads.I then decided to swap out the 93 octane for E85. After some tuning, I made 425 uncorrected. The E85 picked up a ton of midrange power and a decent amount up top. The tune needs more work, but I had to go home early.”Soon, the custom header flanges were milled and ready to roll. But all of a sudden, the OP switched gears and picked up a 6.2-liter LS3 to build. The plan this time around is to go with a higher, 13:1 compression ratio. And it wasn’t long before the new motor was already in the mockup phase.Next, a new 3-inch exhaust with Magnaflow mufflers was installed. With the new engine buttoned up, it was time to hit the dyno once again. This time around, the Ford Focus put down 550 whp, but a broken valve guide damaged one of the pistons and heads. With those pieces sent off for repair, the OP decided to also switch to a roller cam.And that’s where this insane Ford Focus sits as of now! But you can bet we’ll be following along as this beastly little hatch continues to evolve for the better. You can (and should) do the same by heading over here!Join the LS1tech forums now!Tags: Builds, Focus, Ford, LS(, Swaps, Turbo
Date written: June 7, 2018
More of this article on the LS1 Tech website
ID: 12131
