Reviewed by Scott Ross
Photos by Patrick Hill

Not too long ago, we brought you Will Handzel’s How To Build High-Performance Chevy LS1/LS6 V-8s. The folks at Car Tech Books have updated it in a brand-new edition that adds lots of color (556 color photos in all) to a modern-day must-read about The General’s latest high-performance engine family.

Information included in the previous edition is in this one, including the development history of the LS engines, engine basics, production parts for power and performance, bolt-on upgrades, and the removal and installation processes. There’s also chapters that detail four different LS-series engine builds at four different power levels--from a 100-horsepower upgrade of a bone-stock engine through the building of a 1300 horsepower stormer.

Car Tech Books also has a new how-to devoted specifically to The General’s 700R4 and 4L60E overdrive automatic transmissions. Cliff Ruggles’ GM Automatic Overdrive Transmission Builder’s And Swapper’s Guide is filled with chapters on the history of GM’s overdrive automatics and how to identify them, as well as lavishly-illustrated-with-photos chapters on disassembly, rebuilding (repair as well as upgrade) and reassembly. It’s also got chapters on high-performance modifications using both factory and aftermarket parts—and there’s a special section devoted to swapping these later-model gearboxes into earlier cars and trucks that were built with  Powerglides, TurboHydraMatics and other non-OD automatics.

GET IT:
How To Build High-Performance Chevy LS1/LS6 V-8s
GM Automatic Overdrive Transmission Builder’s And Swapper’s Guide
Car Tech Books 800/551-4754, www.cartechbooks.com
List Price: (both titles): $24.95 + shipping