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LS Swap Radiator Hose Adapter with Steam Port

10/23/2020
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In case you’ve missed it, LS swaps are all the rage. Straight out of the junkyard, these engines can offer impressive performance when swapped into, well, just about anything. We’ve seen them in everything from classic muscle cars to Nissan Sentras and Porsche 911’s.

No matter what your ride is, there are a few nagging issues that can be hard (or expensive) to deal with when installing an LS engine. One of them is the cooling system, specifically the upper radiator hose and the steam lines. Because of the location of the thermostat on the water pump, LS engines have steam lines in the cylinder heads to vent trapped air and prevent hot spots from forming. This is a good thing, but where do they go? Typically, a direct fit LS swap radiator will have an extra port in one of the tanks for this reason. Great, but have you priced one of these radiators lately? That junkyard LS can get expensive in a hurry when you put it behind a thousand-dollar radiator.

This is the 6.0 LQ9 that we swapped into our '72 Chevelle. Visible in this shot is one of the steam lines (just under the crossover between the fuel rails), the low position of the thermostat, and the 1.25" outlet for the upper hose.

That’s where the Speedway Motors LS Swap Hose Adapter comes in. For $24.99 this little part is a lifesaver for budget-minded LS swap. First, that ¼” hose barb will accept the steam line. Problem solved. Next, it adapts the hose from the 1.25” outlet on the LS water pump to the 1.5” inlet on a common radiator. That dramatically opens up the list of radiators that can be used (including our budget-friendly Universal Radiators) with your LS engine.

The Speedway Motors hose adapter is already powdercoated black so it will blend in with the radiator hose.

Instead of emptying the piggy bank for an expensive LS-swap radiator, pick up this hose adapter and spend the money you saved on something fun, like a cam swap or headers!

Update: we're proud to announce that this product was awarded runner up in the best new Street Rod/Custom Car category at SEMA 2020!

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