C10 LS Swaps Made Easy with Motor Mount and Transmission Crossmember Kits
C10 trucks are all the rage these days. These things are everywhere, and for good reason. They’re a near perfect combination of classic good looks and practical utility. In short, you can actually use them like a truck and look good doing it. They’re made even better when you add a few upgrades to the suspension and drivetrain. Throw in some modern power in the form of a GM Gen III or IV LS engine and you have an unbeatable combination.
That’s exactly what we set out to do with our ’68 C10 truck project. And while we were at it, we had our engineers cook up a neat motor mount and transmission mount solution that makes this install look like it came that way from the factory.
C10 LS Swap Motor Mounts
Speedway Motors has a long list of parts that will make your C10 LS swap a breeze. We’re finding all sorts of useful hacks as we assemble our truck. The common solution when it comes to LS swap motor mounts has been to use the adapter plate that bolts to the side of the block, then use the standard 3-bolt GM motor mount to adapt to your chassis. This is all well and good and is still a viable solution, especially if you’re planning to drastically move the engine from its stock location. But our new C10 LS Swap Motor Mounts are designed specifically for the C10, eliminating the extra adapter and providing a super clean look. Instead of the adapter, our team engineered these to use the stock ’98-’02 F-body motor mounts. These mounts attach to the brackets on the frame with one long bolt, just as you’re used to with standard GM mounts.
C10 Fabricated Transmission Crossmember
Man, this thing is slick. Whether you’re LS swapping or not, this crossmember will allow you to run just about any transmission you can dream up. When GM built these trucks, they knew there would be a ton of variation in engine, transmission, and transfer case combos. So, they went ahead and poked holes in the framerails to accommodate all of these possibilities. We used those existing holes and came up with a crossmember that bolts right into them, taking full advantage of all that front to rear adjustability. On top of that, the holes in these boxing plates are slotted, allowing things to be dialed in even more. And it's not just about the adjustability. These have a huge space for exhaust to pass through and a cool laser cut and fabricated look.
C10’s never left the factory with LS engines and modern transmissions, but as we progress with our project ’68, we’re finding lots of cool products to make this swap a breeze. We chose the kit that came with both the C10 Motor Mounts and Transmission Mount. There’s plenty more to come, but having the engine and transmission bolted down with these killer mounts is a huge step in the right direction.
