Motown LS Crate Engine - A Hybrid That Makes Horsepower

This unique valley cover plate is key to the Motown LS. It secures the upper portion of the heads and because an LS-type spider intake is used, provides a mounting location for the distributor. Also, the valley cover has a removable top section that allows easy access to the lifters.

Here are World's Warhawk LS1 heads being installed on the small-block. Port work was handled by Jim Kuntz, a whiz with Ford Windsor-style heads, which Mitchell says are essentially mirror images of the LS design.

Production LS valvetrain components, including the rocker arms, springs, etc. are used, but the combination requires custom 8.200-inch pushrods because of the non-LS camshaft position.

Here's the long-block assembly of the Motown LS. Note how the custom valley plate cover fits like the final piece of a mechanical puzzle.

The engineering to bring the engine to this point is, frankly, amazing.

The other unique parts created for the Motown LS include adapter plates for the front of the heads to mount a water pump and other accessories. A crossover tube is used to connect the small-block's standard water pump inlet and outlet ports, so the water flow will correspond with the LS circuit. By the way, disregard the Mo-hawk name. It was an early nickname that didn't make it past the copyright lawyers.

Because the Motown LS has an LS-production deck height, a standard LS intake bolts up without a problem. In this case, it's an Edelbrock intake capped with a velocity-enhancing spacer and an AED-built 1050 Dominator.

World's builders even worked on the spacer and manifold interface, smoothing out the transition to increase airflow.

Here's the finished assembly. Just like a regular small-block, the distributor slips in at the rear. The only problem is plug wires. Standard small-block wires don't fit quite right, so a cut-to-fit kit is necessary. On this engine an electronic MSD distributor provides the spark.

On the left is one of World's Warhawk LS engine assemblies and on the right is the Motown LS. For racers and street enthusiasts, the implications of such a hybrid are enormous, including easier and less-expensive retro-fit installations, and greater performance in racing classes that require a distributor.

Without any real tuning and 36 degrees of total timing, the very first Motown LS engine cranked out 629 hp and 579 lb-ft on the initial pull.

There's likely more power to be had with some fine-tuning, maybe up to 650 horses.