Chevy Did not build these engines, I beleive they were designed by
Lotus ,but they were built by Mercury Marine. They were hand built and
very costly.  Check out the following link for more details.

http://www.zr1netregistry.com/ZR1_about.htm

The mods woud be for the Computer and Fuel supply among others.

It would be more cost effective to order the new LT7 427 crate motor
and  drop that in., than to try and find an LT5.

You haven't researched it enough yet. There are very few complete engines out there because those in
the know bought them up when production halted. Those in the know now have hugh price tags on them,
that's why they are in the know. Plus I doubt that GM would be impressed if you were pissed.

The top of the engine, heads with cams, makes it wider than the normal engine and Tim Allen can
afford the ridiculous price to do that kind of swap. The design of the C4 and the LT5 was not a drop
in, check out some of the unique parts to get them to fit even though it was built for the C4.

The LT5 was only a passable attempt to make a DOHC, (or should that be DDOHC), engine back in late
'80s financed by the Corvette crowd at an outrageous price. It did give GM the research required to
make the Northstar design that spilled over into the Aurora racing engine but that died also. If you
read the history of the LT5 it was run against a well prepared LT1 engine during the first part of
the record run. The LT1 was pulled early because it was kicking the LT5s a.s, a no-no for public
relations, SALES. The news release played it off that it ended the LT1 run early because it had to
be at a show. Plus the "stock" LT5 was running headers and catless and more under the counter tweaks
than you can count. I fully believe that it is the event that doomed the further use of the LT5 past
a "pay for the test" number of units. They knew then that they had built an orphan that would be
eclipsed by the LS1 that was in the design stages at the time.

The fascination with the LT5 is beyond me other than the "I've got one and you don't" mentality of
some. It never came close to the accomplishments of the C5R or the C6R or even the Z06 with the
tried and true push rod engine. I have little doubt that the present Z06 could better the King of
the hill record that the ZR1 has held for so long but they don't need to in order to sell more cars
per year than the ZR1 did in its life cycle. Even the early '01 Z06 did that on the drag strip and
the present base LS2 can kick them to the corner with simple tweaks.

What every, if that's what you want, go for it, times a wasting. Get out your checkbook and be
prepared to be embarrassed by most Corvettes built today, and those crate engines are available and
fit.

<snip>

Yes. There are a few "New Old Stock" crate motors still around, and some
might actually be for sale. There were a only limited number of spare
LT5 engines made.
If you are serious about your project then your research will lead you
to them. Don't expect them to be easy to find or cheap.

<snip>
No more difficult than any other engine swap, although the LT5 has
different porportions than a standard small block. There will be tons of
mods necessary to put the LT5 in any car other than a true ZR1.
Only you and your checkbook can decide if it's worth the price.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a BIG ZR1/LT5 fan.
I own one.
It's certainly the coolest looking Corvette engine ever made.
The sad thing is, most people out there have never seen or heard of a
ZR1. Without the hood up, most people wouldn't even know they were
looking at one. Even with the hood up, most people have to ask what it
is. :-(

If all you want is to go fast, buy a crate LS6 engine and stuff it in
whatever car you want. It'll fit right in, no muss, no fuss. If you want
to go faster, toss on a blower and/or NOS.
If you blow it up, no biggie, just drive down to the local Chevy dealer
and open your checkbook.
Will it be pretty? Depends on who's looking at it.
Will it be fast? Damn yes.
Will it beat a ZR1?  Yup. With one arm tied behind it's back.

Good luck on your project.
If your heart is set on a LT5, do your research. Google is your friend.
Your best source of information BY FAR is the ZR1 Net Registry, followed
closely by the ZR1 sub-forum at the Corvette Forum.

Good luck!

TomC
'90ZR1 #792

And what about swaps into GM full-sized trucks,

ZR1s were only produced from '90-'95. No '96.
You'd be pissed.
GM didn't make the motor.

TomC
'90ZR1 #792