The r380 has been running about 300-350bhp with the BMW conversion Defenders, but yes I’d have to say that if reliability is wanted with an LS, some internals would have to be updated and strengthened.

So far I have ~500km on the engine conversion. The transmission I have I bought used and didn’t open it up prior to putting it in. Looking back no I should have and I should have had the HD bearing upgrade done to it like Ashcroft sells.

I had an odd sound while in 5th on the highway the other morning so Iv ordered new bearings and seals. I won’t accredit this to the LS conversion though. I had no way of knowing the amount of usage this gearbox had prior to my use. I also down drive the truck hard knowing the limits and reputation of the gearbox.

I do fully intend on using the truck like a truck. If the transmission becomes and issue I’m toying with the idea of an MT82 conversion. Till it’s proven to be an issue I’ll stick with the R380 as I have it and so far it’s doing great.

The “dream truck” statement, that’s why I built it. The Discovery 2 is one of my favourite vehicles and in my opinion an underrated modern classic. The 500km I have on the build have been excellent. Minor issues being sorted all the time. My work schedule is hecktic so I take a long time to sort some things. I have all my parts on file and can build the conversion parts I have with in a week if any one wants. I won’t be selling them quite yet though. I want to be sure I have it sorted first. I think that’s fair.

I have lots I just need the time to find some where to host the pictures and then post them to the forum.

The T56 conversion would be neat.

The only thing id be sceptical about if overall length of the driveline. The set up I have can only get shorter by switching my accessories to “car accessories” of some sort. You’l save Like 3”-4” depending on the car. By doing that your going to have pro’s and cons.

Pro:
-more roof for rad fans (this is a concern with truck accessories that you’ll see later)
-more room for a shorter intake pipe
cons:
-you need to build a bracket for the alternator
-more money to purchase the engine (if you buy a car engine)
-no high output alternator available (I wanted one as I’m going to use my truck for Overland travel. )

that being said, if you intend on utilizing stock driveshafts and transmission/transfercase mounts you won’t have any more room to play with unless you get a custom radiator. I wanted to keep as many off the shelf parts as possible and if I have custom parts I didn’t want them to be wear parts that could leave me stranded.

Minor update;

while driving down down the highway in 5th I heard a noise coming from the transmission. So Iv since removed the transmission and transfer case. Iv ordered bearings, seals, etc etc. The noise in unrelated to the torque output of the LS as I was in 5th decelerating and I haven’t even had a trailer behind the truck yet. I know I haven’t had a lot of torque input. I’ll update again once the transmission is in place and the truck is functional again.

I’ll have all the swap parts ready for sale in time. I need to put a fair amoun of KM on the parts to ensure it’s proper.