tonypaul

iTrader: (2)

I have spent countless hours with the "search" area of this forum trying to figure out a good 500ish hp/tq street combo for a 5.3 build. Im finding tons of info on all out, shoot for the moon power combos, and a mix of high end speed shop and low end junk yard parts builds. Most seem to be focused on custom cams, head swaps, big turbos and finding every last ounce of power on the dyno and 1/4 mile track.

But Im finding very little on just simple on off the shelf, street only, small twin turbo 5.3 combos. I dont mind researching everything myself but just getting discourged reading page after page and not finding much that gives me good examples of what Im wanting.

So based on the following, what combo of parts would you recommend for a street based 5.3 engine- But the kicker is, I drive this car alot around town and in the summer it gets super hot here. We see many days above 105 degrees and because of the heat or any other reason, I would like to be able to take off the twins and swap out ECU's and still have a good 350ish hp/tq to run around on. Cooling is a tricky thing on this car especially with a/c.

Second kicker is- I would like maybe someday be able to turn it up on power to 600ish hp/tq should I feel the need..

Engine is the L33 with stock 863 heads, head studs only, 80lbs injectors, Aero a1000 fuel pump/boost ref reg, e85, truck intake, auto trans w/3.23's. Corvette C6 flipped/rotated exhaust manifolds. Stock ECU. professional tuned w/ HPtuners.

What I want to find out is:
What cam specs should I be looking at at? I dont really want to change timing covers if I dont have to.
What smallish turbo specs should I be looking for? I really dont want high end turbos at first.

I dont want to go crazy with this engine build, dont mind buying good parts but hate wasting money. If you some points of reference where I can go to research or just some suggestions- please throw in your advice~

Thanks!

dudeman

iTrader: (43)

why twins for 500-600hp? a single tc78 will make 700+hp and spool faster doing it.

T76s10

iTrader: (6)

i agree with dudeman. my friend has a totally stock 5.3 with a magnum t72 turbo and hes around that range. spools instantly and is a pretty bad *** street machine. do a 02+ ls6 cam, yellow(now blue) ls6 springs, ebay gt45 turbo, and 3" intercooler. simple yet affordable 500-600hp combo and alot of fun on the street.

T76s10

iTrader: (6)

ebay gt45 is 67mm compressor, and 76mm turbine i believe. $243 shipped

ZNix

iTrader: (1)

If you are set on twins.. Something cheap and easy would be twin stock Grand National turbos.. I've always wondered how they would do on a 5.3. I am pretty sure they would be able to flow enough air for your power goals. I have two of them in my basement that I was planning to drop on a 5.3 we will be building for my brother's Nova. 6262's are also a popular choice for twins..

http://jalopnik.com/5832800/twin-tur...eper/gallery/1

Zack

typhoon1015

iTrader: (5)

I am working on a similar build as well. I have some good suggestions, but am strapped for time currently.

Take a look at some compressor maps- 350ci engines should be close as far as air flow #'s and size up a set of twins to run the PSI range and efficencies that you want to.


forcedinductions.com has compressor maps and air flow charts for different CI engines.

alexcoreas

iTrader: (1)

You don't need ARP head studs at that power level.
You could try these knock offs people on here have used them withought a complaint, of course people have their opinions and I'm just making a budget friendly suggestion.

http://www.kmjent.com/cart/sbc-chevy....7l-97-03.html

tonypaul

iTrader: (2)

The twins are for personal preference, its not all about making it simple and cost effectiveness for me. I want a set up that looks good, works good and makes decent power.

I have driven both single and twin setups, and the on the pedal, off the pedal street driving was more fun with the twin setup.
But I want to have a good setup, should I want 500ish hp for normal driving or 700ish for some reason- I want that flexablity...

skyhighsami

iTrader: (8)

Look on PerformanceTrucks.net there are a lot more builds like you're talking about done over there. My .02 is don't run an LS6 cam, other than having cheap valve springs because of the low lift ai always vote custom cam. It will work better in the long run and last I saw LS6 cams were 200-300.......not a huge price saving option IMO

Sarg

iTrader: (6)

I will tell you what would be a blast would be twin borg T3 S256 turbos. You would have to get them through Bullseye Power as Borg Warner does not make a T3 version. Should be good for an easy 500 hp and go up to 700+ with ease. I have made 400 at the wheels on a couple cars with a single one of these and they spooled pretty darn quick on a 2.5 liter (full boost by 3400-3800 depending on the gear) AWD motor. Garret GT3076R would be another good choice.

If you wanted SUPER fancy, a couple Borg Warner EFR 7064 turbos would be CRAZY, spool super quick and come with integrated high flow wastegates and recirculating BPV so you would not even need to worry about the wastegate or BOV. They are a bit pricey, but when you consider that you do not have to get a BOV or Wastegates, it really is not that bad. I have used and tuned a couple of these and was very impressed. Billet wheel, ball bearing with all the options.

If you wanted a cheaper option a set of T04E T3/T4 turbos would also work and would spool super quick. There are a large number of combinations that would work well in a twin configuration. Just have to pick a budget and figure out what you want. One thing to consider though, sometimes the custom cam is ALSO for helping it spool quicker and obtaining better low end torque. It does not have to be just for all out power.

tonypaul

iTrader: (2)

Thanks guys! I will research the truck forums. Instead of actual turbos and cams, ect, what specs should I be studing? Im really trying to get a better understanding of smaller compressor maps, cam lifts, ect that I should be researching instead of this this turbo or this cam,ect... I have decent ideas of what Im looking for but I really want to have the math down better.
Thanks again~

Sarg

iTrader: (6)

Well a good start on compressor maps would just be the flow of the engine. If you go to a program called "matchbot" by borg warner, you can actually plot several of their turbos against your motor. Makes for some interesting comparisons. Take results with a grain of salt, but they are only as accurate as the information you input.