Pontiac GTO 2004-2006 - time for a cam

ok i have done just about all i can do with out doing a cam....so i know that when you buy a cam you should buy heads, but i am not a millionair and just looking for a little boost in hp and that sound...question is what is a good came to run with the factory ls2 heads?

You will want one with a good split favoring the exhaust side. What are your goals, a4 or m6?

For a good all around cam look at something like a 228/236, keep it just at or under .600" lift to make it easier on your valve train, tight lsa for a rough idle, higher peak power that comes in earlier in the rpm range, but falls off sooner...a wider lsa will give you a better idle, power will come in later, but have a wider, smoother power band.

you can run an ls3 cam or some killer cams from sponsors. depends what youre looking for.

need more info, what are you looking for,what is the car used for, is it a dd, are you going to do heads, imo i would go eps cam, with some heads ,are you planning boost in the future? just get that new kb blower setup, that will give ya a nice boost, your going to wanna go fi sooner or later so just start now

the car is a daily driver, i am not planning on doing heads, just putting springs in my 243's, honestly everything i have on it now makes me happy just want to add the cam and get it tuned and i think i will be done with it for a while...like i said it is a daily driver and honestly is pretty damn quick imo...i just love the sound of a cam in a ls and wouldnt mind a couple extra hp's...so if you guys know any one or have done it yourself this way just curios as to what cam would be my best route....i know i need to stay under .600" lift and honestly all the numbers that come with cam specs confuses me...i asked the same question over on ls1gto and got my head bitten off

......why do you need to stay under .600 lift if youre changing out springs?

For you, pick a cam everyone else uses and have someone put it in

i am gonna put the cam in myself...i can handle that but i say under 600 because as a daily driver i guess i wouldnt want a crazy rough idle

oh and it is an a4

The SSHT from FTI is a great DD cam and works well with the 243 heads. You'll need a spring kit and hardened push rods. Makes no sense not to put an UDP on at the same time since everything is apart.

thanks for the input...i was pretty much going to replace the springs any way just cuz mine have about 50k on em and should be done...wanna do it all right but not buy new heads out of my price range

......why do you need to stay under .600 lift if youre changing out springs?


If you keep it under .600" you can go with a simple beehive spring and run it for years with no maintanance....once you hit over .600" lift it works the valvetrain parts harder and at the least you need to check your spring pressure every year or so and possiblly replace them....a free hundred dollars a year that some people don't really want to deal with.

agreed i will stay under .600...just want that awesome idle sound

Since you have an a4, you will need a higher stall converter and trans cooler before or at the same time as your cam swap.

Most people like to run a slightly wider lsa in an automatic because of the improved idle and they are easier to tune....if you went with a cam somewhere around what I suggested for you I'd go with around a 112-114 lsa, if it was an m6, I'd go for a 110-112 lsa.

ok cool...takin this all in...ima give the guys at g-force a call seeing that i live right by them and see what they have to say<--------just rememebered that

When you start going above .600" lift with the stock rockers they wear more, I've seen some getting eating up at .615-.630" and some that don't. Long term under .600 you'll be in good shape.

I would put lunati or PAC's dual .650,.660" spring kit in instead of just the singles.( $225-250) You wont have to change them as soon as the beehives, that are rated less. IMO, I like the idea that incase a spring would break the inner one will hold the valve up. Its cheap insurance. You drop a valve and you will $$$$ in the hole and rebuilding the motor.

You'll be using 7.4" or 7.425" push rods depending on the cam.

What do you want to know about cam specs? 224/228 .600/.600 112lsa = duration the intake valve is opened/duration the exhaust valve is opened........intake valve lift in inches/exhaust valve lift in inches....and the last number and lsa is (lobe separation angle) the angle in degrees between the intake and exhaust lobe centers.

I hope that helps

Check into the Torquer v.2 from TSP. 232/234 .595''/.598'' 112 or 114 LSA. It's a great cam to run with the 243 heads.
Edit: Oh and you're better off never asking any questions on ls1gto. It's a great forum with lots of great information, but it's a shame that the poeple that respond most often are all asshats.

Been keeping an eye on this, thought I'd put my .02 in. First I would get PatG to spec you a cam for your setup/goals. Secondly, contact a sponsor on here and speak with them about setting you up with a stall for your cam to fit the powerband and gearset. Third and lastly don't buy roller rockers. IMO for insurance and the "fun factor" of doing it myself when I swapped my cam the other day I rebuilt my stock rockers with Comps trunion upgrade. Don't look at threads and see that it's "hard" or complicated because if you've ever worked on a car you can do the rockers. Search needle bearings on here and you'll see why it's good insurance. Oh and BTW check Summit Racing for the install kit for the trunion upgrade. Premo kit and install was gravy. As for pushrods, and springs whoever sells you the cam can help you with those easily. Good luck chief have fun while your at it.

according to g-force i am going to be going with the tsp 224r, i am doing the install and they are going to tune her! i am excited but i got to do my draglites first....they go on this weekend will post pics

In my opinion that is a very small cam, and if it was me I'd set up to the 228.

For my first can swap I went with a 220/224 and after a week I wished I had gone bigger :(

this is the cam they recomend on my a4 due to me not changing the converter

Yup same here, im running the 224r and kind of wished i had gone with the 228. I would go 228 if i were in your shoes.

yeah but will it push through the brakes?

"push through the brakes"?????

Honestly, you're going to see a lot more gains with a converter and no cam than with a cam and no converter.

Choppy idle is cool, winning races is cooler.

i agree. dont go conservative on a cam and a stall is a must. you wont be happy trust us.

gotcha gotcha, looks like i need to save up and just blow a ton of money at one time, lol

definitely if you are getting a cam a converter is a must. I just rebuilt my transmission and put in a yank 3600 stall. 2 weeks later i got the torquer v2 cam and i love it. Idle is mean take off is even meaner. Made great power. Honestly i agree with the above. You will not be happy with that small of a cam. I have an A4 also and done a lot of looking into getting this done and everyone has told me a converter is a must with an A4 as soon as you put your car in park it will cut off. If you get a stall i would go with yank and for a DD a 3600 is great. My goal was a DD as well and this is what i ended up with.

Like said, even I was afraid of running a big cam/stall combo on the street at first. But now I swear by running a big stall and can say I loved daily driving my 408 with a 255/263 cam and 4,000 stall