New LS1 Owners - Newbie Tech - New LS1 owner.....2002 Formula 6mt

Hey guys, I had made a post a few days ago. I was going to buy a GTO, but the dealers sold it half-way through my 3 hour drive (Nice right? Pffft...), so I turned back and headed south and picked up this 02 Formula.

Bone stock, 74k on it. The only drawback is the dash is a little faded from the FL sun (I already ordered a dashmat), and my driver's side window is slow to go up (I had the dealership knock about 400 off the price for that). Other than that, nothing major.

I'll put a piece of cardboard under the car overnight to see if any leaks come, it is a 10 year old car.

Anyway, looking forward to having some fun in this thing. I have a 2004 nissan frontier that is my daily driver, so this one will become a project of sorts.

Not many pictures right now, it rained when I got home (Go figure lol)

Thanks,
Kenny


Edit: The drive home was the best I've had in 2+ years (I sold my 96 caprice lt1 and bought my work truck....been v8-less for 2 years!

First thing....tint. Too hot to have a Florida car with no tint!!!!

Then, SLP Lid/filter...I may buy the package they sell that includes the smooth bellows and some other stuff.-- But from reading on here, the Lid itself is pretty solid.

I have seen people porting their TB's, might do that when I order the Lid.

For exhaust, I'm going Corsa. Headers not sure yet, may be a little later down the road so I can change out the spark plugs and the wires at the same time.

Anyway, thanks for any comments. Been a while since I've been on a forum....and too long since I was able to have a 1-2 shift and chirp some tires (04 Nissan ....2.4l.....enough said LOL) I've wanted an F-body since...well, 2000 LOL. Happy camper here, I forgot what it was like to enjoy driving.

congrats on the buy! Sweet ride by the looks of it.


The window is a relatively simple fix, they make a kit to speed up the motor.

you can find it on here: http://6litereaterdesigns.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=220

congrats on the buy! Sweet ride by the looks of it.


The window is a relatively simple fix, they make a kit to speed up the motor.

you can find it on here: http://6litereaterdesigns.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=220

Thanks man, there is a bunch of good stuff on that website. It's not even a big deal at the moment, it's been too hot here to roll down the windows anyway lol. I will post some more pics once the rain clears out.

I love Formulas! In 2002 they only made 901, so you purchased a somewhat rare car. I would recommend just the lid and not the smooth bellows.

Congrats on the buying!

Don't buy the whole lid/below package, use your money somewhere else.

First I'd do if I were you are lid, headers and Y pipe, and enjoy the car for a while until the mod bug bites you and do ls6 intake, injectors and cam.

Congrats on the buying!

Don't buy the whole lid/below package, use your money somewhere else.

First I'd do if I were you are lid, headers and Y pipe, and enjoy the car for a while until the mod bug bites you and do ls6 intake, injectors and cam.
He has an 02 so he's already got the ls6 manifold. But headers and y are definitely worth it!

Hey guys!

I made the order last night from FTP. I got the SLP Lid, a Mac filter, and the Ram Air that FTP made. I also finished my order with Potz and have a Ported TB on the way.

That'll be it for "go fast" mods. (I just wanted to improve the throttle response, it's begging for some more air) Now to do some research on how to change out all the fluids and regular maintenance before I start dropping 1,000+ on headers/exhaust (The Corsa I want is a grand alone lol)

I didn't order the smooth bellows, I'll use that 30 bucks and buy some synthetic differential fluid lol.

I'm just going to pace myself, 300+ HP is going to take some getting used to. I don't want to add any "go fast" parts without at least upgrading suspension first after I do all the routine things. Plus I have to pay her off, it'll take some patience but in a year she'll be paid off and it'll be mine. THEN I can have some fun :)

It feels good to be in a "club" again. I used to be on the ImpalaSSForums, but there isn't nearly as many members as on here. Good to know I'm in good company.

Since this is not my daily driver (My daily is a 04 Nissan Frontier...I swear one of the most reliable trucks out there-- my boss has gone through 5 of them in 15-20 years for work and mine only has 104k on it....my last one had 260k on all original parts), I am going to start educating myself in "do it yourself". I think the F-Body is a good car to start on, I used to mess with my 1996 Caprice LT1....but it's been a few years since I sold it for the truck (I regret it to this day, it was a creampuff....I sold it to a friend of mine and it is winning lots of stock-class shows)

Congrats on the purchase! Formulas rock!!

And you got the best color!(see sig) Also very cool that you have the front plate insert, those go missing very often, I had to pick up one used. Took a LOT of patience waiting for one the right color to show up on the classifieds.

Good call on the mods so far, you'll be happy with the Potz ported TB, I love mine and feel it was a VERY worthwhile mod.

Might I make a suggestion on the exhaust... I'm sure the Corsa is a great exhaust, and the tips are definitley hot. However, you could save youself about 600 bucks and still get a GREAT sound. I just installed a Magnaflow on my Formula, and it sound AMAZING. I'm 100% happy with it, and for being all stainless with polished stainless tips and muffler, it's a steal at under 400 bucks, shipped, if you shop around a bit.

With what you save on the exhaust, that gives you more than enough money to pick up a set of stainless TSP headers. IMO stainless is the ONLY way to go on exhaust parts.

And if you can score a used Magnaflow, well you'll save enough to pick up the headers AND the ORY from TSP. So you get full exhaust for the price of just the Corsa catback. Lets face it, the big gain from a CB is sound. You're really not going to feel a gain of (maybe)ten hp the catback might get you, so IMO there's no reason to spend a grand on a catback. And with the Corsa, a big chunk of that is just for the tips anyway.

Just my .02.

Oh, and that car is screaming for wheels! If you're on a budget, factory WS6 wheels look hot on a Formula, I have the '01-'02 "Speedline" style on my Formula and love them.

sweet formy , welcome to the formula club . For another mod maybe get a tune from frost , its a mail order tune and costs 150 , not as good as a dyno tune but way less and with your mods it will help out some .

Stuntman, thanks for the compliments man! It is a great color. As far as exhaust goes, sure the tips of the Corsa look cool...but it is the sound I am after. I go on YouTube and look up the different exhausts, so I will double-check the Magnaflow. As for the wheels...last thing on my mind at the moment lol. The tires look pretty new, so I am just going to run them down before I start thinking of options.


ramairetransam- I will save on the tune after I do headers and whatnot (when the time comes), so I can do it all at once. 150 is a good price though.

I haven't had a chance to post any pictures just yet, it's been pretty rainy the past few days. I want to detail the car this weekend, get it ready for summer.

I spent so much time trying to listen to different sound clips on youtube when looking for an exhaust, and it just confused me more. Too many variables involved to get an accurate impression of the sound.

I don't know what the Corsa sounds like in terms of loundness, but the Magnaflow videos I've seen don't do it justice. To me, it sounds perfect. Throaty and agressive when accelerating, but mellow at idle and nice and quiet while cruising - I can still have a phone conversation at 70mph with it.

Of course I'm running stock manifolds and cats, so that keeps it quieter than if I had heards an a ORY, which is when the MF really sounds good.

I'd also do this...http://ls1tech.com/forums/general-maintenance-repairs/534376-how-seafoam-your-car.html

Throw an electric cut-out on there and if you do headers make sure that you change you motor/trans mounts.(<---it's a must)

Nice Car, you will love it.
Don't let sway you from buying the Corsa. Many will say its too expensive, but I would do it again in a heartbeat - well worth the $
Congratulations

Kenny do ur "free mods"..as far as a lid, im surprised u didnt go with the FTP lid, SLP lids are okay, there's better out there, even somewhat hard to find, SLP Blackwing lid is far superior. just my .02
BTW i have a drivers side window motor i can sell..let me know

Kenny do ur "free mods"..as far as a lid, im surprised u didnt go with the FTP lid, SLP lids are okay, there's better out there, even somewhat hard to find, SLP Blackwing lid is far superior. just my .02
BTW i have a drivers side window motor i can sell..let me know

I got a little confused with the FTP lid's, because of the different sizes I thought I needed a new MAF. But, hey, SLP is alright....there can't be that many HP loss between the two (But then again what do I know) If anything, SLP is better than stock...so that's a start LOL

Unfortunately lol, it's been raining here ever since I got off work so I haven't taken pictures yet. Although sitting in the garage, the rain beading off the wax always looks pretty cool LOL

Actually guys, I have decided on the Hooker Aerochamber catback. For the price, it's what I am looking for...not to mention 2/3's less than the Corsa.

I had the Aerochamber on my 1996 LT1 Caprice B4U, it was the perfect sound-- quiet at idle (although a noticeable change in tone), and loud when I need it.

As long as it flows better than the stocker, that's all I am concerned about. Then maybe add some TSP Long tubes, and their Y-pipe and I think the sound will be good enough for me (I'd rather have a quiet exhaust-- as long as I know the performance gains are still there)

Nice NBM ... that has always been my favorite color.

If you don't mind posting, how much was the car? I like to keep tabs on what fbodies sell for.

BrianSF-GA No, not at all. After taxes, title, tag, etc I paid about 9500 (The car was originally listed at 10k, but I got them down to about 8k). I walked in, and walked out with the car. There was a WS6 in my area for about 12.5k, but I could not find financing due to the car being older than 7 years (private sale)

I got it from a dealership, so I understand I may have paid a little too much. But that is in the eye of the beholder. I've never gotten so many compliments from 4 days of ownership in my life, and the car is in pretty damn good shape...not to mention 1 owner trade-in (with a pretty decent documentary of service records from ownership) and bone stock. I'll be honest, I've had a perma-grin on my face since Saturday lol. I've wanted one of these for as long as I could remember....finally sitting in my driveway!!!!

Thanks for the compliment man, it's been a long time since I've been getting looks in my car (Although I love my 04 Nissan Frontier...it's just a work truck lol and a good grocery getter, and "Hey Kenny, I need your help moving can I borrow the truck" type of deal lol)

BrianSF-GA No, not at all. After taxes, title, tag, etc I paid about 9500 (The car was originally listed at 10k, but I got them down to about 8k). I walked in, and walked out with the car. There was a WS6 in my area for about 12.5k, but I could not find financing due to the car being older than 7 years (private sale)

I got it from a dealership, so I understand I may have paid a little too much. But that is in the eye of the beholder. I've never gotten so many compliments from 4 days of ownership in my life, and the car is in pretty damn good shape...not to mention 1 owner trade-in (with a pretty decent documentary of service records from ownership) and bone stock. I'll be honest, I've had a perma-grin on my face since Saturday lol. I've wanted one of these for as long as I could remember....finally sitting in my driveway!!!!

Thanks for the compliment man, it's been a long time since I've been getting looks in my car (Although I love my 04 Nissan Frontier...it's just a work truck lol and a good grocery getter, and "Hey Kenny, I need your help moving can I borrow the truck" type of deal lol)

Actually, you did quite well .... $8,000 is NADA "average trade-in" value. It being a one-owner with records and accident free (I presume since you didn't mention it) was a definite adder. The taxes, doc fees, etc. seems pretty high in your case, but those are the negatives of buying from a dealer. There are times that a dealer has just the car you are looking for and you have to pay them. I try to buy private whenever I can, but there have been a few times I ended up buying from a dealer because they had the color, the model, the options, etc. that I had to have. Good luck with your new purchase.

Yeah, I understand where you are coming from.

No complaints here haha, I just want to get my damn tags....I don't like driving with dealer tags lol

Got my SLP lid today. Installation took me about an hour and a half, I was just taking my time. Wish I used a hair-dryer, getting that lid mouth onto the MAF was a pain in the ass.

Started up, idle was funny while the computer was leaning. Shut her off, came back 5 minutes later and back to normal.

Impression: Very pleased. It was exactly what I was looking for, throttle response has been improved quite a bit.

My FTP Ram Air will be here Monday, as well as my ported TB. Cheers!

Congrats! My advice would be to learn as much as possible. It's very easy to fall into the current fad on the forums. Just do your research. Sometimes the most expensive part isn't the best. Also browse the classifieds. There are good deals out there that can save you a buck. Also do not be afraid to ask questions. A lot of us have been on here for a while now and have had a lot of these cars. It not your daily driver so when something comes up, read about it and attempt it yourself. Best way to know the car.

Congrats! My advice would be to learn as much as possible. It's very easy to fall into the current fad on the forums. Just do your research. Sometimes the most expensive part isn't the best. Also browse the classifieds. There are good deals out there that can save you a buck. Also do not be afraid to ask questions. A lot of us have been on here for a while now and have had a lot of these cars. It not your daily driver so when something comes up, read about it and attempt it yourself. Best way to know the car.

Thanks Gluemaker-- Yeah, this is such a great source of information. I appreciate all the help I've been given so far, what better source than from those that own these cars.

Congrats! Add a set of long tube headers and a mail order tune to what you already plan on doing and you will feel a noticeable difference in how the car performs.

nice lookin car op. ive learned a ton from this forum and have been taking on larger projects I may not have at one point. i love the color of your car.

nice lookin car op. ive learned a ton from this forum and have been taking on larger projects I may not have at one point. i love the color of your car.

Thank you beyond, unfortunately I was mowing the lawn yesterday and a little rock shot out and hit my rear panel, knocked a dime piece of paint right off. Going to bring it into the garage and touch it up, you can imagine my aggravation. Damn mower!!!!!

Congrats! Add a set of long tube headers and a mail order tune to what you already plan on doing and you will feel a noticeable difference in how the car performs.

I got in contact with an old friend who used to work on my Caprice with me-- turns out he has two bays and a lift in a little garage about 20 minutes from me. Time for some fun, and all the tools I need!

I took the car to a friend's house, I've never been given a thumbs up from so many people-- Hell yeah. I went to a deserted little side road today and said "what the hell", and launched at about 3k RPM. Needless to say, I've been waiting almost 3 years to be able to break tires loose and have a smokey little screen behind me. First burn-out in the LS1 (don't worry, when I say deserted road-- I mean literally, nobody near me, no pedestrians, nothing but me and the car--)....won't be a normal thing as I do like to baby my vehicles and I'd rather not break anything.... But damn, 310hp and room to gallop, let's go! (You guys have to remember, my daily driver is a 2.4l Nissan Frontier LOL...what a difference)

Edit: Still no new pics, too much forum browsing LOL