General LSX Automobile Discussion - when is it too much?

this may be a silly question , but here it goes.. is there a threshold of making too much horsepower to make your DD not practical for the street any more?
I for the most part believe there is no such thing as "too much HP" but is there a point where you can no longer safely drive on the street? ex. rainy/snowy conditions, no longer uses unleaded gas , etc.. reliability factors..

lol really shouldn't drive these cars in winter/snow/rain because its scary just to take a turn sometimes.

Too much is term that is conditional. In my area a stock ls1 is almost over kill.

To me, a car with a huge stall or stiff clutch is killing my driveability if all i did was drove this said car at 45mph in rush hour traffic.

I've noticed that no matter what I do to my car I get used to it and want it to be faster. When I first bought it all it had was Borla cat-back. When I was driving it back from Dallas I thought "wow" I don't even need to mod this car. A month later it was a lid. Then a P&P throttle body. Then LT headers. Now I am deciding between a cam and a nitrous kit. However, mine is not a daily driver. I have actually been leaning more towards the nitrous kit because I can be somewhat stock sounding when I want to be and if the opportunity presents itself I will have a 100-150 extra HP on tap. When its not needed its turned off and I can still get 23ish MPG in the city and 29mpg on the interstate.

I think it is all up to the end user.

A 500whp build maybe totally fine for one , and a huge pain in the ass for someone else. I do not believe there is just a magic number.

I know exactly what you mean! I have a crotch rocket that runs high 8's , does over 200 mph and every other biker buddy that's riden it says it's "sick! and too much !" but I'm use to it and thinking carbon wheels and a turbo is needed...:eek2:

I've noticed that no matter what I do to my car I get used to it and want it to be faster. When I first bought it all it had was Borla cat-back. When I was driving it back from Dallas I thought "wow" I don't even need to mod this car. A month later it was a lid. Then a P&P throttle body. Then LT headers. Now I am deciding between a cam and a nitrous kit. However, mine is not a daily driver. I have actually been leaning more towards the nitrous kit because I can be somewhat stock sounding when I want to be and if the opportunity presents itself I will have a 100-150 extra HP on tap. When its not needed its turned off and I can still get 23ish MPG in the city and 29mpg on the interstate.

Well put, not matter what you drive you will get used to it, may be a pain at first though. But having a DD with a huge cam and very aggressive clutch especially in traffic is not fun...

Driving your F-body in the rain and snow :nono: Thats trans-AM abuse... :lol: Show your F-body some love and leave it in the garage when it's raining or snowing.

I agree with the guys above, there is no magic #, You should keep up with the drive train, suspention, upgrades as the HP increases.

When it stops being fun and becomes work to drive it around.

I agree with Jeremy. I'd say that point is 500+rwhp though. But like everyone else said, each person is different. Some will be annoyed by anything over a mild cat-back and some want to run LT's, ORY & LM cat-back.

I've owned a low 400rwhp car and daily drove it, didn't bother me one bit. But it was a 6-speed with 4.10 gears so the big cam was greatly improved as far as driveability is concerned.

Also something to keep in mind....a 500rwhp heads/cam car will drive completely different from a 500rwhp turbo/supercharged car. So, the actual power level is not so important as how it was made.

I agree with Jeremy. I'd say that point is 500+rwhp though. But like everyone else said, each person is different. Some will be annoyed by anything over a mild cat-back and some want to run LT's, ORY & LM cat-back.

I've owned a low 400rwhp car and daily drove it, didn't bother me one bit. But it was a 6-speed with 4.10 gears so the big cam was greatly improved as far as driveability is concerned.

Also something to keep in mind....a 500rwhp heads/cam car will drive completely different from a 500rwhp turbo/supercharged car. So, the actual power level is not so important as how it was made.

This. I've seen a few 500-800whp daily driven cars (summer months at least) that are forced induction. Most of them drove pretty tamely just putting around town. N/A I'd say 500-550whp with bug cubes (of course you could spray too), but forced induction the numbers depend on your wallet.

When I was building the 240sx I was exited and anxious to get it done, 3 diffs later and a broken clutch have made me wished I would have left the LS1 almost stock, but its still fun to drive.

ozsleeper and stangtamr especially DD theirs. stang is making 900+ rwhp, and I asked Chris, how 831rwhp handled on the street and he said with his 295's it was manageable with a 6 speed and a roll on. I am shooting for 1000rwhp DD, and although I do not think traction will ever be totally available even with slicks and an auto, it should be reliable based on what I have in it, and the R&D I have been doing.


If I were to pick a "too dangerous to just punch it WOT level" I'd first consider the driver. Then the tires, and suspension.

Never, drive it in the rain ever.

:secret: I got caught once in a shower with Radials, let the air out of one and had geico bring it home for me.

too much is dependent on an individual.


some can tolerate more than others. i want AC. some people dont. i dont want a gutted car. some people dont mind.


i want to be somewhat comfortable and be able to drive anywhere if i have to. everyone has different priorities and preferences.

ozsleeper and stangtamr especially DD theirs. stang is making 900+ rwhp, and I asked Chris, how 831rwhp handled on the street and he said with his 295's it was manageable with a 6 speed and a roll on. I am shooting for 1000rwhp DD, and although I do not think traction will ever be totally available even with slicks and an auto, it should be reliable based on what I have in it, and the R&D I have been doing.


If I were to pick a "too dangerous to just punch it WOT level" I'd first consider the driver. Then the tires, and suspension.

Never, drive it in the rain ever.

:secret: I got caught once in a shower with Radials, let the air out of one and had geico bring it home for me.



As said, I used to DD my car from 590rwhp all the way up to its current build and 831rwhp. I run a 295/55/15 MT ET Street for my everyday tire and it does just fine. I try to avoid the rain but shes seen the rain plenty of times as well. Aggressive clutch in traffic is a pain but knowing you can destroy just about everything on the street to include Liter bikes is a pretty awesome feeling lol

This is very subjective, especially considering people's tolerance and how the power is made. Forced induction for example which has already been covered. Also cubic inches play a part as well.

500 HP in a large cube engine will be totally different than the same power in a 346. I've seen a few c6z's making well over 600 at the wheels n/a and still drive very well. And I've also seen 450 rwhp 346's drive like dump trucks.

In the end, it's all about what is tolerable to the driver. After driving 18 wheelers, getting in an f body with a heavy clutch that has the occasional buck and surge is gravy train. The next person could get in the same car and hate it with a passion.

It all depends on the setup, with mine(besides the loud fuel pump) i think my car drives better then a bone stock 03 cobra.

This is a very real concern for me right now. I have an 02 Z28 that is basically stock at this point. I want to kick it up a notch, but my primary use for the car is long road trips for vacations. Perhaps the question shouldn't be what horsepower to aim for, but what mods to avoid.

This is a very real concern for me right now. I have an 02 Z28 that is basically stock at this point. I want to kick it up a notch, but my primary use for the car is long road trips for vacations. Perhaps the question shouldn't be what horsepower to aim for, but what mods to avoid.

lid and catback youll be good.

Thanks for all the input. My problem is trying to satisfy my need for speed yet still have a DD I can load up 2 adults and 2 small children with stereo/DVD/AC and road trip to some curvy mountain roads with an occasional trip to the drag strip. Finding that Hard to hit compromise seems to be a dilemma that's harder to solve than expected..

Thanks for all the input. My problem is trying to satisfy my need for speed yet still have a DD I can load up 2 adults and 2 small children with stereo/DVD/AC and road trip to some curvy mountain roads with an occasional trip to the drag strip. Finding that Hard to hit compromise seems to be a dilemma that's harder to solve than expected..


well a drag setup suspension is not quite a road handling package.....so some losses can be expected there especially with a full steel spool etc....however, as long as your not doing WOT pulls and running radials or slicks you can pretty much go anywhere. as was mentioned above a 6 speed car will certainly be harder, and even moreso if it has a tough clutch. with an auto though, with a moderate rear gear and some all season tires you should be just fine.

going from DD to all out kill mode should be simply a tire swap away. $0.02

Translating big power into forward motion is the biggest issue as far as I can see. I can't see how 500+ rwhp can work on the street when I have to run DR's just to handle bolt-ons and stall.

The other issue is just having enough open road to experience the performance potential of the car. Driving with my buddy in his C6Z on freeways at night in San Diego ... he'd open it up and in seconds we were contending with slow traffic and trying to work around it. There just isn't enough room for the car to do what it was designed to do.

I know what you mean. Fortunately we nave 3 drag strips and 2 autocross tracks and 1 brand new road course. Now if I can just convince myself to save it for the track... who knows I might even get my driver's liscense back one day..

Personally if I had to use my car as a DD I would hope that I never modded it at all. The ls1 makes a great car out of the box. Every time you add something you chip away at the driveabilty. This is my third combo, I've pulled off most of the road racing suspension. Taken off the poly motor mounts just to get rid of the buzz and clank that had been going on. I have a stack of clutches in the basement that would pay for a decent second car and having to run premium with every tank just means throwing more money at the car.
But it is fun having something that makes your brother in law almost wet himself when you launch. I'm on street rubber for now which makes it interesting on the street as a little grit can make for some unintended pulls.

I daily drive my 400/550 Buick with all season tires. Its plenty of fun, but it can be a handful at WOT. It drives well in the rain on all-season tires (275-60-15). Now.. You may not know this, I am 17. This is my first performance car. If I can handle the power, I think any competent driver should be able to handle it.

Handling the power is really not a concern. Using it without getting arrested(again) is...:eek2: