Add hp
06-10-2015, 05:46 AM
#4
TECH Fanatic
What do you want out of the car? Do you take it to the track? Just a cruiser? Nitrous and boltons or a cam and boltons is the cheapest route and is good for 12's. You're going to be looking at a rebuild in the near future most likely. Also, put some info in your sig so we know what you have, auto? manual? any mods?
06-10-2015, 06:35 AM
#5
Mods list to an LT1 should go as follows before anything:
TUNEUP:
New plugs and wires, NGK TR55 gapped at 0.045 (the $2 ones from autozone, not the expensive ones)
Make sure it can run to redline without any hiccups/hesitations to vet out your optispark/ICM and fuel pump. Also hashes out if your transmission is still strong.
Tires need to be good to hold power, no point in having tons of power if all you do is spin.
200,000 miles your valvesprings are probably tired, time for something that can handle higher RPM, so Alex's springs or Howards springs are $100.
GET AIR IN----> AIR OUT:
Long tube headers $400, cold air intake $150. Need these so your car is not breathing through a straw as you build power. The F body LT1s were choked down by restrictive exhaust manifolds so the Chevrolet flagship Corvette could have a higher HP number (rated 30hp higher), even though nothing internally in the engine is different. This frees up 20-40rwhp when accompanied with a mail order tune $200, NOT a handheld programmer like a Hypertech, those are garbage. When doing long tubes, do your motor and trans mounts while you are in there, the stock 20 year old ones are sagging and your headers will hit your K member and cause false knock, pulling timing and pulling power, $50. This will get you around 280 rear wheel horsepower (rwhp) with an automatic (a4), or 300rwhp with a 6 speed (m6). The differences are due to losses in the transmission, about 18% in an automatic and 12% in a manual, crank hp is the same. Also need a good flowing catback exhaust like Magnaflow, Hooker or Borla, stay away from Flowmaster as it flows the same as stock.
DRIVER MOD:
Spend some time at the track, its $10-30 for test n tune at a local track, you can make as many passes as you want, and learn how to drive the car. This is crucial to being able to apply all of the power you have to the ground, how to shift, etc.
PREPPING FOR POWER:
If its an A4, get a 3200-3600 stall $800, or if an m6 get a good clutch $400. Need to be able to hold that power.
Rear suspension needs a little beefing up, so get new tubular lower control arms $100 so they dont flex and cause wheel hop (a major killer of rear ends) at a minimum, and possibly a new torque arm $300 http://www.foundersperformance.com/c...ro-F%252dbody/. Also good to get a torque arm relocation mount if you get the long style torque arm and get it off of the transmission so you dont break your trans tail $250. Or get a short style torque arm that already mounts to the body. Also throw in a driveshaft loop for safety, dont want to break the driveshaft and pogo stick your car.
POWER:
Decide do you want to fill a nitrous bottle all the time at $5 a pound, taking $50 to fill a 10 lb bottle. Stock LT1 bottom end can handle 100-150hp wet shot if its tuned properly, with a window switch, wide open throttle switch, and a bigger fuel pump. You only get about 3-4 1/4 mile passes on a 10lb bottle on a 150 shot. Costs about $750 for a nitrous system, or you can cheaply piece a used one together for $400-500. Long term you will spend alot filling that bottle.http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites#US
If you dont want to fill a nitrous bottle, heads and cam can still make 400rwhp. Ported stock heads from Advanced Induction http://advancedinduction.com/ or Lloyd Elliot http://elliottsportworks.com/ . Also need to accompany these with 1.6 full roller rockers and 0.026" head gaskets.
TERMS TO AVOID:
Hypertech
Edelbrock
LT4
LS1
LS6
Throttle body
Intake manifold
383
stroker
Cast Eagle Crankshaft
Flowmaster
Or you could follow the ricer formula:
NOS sticker
Hood scoop
Fender scoop
Roof scoop
bumper scoop
HONDA sticker in japanese
6" exhaust tip
Electric turbo sound thing
TUNEUP:
New plugs and wires, NGK TR55 gapped at 0.045 (the $2 ones from autozone, not the expensive ones)
Make sure it can run to redline without any hiccups/hesitations to vet out your optispark/ICM and fuel pump. Also hashes out if your transmission is still strong.
Tires need to be good to hold power, no point in having tons of power if all you do is spin.
200,000 miles your valvesprings are probably tired, time for something that can handle higher RPM, so Alex's springs or Howards springs are $100.
GET AIR IN----> AIR OUT:
Long tube headers $400, cold air intake $150. Need these so your car is not breathing through a straw as you build power. The F body LT1s were choked down by restrictive exhaust manifolds so the Chevrolet flagship Corvette could have a higher HP number (rated 30hp higher), even though nothing internally in the engine is different. This frees up 20-40rwhp when accompanied with a mail order tune $200, NOT a handheld programmer like a Hypertech, those are garbage. When doing long tubes, do your motor and trans mounts while you are in there, the stock 20 year old ones are sagging and your headers will hit your K member and cause false knock, pulling timing and pulling power, $50. This will get you around 280 rear wheel horsepower (rwhp) with an automatic (a4), or 300rwhp with a 6 speed (m6). The differences are due to losses in the transmission, about 18% in an automatic and 12% in a manual, crank hp is the same. Also need a good flowing catback exhaust like Magnaflow, Hooker or Borla, stay away from Flowmaster as it flows the same as stock.
DRIVER MOD:
Spend some time at the track, its $10-30 for test n tune at a local track, you can make as many passes as you want, and learn how to drive the car. This is crucial to being able to apply all of the power you have to the ground, how to shift, etc.
PREPPING FOR POWER:
If its an A4, get a 3200-3600 stall $800, or if an m6 get a good clutch $400. Need to be able to hold that power.
Rear suspension needs a little beefing up, so get new tubular lower control arms $100 so they dont flex and cause wheel hop (a major killer of rear ends) at a minimum, and possibly a new torque arm $300 http://www.foundersperformance.com/c...ro-F%252dbody/. Also good to get a torque arm relocation mount if you get the long style torque arm and get it off of the transmission so you dont break your trans tail $250. Or get a short style torque arm that already mounts to the body. Also throw in a driveshaft loop for safety, dont want to break the driveshaft and pogo stick your car.
POWER:
Decide do you want to fill a nitrous bottle all the time at $5 a pound, taking $50 to fill a 10 lb bottle. Stock LT1 bottom end can handle 100-150hp wet shot if its tuned properly, with a window switch, wide open throttle switch, and a bigger fuel pump. You only get about 3-4 1/4 mile passes on a 10lb bottle on a 150 shot. Costs about $750 for a nitrous system, or you can cheaply piece a used one together for $400-500. Long term you will spend alot filling that bottle.http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites#US
If you dont want to fill a nitrous bottle, heads and cam can still make 400rwhp. Ported stock heads from Advanced Induction http://advancedinduction.com/ or Lloyd Elliot http://elliottsportworks.com/ . Also need to accompany these with 1.6 full roller rockers and 0.026" head gaskets.
TERMS TO AVOID:
Hypertech
Edelbrock
LT4
LS1
LS6
Throttle body
Intake manifold
383
stroker
Cast Eagle Crankshaft
Flowmaster
Or you could follow the ricer formula:
NOS sticker
Hood scoop
Fender scoop
Roof scoop
bumper scoop
HONDA sticker in japanese
6" exhaust tip
Electric turbo sound thing
Last edited by bufmatmuslepants; 06-10-2015 at 06:49 AM.
06-11-2015, 12:09 PM
#7
Definitely NOT for someone on a budget though!
On an unrelated side note; I surely wouldn't mind this fine Edelbrock product finding it's way under my hood! http://www.edelbrock.com/automotive/...rcharged.shtml
Trending Topics
06-12-2015, 07:44 AM
#11
TECH Fanatic
Cheap HP
http://www.ebay.com/itm/UNIVERSAL-AI...-/111654600413
Should run 9s after you fix holes in the fuel map
http://www.ebay.com/itm/UNIVERSAL-AI...-/111654600413
Should run 9s after you fix holes in the fuel map
06-12-2015, 12:22 PM
#14
The most important thing is an RS body kit, make sure you sand it and rattle can it primer grey, don't bother with making it match the cars paint. That's not cool. Why? #becauseracecar
06-14-2015, 11:29 AM
#16
TECH Regular
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Hastings, Nebraska
Posts: 461
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Since you have around 200k on that engine, personally my number 1 priority would be boltons: long tube headers, cold air intake, high flow cat(or deleted), cat back exhaust, Throttle body bypass (almost free to do), electric water pump, 160* t-stat, suspension, sticky tires, and rearend gears. Next on the list would be a power tune. Then if you make it that far before the engine goes boom or your tranny gives out, start saving for a rebuild. Ohh and get a DD if you dont have one...
09-19-2015, 08:38 AM
#19
I probably wouldn't do a cam on a 200k mile motor but I would do boltons IF I already had a replacement plan. Many of these are just fine at 200k but if messing around I would have a spare motor or spare car to drive.
I made a few passes with a 180k mile Roadmaster wagon, if I had blown it up though I had the sedan in the driveway. when I did blowup the engine in my sedan 8-9 years ago it took a week to get it back up and running, good friends, good tool selection, grabbed a JY engine, swapped heads and cam and done.
If I didn't have tools, didn't have good friends, didn't have the wagon to DD that would have been a big deal. Between my friends and myself someone always has a spare LT1 laying around too.
I made a few passes with a 180k mile Roadmaster wagon, if I had blown it up though I had the sedan in the driveway. when I did blowup the engine in my sedan 8-9 years ago it took a week to get it back up and running, good friends, good tool selection, grabbed a JY engine, swapped heads and cam and done.
If I didn't have tools, didn't have good friends, didn't have the wagon to DD that would have been a big deal. Between my friends and myself someone always has a spare LT1 laying around too.
