Heads or no heads
 

I have a 2000 z28 A4. Lots of suspension mods. Slp catback and 853 heads unfortunately.. i was going to do heads. Cam. intake.stall and headers. Y pipe and slp lid. A local place quoted me at 8k for install. Parts and tune but ive seen some people doing mid to high 11s with just cam. Tune. Stall 3600 and bolt ons. I'm looking to make 4_420hp and do mid 11s. What do you guys think heads too? I feel like if I skip heads I could do it for half that price because of cost of heads + more labor. They suggested 2.5 5.3 heads .227 btr cam ls6 intake. 3600 yank. Thanks for any advice

With the right suspension and tire mid 11's are very doable with stock heads

Ok for suspension I have qa1 sway bars ans rear shocks. Umi panhard bar and lower control arms. I'm running 275 40 17 nt555 extreme drag in rear. Still stock shocks up front. The Dyno place told me I won't make 400 rwhp with out heads but I've seen some people anywhere from 380_408

Ditch the front sway bar and pay close attention to the weight.

Forget the dyno numbers. Put a good cam in there with the the proper supporting mods, and you will reach 11's. And as mentioned above, weight reduction will obviously help as well

plenty of cars have gone 11's on stock internals so stock heads and cam can get you there , mid 11's has also been done stock internals but that is a more involved than just decent bolt ons... plenty of mid 11's cam only cars out there.

Unless you have money burning a hole in your pocket you do not need to pull the heads to get mid to high 11's.

Ok so what would u guys suggest with stock heads 228r cam? Yank 3600 stall 373 gears ls6 intake. slp lid and call it a day? Would do u guys think that would get me 380hp with mid 11 passes. I don't want to strip the car it's a summer DD.

Forget a certain hp number. Hook hard enough and with that 228 cam and the mods you've mentioned you will dip into the 11's

Ok thanks alot I see your comments everywhere so I know it's good advice. Lol

Glad to help man. Just dont wanna see people getting false information or be misguided.

Quote I got what do you think? I skipped the heads and headers
 

I can't really make out all the details on that quote, but is it basically a stall, cam, all supporting accessories, plus labor for just under 5k? Am I seeing that right?

Yea
 

+Slp lid And 373 gears .just have to buy the ls6 I intake. I'm gonna show one other shop to see if they can beat it. What do you think ? And which cam 228r or tap 232 Tv2 it's summer DD

I actually had the TV2 cam back on my old LS1 setup and really liked it. I would do that over the 228 cam, especially with the stall and 3.73 gear.

Thanks your the best

One more question I have to buy my own ls6 intake I like this dorman ported one for 449. What's a good cheap 92m TB I've seen one at jegs for 169 or a Holley efi for 150 at summit

https://m.ebay.com/itm/LS1-LS6-90mm-...-/382120406231

Put a ported fast intake on it. 102 preferably but a 90 will work and cost less used. Both need ported.

You're far better off getting there with the stock egine and bolt ons first. Remember the race is about acceleration. ..... not how much power you make.

Good comments above. There’s a difference between 11.9’s and 11.5’s.

1) Weight makes a big difference. “They” say it’s 0.1 per 100 lbs but for me it was closer to 0.2 per 100 lb. Any items you can live without will help.

2) Add an SSRA or Chris1313 ram air to your list. I wonder why Slohawk says “NO RAM AIR!!!! not good”?

3) FAST intake and larger TB if it’s in your budget.

4) You will need headers – 1 7/8 with either true duals or a good Y pipe set up. Speed Engineering and Texas Speed both have pretty cheap sets.

5) I would go a little bigger with the cam. It may help you in the future if you upgrade heads. Did Slohawk spec the 228R?

6) Don’t be afraid of a 4000 converter. It should give you a little better ¼ mile than the 3600 and is very streetable. Mine is not noticeable and I have 2.73 gears and stock cam. Also, add a trans temp sensor and gauge.

7) You may be better off not doing the gear swap and using that money elsewhere. Especially if you have 3.23 rear gears. The converter will significantly decrease your need for rear gears. Maybe add a rear girdle.

You will save some money if you do most of the work yourself with common hand tools and a few specialty tools. There is plenty of guidance and how-to here and on YouTube.

Once you add everything up you come to decision time: should you just do a turbo or buy a C6 vette? Ha ha!

I just did most of what you are describing here is what I did if you care.


1 Re-gasketed everything I could while the engine was out.
2. Cam - TSP 228R with .600 lift and 112 LSA
3. LS7 lifters
4 Double .660 springs locks and retainers
5.Cam chain and sprockets
6.Chevy performance oil pump
7.BBK 1 7/8 headers
8. Ls1 Trunion upgrade roller rockers
9. Front and rear cover plates
10. Already had 3:42 gears and an LS6 intake
11. I also picked up some used 243 heads that were in good shape.
12 Tune with four dyno pulls car made 401 HP. rotating assy had 150k on it.

I'm sure with a different cam, as the 228r is not a radical cam, you could easily make 420. Learn how to drive at the track with some good tires and it could happen.

5

Thanks
 

Yea I'm holding off on heads + headers and y pipe. This quote from slohawk was the closest to my budget if I had the items above I'd be at 8k and lol I won't want a Corvette I'm only into this z28 for 6k with 58k miles lots of suspension upgrades and zr1 275 40 17 rims with nitto extremes on rear. This will put me at 11500 I'm pretty happy with that especially if I make 400hp! I'm happy with 380+