I just bought a 04 zo6 and am loving it! But of course I cant wait to start modding. I was thinking of doing full exhaust (long tubes, x pipe, catback), I hear the stock exhaust isnt bad though? I also want to change the cam and was wondering about how much power I can expect from changing the cam(moderate grind with a lopey idle) without doing a headswap? And was looking at a fast 90 mm intake. How strong are the stock internals on the zo6?

Sorry for all the questions! Just trying to learn about my new car.

 

The stock Ti catback is very good. A lot of guys do LT's, X-pipe and keep the stock catback. As for a cam you can get a mild one and still be easily over 400RWHP and up to 425 pretty easy especially with a Fast 90/90 setup. The stock internals will support a cam-only setup with no problems and many are running up to 500RWHP on the stock internals.

 

Thanks for the help. prob gonna go with kooks lts and a catted x pipe for starters and do the cam and intake together.

 

Ryan L who posts here and on the CF did 432 RWHP / 400 RWTQ with a XFI 224/230 cam (it has a reasonably mild idle), with the other usual suspects like LT's, pulley and intake, but with stock LS6 heads (upgraded springs) - and of course a really solid tune.

I'm going to be doing a cam only upgrade soon too (also going to Mike Norris like Ryan did).

FYI, I think I'd do heads before a 90mm intake and TB.

 

i am going the same route with my 02z. i will have the same mods and cam except with the lsa at 112 and one more * of advance. i should be dropping the car off with mike norris week after next. i want my power in just a little sooner.

if you are going the 90/90 might as well do heads too.

 

wheres the best place to get a cam? im wasnt really planning on forking out the dough for new heads yet soo should i wait on the intake and tb?

 

it depends on what you are wanting. with the bolt ons listed above many have gotten 410 to 420rwhp with just a cam. you can get 450+ with the heads, tb, and intake on top of the cam. when you select your cam make sure it will make use of the future head upgrade. if you dont plan on an upgrade then use a cam for what your stock heads will flow. no need to go bigger than what you can use. you can get a cam from your local tuner or any of the sponsors here on the site. they will even help you spec out a custom cam for your intended use. call several tuners and shops in your area and go with the one that you get the right feeling from. do lots of research and talk to customers that have used the tuners or shops and get their feed back on the advise and service they got. i did lots of asking around and got good feed back on several shops in my area but one stood out from the others for me. every customer i talked to, all said the same thing about mike norris motorsports so i checked out the shop and talked to mike and that made my mind up for me. do the same and you will not be sorry. if it were me i would put a 3.90 gear in the car instead of the tb and intake. for about the same money it will give you a bigger seat of the pants bang for your buck.

 

Man, do yoursef a favor and call Pete Incaudo. He is the guy in all the magazines articles about head\cam swaps... he does all the testing with his flow bench. One of the best in the country and he will spend the time talking with you. Tell him Bob Pittman sent you...GIVE HIM ALL YOUR INFO...like your plans to use the car, gear, tranny...etc...he will design you a cam and reccomend heads to match. He does port and polishing and tests everything on his bench. You would not believe how many out there are doing this work without the experience or ways to test there porting. Trust me, I know first hand about this. Good Luck


Pete's cell # for direct contact is 813-469-4665.

Pitt

 

Man, do yourself a favor and call Pete Incaudo. He is the one actually doing the tests for a lot of the car magazines. One of the best in the country. Let him design your cam and recommend the right heads for your app. He also does porting and flow tests everything on his flow bench. You won't believe how many people are porting without the knowledge or means to test their work. Be careful where you go..trust me on that (I have wasted lots of money in my path to racing).
Pete's direct cell # is 813-469-4665, tell him Pittman sent you.

Good luck and have fun...there's nothing like a cam that bounces your vette around when you crank it up or sitting at a red light and people are asking...what the hell do you have in that thing ?

Pitt

 

LG Pro Longtubes would help out your need for power a lot. Good fit, great sound.

 

cam selection is endless but if you wan to get the most from it, get a custom grind cam. I agree that the stock Z06 Titanium catback is a great muffler and alot of regular C5 guys like to go with them just because they are louder then stock at WOT but sound close to the stock C5 at idle. I had Ti's on my Vette but it just wasn't loud enough for MY taste. I prefer them to be known when you go WOT lol The Z06 mufflers aren't quiet on a cam car by any means but just to doscile for me

 

Hey thanks everyone for all the help! Im def. gonna call pete and speak to him about my plans sometime next week. Ill keep everyone posted as I get into her!

 

I don't think you will be happy with the 90mm intake for the price. The z06 intake flows almost as good.

 

^^^ I agree. they don't flow as well up top but the LS6 that is on it is a great intake in design. I'm happy with the LS6 intake on mine and will be taking mine to a local company(TPiS idk if they are a sponsor or not) that takes your LS6 and add's 90mm front and then offers Throttle bodies to match. That's an option as well if they are a sponsor. If not i can give you the info to contact in a PM.

 

Since the harmonic balancer has to come off during your cam swap.... make sure you spend the $225 for an underdrive pulley.

You won't experience any negative side effects and you pick up 9 hp at the wheels.....

I would also not buy the LSx intake manifold... the price is stupid.... very stupid.

 

I would also consider where you want to end up with the car and if you have ever driven a cammed car, or if you dd your car. My opinion on a cam is it is not a good idea for a dd or most cars for that matter. Some people claim that with a good tuner you can drive a t-rex cam around. I think that is a load of bs. I have had my car tuned by two of the bigger names in my area and neither gave me anywhere near stock like driveability, and neither cams were that big. It's not worth the 25rwhp you are going to get for the cost and driveability you are going to lose unless you are trying to go all out na.

Which brings me to my question about where you want to end up. Mods are addicting, and bolt-ons are never enough. You go sticking a big nasty cam in there and your car jumps around and bucks like a bronco, and people say "I think you need to change your spark plugs." Then you will decide it's still too slow, and either spray in which case why would you even put in a cam when you can just up the pill a little and lose no driveability, or you will want to forced induction. In which case your ls6 cam was a better choice anyway.

I would just go ahead and plan for fi. Headers are good for a supercharger, but a waste for a turbo kit. The stock ti's are badass and lighter than almost all aftermarket systems. I would go for a kenne bell if i had to do it all over again. They had kits for under 6000 with hood. Bolt ons and a cam will cost you that and you wont have near the low speed torque or driveability. It will make more power too, around 500rw or more.

 

Yes I have driven a car with a cam befor and actually got used to it after a while and liked it plus no1 else could drive my car! But I know what you mean especially in traffic with a heavy clutch they can be a bit precarious! Prob going to go with a 404 stroker kit afr 225's, havent talked to any1 about a cam grind yet , lts and o/r x pipe.