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Have done a few mods. Not impressed...recommendations?

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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 01:00 AM
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Default Have done a few mods. Not impressed...recommendations?

I have a 99 Formula (LS1), car has an adjustable panhard, lower control arms, relocation brackets, and Eagle F1 315s. Has Ported TB, Air Lid.. Recently upgraded to an LS6 intake and installed Pacesetter headers and ORY, not impressed. Thought I would feel a difference, not noticing anything but the car being a lot louder. Maybe needs a tune? Looking to do a few more things before tuning though. Track times were terrible before the headers, y and intake install. Would love recommendations on what to do next. Budget is about 2k. Would love a recommendation on gears and if I should do cam/stall, heads, or nitrous next?


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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 02:03 AM
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Yes you need a tune after header install

With a 2k budget I would get a yank ss4000, tranny cooler, drag radials, dyno tune..

Should run mid to high 11's with the current mods you have..
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 02:11 AM
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Originally Posted by Burken01
Yes you need a tune after header install

With a 2k budget I would get a yank ss4000, tranny cooler, drag radials, dyno tune..

Should run mid to high 11's with the current mods you have..
I would love to be pushing 11s! Was thinking a Yank ss3600...
Car also has 160k miles.. do you think rebuilding the transmission is a good idea than too since doing the stall? Not really wanting to fix something that isn't broken but I don't feel like ruining a $700+ stall.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 04:52 AM
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Originally Posted by MissLSCourtney
I would love to be pushing 11s! Was thinking a Yank ss3600... Car also has 160k miles.. do you think rebuilding the transmission is a good idea than too since doing the stall? Not really wanting to fix something that isn't broken but I don't feel like ruining a $700+ stall.
It's just depends on the abuse the trans has seen, me personally I would have the trans freshened up.. But I like to overbuild for peace of mind.

You'll have to do your own research and see if that's something you want..

As far as a stall, it comes down to how picky you are.. The ss series is a tight stall and suits street driving very well, responds good to nitrous, also works great NA. I would do the 4000 over the 3600

The pt series is a looser stall and will feel a little soft while driving at part throttle low rpm, especially from a stop.

But that's where preference enters in, a lot of people don't mind the trade off of a loose stall because they plan on either racing the car or are going WOT more than the average guy.. Like I do lol.

A pt4400 would really wake up that bolt on ls1 and turn it into a different animal.

Best bet is to find someone with a converter done near you and see if it's something you'll be into..

You get a free restall with a converter purchase so you can dial in your driving habits/response you want from it..
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 08:24 AM
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What were the track times?
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 08:51 AM
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you probably need a tune. is that the original motor youre running?
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 09:08 AM
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Originally Posted by Burken01
It's just depends on the abuse the trans has seen, me personally I would have the trans freshened up.. But I like to overbuild for peace of mind.

You'll have to do your own research and see if that's something you want..

As far as a stall, it comes down to how picky you are.. The ss series is a tight stall and suits street driving very well, responds good to nitrous, also works great NA. I would do the 4000 over the 3600

The pt series is a looser stall and will feel a little soft while driving at part throttle low rpm, especially from a stop.

But that's where preference enters in, a lot of people don't mind the trade off of a loose stall because they plan on either racing the car or are going WOT more than the average guy.. Like I do lol.

A pt4400 would really wake up that bolt on ls1 and turn it into a different animal.

Best bet is to find someone with a converter done near you and see if it's something you'll be into..

You get a free restall with a converter purchase so you can dial in your driving habits/response you want from it..
Each statement ^^here^^ is 100% dead on IMHO
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 11:03 AM
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Biggest bang for the buck torque converter or nitrous. Obviously it will need retuned as well with the mods you listed.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 12:14 PM
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Lots of videos here to help you make your decision.

https://ls1tech.com/forums/multimedi...uge-shots.html

A converter is your best bang for the buck at this point.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 12:25 PM
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Originally Posted by HCI2000SS
What were the track times?
It's honestly super embarassing, but consistent 15.1's. Lol.

Haven't got a chance to run it after the intake, headers and y install. Was going to yesterday but it decided to rain and they closed the track. Might have been pointless anyways cause I have no tune and car feels the same.



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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 01:42 PM
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Don't run it until you get a tune, it isnt running optimal..

15.1? Something is way off

Bald tires?
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 01:44 PM
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15.1....Absolutely get a tune. Although I'm not sure how you were unable to break 13s in an auto car, sounds like you may have an issue. Hopefully someone here can chime in with things to check.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 02:03 PM
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Something isn't right unless the DA was like what it is in the mtn areas but I see Kansas under your name so I would bet something is wrong as well.

Have you done a tune up lately? Have you checked your plugs?

But as far as mods. The next ones on my list would be stall, 3.73s, drag radials and a tune.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 06:51 PM
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Originally Posted by MissLSCourtney
It's honestly super embarassing, but consistent 15.1's. Lol.

Haven't got a chance to run it after the intake, headers and y install. Was going to yesterday but it decided to rain and they closed the track. Might have been pointless anyways cause I have no tune and car feels the same.
Something is WAY WAY off, bone stock you should have been nearly 2 seconds quicker than that.
What were the trap speeds? 60ft times?
First thing I would do is get on a dyno and tune it, see whats wrong with it.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 08:39 PM
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You could have been slow off the line. What was your trap speed? 15.1 is V6 territory.

My advice, in this order:

Rear gears 3.73 ratio. This will register nicely on the butt dyno

Higher stall converter - make sure to get the locking tuned or you won't like the way it drives. If you haven't noticed, you'll need to find a good tuner and develop a good working relationship. Each mod will need to be tuned in to work properly.

AI, PRC, TEA, or patriot ported 243 heads - 800-1500 depending on vendor, new vs used, etc. check the classifieds section on this site for some deals on heads.

Once you pick out your heads, call Kip at cam motion, Martin at Tick performance, or Brian tooley at BTR for their input on cam recommendations to go with your setup. Cam will end up around 350-450. You could keep your stock heads and go straight to cam. It will change the recommendations that the experts will make.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 09:00 PM
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I agree with your v6 trap speed assessment.

I have a bone stock L98 1985 Vette that does 14.1, with a dyno'ed 181 HP at the rear tires.

I am going to, respectfully, disagree with your follow on steps. I'm sure the items you have listed will register on the OP's butt dyno, but, the OP has some bigger issues going on that really need to get resolved first.

From reading the description of the OP's car, with the headers and LS-6 intake upgrade, I would think his car should be doing 13's worse case.

I fear that adding more aftermarket parts to the mix will only further complicate the problem at hand.

Originally Posted by Darth_V8r
You could have been slow off the line. What was your trap speed? 15.1 is V6 territory.

My advice, in this order:

Rear gears 3.73 ratio. This will register nicely on the butt dyno

Higher stall converter - make sure to get the locking tuned or you won't like the way it drives. If you haven't noticed, you'll need to find a good tuner and develop a good working relationship. Each mod will need to be tuned in to work properly.

AI, PRC, TEA, or patriot ported 243 heads - 800-1500 depending on vendor, new vs used, etc. check the classifieds section on this site for some deals on heads.

Once you pick out your heads, call Kip at cam motion, Martin at Tick performance, or Brian tooley at BTR for their input on cam recommendations to go with your setup. Cam will end up around 350-450. You could keep your stock heads and go straight to cam. It will change the recommendations that the experts will make.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 09:04 PM
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I'm gonna ask an obvious question here. Have you ever been to the track before? Did you stay at full throttle until you saw a win light come on in either lane? Did you spin? Did you put the car on the converter? I agree it should run considerably quicker than what it did. Mine ran 14 flat ish before a tune, and 13.3 after with similar mods, full weight but a little more displacement.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 09:41 PM
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I have another question,how long have you been running with those mods without being tuned for? I can tell you for sure by adding those parts and not being tuned I lost power and my mpg was horrible simply because o2's new placement and the characteristics behind exhaust changes.I was running very lean throughout the power..close to 30whp on the dyno from my stock baseline.Get a tune first and make sure everything is in proper order before you spend another dime.

As for your track times..you list quite a few suspension mods which will affect that also if they arent dialed in.We need to know trap speeds to paint a more clear picture of how the car performs..a slow et but good mph says alot of the potential you havent got 100% yet.

My list of recommendations are simple. Fresh spark plugs of not done already,dyno tune at a reputable shop near you.Then make sure your car is aligned right and head to the track,spend a good day getting in runs and record everything you do..from tire pressure,launch rpms and progressively see what the car likes and doesnt like so far. If your still anywhere near 15s...hell even 14s then you got an underlying issue. 14s only if your ego got the best of you and you simply spun the tires off the line way too long.

Et's always hurt the pride the first time on the track..but trap speeds tell a tale.
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 10:20 PM
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If he already has 3.23 gears In stock form the. No need to spend the money on 3.73.. Won't gain any significant time in the 1/4

If he has 2.73 then he can still get away without doing a gear install if he does a converter.. But I would cross the gear bridge when I get there
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Old Jun 14, 2015 | 11:18 PM
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I'm in the market for a stall as well, just gotta get off my lazy *** and do it. But to the op, spray it? I have about 1200$ in my setup. And its a blast.
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