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Old Oct 25, 2007 | 01:28 PM
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Default reliable street setup

hey guys, i am not very knowledgeable on the cars, but i have been doing some research on ls1's etc, i dont own one but would like to someday and i am wondering what you guys would recommend for a reliable, fast, street setup..i have a coulpe ideas to toy with..and am wondering what you think would be the 1.fastest setup 2.most reliable setup 3.cheapest 4.best overall...and lastly what else would i need to do (i.e. rearend, tranny, clutch?) this would all be on a 99-02 ws6..with qa1 suspension and MT streets or nitto 555's all on pump gas..

option 1:
AFR heads-
T-REX cam-
ls6 intake-
lid-
long tubes-
3.93's-
possible nitrous?

option 2:
full magnacharger setup (kit, fuel setup, tune)


option 3:
full procharger setup (kit, fuel setup, tune)

option 4:
Turbo kit..(not sure which one would be best)
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Old Oct 25, 2007 | 02:04 PM
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Reliability will usually depend on how much maintenance you would like to do with valve springs if you go the big cam route...forced induction solutions can be very reliable, provided your wallet is big enough to do it right (that means full fuel system, and a drivetrain that can handle it).

If you are doing an F-body, I personally hate all of the options for forced induction on this platform. They don't typically have the fit and finish that the systems for the Vettes do, but I guess they also don't have the higher price like the Vettes do. If you can stand some clutter and ghetto rigging in your engine bay, a ProCharger is a pretty nice way to go for that route. I personally don't like the idea of running spacers between the k-member and the body to get a Maggie to fit...and it seems like no company can stay in business long enough to get a decent turbo system out to the public.

If you are getting into the game this seriously, I'm sure you know what kinda budget it will require. A good rule of thumb is to double that figure...if you can't comfortably handle that, then this level of modification isn't really wise (not that it truly is anyways).
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Old Oct 25, 2007 | 02:45 PM
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heads and a TRex......spend the extra money on a ported FAST....the car will thank you.
why leave 25+hp on the table with the ls6?

could easily be a near 500rwhp setup if done right.
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Old Oct 25, 2007 | 06:44 PM
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so its sounding like procharger vs. HCI setup eh? what kind of rear end/supporting mods will i be needing with these setups?

and i am fully aware of the costs of this, im not out to do it super cheap, just cheap as possible without sacrificing quality...i have a fairly quick l67 GTP in the 13's w/30 mpg full street trim, so im not TOTALLY a newb lol
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Old Oct 25, 2007 | 07:51 PM
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id get a ported fast intake for that set up the ls6 isnt that great for a big cam car
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Old Oct 25, 2007 | 08:47 PM
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Originally Posted by FiFdYnUtz
1.fastest setup 2.most reliable setup 3.cheapest 4.best overall...

I think everybody wants to know where to get that setup. You need to look at your budget first. Then spend some time searching and see what others are doing in your price range. Then decide which goal is best for you.
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Old Oct 25, 2007 | 09:37 PM
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nobody has even asked what kind of horsepower are you looking for.. a lot of guys including myself are pushing 400RWHP very reliably with simple boltons and a cam. Heads will get you well over 400. Heads/cam, usual boltons and the supercharger or nitrous you're looking at will easily put you over 500. the forced induction is more reliable just don't push the boost, but the nitrous will give you more HP for a cheaper setup only it's more prone to detonation and burning up your pistons, you just have to keep refilling the bottle. It's not talked about a lot anymore but one of the weakest links in the LS1 is the rod bolts, if you plan to push 460+ you need to invest in some ARP rod bolts. and any way you do it just have fun with it!

Give us a little more info on what you want out of your car, street, drag, rally? HP range, budget range, daily driver or weekend warrior, etc

Last edited by camaroguy26; Oct 25, 2007 at 09:45 PM.
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Old Oct 25, 2007 | 09:49 PM
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the car would be a weekend warrior "street car" setup that would see at most monthly track visits....price range i would say would be around 5-6k performance wise, and the hp range i would look for would be around 450-500whp and somewhere in the low 11's?
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Old Oct 28, 2007 | 01:55 PM
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bumpity
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Old Oct 28, 2007 | 03:00 PM
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a super/turbocharger would easily put you well over 6K, superchargers themselves are 5-6K. So go with the nitrous setup with some heads and cam and all the bolt ons. I would spend at least 1,000 of that money also on suspension, Torque Arm, shocks, subframe connectors etc. a good set of heads are around 2K, good set of headers around 1500 but a cheaper set can be had for 500-1000, rest of the exhaust at least 500, cam and the rest of the boltons will easily be 1-2, probably more. You can easily make 450 without any power adders and guys hit 11's all the time without them but you have to set up your suspension right. Also with all that power and how much you wanna see the track a stronger rearend is a must, another 2G at least. Also do you have an auto? you'll need a torque converter in the 3000RPM range and the shift kits help a lot. a tune is a must with all of this too. It all adds up but start smaller for now, with a few boltons, heads/cam, torque converter, and go easy on the car til you get a new rear. Just keep in mind what you want later too so the parts you get now will work later, you won't have to buy parts twice for them to work together.
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Old Oct 28, 2007 | 09:24 PM
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I say go for the h/c/i setup. Get a good set of heads,cam,fast 90,catback or duals,stall,headers and some suspension work. If you shop around you should be able to stay in you budget range. Oh and please get a good tune
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Old Oct 28, 2007 | 09:28 PM
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Originally Posted by FiFdYnUtz
the car would be a weekend warrior "street car" setup that would see at most monthly track visits....price range i would say would be around 5-6k performance wise, and the hp range i would look for would be around 450-500whp and somewhere in the low 11's?
On that budget, I'd say heads/cam at most. FI, in my opinion, can't be done reliably with that. Hell...if you crack your rear end, which is VERY likely to happen at that power level, you're out another 2-3k just for a rear end that CAN handle the power.

I'd seriously rethink your goals if I were you...
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Old Oct 28, 2007 | 11:08 PM
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so HCI seems to be the way to go for me i think...plus i will be able to save up and peice the setup together...(start with intake, move to heads, then cam, etc) thanks for the help guys!
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