cam swap..which one..specs?
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Joined: Mar 2012
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From: Western ma
cam swap..which one..specs? hey guys...im a newbie on LS1 tech...but ive owned my 01 C5 vette for 5 years now. Im looking at changing the cam in it. I want to have that nice lumpy sound but i also dont want to kill the longevity of the motor. The car is not a DD..but in the summer i do drive it enough. I take it on vacations, car shows and whatnot. I dont want to get into changing the heads and really going nuts with the motor. I know that im going to have to change the timing chain, maybe add an underdrive pulley, change the belts, ect. I have a well known company thats going to be doing the work (with my help too), so im looking for cam specs. What are are guys running? I have 1 &3/4 long tubes on mine with a vararam cold air intake, LS6 intake, and a corsa exhaust, MN6. The car has a nice pull in all the gears right now, so i dont want to really give that up. I dont want to destroy my idle also...ive heard people that change there cams out..the car runs at a really rough idle, and wants to stall out if you dont feather the throttle. I did some searching around and found 1 person running a 01 Z06, with stock heads, same cold air intake as me, and B&B bullets and he was running a TSP tsunami cam with specs :235/240,635"/609" with a 111 LSA. does that sound right or is that going to wild? Again, im not looking for a WILD cam thats gonna kill my motor in 5k miles. The car doesnt get drag raced, but i do get on it from time to time. I did some searching but didnt dig up much as far as doing the swap with stock parts still on the motor. Thanks guys!
Last edited by Chevyman01; Mar 22, 2012 at 07:46 PM.
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Joined: Oct 2008
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From: North Carolina
That cam is on the wild side, for your plans I would run a texas speed tr224 or 228 or something with similar specs. As far as LSA the lower means a rougher/choppier idle so its your decision. With the right tune you can get large cams that drive very street able with minimum stall potential.
I would also recommend lifters, pushrods, oil pump, and a timing chain while you are in there.
I would also recommend lifters, pushrods, oil pump, and a timing chain while you are in there.
You should give Texas Speed a call and see what they say about the 228R cam or the Torquer V2 cam. Check out the viseos of these cams in Vettes on Youtube to give you an idea of the sound. Valve springs and pushrods should be changed at the same time as the cam. UDP is up to you. Depending on mileage, the timing chain and oil pump might also need replaced.
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look at Texas speed or thunder racing for a good variety of cams,at great prices..I feel a good cam is a EPS cam,they have a newer lobe design.the small eps cam 222/226 should make 390 rwhp with a good tune in your car.
I ran a comp xer273 (.588 .591 224/230 114) I went this route because I wanted more hp but not at the expense of bottom end torque...this was the cam I figured is big enough for some street fights without having to spin it up...another good choice is the tried and true 224...you can go wrong with that either...no matter what can you pick you are going to love that power!
EPS also has the Truck Torque 3, 224/230 111lsa. It'll have a very streatable powerband and a clearly noticeable cam sound, with it having 5* overlap.
http://www.engpwrsys.com/index.php?a...od&productId=6
Futral has the F4 (226/226), and the F5 (224/228), either one can be had with a 112 or 114lsa. Both will have 2* overlap with a 112lsa, and -2* overlap with a 114lsa.
The cam sound will be noticeable, just not as much as the EPS TT3, and these cams will also be very streatable.
http://www.futralmotorsports.com/fms...asp?pf=3&pg=29
http://www.engpwrsys.com/index.php?a...od&productId=6
Futral has the F4 (226/226), and the F5 (224/228), either one can be had with a 112 or 114lsa. Both will have 2* overlap with a 112lsa, and -2* overlap with a 114lsa.
The cam sound will be noticeable, just not as much as the EPS TT3, and these cams will also be very streatable.
http://www.futralmotorsports.com/fms...asp?pf=3&pg=29
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Launching!
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I just installed a 228R from TSP in my 02 CETA. Car has 70K street miles, been babied.
I did the cam, srpings and pushrods only. Left the oil pump and timing chain and valve seals alone. So far so good oil pressure has never been, nor is it now and issue on my car. Timing chain and sprokets looked new when I had the car apart. IMHO if your car is low miles, not messing with the oil pump and valve seals is a viable option. Lots of guys screw the oil pump o ring up and end up getting real low or none at all oil pressure, and there were a few stories around of guys changing the seals and having oil seep by issues and smoking and oil consumtion. I felt it better just to leave them alone. The springs Igot, PAC 1218's are a strait swap, use factory retainers/seats and locks. Tools I highly recomend, Crane Cams LS spring compressor and Hawk harmonic balancer instalation tool. Both were well worth their premium in price.
Oh and I went with a 110 LSA, the cam sounds way bigger than it really is. Gives you that lope of a Tsunami or a MS4 with the more usable powerband starting around 1400-6K
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r435s...1&feature=plcp
I did the cam, srpings and pushrods only. Left the oil pump and timing chain and valve seals alone. So far so good oil pressure has never been, nor is it now and issue on my car. Timing chain and sprokets looked new when I had the car apart. IMHO if your car is low miles, not messing with the oil pump and valve seals is a viable option. Lots of guys screw the oil pump o ring up and end up getting real low or none at all oil pressure, and there were a few stories around of guys changing the seals and having oil seep by issues and smoking and oil consumtion. I felt it better just to leave them alone. The springs Igot, PAC 1218's are a strait swap, use factory retainers/seats and locks. Tools I highly recomend, Crane Cams LS spring compressor and Hawk harmonic balancer instalation tool. Both were well worth their premium in price.
Oh and I went with a 110 LSA, the cam sounds way bigger than it really is. Gives you that lope of a Tsunami or a MS4 with the more usable powerband starting around 1400-6K
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r435s...1&feature=plcp
TECH Regular
Joined: Sep 2011
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From: Elk Grove, California
Sounds like you want a baby cam. Texas Speed's 224r or 228r are fairly mild cam's... but they give pretty good gains. I also believe that both those cams are smog legal and that since they aren't that big of cams, valvetrain mods to support it are very limited. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. If you're not interested in those... (assuming you want a good N/A cam) find a cam with specs like 23x/22x duration .58x"/.59x" lift and 114+ LSA.
Thread Starter
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Joined: Mar 2012
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From: Western ma
wow...thanks for all the replies everyone!...thats awesome getting alot of good info. Yea i dont want to go to radical with the cam, just cause i dont have the MAJOR funds of changing everything on the motor. I want to have a nice cam sound out the back..but i dont want to have my motor shake all over the place either with a really rough idle. I dont mind a minor roughness just as long as its not vibrating you so bad at a stoplight that you say...wow...thats really annoying. Is anyone running a cam thats a little mild...had to change a few things..springs, maybe the pushrods, maybe the oil pump...but still keeping the rest stock and if so how does the car run?...besides the HP gain...does the car still run as good?...idle, cruising around, feel comfortable taking it on the highway and just enjoying the ride? Thanks again everyone. Ill try and throw up a few pics of The Raven. (My Black C5)
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From: Elk Grove, California
if you get a cam that needs major valvetrain upgrades, its probably big enough to the point where you'll need a fairly large stall (A4) and a short rear gear, especially if you're M6. A good tune helps with daily driveability though, you gotta remember that too. There are tons and tons of guys on here with cams you'd think would be horrible for DD but they al say it's in the tune.
Thread Starter
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Joined: Mar 2012
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From: Western ma
the guy who is going to be doing the work(not releasing name) is very well known in tuning LS1s, C5s, C6s..and whatnot. he actually tuned mine the way it is now. I had 3 different tuners touch the car before him..and holy crap what a difference. Im sure whatever i go with he'll be able to tune fine. Its just the matter of finding the right cam for what i want and not killing the car in return.
Thread Starter
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Joined: Mar 2012
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From: Western ma
thanks TXZ28...i think im gonna give texas speed a call monday morning and talk to one of there techs about the 228R. the way you put it is exactly what im talking about. "a friendly cam" thats gonna give me more to play with as far as power...but isnt going to kill the car if i get on it a little. The car doesnt get dragged..nor do i run slicks on it. Thanks alot for the info.
Thread Starter
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Joined: Mar 2012
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From: Western ma
so if i went with the TSP 228R cam...anyone have any idea as to what would be needed or would be wise for me to change?..timing change(this goes without saying), UD pulley, better oil pump, springs,?? thanks guys for all the info!