I bought a 1998 z28 off my buddy he had for 10 years. Interior isnt the prettiest bought buddy is good and I got it on a good deal. Looking to make a sleeper already has headers y pipe and I'm putting a new muffler and tips on. Looking to get more ***** power along with durability. Looking for advice tips anything that'll help me build a beast. ( I'm knew to building engine ext.. I can turn wrenches tho)

 

Welcome to LS1Tech! Lots and lots of info here on how to do what your doing. Boils down to budget. Camshaft is prolly the single biggest power maker for an LS, especially since you’ve already got exhaust. Go to Gen3 Intetnal section, and start reading.

 

Most important and overlooked aspects for beginners is

1. cleanliness
2. crankcase / pcv system orientation
3. maintenance vs performance, the word "performance" has many meanings

For #1 I recommend you start by cleaning the engine bay. Washing it and learning what parts not to get wet. There are very few things which cannot get wet, just a couple,
a. maf sensor and other obvious wires/sensors that are easy to cover
b. air filter and air filter tubes should stay DRY

using simple green or degreaser and a brush/cloth you can clean and spray almost everything in the engine bay if you know what you are doing. This is an essential learning curve for beginners since ultimately if you plan to "performance mod" the engine it helps to know what everything does, and what their weaknesses are.

2. PCV system seems to be a hurdle for many on this forum. Do NOT remove the OEM PCV as many here would suggest. The OEM pcv system is designed to keep the oil cleaner, engine healthier, and it helps keep oil inside the engine during part throttle AND Wide open throttle by providing a positive suction to the crankcase (pressure below atmospheric)
Read more about PCV discussions
http://www.nsxprime.com/forum/showth...=1#post1862819
https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/ev...l#post11870991
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...post1599115553
https://forums.nasioc.com/forums/sho...5&postcount=99

3. maintenance is often neglected by novices because a novice has little idea what is required to maintain an engine properly.
It goes a bit beyond oil changes and air filters and spark plugs.
Basically I recommend learning first what everything is/does, where all the lines routed to. And THEN remove and inspect those various lines and items, and CLEAN them manually using some degreaser or simple green as #1.
Basically, maintenance = performance. If you clean the plugs, air filter, engine oil, etc... the car/engine will run better.
Keep that in mind. You don't necessarily need a bunch of performance parts to get a 'good performing' engine.
Horsepower is secondary on street cars to 'performance' which in my opinion 'performance' means that the engine is healthy and clean, runs good. Not necessarily fast.

 

Here are some random engine bays I cleaned,

I Put ad in cragslist for $100 I wash the engine and perform inspection, here are some


before

after


I used to clean 55 engines at a time with pressure washer and inspect them, and install some of them into various cars,

It is absolutely safe and easy to pressure wash the engine. Just avoid the key areas, oil seals and intake tubes and sensitive electronics

another before,


after