I Was Thinking About Putting A Cam In My 97 Z, But It Has 85,xxx Miles On It. Think It Will Be Ok ??

 

ofcourse it will.. y wouldnt it

 

85 is not bad for an LT1...BUT, it depends on how hard those miles were and the interval between oil changes. I know people who have put heads and cams in 100K+ motors and are having no problems. I installed the setup in my wifes 94 Imp at 130k, but we had owned it since the clock read 30k and it was owned by a little old lady before us. Our oil is Mobil 1 and changed religiously every 3k. Because she runs it very hard almost everyday. In the end, you should be fine.

 

I agree with Sapper. Depends on the condition of your engine. I would not reuse 85K mile valve springs however. What cam are you looking at?

 

Well i got the car from my bro he drove it everyday the miles are just from the high way. he never really got on it like his Ls1 this was just his everday car.
i was thinking on going with a lt4 cam or a cc306. but a lot of people say that everytime u put a cam in a lt1 and has over like 70,*** it kills the motor.. so i dont know if i want to do it. but ever1 here says that it should be cool so with that i think that i may do it..

 

I would get all of the boltons first before I went with a cam IMHO. I would recommend head work as well with either of those cams. The stock heads don't flow well enough for those cams. Are you concerned with emmisions? If so, go with the LT4 Hot Cam.

 

do bolt ons first. what people are referring to are the cam bearings. because of the water pump and opti being driven off the cam, it weighs the front of the cam more. this will wear the first cam bearing out before the others, but if the engine is in good shape and you dont go big or abuse the hell out of it you should be fine. however id do boltons first.

 

Has anyone proven if the opti/wp causes it or not? Just curious if a electric wp is the way to go or not.

 

thanks for the info guys i think that im just going to do all the bolt ons just to be on the safe side if any of ya have any more helpful info just let me know well thanks again

eric

 

An electric w/p is if you're going to be race only. They are not good for the street unless you have the $$ to rebuild it all the time. I think the Meziere recommends rebuild after 3000 hrs. that's not a long time with street driving. And yes, if you do not have any b/ons, start there or buy everything over time then put it all on at once. It may be tough to see the stuff just sitting there in the garage but when you do it all at once and feel the power all at once, it's like going from a yugo to a vette.
The bottom line is heads are the most crucial part of an engine. cams, bolt ons, etc make little improvements. Heads are the hp maker on any engine. A good set of heads on a stock cammed motor will make a world of difference. Plus they will be the most expensive single piece of the combo too. See Total Engine Airflow-------->>>
Bryan is the best I have ever seen and I own a set of his LT1's. And I've been working on cylinder heads for about 16 years now.

 

I had lightly worked heads on stock, manifolds and cam... was seeing 103mph traps with poor traction... Heads make a ton of difference. Just like Sapper Said

 

Since I see your in Houston man I highly suggest you talk with the guys at HPE they are a sponsor on here and they do really good work.

 

do ya think it will be good to get work done to my heads or just get some bad *** lil heads

 

The reason folks spin bearings isn't because a larger cam will just do that or that there is weight on the front of the cam....it is because debris has the potential to be introduced during a cam swap. A little piece of lint or some silicone scrapings when cleaning off the block for the new bead on the intake gets lodged and presto chango....spun bearing.

Be very meticulous when doing the swap and you shouldn't have any problems...been through 2 myself with over 80K on the clock and no problems. EWP really isn't a problem either....too many folks, myself included, have gone well over the supposed hours without a problem....and if it does burn out, it's a quick change. (keep the spare and a few tools in the trunk).

As far as heads go....there's no point in spending huge amounts on aftermarket castings without having a cam that will support what they are able to flow. Porting really isn't needed with the Hotcam...springs yes, a port not really. Some people are even running into the 11's with a 306 on stock heads....while I wouldn't suggest that, it isn't unheard of.

If you're going to spend the money but don't have the need or the funds for aftermarket castings, get with Lloyd Elliot over on CZ28. He has some packages for a great price with VERY good numbers. If I didn't have a great hookup here, he is who I would have used.