my dad bought a 97 SS like the title says,, it has an after market muffler, but not sure what brand, the body of the muffler is square, so thats what is throwing me off, also are the any "free" mods we can do to the car, hes gonna upgrade to a 4.10 set, one more thing,,he wants a programmer what do you guys recommend??

 

muffler might be a spintech.

 

I would say hold off on the 4.10's until the 10 bolt breaks, and instead put that money into headers and a pcmforless or madz28 tune

 

Only square muffler that I know of is a spintech. If you have a programmer, I would throw a 160deg t-stat but make sure you have the fans coming on sooner. Also do the engine coolant bypass from the throttle body. That's as close to free for upgrades that I can think of. Also a good oil change to royal purple would be good.

 

what is that tube that comes off the elbow that hooks to the throttle body?

 

The only tuner I am aware of is LT1Edit. I own a copy, and I think it bites (absolutely NO support), but it is the only one available. You will also need a scanner (I use AutoTap with enhanced params) and a wideband O2 (I use the LM-1).
Best of luck.
p.s. avoid mail order tunes if you can, they are like mail order brides; you never know what you will get. IMHO.

 

Yea I would use LT1-Edit. I use it and love it, im getting a wideband this spring.

 

There are other options out there for software, like Tunercats. Whoever said LT1edit is the only choice out there is wrong.

The tube is probably the noise reduction deal. If you get a aftermarket elbow or a 1le elbow it isn't there anymore. You could probably find a kit that would let you cap off the factory one also, its just there to reduce intake noise.