hello
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 14
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From: Ashland VA when im at school, VA beach VA when im at home
new trans am owner....hello hi everyone my name is nick and i am a twenty year old college student who has just received a 2002 black firebird trans am from my father as a surprise and late twentieth birthday present. i am somewhat familiar with f-bodies because for last two years and 1999 3.8L [code L32] firebird has been my daily driver. I love that car but being an f-body freak [and a single 20 year old who goes to car meets all the time] have a TA is like one of the coolest things that has ever happened to me. I made many online friends at firebirdv6.com and i hope i can be a helpful member of the community here. I'd just like to say im pleased to meet everyone and i have a few questions: my car is not a WS6 spec. car, just a normal TA, how much slower am i than an SS, Z28, WS6 and Formula cars? my new TA is a 2002 as stated above, it comes with some sort of upgraded intake box and an oil based filter of some sort true dual exhaust including lontube headers dual cats mufflers and an H pipe. it also has a "chip" in it or something although i know GM cars use a PCM so i don't know whats been done to the computer but from twhat my father says the car does 0-60 in like 5.1 seconds because it came with one of those computers that tells you how fast the car can go & acceleration data etc., its an automatic transmission with 3.42 gears in the rear end which i don't think are stock [didn't they come with like 2.73s???] and i think thats about all thats been messed with. like who should i be worried about with this car. I had to choose my battles very carefully with my V6 but now i know i have like a lot more power and am in a whole different teir of cars now. this is all very new and somewhat intimidating, but it is where i have always dreamed about being: a dude with a real V8 muscle car. so neway pleased to meet everyone and thanks for the lowdown on what i should do with this thing and who i should worry about if im out cruising, can a WS6, Z28, Formula Firebirand/or and SS beat me with my car as ive just described it. I know im a very decent driver even though its an automatic. i haven't actually driven the thing yet because im at school and the car is with my dad at home. i get to use it on friday when i get back for spring break, hypothetically what can i do with it? what should my performance numbers be? thank you all so much and thanks for humoring a newbie on your board.
Nick G.
Nick G.
Last edited by '02BlackTA; Mar 21, 2004 at 10:42 PM.
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,938
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Welcome aboard Nick, you'll find a lot of college kids here (myself included). The WS6 was not a huge power gain option, it was mostly suspension, badges, and the hood. Same relationship with the Z28 and the SS. The Formula from what I hear is the quickest from the factory b/c it is the lightest of the f-bodies. But of course this is all assuming the cars are bone stock, which you obviously aren't.
True duals? Sweet! Must sound great. Completely stock our cars can run mid to low 13's, with your mods you're probably somewhere around high 12's to low 13's. I'm in the same boat as you, my previous car was a 3.4 Camaro, big diff huh? You really don't have to choose your races that carefully, if you drive properly there is not much on the street you'll have to worry about. You'll beat stock Evo's/STi's/SRT-4's, and stock non-Z06 Vette's. I'd watch out for 03 Cobra's, though and that's the only Mustang you'll have any competition from. Z06 will probably give you trouble also. But of course this is all assuming you can drive. I can't drive well so I gave up on street racing b/c I have no traction on the street and was losing to slow cars b/c I can't put my power to the ground.
Anyways, good luck and have fun with your new T/A. Btw, you've gotta a LS6 intake manifold already, so don't go out and buy one.
True duals? Sweet! Must sound great. Completely stock our cars can run mid to low 13's, with your mods you're probably somewhere around high 12's to low 13's. I'm in the same boat as you, my previous car was a 3.4 Camaro, big diff huh? You really don't have to choose your races that carefully, if you drive properly there is not much on the street you'll have to worry about. You'll beat stock Evo's/STi's/SRT-4's, and stock non-Z06 Vette's. I'd watch out for 03 Cobra's, though and that's the only Mustang you'll have any competition from. Z06 will probably give you trouble also. But of course this is all assuming you can drive. I can't drive well so I gave up on street racing b/c I have no traction on the street and was losing to slow cars b/c I can't put my power to the ground.
Anyways, good luck and have fun with your new T/A. Btw, you've gotta a LS6 intake manifold already, so don't go out and buy one.
Lose that K&N filter, now. It's prone to leave oil
on the MAF sense elements and mess up your
tuning, especially if the filter oiling wasn't done
-just so-.
There should be no "chip", perhaps you can get a
better idea from your source of info about what has
been done (probably programming). This might affect
you further down the road if you (just by chance)
happen to get bit by the mod bug and need to tune.
Meanwhile if it doesn't ping, life is good. If it does
(like a little gurgle at the top end wide open or the
bottom end when leaving the light) you will need to
step into tuning (one means or another). You might
want to inspect the MAF and determine whether
1) it's stock (with Previous Owner Mods, it may not be).
Should be dull factory aluminum casting "Oreo" with a
screen. Screen may be removed with few consequences
in a chunk-free environment; no signs of filing / grinding,
no shiny anodized ends, no plastic ends, unless the
"chip" (tuning) was done to properly tune for their effect.
Stock is best. See attached pic for a virgin example.
2) it's greasy (see filter); white glove test on the back
inner wall of the unit, don't touch the wires. Dry is
good and oily is not. A proper air filter would leave
it dead clean.
on the MAF sense elements and mess up your
tuning, especially if the filter oiling wasn't done
-just so-.
There should be no "chip", perhaps you can get a
better idea from your source of info about what has
been done (probably programming). This might affect
you further down the road if you (just by chance)
happen to get bit by the mod bug and need to tune.
Meanwhile if it doesn't ping, life is good. If it does
(like a little gurgle at the top end wide open or the
bottom end when leaving the light) you will need to
step into tuning (one means or another). You might
want to inspect the MAF and determine whether
1) it's stock (with Previous Owner Mods, it may not be).
Should be dull factory aluminum casting "Oreo" with a
screen. Screen may be removed with few consequences
in a chunk-free environment; no signs of filing / grinding,
no shiny anodized ends, no plastic ends, unless the
"chip" (tuning) was done to properly tune for their effect.
Stock is best. See attached pic for a virgin example.
2) it's greasy (see filter); white glove test on the back
inner wall of the unit, don't touch the wires. Dry is
good and oily is not. A proper air filter would leave
it dead clean.
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TECH Fanatic
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 1,807
Likes: 0
From: Fairbanks, AK
Welcome to the site, I'm another college kid. The performance is the same as the rest of the LS1 cars, just rated different by GM but they basically all put down the same power. Because you have an auto, a stall will really wake up the car. And DR's will help to.
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