Hello, my name is Ali, I'm just about to get my license and thought for the last year and a half for the car I'm going to buy, and I found that the LS1 fits my profile.. Obviously I've worked with cars for the last 6 years, but only fixing them.. I've helped building a 2jz Jeep Cherokee, I've built an AMC stroked to 5.0/ 577rwhp and 309whp respectively, Im only mentioning the ones that actually lasted.. anyways I soon realized my love for American cars and always woke up to sounds of American muscle (not only straight six's but also LS2's and 3's), and I'm so sick of these turbo Nissan Patrols and Toyota land cruisers with 700+ hp that kill everything that moves, they sound cool at first but they are actually boring.. and I feel like a bubble about to burst cause I help building all these cars and not driving them burns, itches and sweats my palms.. Before I go into asking the question I just want to say this.. I know the old "make your research and you'll find what you're looking for" but no.. all the actual important threads here are from 2009 and down.. so I only get some actual useful information..
i realize Americans don't have the Caprice (only as a police interceptor).. we have the older version of that which is the holden monaro in Australia called caprice here in the Middle East which has a 330 hp 5.7 LS1 which is as cheap as 2k$, I have a great budget of 7k$, I am going to go all out after getting used to the hp because I've actually never driven a car before (ofcourse except for license training) and I don't wanna kill myself doing what I love.. I want to know what you guys think and I need a list that would get me to 400 rwhp, I want to know every single advice.. is this the car for a kid like me? And if it is...

what are your most reliable pieces to the 400 magical puzzle? ( I'm planning to keep it as a daily)

headers
air filter
fuel pump
injectors ( I would prefer if it was mentioned in CC's)
ignition system and wiring
valve springs and/or rocker setup
camshaft
exhaust system
standalone ECU
head porting maybe?
intake
tb
oil pump
water pump
radiator
radiator fans
differential and what gears
wheels
tyres/ semi slicks please(:...
Trans cooler


Thank you in advance, every single part you mention will be saved and researched later.. I want to make this right and reliable.. and as for the heat.. you guys need to think about the heat we have here( it's actually worse than you hear) mention the best radiator and fans you think fit best for this build..so ofcourse when it gets tuned I will ask my tuner to pull some timing off of it.

P.S I think it comes with the Camaro 98-02 4 gears auto only.
your friend -Ali.

How much does your ECU and ignition coil pack cost? And no disrespect but why is it any better than let's say a MSD one? And what's your ECU's capabilities? Is it easy to use? (easy as in I can work and learn on it a long the way?).... I've worked with tuning chips before and as a beginner is it a good platform? And that build actually looks sick man, what fuel system were you going with?

so you're telling me.. that this whole build would cost me less than 2.5k$? Damn man you cleared off my chest..

How about the reliability? I'm going with the 2004 caprice cause it doesn't have the electronic throttle control (less issues) which is 05 and up

and about the GTO you're talking about the lumina... I made the mistake of typing Monaro, it's actually Holden Grange... and I've heard the Texas speed 228r it sounds absolutely amazing but unfortunately we have strict rules here about loud sounds.. so I'm thinking of a mild cam with an electronic exhaust that I can shut off and open the valve and not choke the power whenever I'm letting her eat..

and yes we have those nitto tyres I know a guy that sells them I'm guessing they won't spin?
I'm no tuner... but I heard oil pumps give you a little more RPM depending on how much flow It can give.. so my question here is.. if I go with a bigger oil pump than needed.. would it be safe to run and make it even more reliable with no oil issues? Or it doesn't work that way?

and about the radiator.. just to give you an example.. these cars are known to over heat STOCK.. so I will have to change the radiator and thermostat (give me suggestions of the best/bigger radiator, and a good reliable thermostat..


how do do I tell if I have the ls6 intake?

Whats a stall converter? (Obviously never worked with 1 before)

and if its for racing from a dig then don't worry.. I will never race this car from a dig.. only roll racing and some pulls on the highway and that's it for me..

ive read about the clutch 3-4 pack.. but I still haven't quite understood what the 3-4 stands for.. is it the 3rd and 4th gear? Or it stands for something else?

How much will the cylinder heads cost me?

Plus.. is it true that head porting helps with heat?


Im sorry for taking a lot of your time.. but that's just me.. when I learn about something I get as nosy as I can be.

Possibly. I don't know how much parts will cost in your country or if you will have to have things shipped overseas and what not. I can tell you that making 400rwhp should not be expensive or difficult with an LS1.
Engine-wise reliability should not be a problem at all. You may run into issues with the rest of the drivetrain being able to support the extra power, but 400rwp is not that much, especially since you said you will be doing mostly roll type of racing, that is very easy on the drivetrain.
While I don't completely know what is available in your market, you do have the Monaro there right? If so I would suggest going with that car if possible because it should be lighter and I would assume the aftermarket support is better. Also since you said you are more interested in roll racing I would look for a 6 speed manual car as they will be quicker from a roll.

We got a rebadged Monaro as the GTO:

We also later got a commedore.

Exhaust setup will make a massive difference in sound and volume. Here is a GTO for example with stock exhaust and a 228R cam:

With stock mufflers you can be pretty quiet and add cutouts to the sound and power gain.

There are too many variables to say if they would spin or not, but they should not spin from a roll at least.
Don't know about getting more RPM, never heard that but an aftermarket pump won't hurt the engine.

Well that sucks. For a thermostat you can get a 160* one and for a radiator that is going to be car specific for fitment so you are going to need to look specifically for whatever car you buy. You're just going to have to search for companies that make parts for your car specifically, find out if anything is interchangeable between the Holden V8 cars.

Im not sure how it worked outside of the country but here all LS1s came with LS6 intakes starting in 2001. Otherwise check this out:v
http://www.digitalcorvettes.com/foru...d.php?t=165780
This may not apply to out side of the country as the hole port at the top of the LS1 intake is for emissions.

A torque converter that "slips" up to a desired RPM. Allows you to launch WAY harder. Google it.

Im not that well versed in automatics but I don't think it has to do with 3rd or 4th gear. This is something you will have to search the automatic section of the forum for.
Depends on the heads and depends on what the rates are in your country. Maybe $1000-$2000?

Ive never heard this.

Thanks! Great to know.

i just typed almost a thousand words for you and the reply did not post, anyways.

thank you for stopping by for a starter like me, sure and how much is the tuning manual? (Unless it's free then that'd be great)


about Shane Tecklenburg, I think he works for Ekanoo at pharris motorsports in Bahrain not UAE?
and he mentioned before he always uses CDI-8 twin firing ignition module.. I think he's over exaggerating cause no one here wants to tell what's done to his car ( in the gulf ) as if it was a secret or something..

IGN-A1 is actually pretty cheap so It's definitely on my list and since you're here grinding.. I will also look into your cam/valvesprings/ and timing setup..

What do you think are the best specs for this setup
lift / lobe separation / overlap, and if you sell it that'd be awesome.. and ofcourse valve springs.


And I did post a pic but it's just of the engine I don't think it's any good lol, and it deleted my last comment I made so in the next comment hopefully, I can't measure exactly how many mm's cause this car is owned by a relative and he lives 700 km away from me so yeah,
Thanks!

yeah ah I was actually thinking about the GTO, and we do have it here but searching for a manual is gunna be a pain in the butt, but I don't know about parts availability for this car.. as in suspension diff's / axles / and electronic stuff like window rollers and so on... but the drivetrain is pretty much 100% available for it.. and the funny thing is they don't like the LS1 cars here and they are always under 3k$ (which is great for me) but yeah you're right it is lighter..

and here.. a remax oil pump for a tb48 (Nissan patrol) gives it 600 rpm more.. but I don't know about small blocks.. and the same thing goes for head porting... it helps with heat on the tb48 and 1fzfe (land cruiser I6 4.5) like I saidd.. I don't know about the small block chevy's. (They are called small blocks right? LOL)

and do the cylinder heads go for 1-2$k a cylinder head? Or 1-2k for 2 cylinders.. cause if it was for 1 then I'll scratch it off my list..

the sound that GTO makes is heaven and perfect for me with an electronic valve opening and closing it'd be great, but stock mufflers with the cats? And what do you think about the mixture of high flow cats and stock mufflers with an x or y pipe?

Thanks for the help man!

No one wants the LS1 cars because the LS2/3 versions are available? That is what happened here with the GTO, once the LS2 was available the LS1 versions dropped in value a lot. C5 Corvettes and LS1 Fbodies are still holding their value well though.

Never heard that before. And yes they are technically small blocks, gen 3 small blocks.

That is for both heads. Like I said you will have to shop around your market as it could be very different from the American market.

Yes you can run LT headers, high flow cats (or not) and stock mufflers or quiet mufflers with cutouts. I don't think any of the cars you are looking at would have a Y-pipe, they should all be true duel exhaust. I would personally run an X-pipe.