Hey all,

I was wondering if there is anything I should know before buying this car. Its a 2002 Firehawk (authenticity verified at slp register) with 49K miles. Its an automatic convertable. Its in very nice shape but stock.

I would like to get around 450 or so RWHP. I plan on sending the rear wheels to weldwheels to have them widened to the 17 x 11 so I can get the 315s on the rear. According to the build sheet it has the Auburn differential. It was also ordered with the 3.23 gear ratio.

Am I looking at some major transmission / rear end mods to accomadate a Trickflow set of heads and more aggressive cam?

Any thoughts?

Thanks

 

yep!!

 

You should be okay with the little 10 bolt rear end. They hold up very well behind an automatic. The 2002 would have come with a Torsen 'posi' off the assembly line and/but the original buyer spec'd in an Auburn 'posi', good decision. Torsens have had catastrophic failures. That version of the Torsen is not even available any more because of its' weaknesses.
The tranny is a different story. An aggressive cam with the factory OEM 1800 rpm convertor would be too tight for an aggressive cam and drag the engine down, when in gear at idle speed, to un-tolerable levels, And 4L60Es' aren't known for their strength. Put a Yank SS3600 (or CircleD equivalent) in it and you probably ? would start not considering engine mods.

 

Another excellent post and great advice from FirstYrLS1Z! I agree on all counts.

 

What did the SLP build sheet say about any suspension changes ?

 

Really, that's very helpful to the op. Smh.

 

Great advice. Make sure to post some pics of you decide to buy. Firehawks are just awesome machines.