Planning Rebuild
05-23-2007, 11:35 PM
#1
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Planning Rebuild I have been furiously searching Ls1tech and have been finding great info but I need some personalized attention. My 98' Formula A4 is passing 136k miles and I want to freshen her up a bit. As soon as I sell my 2 motorcycles I should be bringing in about $4,500. Thats a lot of goodies to go into a car but I want to keep it reasonable and will TRY not to spend all of it 
I love the tameness of the vehicle when I want it to be, then I can release the wild side. I am still trying to maintain that streetability, but with a lot more grunt. I loved the way my friend's Stock '01 Z06 felt. So if I could get my acceleration performance on par or slightly better than the vette I'd be happy. It's only going to be a daily driver and my wife will need to be able to drive it on occasion as well ( 
)
This is what I have so far....
-SLP Lid w/ paper filter
-Subframe Connectors
-Cut-out (going to remove)
-MSD wires
-NGK TR55 Iridiums
This is what I am thinking of getting....
Engine
-Ported Ls6 heads
New Valve Springs, Rocker Arms,pushrods,lifters
-Ls6 Intake
-Ported and Polished T/B (from one of the sponsors)
-Cam (Not sure what size,definetly a milder one)
-Ls6 oil pump
-Ls2 timing chain
-Ls6 PCV and Valley Cover
-2002 Knock Sensor Conversion
-New Water Pump
Suspension
-Shock Tower Brace
-Bilstein Suspension all around
-Lower Control Arms
Drivetrain
-To Stall or not to stall.... not sure
-New U-joints
Exhaust (Live in Cali here)
- Would love to get LT's but can't afford $2,500 a cat fine
Any Shorties worth it?
- Will Remove cut-out and install Magnaflow
Again, I am not looking to race track or street-race. (Maybe the occasional stop light race to 45mph hehe.) I just want a car that I will enjoy cruising with my wife along the coast or have the ability to carve canyons. Can you give me some recommendations on an affordable setup that seems to suit me based on what info I gave you. Will doing all this freshen up the engine? What would it do to my gas mileage? Any info would be appreciated. Thanks -Doolgas
I love the tameness of the vehicle when I want it to be, then I can release the wild side. I am still trying to maintain that streetability, but with a lot more grunt. I loved the way my friend's Stock '01 Z06 felt. So if I could get my acceleration performance on par or slightly better than the vette I'd be happy. It's only going to be a daily driver and my wife will need to be able to drive it on occasion as well ( )This is what I have so far....
-SLP Lid w/ paper filter
-Subframe Connectors
-Cut-out (going to remove)
-MSD wires
-NGK TR55 Iridiums
This is what I am thinking of getting....
Engine
-Ported Ls6 heads
New Valve Springs, Rocker Arms,pushrods,lifters
-Ls6 Intake
-Ported and Polished T/B (from one of the sponsors)
-Cam (Not sure what size,definetly a milder one)
-Ls6 oil pump
-Ls2 timing chain
-Ls6 PCV and Valley Cover
-2002 Knock Sensor Conversion
-New Water Pump
Suspension
-Shock Tower Brace
-Bilstein Suspension all around
-Lower Control Arms
Drivetrain
-To Stall or not to stall.... not sure
-New U-joints
Exhaust (Live in Cali here)
- Would love to get LT's but can't afford $2,500 a cat fine
Any Shorties worth it?
- Will Remove cut-out and install Magnaflow
Again, I am not looking to race track or street-race. (Maybe the occasional stop light race to 45mph hehe.) I just want a car that I will enjoy cruising with my wife along the coast or have the ability to carve canyons. Can you give me some recommendations on an affordable setup that seems to suit me based on what info I gave you. Will doing all this freshen up the engine? What would it do to my gas mileage? Any info would be appreciated. Thanks -Doolgas
05-24-2007, 01:18 PM
#3
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what do you consider "street-able"? some people think a radical cam is streetable. for canyon carving, talk to Sam Strano of Strano Parts, he's the suspension guru here. what part of that list is on the car, and what isn't, because all of that is more than $4500....
05-24-2007, 04:16 PM
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I guess just making it on par with the '01 Z06, or even a regular vette for that matter.... Like I said in my post, nothing crazy. I am fairly new at modifying cars so please excuse my ignorance about the subject. On the car now is just an SLP lid and subframe connectors (I believe SFC's are bolt on SLP).
The reason for the new heads is mainly to get my top end rebuilt with new and better components due to 135k miles, and to clean up and check pistons, rings, cylinders etc. I do preventative maintenance (a result of 4 years working with helicopters) so that where's the oil pump, water pump, and timing chain come in. While those are out while I am in the I might as well change the cam to something that will increase power, won't decrease reliability too much, and doesn't kill my gas mileage. And since the LS6 intake is so cheap with such a feelable gain, why the hell not. I live in California so I will probably not be changing the exhaust except for a catback.
The reason for the new heads is mainly to get my top end rebuilt with new and better components due to 135k miles, and to clean up and check pistons, rings, cylinders etc. I do preventative maintenance (a result of 4 years working with helicopters) so that where's the oil pump, water pump, and timing chain come in. While those are out while I am in the I might as well change the cam to something that will increase power, won't decrease reliability too much, and doesn't kill my gas mileage. And since the LS6 intake is so cheap with such a feelable gain, why the hell not. I live in California so I will probably not be changing the exhaust except for a catback.
05-25-2007, 10:08 AM
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The heads and intake will definately give a bit more power. You have a '98, so you've got the EGR junk. I'm not sure if you know or not, but the LS6 intake doesn't have provisions for the EGR, and I don't know how strict Cali is on emissions requirements, besides the worst in the US 
. The cam, you could put in a Z06 cam, and that would basically give you a LS6 with the head/intake/cam combo. The best thing to do is to talk to some aftermarket head/cam people, such as AFR, describe what you want, and they can for sure give you an expert opinion and hopefully keep you smog legal. Another thing, if you do happen to go with a higher lift, longer duration cam, you may need to get different length pushrods for valve clearance wit hthe pistons. And be sure to get the correct valve springs for the cam. Also, you'll have to get a tune for the car, and those range, on average, $250 - $500.
As for the suspension, upgraded about 80% of mine for about $1800. Take a peek at my signature for the suspension mods. Haven't quite got the drive-train yet. With the suspension on the street, the car has a much better feel, less diving when stopping, little body roll, firmer ride, and about 1.25 inches lower. You definately feel the road, but it doesn't pound your kidneys. I think the stock springs and struts/shocks are harsher than the setup I have now. Hope this helps a bit.
. The cam, you could put in a Z06 cam, and that would basically give you a LS6 with the head/intake/cam combo. The best thing to do is to talk to some aftermarket head/cam people, such as AFR, describe what you want, and they can for sure give you an expert opinion and hopefully keep you smog legal. Another thing, if you do happen to go with a higher lift, longer duration cam, you may need to get different length pushrods for valve clearance wit hthe pistons. And be sure to get the correct valve springs for the cam. Also, you'll have to get a tune for the car, and those range, on average, $250 - $500. As for the suspension, upgraded about 80% of mine for about $1800. Take a peek at my signature for the suspension mods. Haven't quite got the drive-train yet. With the suspension on the street, the car has a much better feel, less diving when stopping, little body roll, firmer ride, and about 1.25 inches lower. You definately feel the road, but it doesn't pound your kidneys. I think the stock springs and struts/shocks are harsher than the setup I have now. Hope this helps a bit.
05-25-2007, 04:28 PM
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If it aint broke dont fix it. If you are searching around on Tech you should also look at all the high mileage threads. Theres plenty of us with over 150k and running some good power. Case in point, I have 194k and tag 12.7 with the mods in my sig.