gofasterbird

i have a 89 firebird that i am in the process of making a street/road race monster that will be almost a daily driven vehical.

i have sfc,stut and sway bars done and koni yellows already in shipping process, goodyear f1 asymmetric 2 tires, lt1 and t56 tranny in garage ready to be swapped in but i didnt want to start that yet untill i know what turbo system or custom i wanna go with. i plan on having a smaller quick spooling turbo.

please any suggestions will be greatly needed and used!! first time with the muscle car world wanna do it right i also own a 05 sti stage 2 12.1 1/4mile but making that thing a beast was very simple new age tech and 4 wheel drive makes life simple...

JD_AMG

Why an LT1? Why not the LS1 (lighter/more powerful/responds to mods better)?
Also why a turbo setup? Thats a good deal of weight to be adding to the front end of a road race car. And are you aiming to race/be competitive in a certain class, or just go out and mess around?

And for what its worth a 3rd gen with an LS1 swap and full bolt ons could probably go low 12s with good traction.

You also may want to join a 3rd gen specific forum for better results, this is mainly LS1 cars.

EchoMirage

iTrader: (3)

sounds like he already has an LT1, so why not use it

FASTFATBOY

iTrader: (23)

Trash the turbo idea, do heads-cam and save for tire money. Heads and cam will put you at 400 to the wheels, in a light 3rd gen thats a lot of grits on a road course LOL.

Pop for some big brakes, you gonna need em.

ChrisRZ28

If you've never been on a road course before (I don't know), you may want to work on the driver part before the monster part...

gofasterbird

dont suggest things that arent the question waist of time and space.

gofasterbird

not sure yet but i might got with t64 turbo set up.... but as for brake system you just brought that to my attention thats gonna be pricey should i just go with gen 5 brake systeam or look into a custom system....
Anyone on here with a custom brake system

FASTFATBOY

iTrader: (23)

Again.....that turbo,

Hangs unwanted weight over the nose of the car.

Makes a car do goofy things when and how boost comes in.

Makes the car more prone to mechanical failure(detonation etc).

You don't have any need for more than 400 at the wheels as,a beginner, that much power can get you into a LOT of trouble. 300 to the wheels can get you in trouble.

Contact Kore3 for brakes, I have a C6 Vette setup with cooling ducts that work well, pad choice is very important.

You want to build an unreliable car that turns like Crap be my guest.

FASTFATBOY

iTrader: (23)

CHRISRZ28 is 100% correct.

ChrisRZ28

Whatever you say chief... I hope you're a 'good enough' driver, so when your turbo spools at the wrong time, you can control your car and not wad up your monster into a ball. Not to mention with a turbo, there aren't many beginner classes where you can even run one...but good luck anyway!lol

gofasterbird

you all must have never driven a mild turbo car b/c boost isnt upredictable as u seam to think.....as for weight issue it will only be adding about 15-20lbs to the front since i will be using a rear mount system.i can tell your experience and age through your comments you really dont kno about the driving side of things (most mechanics cant drive). it is a
m6 car so boost will be controlled by my feet and gear....(auto sucks for control). if you all would do more in the area of help instead of comment and suggest it would be more useful since you dont kno of my experince or previous cars dont assume. My original issue was turbo sizing for lt1 for quick spool not massive power (450-500 is plenty)... And what i said about my sti is that it is beast as a whole car not the 1/4 time read slower just b/c 1/4 time was stated doesnt mean i was talking about it b/c anyone know that 12's isnt beast but what i can do with a 12 sec car is.....
detionation the odds of that is low that is what getting protuned/93 octane is for...
and the sti is putting down 376 to the wheels (4) so i am assuming that 450 to (2) wheels shouldnt be to much more to work with i have more suspension done to this car than the sti so it should be stiff and responsive enough so as the koni yellow get here (thursday-friday)

ChrisRZ28

No, I haven't.....

Any weight off the front end is better. Your right, I don't have much exprience on the driving side of things (2 HPDEs), and your comments up to this point haven't been much better. I've read enough things over the years to know you work on drivings skills first (that takes a long time) and you don't start with a turbo car making 500hp. I'm 43 years old btw. Enlighten us with all your road racing experience...

We are trying to help. The only turbo help you're going to find is on the drag racing/turbo boards. There's very few turbo cars that road race at the lower levels.

A turbo Subie is alot different then a 3rd gen Firebird. It will take a different mindset and skill to get a 2wd car around a road course then a awd car. Awd cars can mask bad driving habits. Why don't you just start with a n/a car and get the experience with that first? Where do you plan on racing this thing anyway?

FASTFATBOY

iTrader: (23)

Sounds like you have it under control, carry on.

1981TA

iTrader: (7)

Dude, you asked for suggestions, and they gave them. What they are saying is that if you don't already have the turbo set up, the dough is better spent on seat time, plus a little internal work (cam, tune, etc) and weight loss. 1st to 3rd gen F-bodies are nose-heavy. As mentioned before, even 15-20 pounds will make a difference.

The LS engine I have is internally stock, and will remain that way until I'm comfortable with my ability to push the car on the track. I'm a FNG when it comes to road racing, so 370 HP in a 3100 pound car will do just fine for the first season.

Here are some cheap mods I did to make my 2nd gen TA more neutral in the handling department. They took approximately 350 pounds off the nose:

• Aluminum LS1 vs. Iron 1968 SBC (other benefit: for the same HP rating, the LS1 is MUCH more streetable)
• Fiberglass hood
• aluminum radiator (replacing 4-core brass)
• Full AC delete
• aluminum bumper frame
• battery in trunk
• 16x8 3rd Gen alloy wheels (replacing 15x8 WS6 snowflakes - couldn't find good tires. had I to do it again, however, I'd get new 17x9.5s)
• Wilwood 12" brakes (HUGE difference in unsprung weight)
• Tubular front control arms
• long tube headers + Cold air intake (gotta love that shaker)
• T56 (lightweight clutch on the way - revs go up and down more freely)
• Frame ties (made the car a lot more rigid)

Not a whole lot went into engine mods or power adders.