James1

The '02s are definitely strong. The fastest '02 freak I know of was Unusual TA's. His car put out 370rwhp w/ stock internals and just boltons. With a cam, he made over 430rwhp.

MuTiLaToR

yea, I have yet to dyno my car, but i'm about to install the coated pacestter longtubes and off-road y-pipe. im hoping for around 360-365 with that alone, it may sound crazy but with just the lid i believe im already sitting at 330-340 rwhp

TransAm52804

*wants a factory freak*

James1

The '02 motors are badass. My car has an '02 motor and it made 402rwhp w/ the Hotcam, mac headers, true duals, airlid, and a tune. I don't have all the bolt-ons either.

MuTiLaToR

I am truly taking advantage of the "freakyness" of this SS, after i go true duals and longtubes im getting smooth air bellow, ported stock TB, Pullies, and an LS1 edit tune. THEN, im throwing in the TR T-Rex cam and 4.10's !!!

KB99WS6

iTrader: (6)

say goodbye to your daily driveability and reliability. I'd go with a milder cam like a TR220 or TR224 and than just wait to get some heads. Theres killer deals on heads all the time. maintain driveability and reliabilty and still be putting out a lot of power.

Gloveperson

iTrader: (9)

Why tune it b4 cam and gears?

MuTiLaToR

b/c i wont have the cam for a few months after all the rest goes on, and its only $75 for the tune after the 1st time fee of $425 for LS1 Edit. And say i did go with a milder cam such as the TR 224, what kind of heads would you reccomend i get along with it?? because if i was going that route i would still want T-rex dyno #'s or even greater with a set of heads in the mix...

KB99WS6

iTrader: (6)

which heads? Too many to mention, but there is always great deals in the parts section.

Hey it all depends on how important comfort and driveability is to you. Believe me, sometimes that rough obnoxious shiut gets real old real fast.... When you are driving your car, what % of the time are you actually racing? Thats a good guage to go by....

For starters, remember a cam like a trex is going to move the power way up in the rpm range. So for regular calm driving your car will seem dogish. it only kicks *** when you hammer it. Well when you drive you car is it always hammered?? Don't forget about the times its not....

MuTiLaToR

i'd say about 50% of the time im in my car its for the purpose of racing. besides that I drive to school and back. Maybe... somewhere on the weekends

KB99WS6

iTrader: (6)

well its your call, just remember you are going to give up a lot to get your power cam only. Ever just wanna cruise easy but still with authority? Like go up an incline in 6th gear at a low rpm while lesser cars are struggling and downshifting? Well that pleasure doesn't exist anymore with a cam like a Trex. howabout taking a girl on a date and you want to play it cool and smooth but you can't b/c your car only knows weak, or ***** to the walls?? How about needing to change your valve springs etc etc after 10-15k miles? (or less). I could go on.... just some things to think about...

I don't know I thoink the huge cam route is overrated unless it's a track or weekend warrior only car.

MuTiLaToR

ok you talked me into a lesser cam, but i wont go smaller than 224, so now tell me, what kinda heads should I follow up with these? stage 2 or 3 and what brand do you reccomend??

James1

You should research a lot before you do anything. KB99WS6 is right. There are trade-offs going with the larger camshafts. Do you know how much it sucks when you break a valve spring leading to dropped valves and scored cylinders. Your car would no longer be the factory "freak", but rather the factory "turd". Look for a cam that is more balanced. Remember, I made 402rwhp with a hotcam w/o all the bolt-ons. The Hotcam is only a 218/227 .525/.525 112lsa.

KB99WS6

iTrader: (6)

well AFR or TEA makes great heads, but if you are on a budget gor for some patriot 5.3's for $1399 brand new. If it were me though I'd buy from the parts section. I have seen plenty of $2500 heads freshened up and ready to go sell for $1200-$1400. As far as which stage, different heads and different manufacturer's have different idea's on which stage = what level of performance. it all depends on the flow numbers. Don't worry, its hard to go wrong and pretty much any "staged" aftermarket or LS6 heads. With a TR224 cam and any of the heads you should see at a minimum 400rwhp, especially with your car.

Also, don't get too caught up in comparing your car to all the internet cars. For one, theres a decent amount of BS and secondly, the internet and LS1tech.com represents the best of the best all of the U.S. (or the world). Look around you on any given day when driving and you will be able to slaughter any car around 98% of the time.

Some people leave comfort too far behind and than you see them later selling their car or selling all the parts and putting it back to stock. Seen it all too often. Tons and Tons of $$ wasted in the aftermarket. try and play it safe...find that happy medium

MuTiLaToR

well, something else i wanna know is can I buy a set of heads that flow too well?? even with the TR 224 cam b/c i dont wanna go overboard but if I am going to spend almost 2,000 maybe more i would like alot of performance from them... Btw how much of a diff. are we talking between tweaked 5.3 heads and AFR's?

KB99WS6

iTrader: (6)

Mutilator, I'd like to help you more but I am in no way an expert on heads. I'd make a seperate post in the engine section asking what are the best heads for a TR224 on daily driver or something to that effect. Just state a budget and your target power level while still maintaining excellent street manners etc etc.

You can also do some searches to try and get some info on good street H/C combo's etc etc.

I can tell you though, that I've done tons of research about cams, and speaking in general, the OVERALL best and most proven street cam from all I have seen and read is still the TR224. You could even get a TR220 (stock like driveability) w/mild heads and still be at 400rwhp with great under the curve power. I've seen a lot of guys w/TR220 cams and heads @400+rwhp and they LOVE the combo for an all around driver. the TR224 will be just a little less streetable (although still plenty streetable with good tune) and give you about 5-10 more rwhp up top, but the TR220 will have a little more down low. Basically you can't go wrong with either of those cams for a daily driver.

electricz28

if you can drive 12.6 will be easy

Big Jimbo

How about putting that vid at the SRT-4 forums *wink* Do u know how much **** will be talked over there?