Back when I was in high school my father had his mid life crisis and bought a brand new 1993 Z28 Camaro. On rare occasions, home coming, prom, graduation etc. he’d let me drive it. For a 16 year old it was quite a rush driving his car around with my friends going god knows how fast on country highways.

Well 13 years passed and I moved away from home got married had kids, you know the rest. About six months ago I was visiting my parents and saw my father’s Camaro sitting in the garage collecting dust. My father rarely drove it anymore, which was a damn shame. I took it out for a spin with some friends and noticed it only had 17,000 miles on it and it was in mint condition. Anyway, when I got back from my drive I told my father that if he ever wanted to sell it to call me first.

My father just retired and decided to get rid of the Camaro so I bought it from him for cheap. My wife and I plan on driving it strictly for recreational purposes. I’m thinking about doing some upgrades to make it more fun to drive. Not planning on racing it on track or anything just for pleasure driving, etc.

I’ve read a lot about the various upgrades offered for my Camaro, I was a bit shocked at how customized you can make your Camaro. I was particularly fascinated by Brent Franker’s website about his 1994 Supercharged Z28 Camaro. It looks like he took baby steps to upgrade his Camaro to something very unique.

I don’t have much experience working on automobiles, change oil, filters, etc. I’d like to learn how to do most of the upgrade myself or with help from friends. I have a few friends that are car mechanics willing to help me for a case of beer, etc.

So now comes my question to the Camaro experts on this forum, what upgrades would you do considering my experience and goals? And consider the fact that I want to take baby steps as I get more familiar with the car do more complex upgrades.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

I see you have been searching around the site...Good for you... Alot of info out there..... The engine is an air pump... Most common things are "cold air intake" and exhaust first.... And it goes from there.... It depends on how fast you want to go...

PS.. Dont forget suspension.... Sub frame connectors, Lower control arms..etc... Greatly improves traction and body roll

Almost forgot, I also have a '93 Z28 with A4....

 

From my reading it sounds like CAI and exhaust are commonly the first upgrades people do. A question about CAI can you do this without replacing the stock hood? Or do you need to get a CAI hood also?

 

The hood switch is for "ram air" intakes like the SS models came with.
A CAI "cold air intake" is going to replace your stock air box with something less restrictive.

BTW If you go on ebay be sure to ask here before purchasing, most items on there are DIY cheap and easy mods.

Welcome to the site

 

You can buy CAI w/out the hood. (Granted the hood/intake combos are more effective, but not considering the price difference.) The hood intakes are usually Ram Air, while a CAI is usually just some manderal bent intake tubes,(better flow) with bigger cone style filters.
Other stuff:
*exhaust, gotta let that LT1 exhale! (and it sounds sooo much better too)
*short throw shifter for manual, or shift kit for auto
*throttle body, let all that new cold air mix with more fuel
*springs and shocks, give the car a lower stance, while making it handle better for cruising
*power programmer or a chip
any of this stuff is simple for anyone with decent mechanical skills, and usually all performance parts from a good name brand come with install instructions.
So welcome to the Camaro world, and have some fun

 

Of these two which upgrade would you do first? And which brand should I go with? I was looking at SLP but anyone else recommand another brand, and why?

 

If you "search" on CAI you will see many threads on this..... Everyone has thier own opinion..... I went with the G2, because I like the stock look...

Usually CAI first, because its easy..... Most are installed in less than 30 minutes, depending on type....

 

I would personally upgrade the exhaust first, gotta let that LT1 growl! My personal reccomendation is the SLP Loudmouth, though I may be a little biased I LOVE the Loudmouth on my '94 Z.

 

I too perfer the stock look. I've never heard of G2 can you point me to a URL?

 

i like the slp cai. i think it looks the best and i would suggest buying a used one off the board. i bought mine a couple months ago for 100 shipped. as far as exhaust goes, think ahead before you buy anything. do you plan on getting headers in the future? if so, i would scratch the loudmouth and borla since they might be too loud for casual cruising. I think i would go for suspension mods first. for springs, i would go with the eibach pro-kit. it gives a nice look w/o going too low. gears are something else that you may want to consider. good luck!

btw; i hope you have a lot of money because once you start modding, you will never want to stop

 

http://www.lmperformance.com/4233/2.html

 

Too loud? no such thing Those may be loud, but they'll still sound good. They still will have the sound of a full exhaust, still have a note to them.

 

The first mod I'd go with if I were you is Long Tube Headers... cat back exhaust and CAI. Might as well get the headers installed now because after you start modding with the little stuff a few years will go by, and you will regret not doing it first.



Mike

 

But headers, remember, are not an easy install by any means.

 

The first couple mods I'd do engine performance wise:

SLP cold air intake
Larger throttle body
Long tube headers
Then y-pipe and exhaust
Programmer
Lower, 160* thermostat
3.73 gears out back

Also, the car's been sitting right? First thing I'd do is drain all the oil, tranny fluid, rear end grease, and coolant, and put all new stuff in the car.

Later on downt he road, if you really get into it you can get all into suspension and brakes, but the above mods will make the car funner then it already is. Also, an SS hood looks wicked...... (hint, hint)