I can't afford both right now, but I'm itching to get a major mod done to my car.

I was thinking of the 2002 Zo6 cam or some long tubes.
Which one will give me the best bang per buck? And
which one will work best with my 75 shot? How much
labor is involved is also needed info. I don't know exactly what I need to get with a Zo6 cam, so let me know.

 

I went with a smallish cam also (TR220) and installed it before headers. I noticed a better gain from the cam than the headers, and would suggest the same to you. If you were talking about a big cam like the G5X2, then the answer would be headers first.

 

Thanks for the feedback. Did you just install the cam or the whole package? How much for the package? Did you install yourself? If not how much money and labor hours to do so?
Oh and how much horse gain do you think you've gained from the cam alone?

 

I'd go with the headers first...get the bolt-ons out of the way first and then go internal. That's just me though.

Plus, you have a '98 so your stock manifolds are really holding you back right now and they'll REALLY be holding you back after a cam.

 

Makes a lot of sense. The Stainless steel LT headers I want to get cost 875 bux not including the y-pipe. So after another 200 bux for the y-pipe I'm over a grand just for parts. I was thinking the 2002 ls6 cam and valve springs for 300 bux then the labor should keep me under the headers + install.

 

What LTs were you looking at?

The cam is definitely going to be cheaper but the way I look at it is, you're going to have to buy the LTs eventually...
You should see some very nice gains with the LTs N/A and even better with the N2O.

 

There really isn't a major difference between the various LTs as far as performance ... keeping that in mind, you can pick up a set of used LTs with a Y-pipe in the $500 - $800 range.

Cams a little different story, you can get one used and maybe even the pushrods .. but you will need new springs, I wouldn't recommend using used springs. Plus the labor is still going to eat you on a cam, used or not.

I would personally - and did - do all the bolt ons first. Tuning isn't major requirement for bolt ons, but is for a cam. But putting on headers after the cam will probably require second tuning session to get the most out of your set up ...

 

do headers first.
b/c, u wont be happy later down the road with a z06 cam, and u dont need any tuning for headers.

plus, if u do a cam and leave stock manifolds, u are gonna choke the engine. if u do headers, u are gonna be flowing enough air to do whatever u want down the line. hope this helps

 

Ok cool. Hey have you guys heard of QTEC headers. They make a lot of claims over other LTs.

 

The ls6 cam loves nos Do cam and nos .Headers can come into play after.

 

My vote is for headers...you wont get the full affect of the cam without them..

 

either way you go youll need tuning.you might be able to get away with no tuning with an ls6 cam but i didnt.


unless youre planning no mods for awhile after this youre best bet is to have them both done together and get it over with.itll save you money that way.

 

I would do the headers first because you have lousy exhaust manifolds on your 1998. $1000+ for headers is insane! Unless you have a show car or cometition race car, I would get the uncoated Hookers and Y-pipe for half that price. I have the coated Hookers on my H/C/N Z28 and spent $650 for the works. Another alternative (since you are going with a mild cam) would be a used set of MACs. I had these on my car before I did internal work and they are great bang-for-the-buck. If you clean up the welds and do the collector mod (and DON'T use the MAC cats!) they will flow great. Other plusses for the MACs are easy install, no rubbing, and they don't hang low at all. I've seen used sets as low as $200! The headers don't require tuning, but will benefit from it. When you do the cam later on, you can get the whole package tuned.

 

Uncoated headers? How long would they last on average? QTEC has stainless steel headers that supposedly disapates heat faster then the coated options available. I'm just doing thorough research before I spend any money. I went and got the NX kit and ended doing things over because I didn't thoroughly research. I don't want problems with too much heat, so I need to know who coats the best if I don't get the stainless steel qtecs.

 

Jet-Hot does nice headers based on the Hooker design and their coating is very good. They are also much cheaper than the QTPs. If you have to have the best, you will pay for it and end up with Kooks, FLPs, or QTPs. IMO, the extra hundreds of dollars spent for a couple of horsepower would be better spent on the cam. Is your car a daily-driver? What climate do you live in? I've used uncoated headers plenty of times and always changed the car before I changed headers. The only reason I went with coated this time was because I had a specific HP goal in mind and needed the extra couple of ponies.