I bought a 1994 Z28 6 speed new a little over 10 years ago, however, my 19 year old son has adopted the car. He takes great care of it and really enjoys it. We just put some Jet Hotted MACS on it with a cut out plus a few other things and finally got into the 13's and over 100 (13.78 at 103 in Phoenix, 1100 feet altitude). Anyway I got the bug bad again and went and bought a 2001 Z28 6 speed. Drove a few autos but couldn't talk myself into them. Love the 6 speed, plus I run Solo2 occassionally. I have a few questions from you LS1 experts:

1) The 2001 has the LS6 cast iron exhaust manifolds. Are they any good? Also, that is the ugliest oval shaped Y pipe I've ever seen. Looks like they could have tucked it up better. I mean, looks like they could have put a round pipe and it would not have stuck down further. Is it worth it to put the MAC midlengths and Y pipe. The car is not lowered and after flattening some Cyclone headers 30 years ago, I swore I'd never do long tube headers again. Everyone says go to LT's, but will it kill my ground clearance? (Car is not and will not be lowered) If the MACS are not a big improvement, are there any higher flow Y pipes for the stock 2001 cast iron manifolds that are worth it?

2) The 2001 seems to not have any engine braking when I let off of it, kind of coasts along then slows down. I remember my 94 doing this, but I think I did something to get rid of that years ago, because when you let off the gas, that car slows down really good with engine braking alone. I'm having a senior moment, but it seems there was a polution device that kept the revs up during overrunning of the engine????

3) I've already ordered the following for the 2001:
OE Wheel Distributor 17x9.5 ZR1's with Falken tires
Lou's short stick with Hurst SLP ****
SLP Lid (liked the way it looked and had the tube connection)
160 Thermostat
Manual Fan switch
What should I get next???

Which of the free mods do I need to do. I heard that the 2001 does not have the EGR sticking into the throttle body, haven't looked real close yet. Not sure if I want to hack on the filter housing yet. Does that really help and what does hacking on the radiator shroud do?

Sorry for all the questions.

By the way, the LS1 is UNBELIEVABLE. I read the engine did not have good low end torque. That's a lie. It has plenty of low end torque, just seems low because the top end is AWESOME! That engine will just keep on pulling! The car itself hasn't changed substantially from 1994, like the front end styling. They have refined it to make it a nicer overall package. Seems to drive a little smoother (good for an old man like me!)

Thanks,
Glenn

 

Hey man, congrats on the new car! I'm lookin to get one too. I'm only gonna answer a couple questions...cause it's all I know

1. Yes, that ovalness is ugly. I haven't seen, or heard of anyone crushing any long tube headers on a stock height car. I have only heard of one lowered guy that crushed one. As long as you don't try railin speed bumps you should be ok

2. Thats the one I don't know

3. Wheels, nice!
Might as well get the whole PRO 5.0 w/Short stick combo deal
SLP Lid, good choice
160 Thermo...eh, waste of money and could do more harm than good. Wouldnt advice stickin one of those in.
Fan switch, always good.

I'd suggest a nice catback exhaust or electric cutout after that.

Have fun man

 

Loony,
Thanks for the advice. I figured question 2 was the toughest to answer.

As far as the 160 T/S, it really helped my 1994, are the LS1's different? I live in Arizona so it gets really hot here.

Thanks,
Glenn

 

Glenn, I'd say great start on the mods.

160 is a great mod especially since you've got the manual fan switch ... I usually cruise with my fans on low all the time and on really hot days if it creeps up i just stick em on high for minute and watch that temperature drop like a rock.

And LT's are definitely worth the hastle on an LS1 .. SLP's are the only headers I'm aware of that have ground clearence issues on non-lowered cars. I myself just installed Jet-Hots not too long ago and they do have fitment issues (rubs the k-member, for which im getting motor mounts installed and the kmember grinded down a bit and the passenger side oxygen sensor angles toward the ground). If I was gonna do it again, I'd get Hooker LT's as I hear they slip in without problems.

Congrats on the new LS1, let the modding begin!

 

Car sounds nice, personally, I would get different tires.

 

Pacesetter or Hooker LTs wouldnt be a problem with ground clearance on a stock height car. I run them on mine daily driver March-October and i have at least 4 inches ground clearance and have never scraped them.

 

I would go with the long tubes too, I just installed som Flowtechs on with the off road y-pipe and they seem to have less of a clearance issue than the stock setup. Plus its not actually that much of a hassle installing them it took me only 10 hours to do and I have no experiance working on cars. I also got a cut out which is great, I havent made it up to the track yet(Wednesday night track dont start till may) but it feels more powerfull with it open. I got a jarrods short stick and its great I wouldnt see why you would need a new shifter, I never miss a gear. And if you do go with LT's, ORY, and a cut out I would invest in some drag radials cause youll need em!!!

 

Congradulations!

Awesome isnt it?
I just bought a mine about 3 months ago

I love this darn car

dont worry, you will get used to the car and the mod bug will be burying itself in

 

I also noticed what you are talking about for question number two when I drive mine. It also did that in my 94 M6 too. I think it has something to do with the weight of the flywheel or the transmission, but I am just guessing.

I would recomend getting a Catback, the stock is just too quiet for me

Magnaflow is what I am getting.

 

Thanks for all the good suggestions. Kataklysm, I would agree, those wouldn't be my tires of choice, but it came with the package. I'll have an extra set of 16" salad shooter so I'll probably mount some Victoracers on them and use them for Solo 2 and also use them on the rears when I go to the drag strip.

Black 01, awesome car, looks great! I'll have to see what I do for headers. I'll probably put in a set of long tubes, but I'll be real careful which ones I choose. Looks like you have to "thread the needle" to have enough ground clearance but not hit the car or cross members. I'll do the cutout prior to getting the headers. It makes a big difference on the 94 when it's open.

I put on some 16 x 8 ZR1's that I bought for my son's 94 Z28 tonight just so I could drive the car until the new 17 x 9.5 ZR's come in later this week. Car looks great and drives much straighter. I drove it 1300 miles from Houston with a slight pull to the right (at least that's safer than pulling to the left!). I also just installed the Lou's short stick and it feels great. I pulled the skip shift connector and now I have the dreaded SES light, so I'll have to put in a 2.2 ohm resistor tomorrow and then clear the codes.

Last thing, seems like the car resonates when I accelerate. Not too bad, but it definately is a resonance in the exhaust. This car has the cast iron exh manifolds with the weird looking PUP CATS on the ends. Anyone else with a 2001 or 2002 notice this?


Thanks,
Glenn