just what the title says. I am now upgrading. I am selling the z and buy an ls1 powered ss 6-speed car. I was curious what year i should look for?

for example. I know in 98 the cars had larger injectors than the rest of the years. (i think)
and i know that 01 ad 02 had the ls6 intake and ls6 exhaust manifolds. wich that doesnt matter to me, because i will be doing headers (which that doesnt matter about the ls6 exhaust manifolds) and if i get a 98, 99 or 2000 camaro i will upgrade the ls6 intake myself. I was wondering if any one year had a bigger cam in it?

Because if a the 98 and 99 and 2000 camaros are the same. (with the exception of the larger injectors in 98) and they do in fact have a more agressive cam than the 01's and 02's. Then i think it would be smarter to buy those year camaros. (since i am planing on upgrading the intake as soon as i get it............assuming i dont get one that already has the ls6 intake)

so i am wondering is there a better year to buy, because of internal differences??

Because if the 98 had larger injectors than the 99 then a 98 would be faster and if that year has a larger cam in it than the 01 and 02's but the only think holding it back is the intake. Then with an ls6 intake and exhaust manifold upgrades wouldnt it be faster?

I hope my post made sense. As it is very late here and when it gets late i start rambling belligerent phrases incoherently.

thanks guys

Scott

 

i believe you mean exhaust manifolds,
everything you have said there is pretty much the same things i have heard, except for the 98's and the injector sizes.
i think you would be happy with any year ls1, they all make about the same amount of power no matter what year, and if the thing about the cam is true, i can't see it being that much bigger. i would guess maybe 5-10 hp. im sure others know more though

 

Ive heard the 99's have a slightly more aggressive cam then the 00+ models. Im sure someone more knowledgeable can help you out though.

 

yeah..........sorry i meant exhaust manifolds..............i will edit it now.......thanks

 

2000's seem to be faster then the 98-99's..and the 01-02's seem to be faster then the 98's -2000's...I would buy a 98 cause its the cheapest and the differances in speed is no more then a 10th or 2 if that...

 

i think maybe you guys are failing to realize what i am saying.


if i bought a 98 (assuming it had larger injectors and a more aggressive cam than the 99-02 years) then i would change the ls1 intake to the ls6 intake (creating more horsepower) and change the exhaust manifolds from ls1 manifolds to ls6 manifolds (thus creating even more horsepower) and remove the egr.


I understand stock for stock the 02 is faster, but if i bought an 02 i would have to upgrade the cam and injectors to match the power that i stated above. which in turn would mean more money than the amount spent on the above. am i wrong??

I am just saying. Wouldnt i have the same car if i bought a 98 and changed all that i previously stated. Plus a little more power due to the injectors and cam. Does this sound right or am i missing something?

Scott

 

You are correct in what you are saying, but... if I were you I would get the newest car that I could, if you are that concerned about the cam then just change that, a cam swap is not too much more work than an intake swap. I dont thing the Fuel Injectors make a huge difference, unless maybee you are going to be running a dry nitrous kit right off the bat. Also the 01s and up come with a little better clutch(off of the Zo6 i think) than the earlier models. Whatever you do, good luck and enjoy the new car.

Later,

Aaron

01 SOM SS

 

The clutch thing and emissions is why i'm keeping my search to 01/02... Too much of a pain to deal with changing the whole clutch system on a 98-00 to 01 specs. Now if you plan on going crazy with mods, then yeah, go with the older ones. One thing to consider is that the 98's have a different computer in which case certain mods are not available for it at the present time (computer mods). I started a thread like this awhile back when I was trying to decide on a LT1 or LS1... I learned A LOT from that and I still learn all the time from browsing around here.

 

computer problems huh??

well i think i will stay with 99+ then. I will look for a low milleage 99-00 (i want lower than 10k on the clock). and they are cheaper than me buying an 01 or 02 with that low of miles. But if i find one for what i want to spend then i will get it. It doesnt matter to me what cluch the car has in it. I am going to buy the mclead twin disk set up. So i will change that anyways

 

they all run e.ts. in the same ball park.. I feel better with a 1998 with nitrous use since they do have larger fuel injecters. i dont think it matters awhole lot though...

 

I have a 99. i am glad that I got it, cause when I go to a ls6 intake, the bigger cam will help me out a little more. The 98's did have bigger injectors, but only very slightly. I also heard that 98 had a not as good cpu. I dont know where I heard that and it very well could be B.S.

 

It depends on your budget...if you got $$$ to spend, get an 01-02 LS1 and go from there. The benefits would be the better hydraulics in the clutch assembly, the better intake, and it'd still be under the factory warranty. If you don't care for that and are willing to do all the upgrades yourself, go fer a low-mile 98-99. You'll have a few more bucks for the aftermarket, but you'll still have to spend the $ on the intake and upgraded hydraulics. Also, just from hearing things here and there...if you're gonna upgrade the clutch - go with either STAR Spec or McLeod. My Centerforce hasn't kept the "stock feel" like it claims. Just my .02

 

I believe the cam is the same from '98 - '00, and then changed for '01/'02 along with the LS6 intake and getting rid of the EGR (although that may have occurred for '00?? ).
The cam is .500" lift for '98 - '00, and ~.479" lift for the '01/'02, but it's a different profile, and the engine was still rated a few HP higher, and they seem to run "a wee bit" quicker at the track!

I agree with your logic on the pre-'01 engine and LS6 intake though...........but maybe I'd look into an '00, since they might have come without the EGR, and I've heard that there was a TSB regarding the electrical or dash assembly in '99's, and they've needed to be replaced in a few instances? Otherwise though, I think any year is pretty much a good choice! And if you're gonna mod it anyway, then it doesn't really matter.

 

I have a 99' that I am generally happy with. It doesn't have some of the problems that other have(piston slap, etc...) But it does **** me off sometimes. Little squeaks, vibrations..... Any mods I do on it are always very difficult for some reason. When it says it will take an hour, it takes more like a day, but I think thats just my fault. It's a good car.

Many people would say stay away from the first year of the new design, 98's, because they are more likely to have unsolved problems. This is just a superstition but personally I wouldn't either. I've seen some bad problems that happened to people with 98's(example: stik6shift's 98 blew out the bottom end, needed brand new engine and swap)

 

i have a '98 i got with low miles (19,700) for bluebook
just under 15,000$

problems: slow pass. power window, leak in rear axle, steering seems messed up sorta loose

that's it and my payments are low, low. insurance too after getting married. i don't know the tech stuff sorry, but hope this helps