I have owned my 96 SS (a4) for a about 2 months now and I just took it to the track last weekend. I was a little dissapointed with the results. I had a best of 14.2 @ 97, but the majority of my runs were in the 14.4, 14.5 @ 95-96 range. I was hoping for a little faster. ( my 96 neon runs 15.0 @ 91 consistently, so i was really hoping for better, it's barely faster!)

Wheel spin wasn't a problem and my 60' times were in the 2.0-2.1 range.

The car is all stock. What should I be running time wise?

Two things I noticed:
1: car runs pretty warm in staging lanes. I have gathered that this is normal for LT1's and I know the fix. My question is, does running temp affect power output significantly??

2: the Factory stall converter really blows. Any suggestions?

If this is what its supposed to run, then what mods should I look at first to put me into the mid to high 13's? How about low 13's?

Any help would be appreciated!

thanks,
Paul

 

Low 14's for your car are pretty acceptable. Your 60' times are about right... I think my car cut about the same (2.2-2.3) when it was still an auto.

As far as mods, first try the basic bolt-ons. The SLP catback that comes on the SS is nothing to write home about... marginal power gains if any. Here's a few suggestions for low-cost, installs-in-a-couple-hours mods:

Cold Air Intake (CAI)
Catback exhaust (avoid Flowmaster, sounds better than it performs)
3.42 or 3.73 gears

I'm not too sure about what stall converter you should get. One thing that I would recommend is a set of drag radials (Nitto, BFG) that might help you in the traction department. Aftermarket lower control arms / relocation brackets along with panhard rod and a torque arm can help you a lot.

Hope this helps.

 

I have a 96 SS as well, but mines a M6, I run consistant at 14.5@98mph with 2.3 -2.4 60'

I've never seen a neon run that fast EVER, fastest one I have seen was that new turbo one, and it only blasted a 15.1
Mind you my track is at about 3000'

But I would say your times are about right for a stock 96 LT1.

for your temps turn the hot air on max, it keeps my temps down, but a fan switch and ceramic coated headers would help.

 

How warm the engine is running makes a huge difference in performance. Get a 160 themostat and try some water wetter. That will help keep the car alot cooler. Im pretty sure low 14's are average for stock Lt1's, but the reason you could be running slower it because of the engine being hot. To get into the mid-high 13's, cold air intake, throttle body bypass, headers, catback exaust, cutout..the usual boltons. Then. for low 13's, new cam, roller rockers, valve springs, etc. and port and polished heads. im not familiar with a stall converter because i have a manual, but alot of guys are using differnt ones. DO a search on here, you can come up with a million topics on each of these mods.

 

Times aren't bad. What is done to your neon? My dad has a stock 99 w/ the 2.0L (bigger engine option lol go figure) and he went like 18 flat at 80 or something horrible like that.

As for stall...get a vigi or yank 2800-3000 stall and you'll drop an easy half second w/ traction.

 

Get your driven down right and you should be able to cut low 13's w/ that 323 rear...14.2 isnt all that bad though

 

14.5 for an LT1 is pretty slow unless he's higher above sea level. Considering he has 2.0-2.1 60' time which is pretty good for a stock car. When I got my car the first time I went to the track it was hott as hell, my engine temp was around 210. I ran a 14.5@95mph. I later found out why my car was running so slow because about a week later my fuel pump crapped out. Got a new fuel pump and new plug wires came back to the track ran consistant 13.7-13.8's. Cooled the car off and ran the time in the sig as my last run.

Depending on the mileage of the car you might want to give it a tune up first. Most LT1 are getting old and have been driven pretty hard so they need a little freshening up. I don't see why a stock LT1 would not pull sub 14 sec times given some traction.

 

My home track is at 500ft, so we get lots of nice dense air

I have a buddy with a new Turbo neon who's done couple things to it, and runs 13.2's on slicks.

My neon is a 96 DOHC 5spd
mods are:
Cold air intake
56mm throttle body
underdrive pulley
long tube race header w/no cat
2.5 in piping, Dynomax superturbo muffler.
Suspension wise it has mopar spings.

It's a fun little rollerskate, but I wanted something rear wheel drive, so I bought my SS!

I love it! It's really enjoyable to drive and it get's lots of looks,but I was hoping for 13's

I also read something about the knock sensor being over sensitive? can anyone tell me about this??

 

The knock module in the LT1 is sensitive so when you start putting in headers, cams, etc. it can read vibrations as knocks. So, to solve the problem you can get an LT4 knock module which is alot less sensitive and wont read false knocks. it is like a 40 dollar or so part with shipping. You probably dont need it till you get headers, but it doesnt hurt having it. To install just pop out the stock knock module in the PCM, and then just pop the new one it..takes total of 5 min.

 

The car only has 66k on it.

I was having no traction problems what so ever. I floored it, and it hooked and went

The trans shifts ok and scratches 2nd every time

A tune up would probably be a good idea. The spark plugs look like a pain in the posterior to get at, any tips? What plugs should I use?

 

Changing the plugs and wires in the biggest PITA. Took hours and hours to put on just new wires. I dont know if plugs would be as hard, but changing the spark plug wires was difficult. if they do a tune-up they can do the spark plugs for you. i would have them do this just because it sucks having to do them yourself.

 

Also, do these cars have any sort of self diagnostic system that will display a code for you without a scanner? For example, my Neon has a certain key sequence ( on-off-on-off-on) that will make the check engine light blink codes at you, and then you can look them up.

Thanks everyone for your responses!

 

First time I ran my car I got a 15.1 @ 94. I wasn't happy about it, but I also had a friend with me and bad elevation.

 

I completely disagree if he has the "2 on the left" SLP exhaust. Not only does it sound great, but it is very efficient.
As for the times....
Low 14's sound about right. Doing a complete tune up would be a great idea.

 

hey man dont feel bad, I have a 1997 WS6 with headers , flowmaster 3 inch catback, hypertech,160therm. and I only get a 14.1-14.2 consistant with a best of 14.0and i and useually around 98-99 mph. yea you bet I am pretty p/oD