Hey guys I'm building my 383 and I'm gonna put in a hotcam. I KNOW...I KNOW...., "Why such a small cam?" It's gonna be and everyday street car okay hahahahah. Anyway, How does it run? As far a lopey wise. Is there a noticable difference in the sound from a stock 350 cam?

 

I have it in a 355 with LT4 heads. Its a little lopey not as much as other cams I have heard but it has a slight lope. I have noticed that different cars and tunes makes a difference.

 

I know you've probably been told many times but please go bigger with your 383! In my 350 with a mail order tune its a little lopey but not much. On stock programming it sounded But after programming you can hardly tell. Im sure someone who is not use to the car could tell a bit more but I can't hardly notice it. It drives about as tame as the stock cam; just more power up top. Please go bigger, I wish I did and im not even a 383!

Aaron

 

Definately think about something bigger. My little brother just put a LT4 Hot cam in his 96 Z. He said the very same things, "It is a daily driver and I don't want anything too crazy." Three months later, he is kicking himself in his *** because he didn't get something bigger. Now he is about to get the Comp Cams XE 230-236.

 

I love my hotcam. It just pulls and pulls in the higher rev ranges, and sure it may not make a bazillion horsepower up top but it feels like a nice even torque and hp curve. Feels like a streamroller speeding up with just a little gas, it really keeps the low end but adds up top. WIth a 3200 stall and 3.73's it will be suwheeeet.

 

You can run low 12's with a hotcam kit. Spray, and you can see low 11's possibley high 10's. IMO, thats pretty damn fast for a cam "that is so small". As for the lope, depends on where you have it idled. Ive had my car idling a little high and you couldnt even tell it had a bigger cam in it (sleeper). But now I dropped the idle down and it sounds healthy, not too crazy, but healthy.

Benji

 

I am also a happy camper with my HC. Same as everyone else, this is my daily driver. heck, I even take my 4 yo son to daycare in my car and put about 300 miles/week on the car. I don't need to have an uncomfortable car on the hwy, bumper to bumper. I still get about 17-18 mpg (kind of heavy foot), but had plenty enough pull up top. Go ask the 03' Cobra vert that took a jump at 60 and was passed at about 100.

Kyle

 

Yea, the HOTcam rocks. It's sad that everytime someone posts a question about it, you get people saying "go bigger"..... Does it really not register to you people that to get max power out of the HOTcam you need some headwork?? Power is made in the cam and the heads, and if you only add a cam you are shorting yourself some power. Yes, if you add the HOTcam to stock heads you'll only see 35-40 rwhp, but once you open up the heads you'll be surprised.

I've got some homeported heads, bigger valves etc. and with the HOTcam I still have decent low end power, I can lug the car up hills at 1500 rpm in OD if I want, and it pulls like a freight train up top. The idle sounds really sweet, I had so many compliments on it before I got the car tuned. Now that the idle is raised up it's more smooth, but you can still tell that something is there. However, if you want that nice lopey idle you can just leave the RPM set low.

 

Oh and incidentally, if you do decide to go with it, get tuning by pcmforless...Bryan really knows how to tune the hotcam, not worth getting a dyno tune for the extra 4 horsepower or whatever. At least that's how I feel.

 

thanks guys I appreciate the input. Yeah I have an everyday car and use it for work. You guys wouldn't believe what I use it for hahahah. Email me and I'll tell ya. Anyway the 383 should be a lot of power already and I think the hotcam will be erfect. Not big just fine.

 

I have the hotcam in my Z and it is okay. I do wish I would of went bigger just b/c the top end sort of sucks. If you aren't running 11.5's or quicker around here, you aren't a challenge. There is only one way to run 11.5's with the hotcam.......juice and lots of it.


SJS- you really won't add hp b/c of the 383, but you will more torque. Boring and stroking won't net you more than 10 hp. You will get the hp from the heads and cam that you use.