RKPsk8er

I decided I want more performance out of my 94z lt1 and first I want to get the heads ported and polished. What all does this include? new cam? How much can I expect to pay for it? As of now, I have a cold air intake and a flowmaster exhaust system. What mods should I be doing first to get more HP?
my uncle told me to get the heads ported and polished and then a performance chip. Any ideas?

ajlew9428

First off, A head/cam package is a great power upgrade.What you get, depends on how much you want to spend. There are numerous companies that port Lt1 heads, but if you want full advantage of them powerwise, a cam is a must. If you just bolt up a set of ported heads, you may get 20 hp. 30 at most. If you add a cam, then you will get aroun 100 or more horsepower, depending on how high you want to go. I would look into lloyd elliot packages. I think on eportworks.com. He has 3 different heads, and cam packages.starting at $1200. Also if you get heads, LT headers, and free flowong exhaust are a must. It would also be very helpful to get a tune. I would recommend pcmforless. A lot of guys seem to be happy with them, and im told they get pretty close on the LE (Lloyd elliot) packages. If you do installation yourself, and dont freshen anything up(dont buy new wp,opti,etc)
You will probably spend a long weekend, plus you really need to know your stuff.Plus head, cam package. Shops usually charge between 1 and 2 grand for that install with you supplying the parts. If you want more info, there are all kinds of threads having to do with heads, cams on this site. If you want to do this, then I suggest you read up, and familiarize yourself a lot more on this subject

FryedClutch

honestly man before i went and started diggin through the motor start basic
you got the right idea with intake and exhaust
now get some more bolt on stuff
start out with a 1le or trickflow intake elbow
then you can do a bigger throttle body
then maybe some headers
is your car an auto or a six speed ??
if its an auto a stall converter would make a huge difference some say up to half a second
and you can also get an aftermarket tranny cooler
and a electronic shift improver
if its a six speed throw a short shifter on there

these are all things you will want to have before you start pulling the heads tohave them worked and getting a cam

plus they are easy and will improve your mechanical skills so you wont have to pay a shop thousands to install performance parts for you\

and i do agree keep reading up on this board this is honestly where i learned most of the stuff about LT1's i went form 3 years ago to being excited i could change sparkplugs myself (sheltered child lol) to now where i i thought it would be a good idea to buy a Lt1 some one ripped into and never finished (and im almost done putting it back together)
so keep readin man you will be able to find the best stuff to buy and the best places to buy it plus how to install everything
just SEARCH

RKPsk8er

okay well my uncle is a mechanic and he has a lot of connections. he said if I give him my heads, he could have them ported and polished for about 350. would I need a new cam if I did this?

also, my car is a M6 and I already have a short throw shifter

wrd1972

Make sure that whoever does the work knows LT1 heads inside and out. $350.00 sounds too cheap for the type of work required. Good head porting starts at a grand. You get what you pay for too.

Javier97Z28

After your uncle's "connection" is done with your car.. it will probably be slower.

Javier97Z28

Eh, before I get called a dick.. I'll expound a bit.

Your car is still lacking basic boltons and even gears.

You need headers and gears before you should even think about a heads/cam package.

A heads/cam package done right with all supporting modifications is about a $3k project.

After tuning, timing set, springs, rockers, degreeing kit, gaskets, pushrods, injectors, etc, you're looking at a good bit of $ over just "heads and cam"

Look into Lloyd Elliot at eportworks.com if you're really serious, I can already tell your uncle has no clue what this all entails...

RKPsk8er

Lets not jump to assumptions about my uncle. he built my cousins LT1 motor for him, had the heads ported and polished and added a cam and it is the fastest street car I've ever been in. He isn't just some small garage mechanic. He has a lot of cerifications and a big dealership job.

Sweetred95ta

That doesn't mean it's fast. Your jumping off in the deep end here. Just take it easy and get all of the bolt on stuff first. I was plenty happy with my bolt on car turning 13.3's w/out a stall or suspension mods, and full weight and through a flowmaster. Bolt ons might be all you need. Seriously, read up on the board at how many people are having problems with head/cam motors and ask yourself if you want to get into that. I didn't have any problems with mine, but it's the luck of the draw. I did have a pretty mild setup though. It takes a lot more work than you think. It's certainly not just slap them on and go, especially if you want the full potential of what you're paying for. Just out of curiousity, what did your cousin's heads flow and what cam did he go with?

Javier97Z28

Sorry, certifications and dealership jobs don't mean much to me in the realms of the "go fast" world

93redBirdMan

you may think 13.0 is fast, we have no idea. Take his car to the track and see what he runs. If his "fast" car runs anywhere better than a 12.5 then we'll be somewhat impressed. I can garauntee tho, if you do it right and go with lloyd, 12.5 will be your worst run of the night and you'll be spankin that other "heads/cam" LT1

scrmnws6

$3000 sounds about right. I bought the LE2 package w/ported intake, then all the supporting mods which were another $1400-$1500, so figure in $4000 for everything you need.

RKPsk8er

I'll try to get some lap times and such. how much horsepower should I gain with a mild port and polish and cam?

Steve0

Anywhere from 60-100hp, depending on cam size, assuming that you already have an exhaust system with headers.

Things that will affect what size cam you will want are emmissions, drivability and powerband. The bigger you go with the cam shaft, the lesser chance you have of passing emissions, your rougher your car will idle and the morem itll surge under light throttle. Also, the bigger the cam, the higher youll have to rev the car to reach its full potential.

RKPsk8er

I don't have headers. just flowmaster in the back. I do have to pass emissions and it needs to be somewhat streetable. im not trying to make a full blown race car. I have to drive it everyday but I want it to be faster than it is.