In November, I got my 1993 Z28. I am now addicted! The low 14 second improvement over high 16s in my old camaro were nice, for a minute.... So now I wanna start modding. The engine has 116,000 miles on it, so I'm wondering if it's even smart to work on this engine. Should I just keep this engine in it, and find a decent shortblock to play with on the side? Or, should I just work with what I've got. I'm 18, and things happen slowly on somethign as expensive as an engine, but I'd like to do this, nothing else to waste my money on :-D Any info is greatly appreciated.

PS: Also, what should I do for starters. I was thinking that I was going to do some ignition stuff (wires, ignition, plugs, and coil). What do you more experienced car guys think if I was to start a new engine.

 

i'll tell you one thing bro...speed costs lots of money.

bolt-ons arent that expensive, but when u get to internals, it starts adding up REAL fast.

i've put about $16,000 on my powertrain and suspension.


at about 160,000 miles, my car started breaking down...fuel pump, oil pump, alternator, starter, radiator....they all went the way of the do-do.


if u have enough money for boltons, then go ahead and get some bigger gears, some headers, ls1 front calipers, some suspension work (subframe connectors).

if u have even more money, then get into the motor, but dont do it if u have less than at least $5000. once u do internal work, u have to build other parts of the car up for that power...


good luck.

 

alright, thanks, like I said, id do this slowly and on the side, step by step.
I know itll cost a lot, but not all at once.

 

I would suggest getting some 4.10 gears, 52mm TB, LT headers, and and a chip burnt with a good tune. That should wake your car up.

 

for a stock car, the tb is a waste of money. i like the other suggestions though.

 

the throttle body can eb ported to 52 for like 150, so thats not really too hard, although i do agree, it wouldnt do too much for my stock car.

Im loving the long tube suggestion, but.....i live in california...will the hooker long tubes pass smog? If not, will any........?

 

ttt

 

Here's what I would regard as very cost effective steps if your main interest is increasing acceleration.

1. New plugs and wires if they haven't been changed recently. The OEM wires are fine, BTW (I use them, though I do change them every year).
2. Cold air intake
3. Headers and a cat-back system. There are CARB legal headers (since you are in CA).
4. Gears: 3.73's are a nice choice for an M6
5. 1.6 Roller rockers (possibly new valvesprings)

That's about it as far as bolt-ons. The next step would be a cam (and new valvesprings). A shifter would make driving more enjoyable, but won't make you appreciably faster. If you plan to go to the track and drag race, sticky tires are a huge plus.

Rich Krause

 

If you wanna get the most bang for the buck there are some things you should do first.
I'd suggest
Good brand new pugs
Good hi performance wires I run Accel Hi Temps
Good ignition system w/ coil. I think the stock ignition in LT1's arent that great stock. The coil wire/coil tends to arc sometimes. I use a Accel 300+ racing ignition w/ coil. Works great, It just keeps on pulling.
Next I would do LT4 knock module, Even though you may not need it, It will help fight against false knock retard which I believe can be a LT1's worst nightmare in some setups.
Throttle body bypass. This is basically free and will free up about 6 more rwhp.
from there
CAI
cutout