Hi everyone, my name is Adam; this is my first posting ever, so go easy on me . I have been a big camaro fan for a while now and have future plans to get a 95 or newer z28 (SS would be nice, but pricey for me). If everything goes as planned, i'll have enough money this summer to buy a "broken in" Z. Seeing the market like it is, I'm hoping to pick up a 95' for $6K or less and have about $3k for engine & suspension mods. Basically, I am looking to get the most in terms of performance for my money, but aren't we all?! I want more than enought power to beat my brother's 94 BMW M3 (300+ HP). I have been researching basically any performance mod. I am interested in the obvious: coild air intake, exhaust system, etc. My problem is picking out a new cam, intake manifold, and heads. I was interested in LT4 hot cam kit, and vortec intake manifold w/vortec heads. Any suggestions? Bang for the buck? Also, when would headers be necessary, they are pricey and i've heard they are a pain to install. I am hoping to achieve 350HP and 400+ lb. ft. torque @ flywheel. Thanks!

 

When you learn more about the LT1 engine used in the 95 Z28, you will find that the LT1 is a "Gen 2" small block Chevy. As a result, you can not easilly swap some parts from a "Gen 1" SBC, like the Vortec heads. The LT1's "reverse flow cooling" results in a different coolant passage layout for the heads, so a set of Gen 1 heads will not bolt on a Gen 2/LT1 block without a conversion, involving plugging up some of the passages and drilling some new ones.

And, while the Vortec heads are a good upgrade for the Gen 1 engines, they are really no better than the heads that will come stock on your LT1. Best way to increase HP is to look into porting your stock LT1 heads. They can be pushed close to 300CFM by a few of our "Supporting Vendors". Look in particular at the services offered by Lloyd Elliott at eportworks.com, for example.

The rest of your plan is sound.... cold air intake and a good set of headers and a full catback are a good start. Scan through the posts here using the "search" feature to find recommendations on the parts that will offer you the most bang for the buck.

 

Sounds like your goals are easily achievable. First off, with the LT1 engine (93-97 Camaro/Firebird V8), the heads will not interchange with older small block stuff. The Vortec heads you were talking about will not work. The good news is that the LT1 has reasonably good heads from the factory, at the time better than most, if not all of the previous small block offerings. You say that you want 350 hp and 400 ft lbs at the flywheel, and I can say that your horsepower target is definately achievable with only bolt ons and a cam swap (with stock untouched heads). If you pick the right parts, you could get around 350 hp at the wheels with bolt ons, good cam and still not touching the heads.

You need to do an intake (they are all mostly the same, I'd do K&N or Moroso), an exhaust, then headers. After this you are ready to swap the cam, and depending on how far you want to get into it, the heads as well.

 

if you shop carefully you can pick up a fourth gen f body for a bit less than $6k. 93-97's are basically the same. once you get it visit eportworks.com and get the basic bolt ons especially headers and kiss that bmw goodbye. 350hp @ the flywheel is easy.

 

my god, I thought this post was about me.

- Z28WannaB

 

Just get a good set of tires and a nice nitrous kit, and kick your brother's butt. Other then that enjoy the car. Kevin

 

No, you are not that special

Some new 1.6 roller rockers and valve springs are a good upgrade, and required if you do a cam swap. If you want to be daring they make 1.7's. But everyones favorite seems to be Comp Cams 1.6 Pro Magnum roller rockers. You should be able to find some LT1 cars (93-97) a lot cheaper than $6k. I found mine for $3k...yet it did have 177k on the odometer . Shop around, do not be afraid to put stuff off and wait for a better price, stuff will always go back on the market (like headers if you are buying stuff used). For example; I found my SLP cold air intake at a junkyard and they wanted $5 bucks. Ebay is your friend too. You can find a lot of parts there. Do a lot of reading, and I mean A LOT! There are little things to pick up on that could save you time and money. One small thing being that 93-95 f-bodies had hardened pushrods from the factory, 96-97 did not. Or that 97 heads have less mass to them so they cannot be ported as much...or so I have heard. Just little stuff like that.

Also...I was told 400 ft/lbs was not really possible with a 350 unless I wanted to go with a REALLY wild cam. What does everyone else think? Typically I have been seeing cars with more horsepower than torque.

ShibbyZ

 

Thanks for the ideas everyone! I investigated eportworks.com and thought that the LE1 head/cam combo package would be the best. It says i need 30lb injectors and a 52mm throttle body. Are these both absoulutely necessary? With these upgrades, the site claimed 375-400rwHP. Is this an accurate statement? With headers, good cat-back exhaust and K&N CAI what would be the estimated HP and torque?
PS. about the headers, i hear the long tubes are easier to install, but may not meet emmision standards. Does anybody know if they will meet NY standards?

 

The rwHP quoted on the LE site are 370-390 for the LE1 package. And as the notes indicate, that is for M6 cars. You are going to see 5% less (~20rwHP less) with an A4, if that's what you end up with.

The injectors are recommended for a reason. You will max out a stock 24# injector running that much HP. You need at least a 28# or 30# injector. You would probably see 10HP less with the stock 48mm TB, and you are going to see maybe 10-15HP less with cats, and without the long tubes.

Not sure why long tubes would be easier to install, because the Y-pipe becomes an issue. The ready-made ones are often a poor fitup, and then you need to figure out where to go with the connection to the cat-back.

By definition, long tube headers can NOT be emissions legal. They require relocation of the cats, and that is a violation of Federal law. Whether they will pass your local inspection depends on how strict they are. Some place just check to make sure the cats are there, and that the tailpipe emisisons meet the limits. Others, if they do a strict visual, can fail you for the LT's.

 

ur brother has a 94 ///m3 with over 300hp??? what all does he have done


because the e36 ///m3 only came with 240hp and 225 lb.tq. SOOOO as u sit u should be fine.

my room mate has a 95 z with no cats and a cat-back and when i raced him a while back (when all i had was a cut-out) i beat him by 4 cars from 30-145

---went from a roll because he wanted too

oh ya, they didnt import the e36 m3 until 1994 but they sold them as 1995 models (i believe thats correct)


with all that said, i would tell u to get LT's, ORY, cut-out, CAI, tune, 3:73's, stall, weight reduction, RR's, cam..............plus look on the forums for good quality used stuff (you can cuts lots of mod costs there)

all that can be done for less than $3000..............700 for lt's and ORY + plugs & wires.....160 for cai, 350 for gears and install, 150 for tune, 50 for cut-out installed, and about $600 for RR's/cam and other valvetrain items

soo right there u are well below your mark, which will allow u new tires so you can hook. With the proper cam choice i would guess u could be makin anywhere between 330whp - 360whp............WAY more than enough to kill the M


all numbers were just thrown together, things can be had for much less if u know where to find them

 

You should have no prob finding an LT1 Z for cheap. I found my '94 with 63k miles last May, had been covered and stored in a garage every winter, one-owner car. Paid well less than $6k for it. Just look around, don't get too excited and jump at the first one you see. You can easily find a clean, well-maintained Z for the $ you're lookin' to spend. As for the gettin' to 350hp, well, I haven't had the funds for that yet but from what I've learned on this site, it should be a breeze to make that kind of power. Good luck with your search, and I don't think that old M3 should give you any trouble.

 

350 hp at the flywheel is right around 300hp at the wheels. very easy to achieve, and you don't need cam or heads to do it.

since you're in NY with emissions you may be sacrificing some power to the "emissions gods" to stay legal.

but i would say some decent shorty headers with a high flow cat, and a catback. combine that with some of the other bolt ons like 1.6 rockers and an electric waterpump and you'll be at or over 300hp to the wheels.

addition of a small and still emissions freindly cam like the hotcam would boost you close to 330rwhp.

with traction you should waste that BMW

 

SFC's, Headers, Catback, CAI, hotcam, etc.

Also try to get a Z with 3.23's if you get a auto... Look for a "1" on the shifter.

 

I paid 4,900 for the formula knowing that I had to change the egr. and dont over look the drive train because a good set of tires and some gears could really help you out.

 

Lower control arm relocation brackets can really help your launch, for less than 100 bucks. 0.1 second improvements have been posted here.