I'm looking to do a mod or two on my bone stock 2001 Camaro with a 3800 5-speed. I think the car has 3.23 gears in back even though it has the Y87 package.

I would like something that helps getting the car off the line a little better, as I think is is a little slow. I would like to know the #1 and #2 mods out there that give the most noticable feel of power increase out of the 3800 engine.

Thanks!

Flare65

 

TTT!

Come on people! After all the talk about modding in this group, nobody can tell me which mods give the most performance??

 

I think with Y87 5-speeds get 3.23s and autos get 3.42s.

I'd say get yourself a SLP CAI, Whisper Lid, K&N, and catback. ALl those mods work together to compliment eachother, so they make a good starting set. Plus, any modding you do afterwards will only benefit from the increased induction.

Some will disagree but it can't hurt to drop a 160 degree stat in there. The engine will run much cooler on the highway, at the very least.

The only thing I can suggest specifically for getting out of the hole faster is numerically higher gears in the rear.

Hope this helps.

 

Yes, you have 3:23 gears, the 5-speed always comes with that setup whether or not you have Y87. You also, however, have LSD and a tighter steering ratio.
First mod, I recommend a Whisper Lid. I had my car actually ON a dyno when I installed my Lid. Before, rwhp was 151 (yeah, I know, my car's one of the slower ones.) After, with a foam core air cleaner, horsepower jumped to 160 (about what it should have been stock, allowing for power loss through my automatic tranny).
Still, a gain of 9 rwhp (about 11 at the crank) is not bad for one little mod that took ten minutes and a screwdriver to install. Later I added the SLP cold air intake, a metal duct that goes under the airbox and brings in a LOT more air than the stock opening; it works well with the Lid, which of course replaces the top of the airbox.
Along with intake, you should work on exhaust. More air coming in, you need to get more air going OUT. A friend of mine added headers and a stock TA muffler to his car and knocked half a second off his quarter mile...of course, I didn't get nearly as good results myself. I also put in a 3" mandrel bent I-pipe and a high flow cat. If you don't want to do it piecemeal like I did, look into the various catback systems. One of the magazines did a test on the B&B Triflow on an otherwise stock 3.8, and registered a 13 rwhp improvement. Of course, the B&B is also the most expensive model, followed by the Borla, but many people say the cheaper systems are just as good.
Intake and exhaust are the very most basic basics. After that, well you know the expression: "speed costs money; how fast do you want to go?"

 

I put a wisper lid on mine after having it a month and it felt like it had more throtle responce + it was a little louder.
I would put a exhaust on it but I havent found anything that works.