Rob Petyo

If you are going to achieve gains by letting a specific person port them then I would dyno before and after results.

You're a stick, go with the 4:10 gears, you will feel better.

Water pump (EWP) and Vacuum pump might gain you 15- 20

vpshockwave

I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the water pump. I've never heard of upgrading the vacuum pump before though. Can you explain how that helps? I don't know much about the vacuum system.

chaase

I wouldn't bother with the electric water pump. If you have an under drive pulley and it is spinning the alternator then you may end up with a problem. I would definitely jump to 3.90 or 4.10 rear gear. Aside from that, big power is coming from bigger cubes.

vpshockwave

Well the car is already getting some work done so I'm getting it done while it's cracked open. Currently don't have the finances to change the diff gears as I've been focusing on the engine. It'll come eventually though.

chaase

I edited my post. Make sure if you have an under drive pulley and it is turning alternator you don't run into problems with the new electrical load. I am also leery about the failure mode of an electric water pump but that is too late.

robz

Lightweight tires and rims
Lightweight clutch
Custom cam ( I have one for sale NIB) with high rpm springs
Lightweight brakes
3.90 gears will add to fun factor with your m12
Have Tony Mamo port the 102/102
Pull some weight out of the car and it will go faster.

racebum

most commonly used in race cars. vacuum pumps reduce the positive crankcase pressure which in turns nets you more hp. another benefit is the reduction in oil burning at high rpm

probably not the best use of dollars if you just street drive and hop on it from time to time. you'll be able to make more power than the tires can handle conventionally

i think someone said this earlier, but, for what you're doing. a supercharger really is the best bang for the buck. rather than doing an entire combo you simply buy a blower and headers, done

chaase

I am not sure if it was mentioned but a light weight fly wheel to reduce parasitic losses.

LoneStarFRC

Based on your comments and goals, one thing I would do is ditch the idea of using the FAST 102 and a 102 mm throttle body. With your particular parts/cam selection that is mucho overkill for a stock cube LS engine.

Your ported 85 mm TB, along with the Z06 manifold is plenty capable of supporting the mods you're choosing. Use that $1200 to $1500 for a McLeod RST double disk clutch and have money left over for other things.

Tony @ Mamo Motorsports

That is the information pipeline called the Internet talking right there....and Im sure you meant well with your post sharing information you likely read, but that is more of a wives tale created by the guys that dont want to spend the extra money on the manifold in an effort to justify not purchasing it....real world results would prove otherwise more times than not.

A properly ported FAST 102 in front of a high flowing set of heads (which always pays you the most dividends with a manifold swap because the stock manifold then represents an even greater restriction) is worth a solid 25 RWHP even in a stock cube application with a conservative camshaft. While its not an inexpensive mod by any stretch, it adds measurably to power output and also offers a ton more part throttle response as well. In total, the mod feels like you picked up twice what the dyno shows you because torque gets a nice bump.....horsepower gets a nice bump, and the responsiveness of the engine gets a nice bump......from the drivers seat all these things add up to an upgrade that is almost a prerequisite if you have already committed financially to a great set of heads.

Speaking of heads, OP.....if you don't own the AFR 210's yet you should look into my most recent design that I'm marketing under my own Mamo Motorsports brand. Call it a 3rd revision to the AFR if you like (my newest port design is CNC ported in an AFR casting), but either way have a look at my new 220 head.....I designed it specifically for the 5.7 and 6.0 liter crowd. There is an informative thread with more info if you take the time to search under my new screen name or simply type MMS 220 into the search bar.

Guys.....the FAST 102 is NOT overkill on a stock 346.....this isn't an old school ride where you had to worry about too large a carb (which wouldn't atomize fuel as well). You cant have too much air....getting more in and out is the primary target of all our modding endeavors.....and the fuel injectors cover the fuel atomization concerns. With its better plenum and runner design a FAST 102 is a much better extension of the intake port (a ported version even better doubling the gains from the swap if handled properly)....because no matter how good that intake port is, if you place a restrictive stock intake in front of it you have limited your potential a great deal.

If you cant afford one at the time you handle the heads install save it for the next round of mods but it should be clearly the next thing you install once you have committed to a better set of cylinder heads.

-Tony

vpshockwave

Thanks for the info Tony. You've pretty much stated why I'm going the route I am whereas many of the guys in this thread is telling me to go FI even though I specifically started this topic to figure out future steps while keeping the engine NA. I've already got the AFR 210s, so I can't do much about changing those but thanks for that. I have the FAST 102 already as well but eventually I will probably get it ported for a bit extra umph. You do that don't you? I've seen your name thrown around a lot in regards to quality intake/head porting.

Tony @ Mamo Motorsports

I think most would agree I am the "source" for the FAST manifold porting.....I pioneered that whole deal back in 2005 when shops and pretty much everyone else said it was unnecessary (the flowbench and the dyno thought otherwise!)

I'm pretty sure no one has ported as many FAST intakes as I have nor invested the R&D time I have in those manifolds (alot of this in an effort to help compliment the heads I design).

When your ready Im your man....shoot me an email or just pick up the phone.....contact info in my sig below!

Cheers,
Tony

vpshockwave

Awesome! Once I get her back and assess where I'm at performance wise I'll decide where I want to go, but porting the 102 will definitely be near the top of the list.

Thanks!

LoneStarFRC

Is it OK to ask how much you would charge for porting a FAST 102 for an LS7? What kind of turn around time?

Tony @ Mamo Motorsports

I would need more specifics (new or used etc.)

Lets take it to email so we keep the OP's thread on track

mamomotorsports@yahoo.com

LoneStarFRC

Done

vpshockwave

I got my car back from LG with my new goodies. Anthony got me tuned and dynoed @ 473/421. I made a short video with a little bit of revving just so I could compare the exhaust note to when it had stock heads. It is somewhat tamer now, but the throttle response definitely feels better and I feel it pulls quicker. It was a blast to drive home

Overall very happy! They gave me a couple pointers on where to see some gains while keeping it NA so I'm going to start making me a list

Cheesecake 07

Great numbers!

ZZ06

OP, like mentioned, either gears (id go 3.73, 3.90's maybe a bit much if you hit the highway a lot), or some giggle juice. Don't worry about what some say, its your car. Build what you want the way you want it and enjoy. I got a 418ci and im still on the stock trans and diff with **** tires. Will be ok for a while driving on the street. When it breaks, ill upgrade the diff n trans. I built mine purely for fun and the street

vpshockwave

Yeah 3.90 or higher might be a bit much for when I hit the highway. I'll probably go with the 3.73.