JAvery20

Hi Everyone,

I upgraded to a c6 this summer and the mod itch is coming back. Car is a 2008 3lt A6. I was wondering what bolt on's are popular and what feedback you guys may have?

I am looking at vararam and headers to start, but wondering what other options I could take after. Are the LSX intakes even worth it on the LS3? been out of the loop longer than I would like.

Goal is to go fast w/o making this car a pain to drive, ya know the usual

Homer3D

Supercharger. One mod to give you all the power you will ever need.

bigwoofersnet

I enjoyed the ported TB quite a bit. Definitely helped throttle response a lot, it's cheap at $ 150 bucks.

H0t

I have a C6 Z06 and those are the first two or so mods I made/am making. I would also recommend a 160* thermostat. Camshaft/kit and install is also close to top of the line headers/x pipe as well if you want to go that route. However as previously mentioned there's plenty of bolt on supercharger kits to give you well over 500rwhp and it will drive/idle well too.

Boomer111

I went with headers/tune, Vararam and 4:10 gearing in my LS3 MN6.

It did wake up the car a lot, with zero driving issues other than a very slight surge with the Vararam installed. I eventually removed the CAI.

FI is the best bang for the buck. Consider the headers and Corsa Sports along with the 4:10 rear end and tune ran near $6,500 installed.

The 4:10's with the MN6 shows dramatic improvement in the fun department.

If substantial power is the main goal go FI. But a LS3 with headers and gears is a blast to drive with a manual transmission.

Turbo6TA

Obviously, a supercharger will give you the very biggest gains, but if your not ready for that:

1. Headers with cats and tune (about a 40 RWHP gain)

2. 3,000 - 3,200 stall torque converter (you will be amazed at how much harder the car launches)

3. Chuck CoW "Throttle Booster" (no more power at WOT, but excellent throttle response during normal everyday driving)

4. Cam change


BTW ... The LS3 has a pretty good flowing intake manifold already. If your using the stock cam, not really worth the price of admission.

An aftermarket air filter assembly (CAI) is ok ... but in reality, not much of a real power gain over the OEM unit. Your OEM LS3 air filter assembly is the same as used on the LS7 / Z06. If it can support the airflow requirements of a 505 HP LS7, it can certainly support the airflow of you stock or slightly modified LS3.

Enjoy!

.

0Chuck CoW

Thank you Ron!

And...YES, you ARE THE MAN!

Looking forward to coming back to Florida and some more nice tropical drinks with you and the crew!

Thanks!
Chuck CoW

HOXXOH

Knowing a little more about your goals would help to point you in a direction. Just wanting to go fast is too ambiguous. Do you want to play at Milan or Norwalk or are you happy cruising the Trail and Reynolds Rd? Do you have a budget limit? Are you planning to sell the car in a couple years or keep it for a longer time?

There's more questions, but those are good for starters.

Boomer111

Cam changes bring in possible driving issues as well as increased maintenance. To do a factory type tune with a cam change is no short ordeal. Bigger the cam the more power and the better the tune is required.

If doing all the bolt on mods including the cam might as well go FI.

More power and can be smog legal if this is a worry.

wnt2gofst

As above what are goals. Staying N/A or going FI later?

If N/A then full Exhuast, CAI. UDP, RR, FAST, 102 TB, Cam, stall, Heads,gears and be done. Depending on setup of cam and heads can make close to mid 500whp. This is my plan then later a 429 LS3 stroker.

If FI exhaust then blower. Last to gain few ponies Fast set up. Built engine later.

When you get a stall already have made up mind what route taking if FI or N/A. cause it will determine stall speed, how loose it will be. In my blown 5.0 i ran a circle D 3800 2c. N/a people run 3500-5000 5c. And go with Circle D. More expensive then most but well worth it.

JAvery20

Thanks for all the great feedback so far, this really does help.

This was not on my radar. Did a little research, did you go w/ the Vmax? 150 sounds worth it just for the throttle response.

Chuck's COW sounds awesome, I am just too far away.

Or the Alexis 500 . I am up in Michigan now, need to update my location. Main goal of this car is an enjoyable, mean street car. I do occasionally visit the track, but I enjoy the street environment more. My last corvette on a 150 shot ran mid 11's in the mid 120's on street tires, so it was easily duplicated on the streets. I like to cruise around then, when needed, mash it and forget about it. Can't wait to see what the LS3 has in it.

Regarding length of ownership, I can see myself in this car for at least 2-3 years. I kept my c5 for 10 years, but wow do I love the c7. Wish i had the crystal ball to answer that one.

For the cam guys, I have never had a cammed or h/c car. They sure look and sound fun. How do these feel on a stock converter and what extra maintentece do you encounter? Would you cam your car again?

The ECS Novi kit looks like the dream setup, but its expensive and I want to see what else is out there first.

Keep the advice coming!

John harlen

Don't bother with a ported throttle body. That's more of something you do once you run out of things to spend money on. There are far more effective ways to spend/save that money. It depends on your budget, though. You could bolt on a supercharger with low boost, and you'll notice a nice increase in power. You'll be paying a large sum of money for this.

You could go with headers and a ported ls3 intake, both of which will make an actual difference. Then tune it and you will get increased throttle response, as well. No gimmicks needed. This is not quite as much money and will get you a decent boost.

You could also just take it to a good tuner who will street and dyno tune it. This will pick up power and make the throttle response better.

HOXXOH

Yeah, I noticed you moved to MI real quick.

So with all considered, I'd take the initial hit for the SC, because you'll get the power without the loss of any other virtues. You'll also be able to easily revert back to stock to sell the car and the SC too, if the C7 bug bites hard.

JAvery20

I'll always be an Ohio guy The ECS kit sounds amazing. Whatever happens, I know Dr. Phil will be tuning my setup. I would like to hear from the cam guys. I have been around a lot of n20, sc, and turbo'd cars, but somewhat of a newb when it comes to cracking into the internals like that.

0Chuck CoW

You're never too far away for me.

If you currently have an engine tune you like, you can send me your pcm for a quick turn around

and if you want to ditch the tune you have (or you don't have one) I can send you an exchange PCM cloned perfectly for

your car with the tune and CoW BOOSTER! in it.

As I said, you're never too far away and with our AutoCal device you can be anywhere in the world with internet access.

This week alone I tuned vehicles in 3 different countries thru the mail and internet.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call any time.

Stay TUNED!
Chuck CoW

johnny3

The FI everyone keeps referring to, does that mean forced induction? Anyone have a list of all the abrieviations & their meanings?

wnt2gofst

Yes its forced induction.