85 performance for the money
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 18
Likes: 0
85 performance for the money
what do you think the best performance parts for engine is worth the money. i am thinking intake and runner,new injector and custom prom. am i in the right direction. what about throttle body and exhaust.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,001
Likes: 1
From: sd
From experience I would make sure that your tune is up to snuff. New wires, plugs, fuel filter, all fluids changed, just to make sure that there are no performance gaps in what you have already. For my 85 the best performance mod I made in the beginning was dual exhaust and headers. Look in the archive for the threads that have pretty much beaten a dead horse on what header is better. I like what I have but others have their own opinions. Add a K&N filter to your mix and do a search on all the free mods that you can do to help your engine breath. I would NOT do a custom prom until you have upgraded to a larger cam and heads. Enjoy what you have now because when your in as deep as I am there is no going back. Could have had my used C5 by now but I know the ins and outs of this car like the back of my hand. Check the tech tips section as well for some tips on things that you can do for cheap or no money. Good luck and welcome to the world of Corvette. I hope your pockets are DEEP!!!!! 
Race Director
Joined: Jun 1999
Posts: 14,924
Likes: 9
From: Merritt Ils Fl
Heads,exhaust,cam, chip then the rest. In the performance world the 85 heads make less than satsfactory boat anchors. The exhaust is not far behind. With good heads and exhaust you can go up in cam profile. I do not think there are many folks out there that are deep into chips for the 85 but maybe a few. 85 has a one year ECM that did not get the attention the 86-89 ECM /chips did.
Drifting
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 1,445
Likes: 0
From: Robert Lee Texas
St. Jude Donor '05-'06
Originally Posted by morodder
what do you think the best performance parts for engine is worth the money. i am thinking intake and runner,new injector and custom prom. am i in the right direction. what about throttle body and exhaust.
Welcome to the club
Header's, intake, & a custom chip.
That should make you hungry.....
Former Vendor
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 7,204
Likes: 6
From: St Marys PA
My best suggestion is to sit down and figure out what your end goal in for the car - $$ is usually the limiting factor. Where do you want to be with it after the mods. This may require things to be done in stages.
Get a good feeling for where you want to be, then find a combination already out there that has achieved those goals. Put together a gameplan and persue it matching that combo as close as possible.
This not only saves you lots of money in the long run, but much further ensures success will be achieved.
Only problem is if your like the rest of us, once that goal is achieved you will find yourself hungry for MORE.
Its a sickness so either jump in with both feet, or walk away while you can. 
Get a good feeling for where you want to be, then find a combination already out there that has achieved those goals. Put together a gameplan and persue it matching that combo as close as possible.
This not only saves you lots of money in the long run, but much further ensures success will be achieved.
Only problem is if your like the rest of us, once that goal is achieved you will find yourself hungry for MORE.
Its a sickness so either jump in with both feet, or walk away while you can.
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 1,259
Likes: 0
From: bakersfield cali
i agree with golden eye vet,
how much money do you have to spend on mods? this will give us a better idea of what parts are going to give the best results.
starting with the exhaust is your best bet.
how much money do you have to spend on mods? this will give us a better idea of what parts are going to give the best results.
starting with the exhaust is your best bet.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 6,341
Likes: 1
From: Shelton CT
Come son how radical you wanna go.
Set yourself a budget, and than add 2% on top of it for last-second expenses that usually creep up.
If you shop wisely as I have, you could upgrade your car's parts for little or not money .
Just FYI, on my stock Z51, I picked up almost a second off my 1/4mile (with a slightly slipping tranny) by adding : superram intake, SLP ram air system, BPP airpump elim kit, A/C bypass belt, 52mm TBody, cut-back electrode sparkplugs, LPE Longtube 1 5/8" headers, High Flow catalytic converter, Targa Mufflers, and started programming my own custom chips.
I shopped wisely, sold old parts not needed anymore, and spent only about 600 out of pocket..
However.. Ski_down_it is right.. Once I got the low 13's I wanted more, so added heads, ported everything, got me to low 12's, and now I added a supercharger..
And still I've only spent about 2K on everything.. (well.. Plus $2k on a new tranny I needed last year (But that's not really a performance ugrade).. )
Set yourself a budget, and than add 2% on top of it for last-second expenses that usually creep up.
If you shop wisely as I have, you could upgrade your car's parts for little or not money .
Just FYI, on my stock Z51, I picked up almost a second off my 1/4mile (with a slightly slipping tranny) by adding : superram intake, SLP ram air system, BPP airpump elim kit, A/C bypass belt, 52mm TBody, cut-back electrode sparkplugs, LPE Longtube 1 5/8" headers, High Flow catalytic converter, Targa Mufflers, and started programming my own custom chips.
I shopped wisely, sold old parts not needed anymore, and spent only about 600 out of pocket..
However.. Ski_down_it is right.. Once I got the low 13's I wanted more, so added heads, ported everything, got me to low 12's, and now I added a supercharger..
And still I've only spent about 2K on everything.. (well.. Plus $2k on a new tranny I needed last year (But that's not really a performance ugrade)..
)
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Former Vendor
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 7,204
Likes: 6
From: St Marys PA
The converter is also one of the last things that people look at and in all my racing and experience this can be one of the largest "gainers".
My 350 setup lost .75sec with a converter change. My 434 this past year gained over .3sec with a change to the existing converter to make it more efficient.
Its unfortunately one of the last things people tend to look at, but should be included with things like intake and head changes.
Just something to think about...Now if you have a manual...forget the entire post..it was just a general speaking comment.
My 350 setup lost .75sec with a converter change. My 434 this past year gained over .3sec with a change to the existing converter to make it more efficient.
Its unfortunately one of the last things people tend to look at, but should be included with things like intake and head changes.
Just something to think about...Now if you have a manual...forget the entire post..it was just a general speaking comment.
Race Director
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 10,749
Likes: 41
Originally Posted by morodder
what do you think the best performance parts for engine is worth the money. i am thinking intake and runner,new injector and custom prom. am i in the right direction. what about throttle body and exhaust.
if u want performance, dont buy an 85.
Pro
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 641
Likes: 3
From: Long Island NY
Originally Posted by 88BlackZ-51
if u want performance, dont buy an 85.
Racer
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 469
Likes: 0
From: Clifton NJ
Originally Posted by morodder
thanks guys i will look in to it see what happens thanks alot
But the follow up by ART, had me in stitches. And all this happened during a post I was putting together.
I have an 85 check out some of the mods I did.
HOOT
Also refer to 85VETTE the guy I bought my power effects from Jim in Pittsburgh. Hes a great guy with an 85 and runs 11"s maybey 10"s now.
Former Vendor
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 7,204
Likes: 6
From: St Marys PA
85s are actually one of the best platforms (ECM wise) to work with. They have a "bare bones" type system that does not have a lot of junk (emissions) related code in the ECMs programming.
I describe it as, you program it to do X it does X. I call it the Forest Gump of ECMs. tell it to run, it runs till you tell it to stop. There are no variations in the code that will apply "gradients" to the request you give it like later model ECMs do.
There are SEVERAL very strong running 85 cars here with times in the deep 10s and 11s.
Also another little tid-bit - 85s came with forged pistons stock.
Not the junk ones the later years came with.
I am sure each year had its +s and -s.
I describe it as, you program it to do X it does X. I call it the Forest Gump of ECMs. tell it to run, it runs till you tell it to stop. There are no variations in the code that will apply "gradients" to the request you give it like later model ECMs do.
There are SEVERAL very strong running 85 cars here with times in the deep 10s and 11s.
Also another little tid-bit - 85s came with forged pistons stock.
Not the junk ones the later years came with. I am sure each year had its +s and -s.
What's up with that comment?
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 62,146
Likes: 1,730
From: Athens AL
C7 of the Year - Unmodified Finalist 2021
C4 of Year Finalist (performance mods) 2019
Spend some time researching things individually, the Search feature at the top of the page is your friend, learn to use it before asking questions. Everything has been asked before.
Make out a plan with set goals, either in ET or power numbers, and we'll tell you what you need to get there.
Do not spend money on a chip until after you are either done with mods totally, or have changed the cam.
85 already has a 2026rpm TC, so if you have an automatic, dont worry about changing that yet. Start with the exhaust. After you have set your goals, then think about what intake setup you want. My site has some details.
Make out a plan with set goals, either in ET or power numbers, and we'll tell you what you need to get there.
Do not spend money on a chip until after you are either done with mods totally, or have changed the cam.
85 already has a 2026rpm TC, so if you have an automatic, dont worry about changing that yet. Start with the exhaust. After you have set your goals, then think about what intake setup you want. My site has some details.
Melting Slicks
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 3,270
Likes: 26
From: Winchester VA
Cruise-In V Veteran
Follow the advice to make a clear plan. Keep in mind my experience:
The car had a cam when I bought it, it dynoed 230rwhp, that is what it's rated at the crank from the factory, so about a 15% power increase with the cam alone. (don't know specs)
I added a Miniram and picked up 4hp. The super ram may have yielded better results but I would still say that the intake is not the place to START. Depending on your goal it may be needed in the future but in my experience the heads/exhaust/cam are likely to provide better results, again, to a point.
And Jesse is right about the 85 ecm, maybe not the fastest but I think the most forgiving. I put my 408 in and forgot to unclamp the return fuel line when I started it, it started and ran with 70psi through 36# injectors. Fixed that little glitch and it ran mid 12's at 115 with a stock chip and plugs that were 3/8" too short. (AFR takes a longer plug than stock).
OH..and the money you save with buying an 85 vs say an 88, is worth alot more power in the aftermarket than comes with a newer L98. i.e. Buy set of 180cc AFR and a cam with the 2K you save and go smoke a few 86+'s.
The car had a cam when I bought it, it dynoed 230rwhp, that is what it's rated at the crank from the factory, so about a 15% power increase with the cam alone. (don't know specs)
I added a Miniram and picked up 4hp. The super ram may have yielded better results but I would still say that the intake is not the place to START. Depending on your goal it may be needed in the future but in my experience the heads/exhaust/cam are likely to provide better results, again, to a point.
And Jesse is right about the 85 ecm, maybe not the fastest but I think the most forgiving. I put my 408 in and forgot to unclamp the return fuel line when I started it, it started and ran with 70psi through 36# injectors. Fixed that little glitch and it ran mid 12's at 115 with a stock chip and plugs that were 3/8" too short. (AFR takes a longer plug than stock).
OH..and the money you save with buying an 85 vs say an 88, is worth alot more power in the aftermarket than comes with a newer L98. i.e. Buy set of 180cc AFR and a cam with the 2K you save and go smoke a few 86+'s.
Former Vendor
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 7,204
Likes: 6
From: St Marys PA
Originally Posted by vader86
Spend some time researching things individually, the Search feature at the top of the page is your friend, learn to use it before asking questions. Everything has been asked before.
Make out a plan with set goals, either in ET or power numbers, and we'll tell you what you need to get there.
Do not spend money on a chip until after you are either done with mods totally, or have changed the cam.
85 already has a 2026rpm TC, so if you have an automatic, dont worry about changing that yet. Start with the exhaust. After you have set your goals, then think about what intake setup you want. My site has some details.
Make out a plan with set goals, either in ET or power numbers, and we'll tell you what you need to get there.
Do not spend money on a chip until after you are either done with mods totally, or have changed the cam.
85 already has a 2026rpm TC, so if you have an automatic, dont worry about changing that yet. Start with the exhaust. After you have set your goals, then think about what intake setup you want. My site has some details.
As I said, the converter on both of my setups either made or broke the setup. Its just something I see people overlooking here and wanted to mention it.
Race Director
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 10,749
Likes: 41
Originally Posted by artvette
Why would you say something like that? This is just the type of remark that pushes people out of here. I'm sure there are 85's out there that will spank you like a four year old at KMart.
i am sure there are.....in fact, there are tons of them running around with different motors then what the car came with from the factory.