I know this is probably rehashing info, but if I bolted on every piece of performance parts advertised in Vette catalogs, I would have over 400hp. I'm lucky to have picked up 35. What is the maximum gain from a gutted cat and a good pair of Dynomax, Magnafow, or Flowmasters? (no headers). I am new and appreciate real life data. Thanks!

 

Had some long tube headers with it,, you may get 30hp out of it :cheers:

 

One needs to understand people make money selling you parts and their ads are not always truthful or supported with data...but they get your money anyway! I have a good friend with a 96 LT4 who purchased a special chip for his ECM. He was at a dyno shop one day and just decided to see just what his $300 purchased....and he got a 3 HP gain with the golded chip. My math says $100 per HP...what a deal! Get to know some reliable people with Vetts and listen to what they tell you. Words of wisdon for today!
SAM

 

:iagree:

Check here before you buy or do something. Most of the mods out there have been tried before and there'll be at least a handful of members that can give some real world feedback.

Another thing to realize is that the manufacturer of a part doesn't necessarily have to tell you what the product was tested on or the conditions. When a spark plug maker tells you that you'll gain 20hp by switching to their plug, they may have tested a heavily modified motor with burned up plugs as a baseline.

Chris

 

Yep, the catch words to look for are "up to". Leaves a lot of lea way for the advertiser,and the big number reels you in. :cry

 

:seeya http://www.madvet.com/shop?frame=1.962
:skep: :skep:


[Modified by 86PACER, 12:47 AM 3/22/2004]

 

There was a time....

....when I believed that our relative low RPM L98's wouldn't benefit from a set of long-tube headers. Then I got the Desktop Dyno 2000 software. It said I'd gain 40HP at 5000 RPM by installing long-tubes with no other changes (fuel and air optimized to take advantage of the extra exhaust flow, of course). I don't know about the 40HP really but I can feel it.

I exchanged emails with a forum member here who said he had EVERY bolt-on accessory possible, from chip to smaller pulleys. From 52mm TB to long-tubes. He stated that he did gain a bunch of horsepower but it was all on the bottom end. His times from his outing at the strip was still in the 13's because it was impossible to hook the car up no matter what tires he used. Keep in mind that when you get rid of one performance bottle-neck in the system, you create another. His big bottle-neck after all those add-ons was the wimpy stock camshaft. Next were the heads.

If he even put a mild after-market cam in his car, it would be like uncorking a bottle and make a big leap in HP.

The bottle-neck can even come full circle. When my engine was rebuilt, I had a CompCam 501-8 roller installed, which is the mildest cam they make for my car and a chip. 3000 miles later I blew both head gaskets when it over-heated so when I had the heads off, I had a friend do some porting on them and the base manifold. 8 hours of grinding aluminum (and he only wanted a case of beer. Now that's a GOOD friend).
I did the plenum and a so-so job of porting on the runners at the same time. Then the AFPR. Then came the 52mm TB, then the headers and guess what?

I'm right back to the cam again as being the bottle neck!

FWIW,

BIG JIM

 

:seeya from Greenwood! :thumbs:

 

I wish I would have known these things before I started "modding" my Grand Prix (4 years ago...). What a waste! I am still taking things off of that car that "should" have produced HP and instead simply add weight! :crazy: