I want another mod, but I don't have the money for a procharger. If I could, I would. Honestly, I want it so bad I might start saving up for it when I get debt free and buy a house, It's a goal I am very close to achieving. (priorities)

2004 Base model.
SS headers
100 Shot of nitrous
Tune
Vararam Intake
3" exhaust (catless)
Borla catback
Plugs (gapped for N20)
Wires
This weekend I have an appointment for Continental Extreme Contact 02's.

That's pretty much it.

Conventional wisdom says to put in a cam, but I hated my 2004 GTO after I cammed it. I want to sneak through stop and go traffic unnoticed. The constant motion at a stop was not fun ( might be autistic, seriously, I am in the middle of a diagnosis, not a joke)

I have an N2MB WOT box on order. I *LOVED* it in my E85 Big Wheel Stage 3 n-SRT-4. (fastest car I ever owned)

Gears have mixed reviews. I thought about it, but some of the negative reviews really turned me of.

If this was your car, what would you do next? I feel like heads and a FAST intake don't make mathematical sense in the cost-benefit analysis.

 

I'd say stop spending un stuff which doesn't put you toward your goal. Wot box is one.

Keep an eye out for used blower kits. I actually made money buying one, driving it daily for a few years, and then reselling it.

But yes, a blower is the best of all averages. On a stock h/c engine it is hard to beat.

 

What I would do is dump the NOS.

I would then get better heads and do a better but milder cam If you don’t want the auction action. Too often people put in cams that are for higher RPM like this and they would do better on the street with a low to mid range cam. Add an intake manifold.

Same on gearing. 3:42 to 3:73 is the best for general daily driving. Get over that and it can be a chore,

Match the parts. Make sure they all work together. Too often people over fuel, they over gear and they over cam. Then they fail to upgrade drive line parts, radiators and other things that keep an engine alive or drivable.

Superchargers is an easy add and will work with most things.

NOS is a risk. Lose an injector or fuel pressure and it will do damage.also it needs refilled. I was never a fan of it. Again I also had too many customers put too much in and mess things up too.

The key is match all you do. See some of the builds pro’s do and see their results and copy them if you are unsure what to do.

My one buddy would not listen and ended up with a Camaro paperweight as it never ran right and broke often.

 

If the setup is tuned right, you should be able to lose enrichment fuel for the nitrous and not worry about losing a piston. Too many people tune them fat with not enough timing taken out and then when THEY have fuel issue, they hurt the motor.

I once forgot to plug the power for my stand alone back in and made a hit. Car felt neutered. Realized what happened and all was good.

It is definitely not as simple as a blower or turbo. More maintenance to keep up on and paying attention to how everything is setup. If you are dedicated, then go for it. If you are lazy, maybe go a different route.

 

Look you can set NOS up right but like many things many fail to.. I sell performance parts and I make a lot of money off NOS because everyone thinks they have it mastered.

It is a choice many can make but I generally don't recommend it as if the blow it is their choice not mine. People make many other mistakes but most are more forgiving. NOS you really need to know and keep on it. Most people are not that responsible. The weak spot is the people not the NOS.

The mistakes we see are endless. Most start when they watch a movie. LOL!

 

I think Tusc and hyperv6 nailed, don't waste hard earned money on stuff and match everything you do to acheive an end goal. Very solid advice.

 

I agree. Do your homework, talk to some reputable builders and then start modding.

 

Look at it as like baking cookies. The formula for a good working engine is an engine where everything works together. The engine parts are like a recipe. Adding too much sugar or salt can kill the combination.

You get the air flow of the intake and heads to match the cam. Match the converter and gear to work with the rpm range.

If you put in a cam but no intake or heads then it will not get the added air. Make sure you have a good street compression but not too much. Find the cam RPM range and match the parts to it as well the recommended gearing. It is amazing how this works when the parts are in harmony.

So many people put too much cam and carb in most engines. They also do too much compression at times. Others will spend a fortune on headers and have no need for them as they never increased the air flowing in.

Getting it right really makes a difference. Most see gains but don't realize what they left on the table to a part that is missing or one that is wrong.

 

Speaking of sanity...
You don't need a house. They are a money grabbing proposition. A house robs most of ones hard earned car money that should be spent on cool car stuff. Instead of buying a house or education , think 🤔 far ahead.... to stuff y'all MUST have for a corvette like Insurance, tires for those 20 inch (black?) wheels, a blower, stereo equipment configured in the trunk ...stuff like that.... But first, get a better paying job or go to school... a possible alternative to what yer thinkin.

 

What gears are you running now? Three pedals or two? If you’re running a slush box then a gear change would be extremely cost effective, and remain beneficial no matter what other changes you make.

 

I am talking with someone now who is removing his supercharger. I told him I want to buy it. I tried to buy one ;last year but there were too many red flags on the sellers posts so I refrained.

As far as the WOTbox is concerned, I love it. I have had them on two cars now and I think they're a blast.

I think I will sell the Nitrous kit if I can get this SC kit. For the gears, I think I would need to drive someones car that has gears for me to make that decision. I can't imagine the difference well enough to make a decision.

 

Agreed. When I put my 100 shot pills in the AFR's were spot on. Nitrous Express really did a good job of putting the kit together.

 

Gears help as these cars were geared for MPG. Yet they are still quick.

Be aware of the SC condition if used. How many miles and it may not hurt to have it rebuilt if unsure.

There are two types of SC. Those that have their own oil and some run off the engine oil. Never buy one that came off a blown engine that ran on the engine oil. Often the SC is also damaged. The units that run on their own oil are generally protected and hold up better.

It sounds like the SC may be your best choice as it requires less parts. To build the engine you need to commit to the whole deal to get all the results.

 

If you're going to go supercharged, most avoid changing the gears for traction issues as well as engine and blower rpm function. Ultimately, too, adding gears may mean an additional shift if drag racing and that means lost time on a stick.

Keep the topic going. Definitely as you need maintenance pieces come back and we can steer you towards the end goal to the best of our ability.

 

With just headers, intake, and tune, it will be faster, but definitely not as fast if your spraying nos. You will be spraying all the time. Just get the supercharger.

 

I don't need a house. I need a garage, lol. I'm paying $7.00/hr to rent a bay, and they are only open Saturday and Sunday. FML.

I work two jobs. I retire from the military next year and then start my labor union apprenticeship. They pay very well. I think I've got some solid plans. I'm actually a certified financial counselor. I love talking about money.
Stock gears. 6 Speed manual. I'm not sure what a slush box is. Is that the shaker contraption Parker uses to mine gold in Alaska?

That's good advice thank you. The car the SC is coming off is running. I spoke with the guy over the phone and he sent me lots of pictures. I am giving the money to a friend to meet the seller at a shipping store so that I have a little protection from getting scammed. So far everything seems legit and honest.

Thank you, and I appreciate your encouragement. I have a plan right now, see below.

I never planned on moving to a city without a nitrous refill place so Im really looking forward to going SC's.

So I am buying a supercharger this week or the next. It's a roots style supercharger. It comes with everything needed to install from the seller. The only "exception" is that he needs the injectors for a week'ish to get his car to a tuner and back before shipping them to me. Do you think I should have them flow tested and cleaned?

Luckily the seller has all the documentation and installation directions. I was reading some of the directions and I understand I need to pin the crank, so I bought a crank pin kit. Someone suggested replacing the oil pump, timing chain and gears while I'm in there. I understand I have to remove the steering rack for this. I am worried about introducing air into a hydraulic line (if I have to disconnect one).

I know I'll need a high rise hood. It would be great to find one that's already colormatched, but all I can find online is black and white.

I have HPTuners. I need to buy a windows laptop since my MacOS update disabled Parallels. I also need to find a good email tuner. I'll gladly take recommendations.

What I don't know is:
Will the stock fuel pump be enough to support the blower and injectors?
What else have I not considered?
I know I need an oil catch can because my throttle body was super gross last week when I cleaned it, and I rarely drive this car. (I'm about to drive it much more)
How much will it cost me to get the high rise hood painted?
Do these aftermarket high rise hoods fit well?
Do these aftermarket high rise hoods come with the hood insulation underneath?

What else?

I have an appointment for Continental Extreme Contact 02's this weekend.