Hi,What kind of software performance upgrade would you recommend for me?Corvette C5, automatic transmission. I want the engine and transmission to be completely fine, but the performance to be as good as possible

 

Without changing any hardware it's already tuned from the factory.
Every change is a compromise. If you want more of something you're going to get less of something else.

Probably the biggest improvement available is the skill of the driver.

 

If you want performance get a cam, heads and maybe a gear. This is where more HP is found then have it tuned.

Chips snd air filters with out a turbo or superchargers do little.

 

I’m happy to take your advice.Which camshaft would you recommend?

 

Depends on what you have and want. Look at set ups guys have here and might call Summit Racing or Brian Tooley racing.

They can best match what will fit your expectations. Aldo tell you what parts you will need to do the job.

Cams are not cam fits all. Give the specs on the car and what you want to gain. They will give options.

Check the web for LS builds and how they work. Many are on Dynos do you see the gains.

You need to do sone home work vs just getting a cam number.

As for heads there are a number of good ones. Check them and see what fits the cam and budget best.

 

Who is going to do your tune? Have you discussed this build with someone who will tune for you? The best heads and cam won't do much without a good tune to go with. You say you want the trans and engine to be "completely fine", what does that mean? You add power, you will increase the possibility of issues related to more performance.

How many miles on the car?
What rear end ratio?
Do you have service records for it?

I'd want to make sure the car was in decent shape before I started throwing money at it!

 

It’s a standard C5.
It’s not a Z06.

Year 2001
It has 58,700 miles on it.

I’m not aware of any previous modifications from the former owner.

I haven’t discussed this with anyone yet. I’m writing here as an initial inquiry.

I was in contact with someone named Chuck, but then I found bad reviews about him.

I want to add more power, but in a way that won’t damage the engine or transmission — in other words, performance upgrades that have been tested by others and proven to be safe.

 

No such thing unless you do the work yourself. Anytime somebody touch the engine there is the question of attention to detail. A dirty finger print in the wrong spot or missed PCV measurement is all it takes to ruin the engine.

If you actually know what you are doing its possible to roughly double the power of almost any engine using forced induction without adding significant wear. For an engine in 02-07 from Chevrolet It would look something like,
~82lb/min compressor, 1000CC injectors, iridium-8 cold ngk never touched by human skin, Sterile In-tank ~340LPH running baseline 38psi fuel pressure w/ PWM depending on heat output & environment, Re-wired large gauge fuel pump electrical/relays 60amps+, 5/16" factory diameter fuel lines, reference regulator underhood, crankcase pressure measured 1.5"Hg to 2.5"Hg at wide open throttle, 3 to 6 CFM PCV crankcase flow rate at cruise via 1995 supra twin turbo PCV valve, ATI Damper / Pinned balancer if not turbo, Offroad or OEM style paper air filtering to 1-2uM, 36x3x12 Intercooler for ~550-620rwhp gasoline, 411 style 2002-2005ECU on HPtuners or a Haltech, Slow ramp, light spring & low lift cam like TFS30602001 + PAC1218 cam/spring with no human skin contact, factory gaskets & factory bolts per service manual, maintain 195-215*F coolant and 202-218*F oil temp, 112*F max IAT with E10 93 octane

You do it like that and it will last as long as the factory engine. Problem is most people including mechanics and large shops will not deliver this and have no idea what some of it even means, and even if they could you wouldn't want to pay the fee for doing it and there is a good chance of contamination.

Either do it yourself or leave it alone imo. Or find someone as myself who is a doctor of engineering and 25 years setting up vehicles for success in daily driver environments and copy from their work exactly, you can read my build thread to find the logic and process behind these details I listed for the most part.

 

Change your rear gears, you have an automatic transmission that was not built to handle big horsepower for long. If you have 273 rear gears change them 342's and the car will be completely different with no harm to engine or transmission,
its the best improvement for a C5 with an automatic transmission.

 

The best advice no offense anyone here is speak to people who sell or build LS engines and they can outline a complete safe package that is proven to work.

Like I stated Brian Tooley Racing. It takes all the guess work out and you know for sure who you are dealing with and their experience.

 

I would argue that building an engine upgraded prevents from learning what would have killed a stock engine.

 

Moved to C5 Scan and Tune.