If you still have the factory manifold make this next...
Suggestions needed for good cheap performance mods!
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 2,182
Likes: 473
From: Rockland County NY
2020 C5 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2016 C5 of the Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '12, '14
Suggestions needed for good cheap performance mods!
Hi All,
I've got a 2000 C5 that I've been slowly modding. I've upgraded the sway bars, shocks, springs, exhaust, and intake. I've been building up a strong collection of tools and I was wondering if anyone could recommend some inexpensive performance mods that would make good weekend projects? I love working on the car, but I want to make my projects purposeful. Thanks for your help!!
I've got a 2000 C5 that I've been slowly modding. I've upgraded the sway bars, shocks, springs, exhaust, and intake. I've been building up a strong collection of tools and I was wondering if anyone could recommend some inexpensive performance mods that would make good weekend projects? I love working on the car, but I want to make my projects purposeful. Thanks for your help!!
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 852
Likes: 3
From: Mobile Alabama
Hi All,
I've got a 2000 C5 that I've been slowly modding. I've upgraded the sway bars, shocks, springs, exhaust, and intake. I've been building up a strong collection of tools and I was wondering if anyone could recommend some inexpensive performance mods that would make good weekend projects? I love working on the car, but I want to make my projects purposeful. Thanks for your help!!
I've got a 2000 C5 that I've been slowly modding. I've upgraded the sway bars, shocks, springs, exhaust, and intake. I've been building up a strong collection of tools and I was wondering if anyone could recommend some inexpensive performance mods that would make good weekend projects? I love working on the car, but I want to make my projects purposeful. Thanks for your help!!
25% underdrive pully gains about 10 HP.Did you change your intake manifold or air filter housing? Was your exhaust change catback or headers?
The easiest changes without going into the engine would be cold air induction with Vararam being the one to add the most HP (supposedly).
Next would be longtube headers with XSPower, Texas Speed, and OBX being the least expensive. I went with XSPower with high flow cats.
With a good tune you could probably get around 50 more HP with these 3 changes.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 2,902
Likes: 21
From: Oak Hill Virginia
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 2,182
Likes: 473
From: Rockland County NY
2020 C5 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2016 C5 of the Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '12, '14
25% underdrive pully gains about 10 HP.Did you change your intake manifold or air filter housing? Was your exhaust change catback or headers?
The easiest changes without going into the engine would be cold air induction with Vararam being the one to add the most HP (supposedly).
Next would be longtube headers with XSPower, Texas Speed, and OBX being the least expensive. I went with XSPower with high flow cats.
With a good tune you could probably get around 50 more HP with these 3 changes.
Also, the only exhaust change I made was switching over to the Z06 ti exhaust. I'm curious what I can do with the cats, given that Illinois emission standards are pretty strict. Has anyone else had to deal with this issues? Headers sound like a good idea and would make for a great winter project. Thanks for your advice!
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 2,182
Likes: 473
From: Rockland County NY
2020 C5 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2016 C5 of the Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '12, '14
Tech Contributor
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 2,902
Likes: 21
From: Oak Hill Virginia
No need to swap TB's for an LS6 intake; and the install is pretty straightforward. A few coolant lines, electrical connectors and a fuel line to disconnect then it's eight bolts and it lifts out. There's a good writeup on LS1tech. Make sure you use some painters tape to hold the two rear bolts up (you'll see what I mean when you get there, the cowl is in the way of taking them out while the manifold is in place).
Post a WTB ad for an LS6 manifold in the parts section on here and you should be able to get one in your price range...
IMHO, I wouldn't do the U/D pulley unless you're going to do something else (cam swap) while you're in there. You have to remove the steering rack to do this and it is a huge pita just for a U/D pulley.
Post a WTB ad for an LS6 manifold in the parts section on here and you should be able to get one in your price range...
IMHO, I wouldn't do the U/D pulley unless you're going to do something else (cam swap) while you're in there. You have to remove the steering rack to do this and it is a huge pita just for a U/D pulley.
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Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,375
Likes: 328
From: CA.
St. Jude Donor '13-'14-'15
LS6 intake absolutely----easy 10-12 RWHP and more responsive--NO NEED for a larger T-Body--but you can get yours profesionally ported by someone (Shaner) and pick up another 5-8 RWHP
You didn't say if your car is a automatic----If it is----The best mod you can EVER get is a stall converter !!!!! Something streetable in the 2600-3000 range--It will make your car 3-5 tenths quicker in the 1/4 mile --without touching a single thing on your engine !!!
I use and have had great success with Phoenix Transmissions--They have their own line of converters and they are bulit well without the "corvette tax" overpricing of the popular Yanks and Vigilantes
You didn't say if your car is a automatic----If it is----The best mod you can EVER get is a stall converter !!!!! Something streetable in the 2600-3000 range--It will make your car 3-5 tenths quicker in the 1/4 mile --without touching a single thing on your engine !!!
I use and have had great success with Phoenix Transmissions--They have their own line of converters and they are bulit well without the "corvette tax" overpricing of the popular Yanks and Vigilantes
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 2,182
Likes: 473
From: Rockland County NY
2020 C5 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2016 C5 of the Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '12, '14
LS6 intake absolutely----easy 10-12 RWHP and more responsive--NO NEED for a larger T-Body--but you can get yours profesionally ported by someone (Shaner) and pick up another 5-8 RWHP
You didn't say if your car is a automatic----If it is----The best mod you can EVER get is a stall converter !!!!! Something streetable in the 2600-3000 range--It will make your car 3-5 tenths quicker in the 1/4 mile --without touching a single thing on your engine !!!
I use and have had great success with Phoenix Transmissions--They have their own line of converters and they are bulit well without the "corvette tax" overpricing of the popular Yanks and Vigilantes
You didn't say if your car is a automatic----If it is----The best mod you can EVER get is a stall converter !!!!! Something streetable in the 2600-3000 range--It will make your car 3-5 tenths quicker in the 1/4 mile --without touching a single thing on your engine !!!
I use and have had great success with Phoenix Transmissions--They have their own line of converters and they are bulit well without the "corvette tax" overpricing of the popular Yanks and Vigilantes
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 2,182
Likes: 473
From: Rockland County NY
2020 C5 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2016 C5 of the Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '12, '14
I bought the car 4 years ago and was using it as a daily driver at the time. I live in downtown Chicago so the auto made sense for the traffic-riddled commute to work. I'm at the point now where it's a weekend ride and the manual will be so much more fun
Tech Contributor
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 2,902
Likes: 21
From: Oak Hill Virginia
Will you be doing the work yourself or having a shop do it?
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 2,182
Likes: 473
From: Rockland County NY
2020 C5 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2016 C5 of the Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '12, '14
I would be making this a winter project. I've got a friend who is a certified mechanic and he will be helping me out on this one.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,375
Likes: 328
From: CA.
St. Jude Donor '13-'14-'15
I agree with leaving it an automatic---
With the tuning software availiable these days--and I don't mean any handheld---but EFILIVE or HP---You can make your car bark the tires if you want from 1-2 and 2-3 shiftpoints---Or just tune the trans to provide "crisp firm" parts friendly shifts on all the shift points
From a drag racing point of veiw------Do you ever watch "PINKS" on TV ?? If you do you'll see that 99% of the cars running 9.00 or slower all use automatics !!!! Not manual trannys--- Reason being if your serious about having a quick car like in a drag race--A manual trans is just not consistant enough to wins rounds in bracket racing--Too many variables involved--mostly the driver--It's too hard to make the car do the exact same thing on every run---I don't care if you're Mario Andretti--No one can drive shift your car better than that computer !!!!
With the tuning software availiable these days--and I don't mean any handheld---but EFILIVE or HP---You can make your car bark the tires if you want from 1-2 and 2-3 shiftpoints---Or just tune the trans to provide "crisp firm" parts friendly shifts on all the shift points
From a drag racing point of veiw------Do you ever watch "PINKS" on TV ?? If you do you'll see that 99% of the cars running 9.00 or slower all use automatics !!!! Not manual trannys--- Reason being if your serious about having a quick car like in a drag race--A manual trans is just not consistant enough to wins rounds in bracket racing--Too many variables involved--mostly the driver--It's too hard to make the car do the exact same thing on every run---I don't care if you're Mario Andretti--No one can drive shift your car better than that computer !!!!
