hey guys and gals, i just picked up a 99 c5 6spd. love the car but i want alittle more. id like to be around 450 rwhp. any ideas what i will need.? im sure a CAI and cat back, cam and ls6 intake. do i need headers? can i run stock ls6 heads with a good cam say a ms3 from texas speed ? or do i need aftermaket heads. any help is great.

 

You are going to need all of the above to get to 450rwhp. Just to put it in perspective, I have 2001 Z06 with LT headers no cats, b&b setup out back, cammed, ported TB, UD pulley, lightweight billet flywheel, tranny and diff replaced all with micropolished gears, Vararam CAI, custom tune. Heads are still factory 243's with upgraded springs, etc. all of this and my car only makes 424 rwhp, on a dynojet dyno. Good luck.

 

with everything jmac wrote.

My 2002 A4 coupe dyno'd at just over 400 rwhp after adding LT headers, a CAI, a mild cam, AFR 210 heads and a Z06 exhaust, then a tune. A 6-speed would have made closer to 425-450 rwhp with all of those mods.

You'd need all of the above with a much more aaggressive cam, and possibly either a ported/polished or upgraded (Fast 90?) intake manifold, to get to your 450 rwhp goal.

Take time and research all of this (this forum is the ideal place to do it, too). Price out the individual components, incuding the cost to install if you aren't doing it yourself. If you're on a budget, be sure to look at the C5 parts for sale section, where you might find LT headers, exhausts, and possibly headers.

Then set out a long-term plan, and then set the shorter-term goals that get you towards the long-term (particularly if $$$ is going to be a restraint).

Every 40-50 hp improvement will be satisfying yet not too expensive, at least for a while. And you likely will be tinkering with interior sound upgrades, exterior appearance, suspension, wheel and tire upgrades even as you work to improve your car's engine performance, which in the aggregate can be just as expensive. (Hint: I've spent more on the above list of mods than I spent in purchase price on my car, and I haven't fully addressed the stereo and interior upgrades yet.)

See...nothing to it. Have fun and take your time. Be in this for the long haul. And buy lottery tickets when your budget allows.

The Lizzard

 

Couldn't agree more, it is expensive, but it is also very fun driving and experiencing all the upgrades you do along the way. Or you could just sell it now and save your money. LOL.
Good luck with your car, all I can tell you out of personal experience is that thru different performance mods, you will find the weak links in your vehicle, hence new clutch tranny and diff.

 

Forced induction will likely get you there quicker with less money spent.

Your parts list won't cut it. You're looking at header, aftermarket heads, a FAST intake and a big cam to get those numbers.

Don't forget about the drivetrain upgrades. The easiest way to hold that much power is to just stick C6 parts in it from the torque tube back. Otherwise, you're looking at an upgraded diff and transmission as well as a trans to diff brace and crossing your fingers to keep from breaking the drivetrain. If you spend the ~$4k to upgrade the C5 drivetrain to have all the best parts and break it then you've just spend more than C6 parts would have cost.

 

thanks for all the imput guys. I was thinking of kooks headers high flow cats and borla exhuast. vara ram intake , ls6 intake and ported tb, ms3 cam with ls6 stage 2.5 prc heads . ls7 lifters upgraded oil pump fuel pump and injecters. ls7 clutch and upgaded hydrolics from cartek. (i like the ms3 cam had it in my ta and loved it.) btw JMAC2354, i thought about saying screw it and buying a c6z but i really dig the body lines of the c5 better, pluss who doesnt love pop up lights comon lol

 

Here is what I did.

 

This is fantastic . Love the parts progression and charts . Thanks !!