Brian Tooley stage IV cam ???
08-03-2018, 06:17 AM
#1
Drifting
Thread Starter
Brian Tooley stage IV cam ???
How would drivability (street manors) be with this cam? Found a Z very close to me for sale with this cam. Price is right but if SHE can't drive it, it won't fly.
08-03-2018, 06:58 AM
#2
Melting Slicks
I have BTR4 in my Z and the street manners will completely depend on your tuner. I believe my tuner eliminated 85 - 90% of the surge that this cam will give you. Once you have achieved this the remaining bit of surge is very tolerable.
Also when you go WOT and hit 4000 RPM it will feel like a turbo just kicked in. Mine pulls like a freight train hard right up to 7000 RPM, again with the right tune.
Also when you go WOT and hit 4000 RPM it will feel like a turbo just kicked in. Mine pulls like a freight train hard right up to 7000 RPM, again with the right tune.
08-03-2018, 08:21 AM
#3
Team Owner
BIg cams are not "undriveable" just have to learn how to drive and put up with quirks. SHE can easily drive it, if SHE can keep it over 2000 rpm, learn to shift it at the right time, and just learn to work the clutch in parking lots and low speed. If it has a heavy clutch that could be an issue.
08-03-2018, 11:15 AM
#4
I have this cam in my build, the drivability is as expected with a high HP cam. It bucks and surges mildly around lower RPM's but not as bad as my TSP LS7R cam.. Power is great and makes a ton of torque down low.
08-03-2018, 12:00 PM
#5
Drifting
I have BTR4 in my Z and the street manners will completely depend on your tuner. I believe my tuner eliminated 85 - 90% of the surge that this cam will give you. Once you have achieved this the remaining bit of surge is very tolerable.
Also when you go WOT and hit 4000 RPM it will feel like a turbo just kicked in. Mine pulls like a freight train hard right up to 7000 RPM, again with the right tune.
Also when you go WOT and hit 4000 RPM it will feel like a turbo just kicked in. Mine pulls like a freight train hard right up to 7000 RPM, again with the right tune.
pokerpro is 100% right. Mine surged real bad at first, I pulled timing below 1800 rpm and that smoothed the surge out a whole lot and made it completely driveable at low cruising rpm's. Tuner didnt have a lot of seat time in the car to get it right, he got the driveability right though. Not bad for an hour tuning. I drove mine everyday, rain or shine, traffic and your typical every day driving experiences with this cam and drag radials. I think its real fun to drive a very radical cammed car, so the surge dont bother me at all either, but it is nice to have a smooth driving car.
If it is too much, may I suggest a BTR Stg 3 cam. same power level can be made, just the power band is about 700 rpm lower. driveability is (i know Im gunna catch flack for this), dare i say close to stock. Once tuned correctly.
Here is my High octane Timing Table and look at the green area on the left. That is the cruising area. Im not saying this is the right way to do this, but it worked on my car and it did not run hot and the egt's were ok.
Last edited by v8sten; 08-03-2018 at 12:49 PM.
08-03-2018, 12:33 PM
#6
i recently went from a small Katech cam to the BTR stage 4 myself. Pulls like an animal once you hit 4000 rpms and definitely feels like a turbo car. For those of you that have this cam at what point do you stop feeling the "surge"? If I have load on the engine I don't feel it, but if going down a hill off the gas or maintaining the same throttle it definitely has surging below 2200 to 2300 rpms.
08-03-2018, 12:48 PM
#7
Drifting
i recently went from a small Katech cam to the BTR stage 4 myself. Pulls like an animal once you hit 4000 rpms and definitely feels like a turbo car. For those of you that have this cam at what point do you stop feeling the "surge"? If I have load on the engine I don't feel it, but if going down a hill off the gas or maintaining the same throttle it definitely has surging below 2200 to 2300 rpms.
08-03-2018, 01:55 PM
#8
Team Owner
That's a big cam geared towards top-end powerband. If you don't plan on living in the high RPM range all the time, and this is an around town cruiser; I'd suggest pulling that cam in favor of something far more sensible...like a BTR 2. I do not think your wife would be happy idling through a parking lot with a BTR4.
08-03-2018, 02:20 PM
#9
I wouldn't call a BTR 4 wife friendly but I guess that also depends on your wife
08-03-2018, 07:44 PM
#10
Melting Slicks
Something like a BTR III seems better for regular driving, occasional spouse driving. My wife drove my car with a K501 cam and the VR spotty tune. There's alot of things I miss about the driveability of the medium sized cam.
BTR IV is for people who really don't even need to ask, because they already know what they want, and have a racer mindset. Like "if you have to even ask, then no its probably not for you"
BTR IV is for people who really don't even need to ask, because they already know what they want, and have a racer mindset. Like "if you have to even ask, then no its probably not for you"
08-04-2018, 12:52 AM
#11
Instructor
Something like a BTR III seems better for regular driving, occasional spouse driving. My wife drove my car with a K501 cam and the VR spotty tune. There's alot of things I miss about the driveability of the medium sized cam.
BTR IV is for people who really don't even need to ask, because they already know what they want, and have a racer mindset. Like "if you have to even ask, then no its probably not for you"
BTR IV is for people who really don't even need to ask, because they already know what they want, and have a racer mindset. Like "if you have to even ask, then no its probably not for you"
I actually let me my wife drive he other day and she did just fine (triple disk, etc.). 0-7 mph require riding the clutch, but beyond that it feels Ike a normal car.
YMMV
08-04-2018, 08:42 AM
#13
Melting Slicks
i recently went from a small Katech cam to the BTR stage 4 myself. Pulls like an animal once you hit 4000 rpms and definitely feels like a turbo car. For those of you that have this cam at what point do you stop feeling the "surge"? If I have load on the engine I don't feel it, but if going down a hill off the gas or maintaining the same throttle it definitely has surging below 2200 to 2300 rpms.
08-04-2018, 10:34 AM
#14
I wouldn't put much faith in the responses you get here. You would be better off to just drive the car. I would also ask some pointed questions and thoroughly check out the car. That cam isn't a very wise choice for the majority of ZO6 builds.
08-04-2018, 11:11 PM
#15
Instructor
id just say the 3 and 4 drive just about the same. Doing it again, I’d never go 3. No point, the 4 made more power and torque without any drivability loss that I could perceive (my tuner spent a lot of time on it). *Shrug*
I asked this same question a couple year short ago and went to the 3 based on people’s posts, which I now assume were mostly people who didn’t have either cam.
I agree, the very best advice is to drive a car with the cam you want. Good luck OP
I asked this same question a couple year short ago and went to the 3 based on people’s posts, which I now assume were mostly people who didn’t have either cam.
I agree, the very best advice is to drive a car with the cam you want. Good luck OP
08-04-2018, 11:53 PM
#16
Melting Slicks
Tuning makes a big difference. My solid roller cam drove nicer than my K501, but that's because of Dave Steck's tuning, not because of the cams.
Same tuning, apples to apples, those cams will drive differently. Guarantee that if someone had that experiment go on the moment the stepped out of a 4 car and into a 3 car they would remark how it drives better. How much "better" is subjective.
Same tuning, apples to apples, those cams will drive differently. Guarantee that if someone had that experiment go on the moment the stepped out of a 4 car and into a 3 car they would remark how it drives better. How much "better" is subjective.
08-05-2018, 12:48 AM
#17
Like everyone else said, depends on the tuner but mine is not bad at all no surging at all 70mph in 6th gear. Does take some getting used to but again depends on the tuner. I dont mind it at all it's really not that bad.
08-05-2018, 07:07 AM
#18
Drifting
I think you need to better define wife friendly. Assuming you are looking to maximize your setup with the BTRIV and you don’t have catalytic converters anymore, then the additional overlap and duration will make for some nice eye burning idle time in the garage, driveway, or at a red light with the windows down. You may or may not smell like unburnt hydrocarbons each time you drive the car. The low speed bucking and surging isn’t that bad once you know when to expect it and clutch it prior to and coast versus looking like a goob in the parking lot at Publix.
With that said, higher compression and e85 seem to tame the larger cams for various reasons and make for a more wife friendly experience.
Not all tuners are created equal. Fewer people than you’d expect have the cams you’re interested in and are providing baseless experience.
I run a cam larger than the BTRIV and wouldn’t own one smaller, but I like to live dangerously. Driveability is extremely subjective and end user experience is typically situational.
If you race race the car then go with the IV. If you want more power than what you currently have but without the symptoms of aggressive NA performance and don’t mind getting pulled by cars with more max effort type cams then go with something smaller.
With that said, higher compression and e85 seem to tame the larger cams for various reasons and make for a more wife friendly experience.
Not all tuners are created equal. Fewer people than you’d expect have the cams you’re interested in and are providing baseless experience.
I run a cam larger than the BTRIV and wouldn’t own one smaller, but I like to live dangerously. Driveability is extremely subjective and end user experience is typically situational.
If you race race the car then go with the IV. If you want more power than what you currently have but without the symptoms of aggressive NA performance and don’t mind getting pulled by cars with more max effort type cams then go with something smaller.
Last edited by Turbo2L; 08-05-2018 at 08:05 AM.
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Josh B. (08-05-2018)
08-05-2018, 11:01 AM
#20
Team Owner
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St. Jude Donor '05
Lets be real shes going to hate it..most guys here wont tolerate it & cant get it through thier head your driving habits have to change, drive it where the engine is happy.
Those usually have threads regarding bucking and "xx tuner is a pos".
This fascination with lugging in higher gears I do not understand, its not even good for the motor. Lower axle ratio helps here!
Know you want more OP but.....it wont fly. Ever consider a supercharger and a small cam instead?
More power, better manners, wife wont even know unless she sees the receipt.
Those usually have threads regarding bucking and "xx tuner is a pos".
This fascination with lugging in higher gears I do not understand, its not even good for the motor. Lower axle ratio helps here!
Know you want more OP but.....it wont fly. Ever consider a supercharger and a small cam instead?
More power, better manners, wife wont even know unless she sees the receipt.
Last edited by cv67; 08-05-2018 at 11:03 AM.