Hey guys I'm new to this forum, i recently just purchased a 2005 ls2 z51 with 80,000 miles currently. It currently has LG Longtube headers, x pipe with cut outs. Car also has K&N intake with ngk spark plugs. Car was dyno'd and tuned for 380hp to the wheels. These are all modifications done by the previous owner and I'm trying to step it up a notch. This is my first corvette and i do not know the route to go for this car, so I'm in need of advice. For short term goals i am trying to go with heads and a cam aiming for 500hp to the wheels. I currently daily drive the car but as the build proceeds i may not drive it as much. Yes i have the funds for the best packages and am not looking to save the most money but to get what i pay for. I currently have a shop " Virginia Speed " that will do all the work but first i need to pick out the heads and cam to achieve 500hp to the wheels. What do y'all recommend for those power gains but to also be able to drive it almost every day? Also for the future i do plan to turbo charge the car, not anytime soon but just an idea i had for the car. Any advice from y'all would be great, thanks!

 

use the "search" button

 

FAST 102 is one of the best mods you can do for the LS2, with a tune you are going to get 25-30RWHP, it's a must for power. A vararam is a game changer too, get rid of the K&N and go with a vararam. Go with those two mods and you'll be driving a beast!

 

How much are you looking to spend?

Intake/heads/cam add up fast.. keep that in mind when comparing prices to other options

Going straight to a supercharger may be worth considering IMO

 

May want to consider a new diff.

 

you think supercharger first, than build the motor? i would rather go down turbocharged set ups instead of superchargers.

 

SC's are easier and simpler (and cheaper) on this platform.. but up to you

Personally I would say it depends on your goals.. if you know you're going to go right past the limits of the stock block, then I'd try to do it all at once

If you're OK with being more around 600's then I'd do stock block & meth. Chances are it will be OK for a while.

 

The best heads seem to be the Trick Flow 220 As-Cast for LS2. They have great flow number especially at mid-lift which means you don't need to use super high lift cams and stress your valve train. You can get a Trick Flow top end kit the makes 550 HP at the crank and it includes assembled heads, cam, roller rockers, timing chain etc. You can also get these heads fully ported for a little better flow. To hit these HP numbers it will require a FAST intake or similar upgrade.

I went straight to the A&A Corvette supercharger kit and am still using the stock heads and intake. The car is a beast and hard to get traction. Now I'm switching to MT ET Street II drag radials for better traction. I love the car.

If i were to do it over, I might go with a roots type supercharger instead of a centrifugal super charger. Why? Because I have a MN6 trans and boost is lost during the gear changes. The centrifugal SC don't make much boost, hence torque, at lower rpms such as when you just shifted into 2nd, 3rd, 4th. The roots SC make more torque at lower RPMs so it might be quicker. However, getting traction could be even more difficult.

FYI - if you have an MN6 trans, you should be able to get 570-580 rwhp just with the addition of the A&A SC kit to your current set-up. You can go higher with an upgraded fuel system or methanol injection. If you use forged pistons, you can crank up the boost even higher.

 

I have researched this for a couple of years, if you want all motor NA, you can build an engine incrementally, sort of,, a max effort, NA, heads and cam, headers and intake can yield @ 500HP plus a little or minus more

Lingenfelter and others will CNC your LS2 heads for @ $1100
Then you need headers ($1500), Catback ($900) a cam ($400) and dual springs ($250-$400) and a FAST 92 or 105 ($850) and a new damper ($200), push rods ($150) and maybe new injectors ($400) and you get 500 at the crank

Or you install a bolt on FI like a Pro Charger or Edelbrock or Magnusson etc and you get 550-575 at the wheels, with no other bolt on's except headers ($1500) AND Catback ($900)

So whats your budget and skill level in terms on doing this your self, cause if you are not up to the challenge, add labor to all of the above.

EDIT< FWIW, I am relatively new to the C6 section, but I built with my own hands FIVE 406ci engines, chasing every little extra bit of HP and TQ i could get, I spent way more than it would have taken to build what I built, and some of it it not all of it was fun, I did things that no other C4 1985 corvette could brag about, like coilovers and a Holley Stealth Ram that fit under the Hood and countless hours trying to perfect a push clutch with a ZF6 speed, I had 4 custom cams ground to my specs while learning about cams, BUT with that said, I will do it once and be done with it on my 05.

 

Headers/"cat back" aren't really 100% necessary. Probably not a bad idea though.

If you're on a tight budget, slap some OBX headers/X pipe on it for $800 and call it good. The rest of the exhaust can flow plenty. Hell, used C6 Z06 headers will pick you up 20-30hp on an LS2 and can be found for cheap. A FULL, manifold to tips Z06 exhaust system can be had for $650.. maybe less if you find a system that just came off

 

, What I did to my 05 was in this order:

1. NXT Cat back
2. Callaway Cold Air Intake
3. Ported Intake and Ported TB
4. Kooks Headers and X pipe
5. Z06 Shifter
6. Mail order tune

Next to be done on my list:
1. 228/234 Cam, double springs, push rods & damper
2. Tune

 

The Op is looking for 500hp at the wheels, not the crank. I don't think you Will hit that with ported LS2 heads unless you have a bit of an extreme cam.

Z06 headers and exhaust alone will not net you 20-30hp, I believe the highest numbers I've seen were 18hp and that for the full exhaust, manifolds to mufflers.

A centrifugal SC can easily hit 550hp at the wheels w/o headers. I did it with a totally stock LS2 except for cat back and 9 psi boost.

 

I should have said that differently.. I meant the full Z06 exhaust system, since Z06 headers aren't really going to connect to anything except the Z06 cat pipe..

http://ls1tech.com/forums/generation...ls2-30-hp.html is where I saw the 20-30rwhp. Someone else in that thread did the same thing with similar results.. so I think it's true and is certainly a route I'm considering.

 

i did it...with my ls2

exhaust: obx lt headers, slp loudmouth II axle back
intake: ported fast 102, ported throttle body
cam custom ground : 231/243
heads: TSP 225 as cast with full valve train set, 7.5 pushrods
Ud pulley: 20%
injectors: fast 46lbs
comp cams ultra gold 1.72 roller rockers
tuned..

 

I decided to keep my 07 Z51 NA for road racing. Here are the basics:


160 T-Stat
Vararam CAI
NW 102 TB
FAST 102 IM
FAST 46lb. Fuel injectors
FAST fuel rails
ATI 10% UDP
Melling oil pump
Katech C5R timing chain
Livernois STAGE II 243 Heads
Livernois STAGE II Cam (very drivable)
LS7 Lifters
Kooks 1 7/8" porcelain coated LTs.
Kooks 3" X pipe w high flow cats
Corsa 3" ZO6 exhaust

Dyno tuned by JHR Performance = 468 RWHP. I like it.

 

Turbocharging is not very compatible with your current setup or with a big heads/cam build. To get close to 500whp with heads/cam, you'll need a FAST intake (not that great for boost, should be replaced with a turbo), you won't be able to keep your headers, and possibly not your cutouts either. Also, a giant N/A cam is probably not the best for a turbo. To get close to 500whp N/A, many builds have higher compression heads - again, a bad idea for boost.

Make up your mind and be sure about what you want to do with the car in the end. If that's a turbo, fine. Just realize that big N/A parts are not necessarily compatible with your future plans.

I agree with what most people here have said - a supercharger seems to fit your goals better. Also, realize that 2005 differentials are pretty weak, and are likely to break at higher hp levels. So that will need to be replaced.

 

I agree. Thumbs.

 

Hey bud if your looking for close to 500 rwhp it's achieveable and not that expensive depending on who you buy from and don't forget you can always sell the parts that come off to offset against the price of your build. Last year I did a heads/cam/ intake package and laid down 486 rwhp on an 06 ls2 mn6. My mods were
Fast 102
Dicky scoggin stage 2 cnc ported heads.
Comp cam 231/239 .617/.624 113lsa
All new valve train
25% ud pulley
160 stat
K&n cai
Kooks 1 3/4 headers/ off-road x pipe
And a corsa sports exhaust.
Move forward to this year and the car is being built again cause the horsepower bug bit!!! Doing a ysi blower kit on my ls2 that is currently being made into a forged 402. Should be sitting close to 1000 rwhp once it's all done. Anyways bud good luck with your build and no matter what rwhp number you get you'll be happy for a while anyway. Don't get caught up in the rwhp number game. Just drive it til you get bored then keep moving up!!!!!!

 

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ls2-heads.html

 

As long as your current headers are not leaking, keep them. For heads, I’d go with the Scogin Dickey LS3 heads. They have several options on porting with various springs and valves. For longer lifter life, lighter valves are better. Use springs that match your cam and look for LS series long life conical springs that match your cam. Since you need a new intake manifold anyway, consider a new FAST or MSD. You will also need new offset LS3 intake rockers. Stockers are inexpensive and work fine. Because of the mileage, you also want to replace the timing chain (C5R) and lifters (LS7).

You have several choices for a camshaft. Just be careful not to get greedy. Big cams can take the fun out of daily driving. Consider a cam with a broad flat torque curve, not peak hp.

If you are serious about turbo charging, you probably need to go a different path. Cast alum pistons and light powder metal connecting rods are not turbo friendly. I would look for an entire new rotating assembly with top of the line parts: Callies crank, Oliver billet rods, forged turbo pistons, and a forced induction cam. Add to this the turbo kit with labor and it will end up costing as much as the car is worth.

Another issue: The 2005 model rear differential is a known weak link. Any serious HP and it will break.
I’d recommend you limit yourself to heads-cam-headers-intake and enjoy the car. If this is a manual trans car, add clutch and rear end to this list.

If you insist on turbo power, sell this car and purchase a 2008 or newer.

Best of luck!