BagarN

Hi

I bought a bone stock C6 last year from a elderly gentleman.
After a month or two I found myself wanting more power! I've tried reading and scouting the internet for information and what I've found was; Headers, axleback, intake, cam.

My goal is to get to 500~ hp (stock Z06 power) so about 420-430Whp?

My questions are;

What size headers should I get, does it matter (N/A application) if it's 1-7/8 or 1-3/4 or even 2"?
With say an Borla axle-back ATAK system, would it be obnoxiously loud?
I've been youtube;ing lots of diffrent cams to find that sweet choppiness and I really liked TSP(?) Bald Eagle cam. Is it a good streetable cam?
Does it matter in which order I get the parts and install them or should I wait until I can get it all at once?
Can you guys recommend some good rotors and pads that can withstand some trackdays?

Best Regards
Anders

renegade123

Get it all done at once if you can, as you will most likely want to get a tune to enhance the performance of your aftermarket parts. I bought all the parts for my 03 Z at once, cam, etc. Went with the Texas Speed Tsunami cam and all supporting parts.

h8snow

Sell the car and find a Z06 and have the heads repaired. The attempt to make your car something its not will cost way more that just finding something that was engineered correctly in the first place.

cv67

Supporting mods will cost a bundle to do it right what type of budget ?
Real choppy cams require some tolerance....please dont pick your cam by how it sounds...youll regret it (most do after a week or 2)

No need for a big cam to get the # you want. There are cars here that make over 450 to the ground with small cams and others with way bigger cams that struggle to hit that #.

saplumr

Disregard post number 3. That is a rediculous response.

NYC6

OP, I was once where you were when I bought my new C6, I wanted to up the HP ante and I added 13/4" headers/tune thinking that was as far as I was going to go. A few years later it wasn't enough and needed more so I went the SC route. At that point I wasn't about to swap the headers to the 1 7/8" so I just worked around it and in doing so left a little HP on the table. Morale of the story, think down the road if you think you might go bigger power wise.
If you don't do a bunch more the 1 3/4" will make more TQ.

slowtealz28

To make a ls3 c6 as fast as a c6z will likely end up costing more than just getting a stock z06 with the heads fixed. It takes quite a bit more hp with an ls3 to keep up with a z due to the z being lighter and having better gearing. If it were my car I would do 1 7/8” headers with a cam kit, likely from btr and the car should make around 470-480whp.

sallen619

Cam and Headers and an intake should get you there in an LS3 car. I did it with an 05 LS2 car with a small cam and ported stock heads, headers and FAST 102 intake manifold.

doomi

My LS3 made 468rwhp with Vararam intake, 1 3/4 long tubes, Borla Stinger exhaust and BTR stage 2 cam.

You'll need a tune. Do it all at once if you can.

Spaceme1117

Most headers aren't made in 1-3/4 anymore as there is hardly any difference versus 1-7/8. 2" is too big unless you have a Z06 with the LS7.

Sound and loudness is a matter of taste, but I think headers with almost any aftermarket axle-back may be too loud. Headers alone will be a large increase in sound, even more so if you go catless. I would add headers, see how you like the sound, then add an axleback if you want. Adding an axleback won't require a re-tune as they don't really make much difference in power.

Not sure what year your car is but 2008 and forward (I think), all C6's have a Z06/Grand Sport style of intake which is as good or better than any aftermarket intake. Save the $500 and just add a shroud to isolate the hot engine bay from the intake. Before 2008, there are gains to be had from an aftermarket intake. Or you can purchase a used Z06 intake and save some money.

A proper cam is also a nice upgrade and there are tons of them out there. Ideally, since you have defined what power level you want to be at and you want it to be streetable, this helps to zero in on a proper cam. Definitely, give Cam Motion or Texas Speed, or BTR a call and have a talk with them as they will be able to recommend a proper cam for you. PatG will also be able to spec a perfectly customized cam and even a tune for you setup. You didn't specify if you car is an automatic or manual. Depending on the cam recommendation, you may also need a torque converter for an automatic.

And I would do everything a once (except an axle back) and then have it tuned.

Another viable route to more power is a supercharger system. ECS, A&A for a centrifugal supercharger system or Edelbrock E-force and Magnuson Heartbeat for blower type supercharger. The centri's have higher power potential and make power more in the mid and upper rpm's. The blower systems have more torque lower in the RPM's and tend to be more streetable. Both are great.

This past week I finished installing an Edelbrock E-force in my 2011 Grand Sport and it is awesome. I got the 554 hp kit and with the 6-speed, dry sump cars like mine with about an 11-12% drive train loss, my car should be about 485 to 500 hp to the wheels. And I have on order a 3.5 inch pulley and a Ken Bell Boost-A-Pump so that I can get to the 599 hp E-force power levels (about 525 to the wheels). This kit from Edelbrock comes with a stock 91 octane tune so there is definitely more power to be had with a 93 octane custom dyno tune.

I purchased the 554 HP kit from RDP store and with their 10% off code and free shipping, it was just shy of $6500 shipped to my door. And I can build on top of that if I want to with headers, cam, heads, etc. in the future if I want even more power.

BagarN

Okey, how so if I mind asking? (regarding the sound and regretting it)

I thought about selling my C6 and buy a Z06 but the cheapest(!) one in sweden is 400k sek (43,153 USD today) and I only paid 250k for my C6 (26,970 USD)
The power was more of a guideline rather than needing it to be faster then a Z06. My mates jokingly said that the ***** marker for a summer car is 500hp.

Budget as of today is 3500~ USD

My C6 is a 06 LS2 manual gearbox.

I think I'll go headers,intake,cam,tune first and (if needed) add axle-back later.

I'll check with Texas speed or BTR regarding a cam kit.
What are the support mods (if needed) and are they super expensive? The more I read about cams and LS engines the more I realize how little I know about cars.

Just took it out from hibernation today and it was great driving it home. Very excited about how it will feel post-mods.

Thank you for all the replies.

Anders

Navy Blue 210

My .02
Definitely 1 7/8 LTs ARH fit great and are one of the top 3 preferred brands.
Fast 92 will be worth ~20 RWHP over stock with a medium sized cam.
Cam Motion has excellent customer service in my and manies experience.
A cam somewhere between 224/230 & 227/235 seems to be the sweet spot
for drive ability with a manual trans and a good tune with a LS2 IMO.
Again talk with a vendor and be very clear about your goals so you don't get
sold a bigger cam than you need/want.

The idle "chop" will come from a very good tune and a low idle speed.
Almost any medium sized cam will provide that sound with a low idle.
Dont sacrifice drivability with too big or too much overlap in your cam
to get "that sound"

The Tone of your exhaust note will come from the axle back and doing that last
will give you the opportunity to find just the right one.

My 99 C5 has Borla Stingers and even with stock engine and bolt ons
droned from ~1500-1900 RPM and was loud pretty much all the time.
Now with a fully built custom engine is multiplied 2X.

My 07 C6 is completely stock (for now) except for the Corsa Sport that were on it when purchased.
They are Awesome! noticeable burble at idle, quiet in the cabin at cruise (1500-2000 RPM),
crackle & pop on deceleration, with a refined tone @ WOT, more exotic VS
the Borlas Muscle Car.

Good Luck

Suns_PSD

Honestly it's cheaper to buy someone's already built. I have one for sale for instance with 525 rwhp, 4.11s, a Mini tub with 345 rear tires, it's so fast it spins thru 3rd gear easily. It eats Z06s while having a removable roof, cheaper insurance, being way more reliable, and looking better quite frankly.
Good luck.

Omega Doom

sir honestly if I were you id do a ton of research and since you don't have access to a LS based shop go with a ore reliable combination so like nothing too extreme but whoever mentioned supercharging it is probably your best bet go with a Procharger though and just do exhaust you will have the HP your looking for plus reliability as long as you keep the bost down lol

Suns_PSD

I personally would not consider FI unless I lived and drove at high altitude for a multitude of reasons.

TLS_Addict

It is absolutely astonishing how much misinformation is thrown around here and either misconceptions or just plain ignorance is spread as gospel.

An LS2/3 can be made to outrun a stock Z06 (1/4 mile) with relative ease. It still is not a Z though, no question there. Intake, heads, cam, exhaust, tune...the norm, nothing fancy. Gearing is the same for manual transmissions unless it's a Z51. The weight difference is minimal but a few extra HP makes up for that.

I remember how people said the same about modding an LS1 vs a stock LS6. Laughable.

As for cost, that depends on a multitude of factors. High mile C6Z is under $30k. High mile LS2/3 can be found for under $20k with decent ones for low $20s. Comparing a similar mile/year LS3 to Z06 leaves a ton of room for mods. Not saying one is better than the other. It depends on what you want. No wrong answer, just different correct ones for different people.

southofHoustonVette

Sick car. What mods do you have. I have a 2010 a6 stock car. Looking for the future mods t make this baby scream

renegade123

Bro, where did you get that vented hood, and what did it cost ? Looks like it would be great for releasing trapped heat

theandrewo

I'd get a used supercharged system. Even just a basic supercharger kit ALONE (no LTH, cam, etc.) will get you at or above 500hp. If you keep your eye out, you can find 'em for <$3k.

JerriVette

Id just try a COW booster mod thats like 200 dollars...remaps the electrinic throttle and makes you already capable sports car that tops out at 186 mph much more responsive, contact corvettes of westchester for his upload procedure...takes about ten minutes tops and your corvette will really feel more alive...try that first ...

then if you still want a faster more powerful car...forget about all the piecemeal mods...just slap a supercharger on your car...maybe buy used and call it a day...i think i see the used supercharger kits run from 3500 to five grand...

i personally prefer the little edlebrock kits...i think you can brand new ones installed for like 8 grand...

just do the basic kit without the fuel pump change and youll end up with an utterly reliable 550 flywheel hp...that shouldnt over stress the rest of your drivetrain...

probably last another 100k miles with just adding gas and tires...

550 flywheel horsepower is more than enough on a 12 year old car...

go much more than that and the rest of the car could fall apart around you over time ...and that can be a real PIA..

just my two cents...consider doing the COW booster first....for 200...@nd ten minute install...you might find thats all you really wanted...

thats what I did and it satisfied my itch...

i didnt really need more hp...i just wanted it to be more intuitive and responsive to my driving.

it worked...i know have put on 131k carefree utterly reliable miles...

the car will probably go another 100k miles with just changing the oil and adding tires every 20k miles.

i just had a friend of mine drive my corvette up in and around the seven lakes here...he just bought a convertible corvette but he was over and i threw him the keys...two hours later up and around bear mountain...he was throughly impressed with the corvette c6 as I described to you...

cow booster from corvettes of westchester is $200 bucks and installs in less than 10 minutes and makes the c6 corvette a riot to drive...

good luck and again...just something to consider