Hey guys,Im debating adding some heads and cam to my setup. It's and 07 A6 with the stock convertor with an ECS Novi 1500. Not really looking to add a convertor so a mild cam is what I'd be looking at. I called Texas Speed and they recommended their 224r cam and PRC 225 heads. Any advice on this setup? Is anyone running this? Also is there any other setups I should look into?


Thanks

 

You told them you had a blower on your Vette and they recommended a cam with 224* intake duration and 224* exhaust duration? That makes no sense. If it was mine, I'd have someone like Tx Speed cnc port the stock heads and do a cam something like a 220/234 on a 115lsa.

 

Texas speed is who i spoke to. This is the package that they recommended.

 

Even the heads don't make any sense since they have smaller than stock combustion chambers that will raise your compression ratio significantly. That's a no no on a blower engine unless it's running on E85. I've talked to Tx Speed on numerous occasions and have always gotten someone knowledgeable on the phone. In your shoes, I call them back and start this over. They obviously missed that fact that you were inquiring about a heads/cam package for a SUPERCHARGED LS2.

 

I ran the 224r in my old ls1 Z28. Great street cam.

 

Did it have decent chop?

 

It was only 5.7 L and not a lot of chop, but with stock converter I’m thinking you wouldn’t want to go bigger.

 

Biggest I would go with is a centrifugal supercharger cam from Cam Motion: https://cammotion.com/camshafts/cs-2...r-centrifugal/

As for heads, I would just have a CNC port done on your stock heads. No need to do anything drastic because it’s supercharged.

While that Texas Speed cam would work fine, the LSA of 112 is not ideal for a stock converter (lowest I’d go is 114). And it’s not ideal for a centrifugal blower.

 

Thanks for the insight. Pretty sure Texas speed offers that cam with an LSA of 114 but I could be wrong.

Is there any of our forum vendors that do CNC port work?

 

A 114 lsa doesn't make that cam anywhere close to decent when used with a blower. Generally speaking, a "mild/good mannered blower cam doesn't need 224 degrees of intake duration because the supercharger is cramming air into the engine. On the exhaust side, it needs considerably more exhaust duration than 224 degrees because the engine is making WAY more exhaust gas volume due to it making way more power.

If you're dead set on using that cam, go for it. I hope you like it.

 

I appreciate it. I'm not set on anything yet. Trying ti figure out what my best options are. Figured Texas Speed was a good place to start.

 

If you have ever watched and of Richard Holderer’s videos, he likes to say “every cam is a FI cam”. In other words, very little difference when a supercharger is involved.

 

Every cam can be used with a supercharger...sure it can. Does that make every cam a good cam, or the best cam, to use in a supercharged LS2? No, it doesn't. Compared to the 220/234 115lsa that I suggested (or the 216/234 115lsa that Spaceme suggested), the 224/224 112lsa cam will make less power, not drive as nice (more overlap), and be worse fuel eco wise because of the bigger intake duration. Probably a great cam in a naturally aspirated LS1. It has no business being used in a supercharged LS2 though.

greek81, nothing wrong with your choice to use Tx Speed for your build. They're almost local to me (2hr drive). I've had them build complete long blocks, bought aftermarket heads from them, and most recently, had them CNC port, mill, do a valve job, and assemble a set of stock LS3 heads. They do that for around 800 bucks which is a hell of a deal. That's why I recommended having them CNC port and rebuild you heads vs going the much more expensive aftermarket head route. I don't see any "shelf" cam offerings from Tx Speed that fit what you're trying to do. They do have one grind on the shelf that they say is for a centrifugal supercharged LS engine, but it's too big for your needs.

Get Pat G to custom spec you a cam. He does it for a living. He charges around 40 bucks if memory serves. You get a cam custom specced to fit you and your Vette. I think he uses Tx Speed or Cam Motion to grind his cams. And I'll bet you (or anyone else for that matter) that the cam he specs for you will be a hell of a lot closer to the one I mentioned vs the 224r cam.

CUSTOM CAMSHAFTS | patgtuning

 

No doubt about it. The cam is more for the aggressiveness and sound. I'm more so trying to figure out if new heads are worth it along with this cam

 

I agree. The fact it's a FI motor changes almost everything. FI makes Cathedral ports flow better than rectangular ports do on an NA motor. Agree with other post about cam recommendations, as well. A blown LS2 could really take advantage of a cam with, say, .585" lift I, .610" E, 224° duration I, 240° duration E, on maybe a 116° LSA. For sure I'd call again, and ask to talk to a different rep.......

 

So, after looking over Tx Speed's camshaft offerings, it's obvious that they don't have a cam on their shelves that would slot in as a mild centri blower cam. That's probably why they recommended the 224r. It's the closest thing they've got....and it's not even close. Here's a few available from other vendors that would fit your program:
BTR STAGE 1 CENTRIFUGAL SUPERCHARGED CAMSHAFT (briantooleyracing.com)
Pat G stage 1 LS3 blower camshaft (patgtuning.com)
CS 220/236 LS Supercharger Camshaft (220/236-115+5) for Centrifugal - Cam Motion

Out of those, I'd probably choose the Cam Motion cam. It's pretty damn close to what I recommended in post # 2. I wouldn't choose the BTR cam because they won't give the full specs. You don't know what you're getting. That's a deal killer for me. I think the Pat G cam would be a little lazy down low compared to the Cam Motion cam. Not what I'd want for a street machine.

How much power are you wanting to get out of this rig? You may not need to fool with a head swap. Just the cam and maybe a meth kit can get you in the 650 rwhp neighborhood. And that's a pretty nice neighborhood for a C6 to be in. Not exclusive by any means, but you won't need a repair truck to follow you around.

 

Thats about the power that I'm looking to get out it it. It's pushing 570 today. I can't go much more than mid 600s as the the auto trans doesn't do well beyond that and won't hold up

 

I wouldn’t use prc heads. They are junk. In all reality you’d gain more from a stall/meth kit then a cam and head combo.

But, if sound is what you are after a
220/226 .600/.600 114+2 will have a “performance sound”. With negative 5 degrees overlap it will drive nice, sound great, and will have zero bucking/surging with a stock stall.

Centri blower’s are turds and actually benefit a tighter LSA. But, stock stalls have their limits.

 

For heads, I would send your stock heads to Advanced Inductions for a CNC port and valve job: AI CNC Head Package

For cam, I would consider this: Cam Motion Centri Cam.

And if you wanted to go with a better than stock cam but save some money while not sacrificing any quality, there is always the GM OEM LS9 cam. LS9 Cam. At $130 to $150 it’s a hell of a bargain. Specs are 211/230 int/ext duration, 0.562 lift with 1.7 rockers (.595 with 1.8). LSA is a bit larger at 122.5. But this is an excellent cam, very mild on valve train, excellent drivability, and easy to tune. And it has very good gains in the upper rpm range extending both HP and TQ. I am running this cam in my E-force GS. Would likely be even better on a centri setup.

 

The zr1 cam is a weird cam. You would lose a lot of torque under the curve and would feel
like a turd. Centri blowers do better with tighter LSA

Stock ls2 heads have pushed 800whp…. You can remove the restrictor plate, add meth with stock cam and get more bang for your buck. And the car will behave like stock.

OP I also wouldn’t use Texas speed cams. Their lobes are very aggressive and make a small cam feel bigger. That will be annoying with a stock stall.