KenBrownfield

Hello! I'm getting an A&A Supercharger kit installed this week on my 2016 z51 A8. I went with the V3-Si kit and am having it professionally installed and tuned. I am doing a pretty conservative set up as I wanted it to be reliable and user friendly to drive. But, of course I still wanted a significant increase in power. My question is what are the gotchas or snags I should be prepared for after the installation? Anything in particular you guys who have similar set ups would have done differently ?

Patches

Depends on who is installing the kit. I had A&A install mine on my daily driver because 1) I just didn't have the time to do it myself and, 2) I wanted to be sure my daily driver was done right because, well, it's my daily driver.

Make sure the installer understands what your expectations are so he offers the correct setup and tuning. For instance, I wanted to maintain emissions compliance since I live in SoCal but I also wanted the most bang for buck with the setup so I had him add a methanol injection system to be able to squeeze out more power safely. Talk to him about the blow-off valve to ensure you're getting one that meets your needs for quiet or riot. I also had A&A change out the coolant, tranny and diff fluid while he had the car because I wanted to start with fresh fluids.

Ask the installer what suggestions they may have in additional upgrades to complement the blower such as better tires. Also ask what changes in maintenance go along with the blower such as changing out the blower oil. Tips on how to drive the new setup can be invaluable as well.

Have them go over the system in detail so you understand the various components and their function - this can help in a situation if something goes amiss. You may not be able to troubleshoot a problem but it will help you understand what needs to be fixed and why which goes a long way towards peace-of-mind.

FYREANT

Who is tuning the car? This is the most important component..

3 Z06ZR1

I wouldn't let anyone tune your car with torco or Octane boost in the tank because then you run straight gas. She goes bad! Real bad!

robert miller

for sure for every 1 good tuner, their are 99 bad one's that are calling themselves a tuner. Robert

KenBrownfield

Chad at CBI Streetcars in St. Louis area....

FYREANT

Im not familiar with him but that doesn't mean hes not good. Have you gotten any references from him or know how many C7's hes successfully tuned for similar setups at this point?

Patches

I shopped for the tuner rather than the installer when I was planning my A&A kit installation. The tune is absolutely critical since it makes or breaks the addition of the blower. That's why I chose A&A. Almost anybody can do the mechanical installation - the kit comes with detailed instructions and pictures. The key is to partner up with a tuner that is expert in the C7 platform and has done many installations and tunes. It can mean the difference between years of reliable enjoyment and a blown engine.

robert miller

Again I agree with you ANT OP do you back ground work on a tuner. Plus make dam sure he has done more than a few on the c7. This cars set up is a totally diff beast than the c5 & c6 on tuning.

More than a few good shops blew up the c7 on tuning this car. With to much timing & other. But again from some tuning shop vendors in here has got it down with some good number & happy customers..

davidtcpa

I agree with all the above posts. The tuner is so important. Do your homework.

Now that all that is out of the way, make sure you have a really good radar detector!!!! Enjoy!!

Z06NJ

Ken, looks like you did some good researching before committing. Now that it is installed, can you let us know your 1st impressions please?

Josh@AandASuperchargers

You are in good hands at CBI. I've been selling SC kits to Chad for years and sending him referrals for that area.

KenBrownfield

I would be happy to share. First off the kit from A&A is very high quality. The parts are what they should be. Second my installer and tuner were great. Thank you CBI Streetcars and Shane Hinds ! My first impressions of the car were why did I wait to do this ? I was looking for a kit that was basically a "you can't tell it's on the car unless you nail it" and that is exactly what I got. The Vortech V3-Si is really very quiet. I also did the quiet BOV. The car drives completely like it did stock (except better) unless you step on the gas. When you do accelerate hard..... It's a big difference. The car pulls incredible from about 3K RPM all the way up. My digital speedometer is still going up by increments of 5 at over 100 MPH. I have a few time tests to run vs stock yet but I can tell it is much much faster. Another big factor that I was not necessarily expecting was with the transmission tune and V4 mode. The V4 mode is gone completely now which is great. That has sound and other issues I didn't like. The transmission shifts so much better now. I have to admit I thought the A8 was sluggish shifting expect at WOT and wasn't a big fan. Now it shifts so much better and more like you'd expect in a performance car. So far with about 3 hours of drive time and putting the car through it's paces pretty well I'd rate this experience 10 out of 10. Hope it doesn't blow up now this afternoon ... haha.... The one issue I would bring up is you do in-fact lose the secondary transmission cooler that is on the z51 A8 models. It does not fit with the A&A intercooler. The base stingray does not have this secondary cooler and I do not think it is a big deal at all. But, if you were a heavy road racer track person you might want to look at relocating that somehow. My installer said it could be done but since it isn't even on the non z51 model it was of little effect. I kept close eyes on my transmission temps and it had little affect even when running the car pretty hard. So again, if you have a C7 stingray and want to wake it up big time for not all that many $$$$$ this is a great way to do it and keep all of your drivability. As several people mentioned in this thread I would agree that the installer and tuner are critical in this process. So make sure you pick a good one.

KenBrownfield

Josh, your kit was great and Chad has his act together.... Thanks!

avatardt

I also had Chad do headers and Shane Hindes did the tune, ran great. I went back 6 months later and had them put a A&A Ti kit on. You can not tell unless you step on the gas. Now thats its getting colder out, it will spin the tires at 80mph in 4th.

Josh at A&A was awesome also!

Love my car!

clegg

Ken, Did you just have the blower installed (no meth or headers)? What kind of RWHP did you end up with?

KenBrownfield

It's about 550 rwhp. No meth, Si trim... 6-7 psi... I do have a borla xpipe but completely stock other than that. Conservative tune.