Cam Recommendations

srx70024 · July 22, 2003

I have a 95 Chevy K1500 5.7L stepside that I do alot of snowmobile trailering with. It is all stock, so far, with about 86k miles and I'd like to get a little more towing power from it. It does, however, already have aftermarket exhaust, Maremont Vortex muffler, 3" inlet with (2) 2 1/2" tail pipes.

I'm looking to putting in a new cam and would like some recommendations as what to look into. Towing weight is less than 2000 lbs.

Also, any other performance suggestions, without getting too crazy.

Thanks.

ShortCrew · July 22, 2003

I personally would go with more bolt-ons first, then see if you need a cam. Long tube headers and a good air intake pipe kit should add quite a bit of power. Roller rocker arms with a greater ratio are also a good option. An ASP underdrive crank pulley is another option. Westers PCM upgrade is yet another bolt on thats worthwhile.

I would think there is another 30-40rwhp to be gained, or more, from these mods.

Wingnut · July 22, 2003

I think that if you had your heads ported and polished, and add a good set of headers...You might not need to swap out the cam.

Of course, all three would be optimal.

Just my .02

-Nut

Charlie in TX · July 23, 2003

If you hook a 2000 lbs trailer to a 350 and can tell it is back there you either have motor problems or a rear end ratio that starts with a 2. Putting a cam in a poor motor is like trying to make a silk purse out of a sows ear. Have you done a compresion test, a dyno run, a 1/4 time or anything to give use an idea what is wrong with the motor?

americanmuscleman · July 24, 2003

The two things I think that are killing you are; #1 the heads, and #2 the factory exhaust manifolds. The factory TBI cam is a really small cam and could definitely stand to be replaced with something larger.

I'm running out-of-the-box Trick Flow twisted wedge aluminum heads, JBA shorty headers, and a custom ground Erson roller cam in the 210/215 ballpark, along with a custom chip. The edelbrock intake manifold didn't gain me any noticeable gain. With all these parts though, I gained a ton of low end power. I also gained a lot more mid-range, and some top end power.

I'd check out cast iron (or aluminum) Vortec heads or check out Trick Flow's aluminum heads. I'm really happy with mine. You might check out Edelbrock's camshaft too. As far as headers go, you've got a lot of choices there too.

Good luck!