Ditched supercharging because of $$$

BobZ71 · November 22, 2004

Hey guys

I've got a 2002 Z71 with the 5.3 (stock). I was considering putting on a supercharger (whipple), but it's just too expensive for me right now.

My question is, what kind of hp and torque gains am I looking at if I put in a Westers 91 hot tune (no oct 93 around here), corsa RCS sport edition exhaust (single side exit), which I was going to put on SC or not, and K&N gen II air intake.

Also, with these mods, am I going to see a loss in low end torque?

Thanks in advance

BobZ71 · November 23, 2004

Hey guys! I'd really appreciate just a bit of help....

boomer 33 · December 3, 2004

Hey guys! I'd really appreciate just a bit of help....

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Most people are at work and not able to respond during the day so you will need to be patient. If you just can't wait a search of this thread in the performance section will give you a bunch of info. Type in 5.3 performance.

Personnally I don't think you will get much from the exhaust. The tune from Lyndon will get rid of a lot of the torque Management which really brings your 5.3 alive.. and if you make other drastic changes later, they will re-tune your computer.

budhayes3 · December 3, 2004

I'm usually at work, but luckily I'm off today . You'll definitely feel the biggest gain from a custom tune, my truck is a rocket since Bryan at PCMforLess worked his magic!

I did my bolt ons about 3 years ago, and I didn't lose any low end. I did the K&N FIPK, Gibson shorties, and Gibson dual cat-back all at the same time. I'm pretty sure I picked up low end, but I also started putting my foot in it right after the mods, so it's hard to tell.

If you don't go too big or too radical with your upgrades, your low end torque shouldn't suffer. Most of these systems are designed with that in mind. I've heard nothing but good things about the Corsa, but I don't know first hand. I absolutely love my K&N, and the sound that it makes when you get on it is awesome.

If you want to get deeper into the engine, the cam listed in my sig is a torque monster, especially after being properly tuned (Thanks again Bryan!). Not too radical, excellent idle vacuum (17-18 in hg at 600 RPM in gear), and it doesn't require a high stall torque converter. Excellent daily driver and a perfect combo with my bolt-ons IMO.

Good luck and keep us posted on what you choose and how it works out!

99Silver6.0 · December 4, 2004

You can pop a cammed 6.0 and a good tranny in there for less than it would cost you to go F/I. Nice amount of power to boot. And the 01+ 6.0 has very capable heads on it too! On the other hand, if you do look to cam your 5.3 be careful on what you pick. Otherwise you will lose some lowend.

vhato · December 5, 2004

I dunno,

Cat-Back Exhaust, Headers, Intake, Tune.....They all cost $$$$ and they all lower your VERY low end torque. Air Restriction or Forced induction increase low end torque.

However the added mid and high end power will be nice. It will Sound Faster than it really is and if you are OK with that illusion (like most of us are) then you will be fine. You should be able to buy all this and install it yourself for half the cost of the charger, however you will gain less than half of what a charger can give anyway. Assume a charger (well use a Whipple Non-intercooled @ $3800) gives a conservative 45% increase in HP (most are more) on a 5.3 V-8 w/295 HP. That would be 427 HP a gain of 132 HP. Half of that gain is 66 HP @ $1,900.00 for a total of 361 HP.

Hmmmm, is 361 HP out of an 5.3 V-8 possible for $1,900.00 assuming you do everything yourself??

Or

Is 66 HP possible with a 5.3 V-8 for $1900.00 w/o Spray??

Never looked at it this way. Now that I am writing this reply it now appears a charger may not be the best bang for the buck for constricted budgets.

That leads me to my next question. Just comparing to half the power and half the price of a charger,

Is a gain of 66 HP and 75 lbft torque possible for $1900.00??

99Silver6.0 · December 5, 2004

I dunno,

Cat-Back Exhaust, Headers, Intake, Tune.....They all cost $$$$ and they all lower your VERY low end torque. Air Restriction or Forced induction increase low end torque.

However the added mid and high end power will be nice. It will Sound Faster than it really is and if you are OK with that illusion (like most of us are) then you will be fine. You should be able to buy all this and install it yourself for half the cost of the charger, however you will gain less than half of what a charger can give anyway. Assume a charger (well use a Whipple Non-intercooled @ $3800) gives a conservative 45% increase in HP (most are more) on a 5.3 V-8 w/295 HP. That would be 427 HP a gain of 132 HP. Half of that gain is 66 HP @ $1,900.00 for a total of 361 HP.

Hmmmm, is 361 HP out of an 5.3 V-8 possible for $1,900.00 assuming you do everything yourself??

Or

Is 66 HP possible with a 5.3 V-8 for $1900.00 w/o Spray??

Never looked at it this way. Now that I am writing this reply it now appears a charger may not be the best bang for the buck for constricted budgets.

That leads me to my next question. Just comparing to half the power and half the price of a charger,

Is a gain of 66 HP and 75 lbft torque possible for $1900.00??

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I have to disagree on the loss of low end with headers thing. Not ALL F/I setups will increase extreme low end torque either. On headers, if you use shortie headers yes you will lose some low end. Long tubes wont do that. A tune wont kill low end either. More off-idle timing will help!! Which is possible with a tune. The 5.3's dont have near as much timing as they can take with good gas. Electricc fans would be a good idea too, will help improve throttle responce and kick up your MPG. I think you could get a bit more power with a good shot of juice. Id say a 100 shot would probably do the trick. Im not a N20 master but a standalone kit with a fuel PSI switch and oil switch would be a safe setup. Friend of mine put an NX 150 shot stand-alone setup on his 5.3 and hes pulling 12.8's. And hes spinning it all the way up to 6400RPM's. The N20 kits are pricey but not $1000 bucks. Ill only take mine to 6200.

boomer 33 · December 5, 2004

Just getting a tune and getting rid of the torque management will do a lot for you. Torque management kills the whole machine. I have removed from my 8.1 Yukon and 04 vette, let me tell you, it makes a big difference.

99Silver6.0 · December 6, 2004

Just getting a tune and getting rid of the torque management will do a lot for you. Torque management kills the whole machine. I have removed from my 8.1 Yukon and 04 vette, let me tell you, it makes a big difference.

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Oh yes it does. But it can also reak havoc on the 4L60!!!!! So I suggest you take heed and be careful when you take it all out. WOT downshifts are hell!!

02denali · December 6, 2004

361 at the flywheel is possible with a lot of bolt ons. a good tune will move the timing up off idle and create low end grunt. shortie headers will give more top end power. long tubes loose a tad bit hp down low but you gain torque. then they gain more hp up top and keep even more torque. so we figure----361hp. that is to the flywheel correct. so 361-20%=289 to the wheels. 20% being parasitic power loss. i think it is possible with some very good deals on parts. but remember that if you plan on going to FI later the engine mods need to be picked out carefully. N@O will and can add hp and gobbs of torque. on the tqm thing. shift kit and servos from a REPUTABLE transmission shop will help out the tranny. good luck. and get a nelson tune that will get you closer to your goal in a hurry. and get the tranny work done by JAG performance.

boomer 33 · December 6, 2004

I have a new transmission figured in my "grin cost" for the vette. I think the tranny in the Yukon will handle it, it has a beefier tranny for the 8.1