i was wondering if the difference between the 3.4 and 3.8 were really that big. from what i noticed most people say dont worry about moding a 3.4 because it wont be worth it. But on the 3.8 i hear people saying they have seen them run 11s and that they have done tons of work to them. so is it just that more people are willing to work on 3.8, more parts, more power to get out of a 3.8, or 3.4 is just not that good to begin with ect.?

 

I have never owned a 3.4. With the 3.4 the limiting factor is the heads. So its pretty much a all or nothing engine. The 3.8 starts out at 200 hp. and getting it to 220 is pretty easy. The HP alone does not tell the whole tale. The torque ban of the 3.8 kicks in earlier makeing the car feel a lot faster.

Now think about the history of the two motors. The 3.4 came from the 3.1 which came from a 2.8. Both 2.8 & 3.1 motors had weak bottom ends and really could not be modded so there was no real following there.
The 3.8 has a racing history. Even before the Grand Nash guys where playing with the buick 231 turbo. I think that was some of the motivation behind the GN. I can remember a couple buick Opels with the buick 231 turbos installed. Made for a quick little car. GM put the 231 turbo in a lot of Monte Carls. These where carburated turbos. GM pretty much rendered the turbo usless but it modded nice. So yes the 3800 have a long history of being modded.

 

wasnt the 3.4 stopped bein made all together when they changed the body style of the 4th gen camaro?

 

I think they started the 3800 in 96

 

95 could be a 3.4 or a 3.8 in 06 the 3.4 was dropped completely.
My wife 2000 mini van has a 3.4 in it. I think the roots of the new Camaro V6 is closer to the 3.4 then the 3.8.

 

so basically the reason behind it is because the 3.8 has been out longer

 

not really sure what the major differences are, but there must be a few. there is a 40 horse difference to start with. and as someone pointed out, the 3.4 shares the same roots of the 2.8, and 3.1 liter. the 3.8 liter seems to have been built more sturdier with some performance in mind, as opposed to the 2.8's/3.1's that had been in the previous generation. just reading online, it seems to pop up that GM was looking for something that would make a nice step up from the 3.4, which was rivaled by the mustang v6, and they had their engineers adapt the 3800 from a fwd setup to a rwd.

 

I think that is some of it but I do think most of these builds happen a little at a time. The owners get to like the motors cause they know what to expect. Like I said before the 3.4 does not respond to mods well unless you change the heads. That is a pretty big first step. So most of the time in never happens.

On the other hand I am thinking about a 3rd gen project. Find a nice RS 3.1/5 speed and swap in a 3.4 short block and the right set of heads. Might be a fun project.

 

well it all makes more sense now. thanks for all the help