So i recently got my camaro. Its a 99 3.8L v6 engine. All stock right now. Im only 17 and not a car wizz but I am learning. I want to put some mods on my car but im not sure what all would fit or how all that works. I want it to be a bit faster. I plan on getting simple things like cold air intake, cat back exhaust and stuff like that but i do not know much else. Anyone got some good ideas to add some horses without putting a v8 in it or supercharging it or anything? i dont have the deepest pocket

 

i think cold air intake is good for you, dont want to be to fast since you just got it. dont want to die right? lol the camaro i own is my second, my first one was a 86 383 stroker. i was 18 young too fast and stupid sold it. lol but yeah just exaust, intake should ad like 20 or so. maybe more ive never had a v6 in my life.

 

You seem to be off to a good start. Add what you have and see how you like it and go from there. From there you could go with Headers, Cam, P&P, Nitrous...

Take some time and do a little research. Plenty of threads to go around.

 

once you do intake and exhaust i'd go with headers, i just got pacesetter headers put in and it brings all new meaning to the car, for me atleast

 

I have a 1998 3.8L camaro and im pushing about 250hp. and about 315ft. pds. of torque. my quarter mile time is faster than the V8's. And im not super charged or with a turbo or nitrous. I have had mine for about 2 years now. i also didnt have that much money to put in it but ive slowly modded it. heres whats on my car. and heres some cheaper things you could do to make your car faster. Most of these parts you can get CHEAP on Ebay. Most of the prices are rough estimates.


Exhaust:

Start with a Cat-Back exhaust and A High Flow muffler. I have Flowmaster 80 series muffler. $350 (Gains 15 Horsepower(HP) And 20 FT. of Torque with all these included)

Pacesetter High Flow Headers- $250

High Flow Catalytic Converter-$250


Ignition:

The thing about performance ignitions is they really dont add that much horsepower. basically none. But, they can dramatically slow you down if your engine is modded and you have the stock ignition. If your car is slightly modded with the exhuast you might see some horsepower gains.

MSD Ignition Module 6L- $250 5 HP For ALL Together

MSD Blaster Ignition Coils-$150

ANY Iridium spark plugs are great for performance. $40
(I use NGK)
MSD High Heat Spark Plug Wires-$50

Intake:

15HP and 10T (for all together)


For 98+ 3.8L Camaros they have a different intake then the 97-.

SLP Cold Air Induction-$130

Whisper High Flow Lid-$70


Engine: 40 HP and 50T

Underdrive Pulley Kit-$150

Comp Cams Performance Cam-$350-$? (depending on application specifications) ( May need to adjust Valvetrain)

Ported Upper and Lower Intake Manifolds- $300


Transmission(460LE): Doesnt add horsepower or torque but does affect acceleration and speed.

B&M Performance Shift Kit-$50

B&M Electronic Shift Improver-$45


Rear End and Differential: No horsepower gains but alot of torque!

Expect to see around 50ft. pounds of torque with the bigger gears.

Rear Gears: (depending on year. I believe yours are 2.73)

Replace old gears with new 4.10 or 4.11 gears for INSANE amount of Torque gains. It will lower your gas milage and your top end speed alot but your 0-60 will be insanely faster.

Computer:

If I were you I would send my computer in somewhere to get it tuned. It is EXTREMELY hard to find tuners that fit these years of the 3.8L Camaro. But they are out there. Anyway tune your ECU and you will see alot of gains in performance. If you tune everything te car will gain around 15 more horsepower and about 20 more torque


With Computer Tuned-60HP and 100 Torque Gains

Without Computer Tuned- 50HP and 60 Torque Gains

So for around $1750 in parts. you can have your V6 laughing at the V8s. And if you threw a supercharger on. and get the computer tuned. You might be in compittion with some corvettes.

Thats just a few thigns you can do! Email me back if you have any more specific questions on anything. Matt

 

By your own numbers you are at 260 HP and 325 Lb-ft of torque. How does that laugh at 305HP and 335 Lb-ft of torque? Even if you had the same numbers the V8 would be faster cause the torque curve kicks in much earlier. The V-6 needs the RPMs to get it HP up to those levels. In a race you have to get to those RPMs. V-8's get their faster.Post your quater mile times. A stock 98 V-8 can do 13.7 in the 1/4 mile. 60 HP is not going to shave 2 full seconds off your 1/4 mile time 3400 lb car.

The only vetts you will be out running are the late 70's early 80's

Also you are a little mixed up on Torque. Torque is a measument of force the engine can output unrelated to time. Your gearing has no effect on torque of the motor. My 68 pick has a granny gear in it. That does not mean my truck has more torque in it then one that does not. But your are correct that a V6 will benifit from higher gears. It allows them to get to the higher RPMs faster.

 

well gorn you are right bro. i may have streched it a little bit on the gains but ive done it in my car.
Anyways nice ride bro. i wished i had a first gen. Camaro.

Anyway heres my times.
My fastest quarter: 13.58 @ 99

Im not saying that a these V6's are the fastest out there lol but they can be faster than the V8's even without a supercharger or turbo. My Car is also 500 pounds lighter than the stock V6. This really improves my quarter mile. And my motor and cam have been tuned to hit redlines at 6500. MY fastest 0-60 is 5.4 seconds. I believe the V8s are 5.2 right? anyway i would love to have a V8 but im satisfied with my V6. for now lol. but yea thanks gorn for the update on my mistakes on the message. also. nice ride.

 

13.58 at 99 hhmmmmmmm.

 

so if i did intake, exhaust, tb spacer... new engine coming in this week.... wuts nexT?

 

i went 13.3 @105 when i was stock. w/ a 2.2 60'.


just sayin.....


OP, there is a sticky in the 4th gen section which explains alot of the basic modifications and the options you have available to you. "basic modificaitons tech"

Gorn, the ls1 is actually 350hp stock. it was underrated. they dyno about 300 even at the rear wheels. I put down 331rwhp with just a lid and borla manifold-back exhaust