Add horsepower?
#1
12-10-2005, 12:31 AM
Add horsepower?
Well I drive a 94' Camaro V6 3.4L and I want to add some horses to this baby. Its got 80,000 miles on it and is in pretty good shape. I was thinking of installing a cold air intake, a TB bypass kit, new performance spark plugs and spark plug wires, and maybe switch to synthetic oil and maybe a k&n oil filter. My questions are: a.) what brands would be good for high performance parts in these items; b.) Will any of these changes not do anything for horsepower; c.) what weight oil should I use; and d.) are there any other cheap things I could do to add horses, because a supercharger is a little out of my price range =). Thanks for any help ahead of time!
#2
12-10-2005, 01:25 AM
RE: Add horsepower?
Having worked withthe 3.4 for quite a while, here it goes:
Things worth doing:
1) Cat back exhaust
2) Headers
3) Cold air intake
4) 160 thermostat & set up fans to come on at around 170
5) Late model W car 3.5 heads with the roller rocker set up, with W car 3400 pistons to keep compression within useable limits
6) Late model W car 3.5 intake manifold & throttle body
7) port match heads & intake manifold, blend bowl
8) 3 or 5 angle valve job
9) Hot flat tappet cam, can't use roller cam on Camaro block, may have to change push rod lenght, depending on cam
11) Balance engine, you will be shifting at over 7000 RPM
12) 3.75 or 4.11 rear end with limited slip
13) Dyno tune the whole mess because by now the computer will have no idea of what is going on
Things that will give little or no gain:
1) TB bypass, 2 Hp, maybe. Makes car a pain in cold weather as throttle body ices up on damp cold days.
2) Replacement K&N filter. no gain over a clean paper filter.
3) Syntethic oil, 2HP maybe
4) EGR delete, no gain as it only gets used at part throttle
Things that will make car run the way it was intended;
1) New plugs, start with the factory stock & experiment from there
2) New ignition wires
3) Injector cleaner. I like Techron, but they all work OK
ANOTHER OPTION.
Swap in a 3.8 or 4300 V6
Good luck !!
Things worth doing:
1) Cat back exhaust
2) Headers
3) Cold air intake
4) 160 thermostat & set up fans to come on at around 170
5) Late model W car 3.5 heads with the roller rocker set up, with W car 3400 pistons to keep compression within useable limits
6) Late model W car 3.5 intake manifold & throttle body
7) port match heads & intake manifold, blend bowl
8) 3 or 5 angle valve job
9) Hot flat tappet cam, can't use roller cam on Camaro block, may have to change push rod lenght, depending on cam
11) Balance engine, you will be shifting at over 7000 RPM
12) 3.75 or 4.11 rear end with limited slip
13) Dyno tune the whole mess because by now the computer will have no idea of what is going on
Things that will give little or no gain:
1) TB bypass, 2 Hp, maybe. Makes car a pain in cold weather as throttle body ices up on damp cold days.
2) Replacement K&N filter. no gain over a clean paper filter.
3) Syntethic oil, 2HP maybe
4) EGR delete, no gain as it only gets used at part throttle
Things that will make car run the way it was intended;
1) New plugs, start with the factory stock & experiment from there
2) New ignition wires
3) Injector cleaner. I like Techron, but they all work OK
ANOTHER OPTION.
Swap in a 3.8 or 4300 V6
Good luck !!
#5
12-10-2005, 03:12 PM
RE: Add horsepower?
Again, I've touted the benefits of crate engines on my other posts. Even an $1800, 290HP 350 would wake up your car. They are something to consider because you get a working engine, guarrantee, etc.
You might face some fitting problems putting a V8 in an original V6, but no more with a crate engine than if you build a V8 yourself.
You might face some fitting problems putting a V8 in an original V6, but no more with a crate engine than if you build a V8 yourself.
#6
12-10-2005, 09:01 PM
RE: Add horsepower?
ORIGINAL: Lee Willis
Again, I've touted the benefits of crate engines on my other posts. Even an $1800, 290HP 350 would wake up your car. They are something to consider because you get a working engine, guarrantee, etc.
You might face some fitting problems putting a V8 in an original V6, but no more with a crate engine than if you build a V8 yourself.
Again, I've touted the benefits of crate engines on my other posts. Even an $1800, 290HP 350 would wake up your car. They are something to consider because you get a working engine, guarrantee, etc.
You might face some fitting problems putting a V8 in an original V6, but no more with a crate engine than if you build a V8 yourself.
Ok, seriously, great suggestion, Lee. A 290hp V8 isn't blistering fast, but it'll surely be as quick as a stock LT1 car. LT1 cars were also underrated, and were probably making closer to 290-300hp than the recorded factory claim of 275/285hp. You could also get a 290hp 350ci for a pretty decent price, as you mentioned. $1800 isn't bad at all, but you will have to go with a serious PCM tune.
What I would actually suggest is going with another V6; possibly the 3.8L turbo from the Grand National. I've mentioned this numerous times in other threads as well.
I'm not sure about the early 4th Gens, but the 98+ V6 models actually handle better than the Z28, due to the lower weight of the motor. The 98+ V6 models also have the same brakesand suspension setups as the Z28, and may even share the same wheel diameters with them. I'm also pretty sure the steering ratio is the same as on the Z28.
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