RedRocket's winter changes

[RedRocketZ28]

Figured I would post up some of the changes going the car is going through this year. I just copied it over from a thread I have on another forum. Most of you have seen all this, but oh well!

I am in the process of changing some things up on the car. The first kit was built by a buddy with a harbor freight welder. It started with a SBE '03 LQ4, JY 4L80E with HD-2, Speed Inc. TU1 cam, on3 76mm turbo, and a 2.73 10 bolt. It put down 606/570 on 14 lbs. with the on3 turbo.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ovHWR2Xzkq0

Power dropped off pretty hard after 5500 rpm, which was expected, and I wanted to upgrade things a little more. Did some suspension mods, ran -8 feed for fuel system, 127# injectors, Holley rails, FPR, and switched to a new Turbonetics 7875 turbo. This really woke things up and the car made 677 rwhp on 16 lbs. I was happy with it and drove it like that last summer. Had it to the track a few times and was really impressed with how it ran. With the 10 bolt, through the full exhaust, and on 11 lbs. it went 10.6 @ 136.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kjJyHUkiKnk

I borrowed a buddies 9 inch with 3.25's in it and took it to a local 1/8 mile track and went 6.50 @ 112 on 14-15 lbs.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=eTpITIJgXsk

Went to a 1/4 mile track last fall and ran a 9.92 @ 140 on the same 14-15 lbs. and ran a best of 142 mph on 16 lbs. Should have went faster but blew the charge pipe off on my last run when it was on 18-19 lbs. and cut my best 60' of 1.48. I don't like to speculate a whole lot but I imagine it would have ran a 9.6-9.7 or so @ 144-145. The run felt great until the charge pipe mishap. I thought the motor let go.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=lOOKsF2znPQ

On to this years changes. I got a S480 in the 92mm 1.10 a/r T6 flavor and a custom cam which is a 225/231 .621/.598 113+6. Also making a few other changes. Bigger trans cooler, Boost leash controller, battery relocation, my own 9" with either a 3.00 or 3.25 gear, and a few other things I am probably forgetting. Still going to rock the SBE LQ4 but have a 05+ 5.3 waiting to go in when this lets go. Hoping to make a few passes this year before she shit's the bed, but we will see.

A few pics of the hotside...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/09A90BE8-1A10-41E6-B3E9-D5682961FAF1_zpsqxad0pq8.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/09A90BE8-1A10-41E6-B3E9-D5682961FAF1_zpsqxad0pq8.jpg.html)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/36A22814-4EFE-4129-A71B-BCC72A731112_zpspdjukbfm.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/36A22814-4EFE-4129-A71B-BCC72A731112_zpspdjukbfm.jpg.html)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/41F90408-A2C8-49D3-A1B6-A79EC4B3256A_zpsktymalng.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/41F90408-A2C8-49D3-A1B6-A79EC4B3256A_zpsktymalng.jpg.html)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/75582436-5D99-4FEB-B316-9BDA38677843_zpstmikpus9.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/75582436-5D99-4FEB-B316-9BDA38677843_zpstmikpus9.jpg.html)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/8D421CD6-1DB6-40AB-89FB-1035736ADE24_zpsggjrvob0.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/8D421CD6-1DB6-40AB-89FB-1035736ADE24_zpsggjrvob0.jpg.html)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/21E50410-640B-4F12-B067-9379F6C81D6C_zpsavnhbtth.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/21E50410-640B-4F12-B067-9379F6C81D6C_zpsavnhbtth.jpg.html)

Need to start working on the downpipe and getting it routed through the k-member. Comments, suggestions and questions are welcome. I am hoping she picks up a decent amount of power over the old setup and gets me close to the 150's for trap speed.

[Newgen]

New turbo looks great andy. I really like the list of new mods! Sounds like the car should run a lot harder.

[slow ride]

How is the turbo braced? I don't see any sort of flex and it looks like it's mounted to the frame unless its just sitting there? Do you know what DCR is with that cam with the stock compression?

[RedRocketZ28]

New turbo looks great andy. I really like the list of new mods! Sounds like the car should run a lot harder.

Thanks Matt!


How is the turbo braced? I don't see any sort of flex and it looks like it's mounted to the frame unless its just sitting there? Do you know what DCR is with that cam with the stock compression?

It's mounted to the frame. I have solid motor mounts. DCR appears to be 6.84:1. Not sure how accurate that is using an online calculator. The compression ratio is 9.56:1 with the LS9 gaskets.

[AutoMods]

good work. should pick up some decent power with that turbo upgrade. will be interesting to see how hard you can push the stock motor. hopefully she holds up for you. although if it does hold up for a long time, I will be a bit jealous since i spent the money to forge mine.

[FiFdYnUtZ]

Lookin good...looking forward to a rematch this year..

[RedRocketZ28]

Thanks fellas. This turbo should make a lot more steam up top. According to the gentlemen that built the turbo it should be up almost 100 rwhp from the Turbonetics at the same boost level.

[Phish]

You still planning on using the same trans this year or are you upgrading sometime soon?

[RedRocketZ28]

Same trans Phish. Hoping it will hold for the season.

[JustaGT]

Looks good man, that thing should really haul the mail next year!

[Drifte]

Same trans Phish. Hoping it will hold for the season.

What trans is it? Is your car full weight or ditched some stuff to help it hold the power?

[RedRocketZ28]

Junkyard 1995 4L80e with a HD-2 shift kit in it. The car is full weight minus A/C which my turbo alone more than makes up for. It is a 1SC car though so has no power options - windows, locks, rear defrost, seats, cruise, etc. It was around 3450 with me in it last year. I imagine it will be heavier this year unless I start taking some weight out.

[Drifte]

Dang, I doubt that trans even knows its working, aside from the higher RPM shifts.

[AutoMods]

Junkyard 1995 4L80e with a HD-2 shift kit in it. The car is full weight minus A/C which my turbo alone more than makes up for. It is a 1SC car though so has no power options - windows, locks, rear defrost, seats, cruise, etc. It was around 3450 with me in it last year. I imagine it will be heavier this year unless I start taking some weight out.

any cage plans?

[RedRocketZ28]

any cage plans?

Eventually. We just sold our house in Des Moines and plan on building a house in Madrid. Also expecting our 2nd child in April so not sure how much time I will have for the car this year.

[RodneyPierce]

Friggin' junk!

[BGjohnson]

It's been nice seeing the progression of the car. I love how snappy it was with that little turbo!

You've come quite a ways with the car in the little time it's had a turbo on it. It will only get faster!

[RedRocketZ28]

So it's been awhile but I have somewhat of an update. We sold our house and had to be out March 24th. I didn't have much time to work on the car during March due to it being really cold, fixing stuff on the house for inspection, moving, etc. Did have a late night installing my 9 inch the day before we had to be out of the house, then winch it up on a trailer to take to Josey's (SunnyZ) place to finish. He was kind enough to let me put it in his garage and also help with the fabbing of the downpipe and a few other things. The one car garage at our townhome rental wasn't going to cut it. That will all be dealt with when our new house is completed sometime this summer.

The new garage will be nice. It's 26' deep on the two stall portion, and 34' deep in the 3rd stall, and the whole thing is 36' wide. It will be plumbed for heat (gas line), 220v outlet, washtub with hot/cold, drain in the floor, and fully insulated. I have aspirations of eventually putting a lift in it but that will be a ways down the road. Anyway, onto the car.

I ordered a 9 inch from Trick Chassis in Wisconsin. It's got 35 spline Strange axles with a S-trac diff and a 3.00 gear. It's a nice piece. We have started running the battery cutoff/relocation stuff. The hotside is all on and motor put back together after the cam swap. Waiting on a few other pieces and hopefully will have it running in the next couple of weeks. Here are a couple of quick pics I took the other night.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/Enginebay_zpsf8a3a3f2.jpeg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/Enginebay_zpsf8a3a3f2.jpeg.html)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/Enginebay2_zpsbd50a247.jpeg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/Enginebay2_zpsbd50a247.jpeg.html)

We decided to run the downpipe out of the front bumper on the passenger side for now. I will eventually have a cutout setup installed and run it out back with either 3" or 3.5" pipe so I can cruise quietly. My main goal right now is to get it up and running and out of his garage. I don't want to impede too much with his build.

I sold my TTII wheels and tires and will be rocking the stock chrome 5 spoke wheels this year. Will have a cheap tire up front and either a Nitto or Mickey out back. Eventually I want to get a 17x7 Darkstar instead of the 17x4.5 to run on the street full time. I don't like how it feels on the street with the small footprint up front.

I should hopefully have a few more updates this coming weekend.

[Phish]

Glad to see some updates from ya. I have not seen or heard anything about you or your car for awhile. 3.00 gears took me by surprise. However once i thought about it it makes since. Keep up the progress.

PS. The new garage sounds amazing.

[BGjohnson]

Screw the car, I want the garage!!

[RedRocketZ28]

Thanks guys. I will see how it runs with the 3.00 gear. Last year at the track I was about out of gear at the stripe. I liked the way it ran even with the 2.73's in it for a bit. This should be about perfect for my setup.

Yeah, the garage should be pretty awesome. Can't wait to finally get started on it. Been a pretty stressful last month or so with everything that has gone on.

[Sleepy]

I really like the way your turbo and manifold are placed. Nice notching on the frame.

[RedRocketZ28]

More updates.

Downpipe.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/6FF259D0-18EE-44E7-9D8B-1E97BFE49B07_zpssw2rka5s.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/6FF259D0-18EE-44E7-9D8B-1E97BFE49B07_zpssw2rka5s.jpg.html)
How should I trim this?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/4B048CE5-C656-4DC6-90BA-C31D1ED8A1F1_zpswxsrngtm.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/4B048CE5-C656-4DC6-90BA-C31D1ED8A1F1_zpswxsrngtm.jpg.html)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/168D1F5F-5133-48FF-B831-2D47C43F43D6_zpsxwiclri0.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/168D1F5F-5133-48FF-B831-2D47C43F43D6_zpsxwiclri0.jpg.html)
Looking through the passenger headlight area.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/5713942D-56E3-422B-B411-29772CF409A8_zpsplk7m8av.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/5713942D-56E3-422B-B411-29772CF409A8_zpsplk7m8av.jpg.html)

Hopefully will be driving it tonight a bit. Have a few things to finish up first but shouldn't take too long. Need to get the bung in the downpipe for the wideband, then paint and wrap it quick. Will get some video when it's up and running.

[FiFdYnUtZ]

That front exit looks killer!

[RedRocketZ28]

How it looks as of now. Need to coat/paint the radiator shroud eventually. Install the ABS delete kit and clean a few other things up.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/54973950-BB50-46A2-A9E4-C727EEFD9664_zpsrzp17euw.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/54973950-BB50-46A2-A9E4-C727EEFD9664_zpsrzp17euw.jpg.html)

And...it rolls out!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/longer02/2001%20Z28/A918164A-3C59-4C94-8489-A56C63194BA3_zpsowchvgso.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/longer02/media/2001%20Z28/A918164A-3C59-4C94-8489-A56C63194BA3_zpsowchvgso.jpg.html)

I think the wastegates are plumbed wrong (at least I hope). It's boosting past the 7 lb. springs in them, lol. Either that, or I have the wrong springs in. Either way, I will get it figured out. The thing absolutely rips though. Haven't gone past 80% throttle yet. Need to get the boost steady first. The Tick cam has way more out of boost snap than the TU1 did. It also comes into boost QUICK. I am definitely pleased with how well it's running so far. I have put over 70 trouble free miles on it so far. Tune isn't too far off from what I can tell. Need to get the man MaxxMitchell to tweak a few things, but overall it seems good. It was pretty rich with the old setup. It would have been in the mid 10's AFR on the pull above for sure. Will try to get some more things ironed out this week and hopefully flog on it a bit this coming weekend.

[AutoMods]

nice, good to hear it spools up fast

post up the graph showing boost/map and rpm

[slow ride]

I'm sure he DCR is bumped up which should really help off boost. What was the cam event changes if you feel like putting them up? I know a stock lq4 is a little low on SCR.

[FiFdYnUtZ]

If martin spec'd it I imagine its dcr is pretty healthy, he seems to like lower ICs as well...but thats just from what ive seen

[hamrmech]

Tits. that is all.

[RedRocketZ28]

Cam specs - 225/231 .621/.598 113+6

I took the wastegates off yesterday. Had the big springs in them, whoops. Got them changed out last night and will drive it around tonight to see what it does. Hopefully, they work. If not, Ryan I will be contacting you for some Tial 38's.

[RedRocketZ28]

Well, got the car on the dyno this weekend for some tuning via Ryan Mitchell (MaxxMitchell). He came up on Saturday to tune a few other local cars as well. Anyway, the final numbers were 727 rwhp on 18-19 lbs. with the converter unlocked. The torque on this run showed 696 but I know that wasn't right. There was a spike on the dyno graph. Not sure if it lost signal for a second during the run or what.

Although I know not to base anything off of dyno numbers, I can't help but to say I was a little disappointed. I figured it would make 750+ pretty easily with this turbo, as well did Ryan. He said that the converter is way too loose now though. I was sitting in the car when it was on the dyno and the converter would flash to 5600 and obviously hold there forever until it got caught up to. I assume this could play a huge factor in actual dyno numbers. I was pretty upset when it made only a little more power on lower boost numbers as it did with the Turbonetics 7875. The good news is that it keeps making power all the way to 6 grand when he let off. It will keep climbing past that for sure, which I am sure would have helped the HP numbers, but he didn't want to push it too hard. I will pull it to 6400 or so at the track though, where it matters most. No more dropping power off at 5500 though! I knew the converter was loose last year but it ran well for what it was. This year I put more power to it, dropped to a 3.00 gear as well, so it has to be slipping more.

Anyway, I am going to run it at the track and see what it does. If it doesn't produce the times I think it should, then I will send the converter out to get it tightened up. Anyone have any thoughts on the whole deal? It absolutely rips on the street though. It will bust the Mickey's loose from a roll very easily. Easier than it did before for sure. I am also happy that the bottom end is still together!

I have a buddy who got a video of the dyno runs I will get posted when he sends them.

Here's a quick run that Ryan did with Jordan (Sharpie). I wanted to run Jordan from a dig as well but the party got broken up after this run. We did do a couple of pulls on the interstate though and I was impressed with the outcome. We both spun on the hit pretty good. I will let him chime in with his thoughts if he wishes. It was over too quick for me to make any real judgment on the outcome. We both have a bit more boost to throw at the cars.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dNm9VKVXuY

[AutoMods]

can't wait to hear what she does at the track. what dyno did you go to?

[RedRocketZ28]

Central Imports dyno. Same one Phish was on Saturday.

[Sleepy]

Is Jordan's car an auto now?

I know it isn't what you wanted but mid 700s is stupid impressive. It seems like every year the v8 crowd gains a 100whp.
The car was super fast last year and I am sure it will be even more fun this year. Congrats Andy!

[slow ride]

Just remember an unlocked auto dyno is nothing like a manual either. The converter and trans will sap the peak power number, but the average power will be huge.

[JustaGT]

That was a killer spot for races also, sucks that the 5.0 were at the end of the dead end, haha. It looked like your car moved out pretty hard from a roll, cant wait to see it at the track this year!

[RedRocketZ28]

Is Jordan's car an auto now?

I know it isn't what you wanted but mid 700s is stupid impressive. It seems like every year the v8 crowd gains a 100whp.
The car was super fast last year and I am sure it will be even more fun this year. Congrats Andy!

Yep, his in an auto. Thanks man!


Just remember an unlocked auto dyno is nothing like a manual either. The converter and trans will sap the peak power number, but the average power will be huge.

Yeah, I realize that as well. Hopefully it runs well at the track.


That was a killer spot for races also, sucks that the 5.0 were at the end of the dead end, haha. It looked like your car moved out pretty hard from a roll, cant wait to see it at the track this year!

Thanks, Lance. It does move pretty good from a roll for sure.