Sleeper = a car that appears stock but one that's hiding its go-fast. A pic of the car and some details would be nice. 350 HO Deluxe (350ci/330hp), GM lightweight flywheel, CenterForce II clutch kit, Hooker headers, Catco hi-flow cat, Hooker cat-back with OEM tail pipes, GM dual electric fans, OEM manual transmission with B&M Ripper short-throw and Hammer shifter, Energy Suspension motor, tranny, secondary crossmember, torque arm, bump stops, and tie-rod boots, Prothane A-arm bushings, Global West steering box brace and subframe connectors, Hotchkis tie-rod sleeves, Spohn 1LE front brake kit, PBR rears, Earl's braided-steel brake lines, 1LE sway bars with GM poly end links and Top-Down Solutions greaseable 36mm front and Energy Suspension greaseable 24mm rear bushings, 1LE aluminum drive shaft, Edelbrock torque arm, Spohn lower control arms and panhard, and Summit differential cover. JamesC

not bad

Check the signature

Look at signature. Should have more in it at the end of the winter. Basically it looks stock with a set of rims and a decent exhaust

see sig for my mods, rs hiding a lt1/ will be t56

This is a really good thread. I think the art of a sleeper is dieing, and I'm gonna really enjoy wiping the smirks off a lot of peoples faces. Seems like everyone these days just wants a car that looks fast.

i wish mine was a sleeper, but i have loud exhaust also, what makes a car "look fast" anyway?

i ahve a 3" ram air II hood, 17 TT II's, lowering with sportlines, would this be in your definition?

sleepers are nice but as soon as 1 person races ya the whole world knows. Friends of mine have gone to great lengths to make their car look slower but in the end it probably makes them seem faster to some folks. If you hide stuff but then blow the doors off a fast car people get very suspicious "what else is he hiding!?" and you'll never be able to get a race again.

I do the sleeper thing differently... I throw up "hey I got stock GM heads, dual plane intake, single 3" exhaust, and factory suspension... how fast could that be?"

The trick to a perfect sleeper is to never show a full run. If you beat someone at the track, it has to be just enough to claim a win. If you cross the finish line and they're just past the 1/8 mile mark then everyone knows how fast you can really go.

There are some street car events, Vegas held one, that the times were not posted on the scoreboards and the timeslips were torn in half so you only got the part showing your car. The only person who knew exactly what the car could run was the driver.

around here we have street car chaos on the weekends and most of those guys never run all out. I've lost races the weekend before for $100 or $200 only to next week add the timing back into the motor and win a race for $400. This type of stuff goes on all the time around chicago, and street races are the same thing, typically no one pops and no one cares if it's a sleeper since any sports car can't really be a sleeper anymore, ie if you're looking to setup races you obviously aren't driving a stock vehicle. I gave up the sleeper look a long time ago and the cage pretty much seals the deal on how "fast" the car goes.

Guys, my intent was to see some sleepers and what their owners had done mechanically both to the engine and suspension. If you wish to comment on other issues, perhaps this thread will be more appropriate:

http://thirdgen.org/techbb2/showthre...hlight=sleeper

JamesC

Air_Adam's 1983 Z28 HO

Engine

Chevy 350ci small block engine
TFS 195cc aluminum heads
Edelbrock RPM Air Gap intake
Holley 3310 dual feed 4bbl
Comp Cams XE274H camshaft
MSD pro billet distributor, 6AL box
Griffin 31x19x3" aluminum radiator
Hedman 68470 headers and Y-pipe
Hooker Aerochamber 3" catback
Summit 3" exhaust cutout

Driveline

Borg-Warner Super T10 4-spd trans
Hurst Competition Plus shifter
GM steel driveshaft
GM steel torque arm
GM 10-bolt axle, 3.73 gearing

Other

GM 15x7" aluminum Z28 wheels
GM fibreglass Z28 hood
Mr. Gasket hood pin studs, custom cables and pins
Infinity speakers and CD player
Custom-installed 2-1/8" gauges (oil pressure, water temp)
Grant GT leather-wrapped steering wheel


**some engine/driveline specs as of spring 2006**

my car used to be a sleeper when it had the 400sbc in it. now that i have the shafiroff motor in it, i had to but a 4 inch cowl hood on it. other than the hood the car looks mostly stock. as soon as i start it up you can tell it has work done to it. any time anyone asked me whats done to it i just tell them the basic bolt ons. the on bad thing is that the valve covers say scott shafiroff 434 ultra street. so if you see the motor( wich not to many have) you know what its got. but i really dont get anyone that wants to race me.

Here's my '87 IROC Z. It's hiding a nitrous'd 427 big block under the stock hood. Except for the wheels and tires in the picture, it looks stock inside and out. No aftermarket gauges, no nitrous bottles, AC and radio faceplates still in place, etc.

Here's the spec. of my Sleeper

Chevrolet Camaro Z28 1984
Engine V8 383 Stroker
Crankshaft Eagle 383
Camshaft single patern 509 lift & 246 duration
Heads 195cc Air Flow Research
SLP 1 3/4" headers, Y pipe and 3" Cat Back
Carburator Holley 750CFM double pumper mechanical
Ignition MSD 6AL with Hypertech Coil
Transmission Heavy Duty TH700R4 with B&M Console Megashifter
Torque Stall 3500RPM
Rear End Australian Build Limited Slip Borg Warner 7.75 ratio 3.45
1998-2002 Camaro LS1 3" Aluminum Drive Shaft
Wheels 16"X8" Irocz
Tire 245/50ZR16 Michelin Pilot Sport
Stabilizer Bar front 36mm Rear 1LE 24mm
Top-Down Solutions Frame Rail Stiffener (Wonderbar)
GM Performance Parts 145MPH Speedo

Go see my sleeper !

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2151535/1
Thank's !

pic of my car is in my sig. right now its stock but soon it will run low 12's n/a and 11's on spray. im gonna have it look dead stock under the hood, but its really gonna be a 450hp 350. i want it to look exactly like it does now except i have to put a roll bar in it once i break 11's.

great thread JamesC, your car is awesome!

1987 IROC Turbo 461 BBC (454 bored .030 over)

/\ /\ /\ /\ /\ /\
Now thats a sleeper!

mine is kind of a sleeper. i would LOVE to pick up a factory composite hood that came on the 82-4 z's to really finish the look...but wanted the hood clearance so i grabbed a 3" cowl.

my plans are to paint the wheels in this picture gold, polish the lips up and make them look like the factory paint scheme on the wheels...then go to a slightly smaller back tire for the street, but keep the d/r's for the track. i'd REALLY like to go back to a single exhaust, but 3.5" at the smallest...but just hide it REALLY well in the back.

new motor combonation:
10.2:1 c/r 360 sbc
113 casting aluminum heads
XE274H
hedman longtube headers to duals...again, hope to go to single in the future
10" ATI converter infront of a built 700r4 and 4.10's

If I told you what I'm hiding, would it still be a sleeper?

Comeoncomeoncomeon.... We won't tell...

Much props...cars look good and probably run awesome....
as I have love for the IROCs and Z-28s, where are all the TA aficionados?

My TA is still a work in progress....but soon will be able to be in this thread.

red 87 sc w/ slp zr1 rims....

No need, your profile says it all. Must be fun to just roll on some mofo in that Berly.

It WAS a sleeper till I put the plates on it.

It has/is: 1983 Z-28 LS1/4L60E, Autometer Gauges, BTP Racing Custom Cold Air, MSD Wires, 85mm SLP MAF, 4.10s w/ Auburn Posi, JBA Headers, Custom 3" Exhaust w/3" Electric Cutout, Koni Adjustable Struts, Eibach Pro Springs, SLP 17x8 ZR1s, BF Goodrich G-Force Sport Tires

CtRw, your pics are huge. Please reduce. Thanks.

2002 LS1 with cam and ported exhaust manifolds and TB. 3" edelbrock exhaust (quiet). ,3.73 posi rear and 6 speed. And of course every thing Spohn makes LOL. I have found by keeping the stock wheels this fools them every time. Most people change the wheels first. They think if it has stock wheels you didn't do anything.

man, everytime i see that car it makes me glad that i kept the stock wheels....i'm going to go out and clean my dad's car up right now....it has a set of stock wheel on it...looks pretty mean too! i'll see if i can't get some pics up of it.

dad's ride with freshly redone stock wheels




let me know what ya'll think....it's going to get a 1/2 a coil cut off the front springs to help get the front end down out of the air.

88 FireBird S/E (V6 car)
406 Vortec small block (450hp)
Th-350 trans B&M 3500stall converter.
Long tube headers custom dual 2.5"exhaust
Both exhaust tips exit on the drivers side (V6)
Twin transverse mounted custom made 2.5" turbo mufflers.
Airlift rear air bags (Drag Bags)
Auburn Posi 4.10:1 rear ratio.
Mickey Thompson ET street and Sportsman Pro
Twin Carter elec fuel pumps
AC delete.
NOS Nitrous. Accel ignition control.

mw, cowl, stance, and general attitude shout that your pop's car is NOT a sleeper .

JamesC

No offense to anyone, but if you run a cowl hood, aftermarket performance wheels, a $4000 paint job, custom plates, or an altered stance, it's not a sleeper.

Air_Adam and JoBy have it right though, if you don't even wash the car, it gives it the true finishing touch.

yeah, i know, i guess i was just kinda showin off my pop's new wheels.

and would you think by those pics it runs 11's?

could a moderate cowl be considered a sleeper? my pop's is a 4" outlaw cowl, which has kinda chizeled lines and very ubrupt shapes, so, it wouldn't exactly fit into this, but mine is a VERY moderate 3" cowl that really fits the lines of the car well...

In my view, a cowl hood is either a cosmetic piece designed to make people "believe" something nasty is lurking under the hood, or it's a practical piece actually enclosing something nasty. In either case, it alters stock (and thus sleeper) appearance.

JamesC

Sleeper? Yep. The kids never even see it coming, but they see it going. 383ci, GM Bowtie block,lifter bore corrections, squared, bored, alignhoned, stressplate honed to .030, balanced, eagle 4340 steel crank, manley sportsman rods, srp -31cc dish for 8.1cr, comp cams nitrous hp stick 274/292 .488/.501 world products sportsman II heads, hex adjust timing set, roller 1.5 rockers, ported tpi base, stock runners, 52mm TB, 30lb injectors, Vortech supercharger 8psi @6000, Aquamist water/meth injection, 7749 ecm, custom homemade chip, 3200 rpm stall, 700r4, 3:23 posi, 17" impala wheels, Z06 13" brakes all around. Kids just think its a boat. And the a/c is cold!

This is the muscle.

Here's mine... looks like a stock GTA with no emblems, 17's, 315's, and tinted windows. Too bad its hiding a 500+hp LS1, T56, and moser 9". Just ordered my cage and I'm doing a black interior swap right now. The car also has LS1 brakes all the way around it and many many other mods....






*I can't wait to start driving it more and surprising a few people... z06's are on my list

Some really nice cars on here. But many are not sleepers! Cowl hoods, wide wheels, roll bars, altered stance, etc are all give aways to what you got. My only give away is the high dollar paint job. I can hide that by skiping the car wash. My old gray head helps too. LOL.
Merry Christmas Boys and Girls. I hope Santa brings you lots of go fast goodies.
Tom

Notice I made no mention of how fast mine is.

If I told ya the truth, it wouldn't be a "Sleeper"

have a great Christmas..

I'm not sure what that means, but I'll take it as a compliment

... My car just has bad paint and rubber all over the rear 1/4s because that pic was near the end of a race day I'm stopped right beside the booth that hands out the slips after a pass in that shot.

I swapped a complete TTA into it with a TA49, 009 injectors and a restalled D5 converter.
It should surprise a few LS1's this summer.

I noticed after I posted it that you were getting your tickets. Still, nowhere near as showy as some of these cars.

My sleeper...

Motor...

you know, i think i've figured out why my car and my father's cars don't exactly fit into the "sleeper" catagory. while most of the guys we race with have much faster looking cars than us, we have tried to keep all of our appearance upgrades to a minimal...anything aftermarket on our cars was placed in such a way that the factory WOULD have done it, had it been an option...which is one reason i really like staying with the wheels i have on the car right now...

see sig for pic, 383 pump gas + nitrous 800hp she looks like a sleeper until i start it up and it sounds like the worlds comming to an end lol

I bet it does, but as stated saying anything with a cowl hood is a sleeper just doesn't work.

How about this...complete factory apperance except the small ET Streets on the stock rims.

Usually sport cars arent considered sleepers
I mean if I saw a Camaro thats really fast that wouldnt
surprise me at all even if it was in stock form.
But If I saw say an old Caprice sedan
that was really fast I would consider that a sleeper.

Camaros are sport cars I think true sleeper
would be any car the isnt a sports car : )