harry's91rs

So seriously, what cars could my 3.1 V6 beat? I know they are slow. My engine is stock. What cars do you think that I would beat, or have a chance to beat in a race?

ls1powerbaby

few to none. any of todays newer cars would own you. Let's face it 3rd gen V6's (except the TTA) are all show and no go in stock form. Hell even modded they are still slow.

MdFormula350

http://www.syclone.freeserve.co.uk/rivals.htm

you could beat alot of there..

Sauron91

28.3 1\4 time? WTH is that! LOL

92CAMRORS

I have a 3.1 too, black with grey interior and my absolute must-have, T-tops! Too bad it's an auto, which slows the car down alot!

Anyways, regarding the 3.1 auto's power, it isn't a heck of much. What LS1Power said is right, most new cars will take us, it's just technology is getting better and so is the demand for more horsepower and torque in cars.

The car is definetely all show and no go. It is nice to have people (almost all unknowledgeable about camaros) come up and ask about the car, I've even had a couple of kids come up to me from nowhere and ask how fast my car, too bad I don't have the cubic inches to back it up. Not that it matters to me anyways because I don't race, although now I do regret not waiting out for at least a TBI car, but hey I was 18 and this camaro looked way better than the old buick I was driving.

I love my camaro too death, but the fact remains, it's just not that fast. Now regarding the cars you CAN beat, there are a couple of cars you have a good chance at, but they are usually older imports.

I don't race, but some nosey kid in a CRX kept screwing with me a summer ago on my way to college so I punched it and slowly pulled away up to 70. It wasn't an Si CRX though, or I would've been dead. That and the only other race I had was against a friend's 95 Civic Ex that I stayed ahead of up a hill, the other time I was messing around, I punched it, pulled ahead, he punched it, lagged behind, Vtec kicked in and he pulled, and we both slowed down, all happened in about 4 seconds, so it really wasn't a race. Now, I did get killed by my girlfriend's Lumina LTZ a very long time ago, so I am not out to prove my lil 3.1 hasn't ever been beat. Just that if you were to go out racing, don't go expecting much, just cruise around and enjoy the car.

92CAMRORS

One last point, before you even think about racing, get a tune up! You will be absolutely amazed at the difference! I didn't know my lil 3.1 had THAT much pull before I got a good tune-up, the difference is night and day.

BigErns90IrocZ

How can you say that modded 3.1 or the 2.8 are still slow, need we forget our good freind that had the 2.8 RS that ran low 15s, and his other car times changed every week.

MDv6man

Yes but we are talking about the real world and real cars capabilities.

harrys91rs -- If you ever need an easy win, race an 82-84 V-6 f-body. You will definoitely beat them.

Choose your races wisely. If the opponent is ragging on you and his car looks/sounds like crap (and yours is in tune) you may have a chance.

85transamtpi

I'll be the one to say it.

SWAP THE MOTOR FOR A SMALL BLOCK

its not as hard as some may make it seem. I have been through the swap with a friend. He left all suspension stock, changed motor mounts/trans (th350)/rear (12 bolt/3.73)/and dropped a little old 406 in.

It took some time, but was well worth it.

-Doug

V6camaroman

my 87 bird 2.8 prolly runs mid to high 15's in the 1/4. all my mods are in my signature. there is some hope for these little motors

lockdude

My wife used to actually go up against the 2.8's and 3.1's in her '94 Cutlas Ciera with a 3.1 and win every time. The 3.1 is a strong motor, but for some reason it doesn't seem to go well in the Camaros. They were really built to hold a V8, and that's the only time they really make people sit up and notice.

fly89gta

iTrader: (1)

92CAMRORS no need the hold out for that TBI car because most of em aren't much faster than the 3.1 :sillylol:

SOLID LIFTER

icebird_1981

how do u no?? have u drove carb v6? i no the hp says its $hit and i no my car is not fast but it will be in 2 more months with my v8.
i got a catback and custom y pipe, cai and some turbo nator thing on my carb and i have beat alot of cars, never tryed from a stop though all rolls. Just today there was a camaro with diffrent color ground fx and i am so sure it said z28 on one side but the other said nothing when i tryed 2 recheck, so i could be wrong. anyway he was behind me when i was makin a left, after the turn he switched lane and tryed to pass soon as he got nex to me i stomped it he stayed with me a bit then i just pulled on him. his car was prob in bad shape of something. what i am gettin at is i really want to no if it is real slow of not while i have it. i will race any v6 thirdgen just to see if its all in my head of not i'm in toronto.

92CAMRORS

Well true, although now that I have the 3.1 there really isn't a need to make such a minor jump. Just wished I would've gone with at least a TBI car the first time round. I can especially notice the difference when I watch other TBI RS camaros seemingly glide up the hills of Ohio as my lil 3.1 chugs and chugs and tries to keep up. Not a big difference, but a difference nonetheless. I will tell you one thing however, I sure can't wait until I move up to the V8 club in about a month or two!

It sometimes kindof sucks having a lil v6. It seems almost everytime I pull up to a stop light the other car won't even go near me, they almost always pull way back behind me. Then I hit the gas peddle and because my stock exhaust is so loud, they get to hear the pangs of my mighty 3.1 chugging away every so slowly!

85_ZED28

I want to race a Z3, only 16.3 ?

mdnite92Z28

well you could probably beat my tempo!
But don't worry there are some cars out there that you can beat. I get the same feeling when I'm driving the tempo, I love the car (don't bother flaming it it's sentimental value), but there's no fooling anyone...well some people..but not me that it is Slow. But it's in good shape, dosen't burn oil, and runs smooth, so I just cruise it. Racing is fun but it isn't everything. Watch American Graffiti and most of the cars are cruising. At least the daily driver part is covered.

mdnite92Z28

Yea i know kinda dumb saying that racing isn't everything on a thirdgen street racing board

lockdude

Cruzin' is only good if you have the car to cruise in. I will say, though, that I'd gladly give up my Camaro if only I could get back my 1970 LTD XL Convertible(spoken with reverence)! Kinda funny how that big ol' 390 got better mileage than my modified 305 does. I could get 360 miles on a 17 gallon tank on the highway runs. Now I get 140. That's another reason I only drive it once a week! But, top-down cruzin' the strip always got people to stop and stare. ...Ah, the mistakes of the past.

MDv6man

Yep... drive a 83 carb'ed V6 car daily

So you're going to go to a V8 to go faster

Try from a stop... a 3.1 would stomp ya (I know from experience)

Yeah.. from what it sounds like he needed some work done

Fuel injection made a world of difference on the v6's (I own two fuel injected and one carb'ed). Sorry to say but it's all in your head

icebird_1981

mdv6man:
ya i am puttin in a v8. but not stock its in a performace shop right now gettin the work done on it: full exhaust, new intake, headers, polish and new cams, so it will be fast compared to my 2.8.

ya there must have been something up with that camaro, but it still felt good LOL

ya your right from a stop my car sucks $hit but from a roll its not that bad.

Vicious 88 GTA

i would consider a performance shop to port the heads, deck and hone, bore the block, blueprint, put in a new cam not cams as you stated and various other things....AARON

icebird_1981

....88gta:
true, but i no the guy so hes doin it all for 85$, but i have to get the parts. i needed a place to store it till next month and i live in a building, dont no anyone with a truck, and have no engine hoist. this is the best plan i could come up with. its ither this or it sits on a tire in my friends back yard.

87WS6

iTrader: (1)

You think your V6 is slow. Try racing an Iron Duke F-Body. You'll romp all over one of those.

mdnite92Z28

Yea you're right about that! That's why I don't it that much, but you should see the things they cruise here! It's sad, rusty crusty old pickup's with stereo's that knock rust sheets off as they drive by, and miscelaneous beaters on their last legs. Cars in good shape are few and far between.

Good luck with the engine swaps there!

87WS6

iTrader: (1)

Where are you that has so many beaters? Here in Dallas everyone has a new vehicle. It seems that I can't be at a stop light without seeing some Lexus or Mercedes with dealer plates on it. Third Gen's are so far and few between it's unreal. When I do see a third gen it's always an RS Camaro. I've seen two base model firebirds in the last year. That's about it. New trucks are everywhere also. (Including mine).

We do have alot of Uncle Bens around here. Theres a few beaters but not to many. Most of those are ragged out imports.

1991tealRSt-topGuy

......i dont consider 15's fast

i gave up on the V6 long ago.......bought a V8 (2 actually) and am getting ready to put it in

if you look up some of my old posts, you can see how blind and stupid i was

i kept an open mind, and it paid off in knowledge and a faster car

sure you can have a V6 to be unique
BUT being unique means being beat 99.9% of the time

just to clarify, i have learned ALOT since my early posts
i look at them now and i laugh my *** off

92CAMRORS

Eh! I know a guy who drives an 82-84 Iron Duke black Camaro, and I thought my car was slow! A while ago I spotted him driving in the opposite lane, came to a stop and checked out the maro (something I'm fond of doing, since I love camaros so much and rarely see any around), anyways he takes off up a hill, and I could've SWORN he wasn't going to make it up that hill! I could hear that lil 4 cylinder huffing and puffing and gosh, people give me heat for driving a v6, just think about the heat guys get for driving a 4-cylinder camaro!

ChillPhatCat

I'd say V6's have potential... er in 4th gens at least I can deal with 30 MPG and 200+ Hp... a little more with headers and exhaust...

Ragnarok_Tyr

I don't even bother trying to race people in my '92 3.1L, it's an exercise in futility. The top end absolutely SUCKS (especially up here at 6,200 ft. altitude), and it has just barely enough torque to get it moving without embarassing myself. The only really good thing about it is great highway mileage, at least for a 3300 lb, 140hp car. Back when mine still had (only!) 80,000 miles on it, I got at least 30 MPG on the highway, and even a few occasions averaging 35 MPG , and even now, at 127,000 miles, I still get about 30. I'd gladly give that up to get my old IROC back, however.

ChillPhatCat

I bet your car weighs a lot less than 3300 lbs... the only cars I know of that were that heavy were L98's... my '84 came stock at just about 3000 lbs.

Ragnarok_Tyr

Mine is actually about 3000 lbs. + change, add to that driver, fuel, and stereo equipment, and it's probably a shade over 3300.

rezinn

I don't see any point to racing one of those cars. I had one once, it was slow as hell. I couldn't believe they'd put such a small engine in a camaro. I sold it and bought a v8 within months. I have no intent on bashing v6 owners, it's just that I can't see their rationale when they mod them. They make nice cars to drive around, but they weren't made with the potential to be raced IMHO.

Inwo

V6 Camaros make excellent ultra low budget drag cars though. Hard top car with already really light shocks and springs. All you have to do is put in a nice v8 new trans and new rear and you're good to go.

billsfirebird

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, I can attest to that. My IRON DUKE bird has trouble heading up the hills, especially if you want to keep the posted speed limit.

This car is not a performer. It just looks like one. And yes I get alot of heat from other people about owning this little gem.

92CAMRORS

One of the things I absolutely hate doing in my 3.1 camaro is coming to a complete stop, and having to accelerate onto the highway! It's takes me forever to get up to highway speed so everytime I get on the 'on ramp' I make sure I speed up the further I am out. I've been almost hit a couple of times because my camaro just couldn't accelerate fast enough from a stop up to 60.

Oh and BTW, I too have a problem keeping up to posted speed limits as well, or maybe I just have a really light foot. I don't like to put my foot down too hard, sounds like my engine can't take much past 4,000 RPM's.

billsfirebird

iTrader: (1)

I hated going from a stop onto the high way in my 4cyl. I hated to do that and I hated the car for going so slow. When it was cold in the morning on my way to collage and trying to get on the high way was a night mare.

I bought a 3.1 '91 Firebird a couple years after I got my IRON DUKE bird. MAJOR STEP UP. I had no trouble getting onto the high way from a stop then. I loved it. Felt much safer in that car. I sold it due to money trouble and bought an 81 Trans Am with the poncho 301 V8 motor. THis motor was too small for the T/A but it got going pretty well. Loved the sound too.

Now I drive a 3.4L Grand Am. Great car. Good acceloration. I can beat most civics and such on the road too.

Ragnarok_Tyr

One more thought...I've heard that the v6 cars make good starting points for autocrossers, since the more even weight balance eliminates a lot of the understeer tendencies our cars have.

Schwantz

I'm not sure how much better the 3.1 is than the 2.8 but I do know the 2.8 is garbage. This guy I knew had one and we messed with him all the time. My friend had a '96 4 door Saturn that this guys 2.8 Firebird.

I did see the guy with the Firebird beat one car before though. It was about a '90 Eclipse.

lockdude

My favorite place to run is this one particular on-ramp here in VB. It's totally straight and uphill all the way. After going up it so many years in my truck, it feels like I'm in a rocket-launch sequence! Of course, that's a lowly 305(modified).