i'm brand new to this site. i just bought 91 camaro rs with a lo3 305. How many horses and how much torque at the rear wheels for this particular car? I was also curious about what cheap but effective power upgrades can i do to "wake my 305 up"? id really like to get 300hp out of it. i am planning on swapping out the engine (to a 350 putting out 400 hp from the enginefactory.com) in 5-10 years once i have some cash.( im 15 and don't have a job yet, thats why i'm waiting.) I don't wanna add nitrous or any thing like that. any replies greatly appreciated.

 

first of all welcome to the boards, second of all seeing as you're only 15 i would say that a stock lo3 is plenty of power for you right now, get some experience driving before you start tearing up the streets. but according to the camaro tech data sheet...
91RS, A4 LO3 V8 (9.3:1 cr) 5.0 (305)170hp@4000 rpm 255 ft/lbs@2400rpm ---- 2.73 gear ratio----
cheap mods for more power would be an open element air filter(K&N), headers and exhaust, and an ignition upgrade or tune up, which would be thicker wires new plugs higher output ignition coil and a new distributor cap and rotor, also change all of your fluids preferrably to synthetic.
good luck. there's a lot of good info on here for you to get into.
HAVE FUN WITH YOUR NEW CAR!

 

thanks for the info. to tell the truth i don't even have my permit yet but i plan on getting it the first day i can. im not really eager to upgrade it, it has enough power for now, i was just asking for future reference.
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is you firebird stock or what do you have done to it ? attach a pic if you can, firebirds are nice cars, i was looking at them too, along with montecarlo ss.

 

install a set of 3.73 gears it should wake the little 305 up

 

I have delt with your exact car now for 5 years in three different cases. If you are looking for cheap mods start with headers back. A 4th generation camaro (1993-1997) posi disk rear is a very nice upgrade and can be found cheap if you look hard.

As for power upgrades a LT1 cam is a nice mod for the car. Also some 1.6 rockers.

Open element is also a very cheap mod that will help the car breathe a little better.

As said before a synthetic change over would be a great idea along with your basic tune up.

4th Gen WS6 and Z28 sway bars can be had cheap along with a wonderbar for the front end.

Then get into tuning.

But most off spend some time with your car. I was 16 when I got my 91 RS and my very first drive I spun it out on some ice.

Play with the car in a CONTROLED area. Push the cars tractions limits and see where traction fails. You will know your limits and be much safer.

For instance find some abandoned parking lot to where you cant hit anything, wreck, or be seen from a road. Go there in the rain. Do some simple braking see where the brakes lock up and when the car understeers.

Do some turns and see where the car oversteers.

The biggest upgrade in your car can be had in yourself.

 

I have an 89 with the L03 in it which cam should I get if I want it to be choppy exhaust?
I'm looking at these cams
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/t...1/applications
and this one even thought the site says it for Camaros from 92-97 with 5.7 & 94-96 with 4.3
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/t...1/applications

 

You would be looking at some head work for those cams. .530 lift is well above what a stock head (especially ones from an L03) can handle.

 

Oh no not ready for head work I want to bump up the performance a bit and make it chop any recommendations?

 

Some "light" reading here. You should be able to use a stock LT1 cam without too much trouble - https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/tbi/...-ultimate.html

You are looking at at least replacement springs and probably a timing chain set along with the cam in terms of mechanical work. Might need to have some tuning done on the chip for the engine to run properly/take advantage of the new cam.

 

Yes, without a full exhaust and the ability to DIY tune the EPROM, you will have a slow sputtering mess on your hands. Your best bet is to take some time to read and figure out what you want to do with the car.

 

Thanks wild that sounds
doable

 

In reality, most stock GM SBC heads will tolerate lifts in the mid.5xx" range with no machining with the right valve spring package. Be aware that upgrades need to match, in either case, you'll need better exhaust and intake to make power with those cams and at least a higher stall converter and possibly gears to keep it from being a dog off the line. The bigger problem is that both will need custom tuning to run OK. The second one looks slightly more aggressive than stock and with the 113LSA it will idle fairly smoothly. The first one is quite large with a bit of overlap for a 305, and if you can get it running will give you that choppy idle, but will also be extremely hard to tune with the stock ECM.

Unless you have someone with a lot of experience willing to do a lot of hand-holding I'd stay away from cam swaps and start with the ultimate TBI mods and a good exhaust till you get a good handle about what works and doesn't work in these cars (or cars in general judging from your cam choices, vastly different that you would never consider for the same car)

 

Exhaust and gears, these are the 2 best mods anyone can do to "wake up" these 305's. Neither of these should require a new tune. Anything else, cam, heads, bigger TBI would require proper parts matching and for sure would need a tune, which on these cars is a bit of "witchcraft".
I recommend 3:42 gears if you will do any highway driving.

 

@83 crossfire yeah man this will be my 1st actual engine mod project just getting into the understanding of what all cams do and ramifications of the different settings of each (thanks Wildcard600 for links) but yeah cams are last on the list well at least till I'm ready to get it tuned of upgrade the ECU liking the Holley on (terminator & dominator) but I haven't even priced that but I'm sure it is not cheap.
@Vinny R Why 3:42 gears how will it behave will it be a better top end or quicker of the line or quicker to get to speed?
On the subject of tune would it just be more feasible to get a stand-alone ECU like the terminator or try to find someone that can actually tune on these old ECU's? I feel I will save more money in the long run when I get to the point of getting cams or any other internals to get the ECU as well. I mention the Holley ones because they learn the engine then it's just tweaking it.

 

A 3:42 gear set will be quicker off the line and get you to speed faster. You will build RPM faster. It will hurt your top end, you will run out of revs faster. The reason I suggested that ratio is if you do highway driving a higher gear ratio will spin the engine RPM way up there and may limit your cruising speed. I have heard people running 3:73 or higher top out @ 70 mph or so.

 

S10 torque converter, 3.42 gears or 3.73s, exhaust, posi unit = big seat of pants difference.

 

Explain the S10 torque convertor mod please.....I've read this before but have no practical knowledge of this mod.
Did you do this?

 

Yes I did and its a must in these auto cars imo.. An S10 TC is an inexpensive way to get around 22-2400 stall in your car. Around $130 they hold up just fine folks have been doing it for years including myself on mild cars. I think mine was for a 96 S10 v6.
Good to hear from you again BizJetTech.

 

Thanks buddy.....so how does this mod improve driveability (or increase performance)?
I'm not sure what the stock convertor stall speed is....but guessing this makes for a higher stall speed with better performance off the line??

 

@ vinny R 70 mph that's gross! got it 3:42 gear

 

Huh?......no way.....3.73 will not make for a max speed of 70 mph before being limited by RPM
(that is to say exceeding the max redline)....I doubt even 4.10 would do that

 

I am not talking redline or stop light to stop light. IMHO I feel cruising speed going down the highway should not exceed 3K RPM. I have 3:42 with the 4 speed auto and @ 3k I run @ 78 mph.

 

 

I run 3.73s and I can tell you my car doesn't top off at 70. 3.42s or 3.27s would be a better choice no doubt but im good with my 3.73s its not like I daily drive it anyhow.

 

 

Stay safe and buy a chiltons/haynes. Read up on basic maintenance. Best thing you can do to gain power.

Save yourself a headache and replace your hoses. Went to turn on my car today and had no fuel pressure. The fuel line coming from the gas tank to the fuel pump was cracked and leaking. $5 hose and the old carb started in less than a second.

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Haha just realized this was from 2006 my badd. I’m tired.