Hello, i have a 92 rs TBI auto, and I'm wondering how to get it into the 14's, with under a 7 second 0-60, the faster the better there. However, I'm also not looking to reduce its drive-ability.

Mainly I see a full exhaust, an intake and a set of 3.42 gears with posi/limited slip putting me where I'm looking for.

I wouldn't mind doing the work of putting in heads or a lt1 cam or the like, but its the tuning that bothers me, I'm feeling like once i get into that, the cost spikes a lot.

Whats your opinion? Will the gears, exhaust and intake push me into that range? or will i need more?

 

Ultimate tbi mods, lt1 cam, good exhuast, mail order tune of some type of tune, and some decent gears should get you there

 

Like I said about tuning though.. will it even really work? My brothers been trying to tune his for years, ( granted he did a hell of a lot more work, and its not even a tbi tune) and its just been a pain in the *** for him. So, im trying to negate that as an option.

Basically, i just want it to move like the stock lt1's do, maybe a little slower. My friends 4th gen z28 with the 2.73 rear moves so much better than mine does. Or will the exhaust and gears wake it up that much?

 

If you're going to do bolts on's a tune is essential I'm sure you can find someone local or do a mail order tune I had results from mine

 

Tuning isn't black magic man, it just takes a little time to get it down, I know If I can do it anybody can. Check out Rbob's EBL Flash set up www.dynamicefi.com for what you need. For the 14 second range you don't need alot just make sure the car is in good running shape that's the most important. Gears, Exhaust and some mild intake mods should help. Weight reduction is a huge help in this department but it really depends on how far you're willing to go.

 

It is my daily driver, so I don't want to start ripping a bunch of stuff out of it, I'm trying to keep most of the commodities in place.. I may rip out the ac and put in a AC delete pulley since it doesn't work and converting it to r134a is the last thing on my list. Its not that tuning is black magic, but I just think when/if I turn to bigger mods, I'll have a much larger budget. Like I said, he can get it to run, but he has a hell of a time to keep it having street manners.

 

Here's a good list I think would help you and you wouldn't have to dig to deeply into the car....

Obviously gears, 3:42's with an Eaton posi if you can upgrade the axles to either 28 spline or 30 spine if the budget permits, along with a good diff cover with bearing cap hold downs.

FULL exhaust, I'm talking headers all the way back. Don't go any smaller than 3 inch. I'm partial to the Hooker line as to I've had excellent results with them

Ultimate TBI mods even though you won't see a large gain per say but every little bit counts.

1.6 roller tip rockers, I've used the comp cams versions with good success.

Edelbrock performer rpm intake with a transdapt adapter plate. (not a necessary mod for this but you can try it out)

a NON drop base open air element. I dig it and it cleans up the engine bay quite a bit.

Get a small stall converter with a good shift kit. Talk to Dana at www.700r4l60e.com. He's the best in the buisness. or get a converter for a 96+ 4.3 s10. behind a V8 they stall around 2200-2400 depending on power output.

For the most part that should help without a lot of tuning "needed" but as said before tuning is important.

 

Throw in a good 2800 stall torque converter and your definitely there. I got 15.0's out of mine but had a T5. I just wasn't aggressive enough off the line for good 60 foots as I never had a sticky tire at that time. My mods were an Edelbrock TBI intake, HO dual snorkel air intake, Edelbrock TES headers, 3" exhaust, 3.73 posi, and chip. I would suggest the 3.42 gears with the 2800 stall, set of headers, 3" exhaust.... You'll get there pretty easy!

 

I can agree with this, I've often wondered how my car would've responded with 3:73's instead of the 3:42's I have now. I'm not a big fan of the edelbrock headers though, they have a nasty pinch down at the collectors from the headers.

 

I'm not a fan of them either, it was what I found at the time of the early modding stages. I eventually switched to the SLP Tri-Y's but I had also done swapped to TPI.

 

If you want to keep up with 4th gens you are going to need Heads, cam, and tuning. There is no way around that unless you are **** about weight reduction like robert.

 

not really keep up, this is a cruiser type of car. But I love the feel of the torque the 4th gens put down etc. The l03 stock doesn't feel like a 8 should, even for cruising, IMO. that's why I'm I was saying, about 14 second quarter should make it feel right

 

I know this list has been mentioned but I wanted to say how much these mods have helped my car. Every thing on this list needs to be done any way . All I did was a open air element,timing bump,Magnaflow cat with 3in. cat back, put in a Corvette servo that will need to be put in with any shift kit he wants any way. Here's the first major mod I had done and the one that has helped the most.= I went with a 3.42 ring and pinion with Eaton Posi. and a support cover to help keep things in place. With just that set up its like driving a totally different car. Even with street tires off the line my little 5.0 will push me back in the seat and lock the belts at the same time. My car is a daily driver and I don't take it to the track but for me for now its just where I want it .I don't see why you cant have “fun” while you plan for the next mod.

 

Totally agree with this statement. For right now make the car "fun" not so much "fast". Trust me when I say this, even with just the aforementioned mods and with mostly SUSPENSION upgrades the car will "feel" faster and be a lot more fun to drive. It's not always about speed man, Take it from an old pro, overall or WHOLE CAR mods not just engine mods will make the biggest difference and improvement.

 

Hope this helps. I have: bfg drag radials, 3.42 posi, t-5 centerforce dual friction clutch (stock clutch couldnt hold the drag radials), hypertech chip with 160° setup, march pulleys, open element, stock manifolds & ypipe with a glass pack on the end, smog delete mod, and MSD ignition (upgraded stock replacement). NO weight reduction.

Can't beat 15.1 but my 60ft times are very satisfying.

 

I have a 91 Firebird T5 L03 TBI, the best ive got out of her is a 15.6 @88mph with a 2.1 60ft in the 1/4.

The car has stock exhaust, except for cat delete, and flowmaster muffler (stock replacement) 3.42 gears, Auburn racers diff, and an open element air filter. I run on street tires. I am hoping a full header back exhaust and edelbrock intake will get me down to the 15.2-14.9 range

I dont think I'll be able to get into the mid 14's consistantly without running drag radials, swapping the cam, and giving it a good tune after the previous mods are done. My car weights 3400lbs with me in it, and the Strip i run at is 1500ft above sea level.