wow need some help with performance
94LT1formulaV8
12-09-2005, 12:38 AM
i have a 94 firebird formula V8 (lt1) i need some cheap ideas to bump up the hp on my bird. Im only 16 and this is my first car but i got alot of friends that want to race and i dont have as much to bring to the table as they do. As of right now i have a cold air intake and i just rebult the tranny. its an auto lt1 and i realy need some help, i raced my friend and he has a celica gt and i got burned. i have a low budget but i have a big head so please help me with some mod ideas. (everything eles on the car is stock)
Darrensls1
12-09-2005, 07:14 AM
i have a 94 firebird formula V8 (lt1) i need some cheap ideas to bump up the hp on my bird. Im only 16 and this is my first car but i got alot of friends that want to race and i dont have as much to bring to the table as they do. As of right now i have a cold air intake and i just rebult the tranny. its an auto lt1 and i realy need some help, i raced my friend and he has a celica gt and i got burned. i have a low budget but i have a big head so please help me with some mod ideas. (everything eles on the car is stock)
You have an uphill battle that's for sure. Tight budget and modding do not usually mix. But lets start with what your car needs first.
Exhaust. You're being choked by the factory manifold and muffler. There is alot of HP to be found by allowing the car to breath.
LT headers and ORY (off road Y pipe) are a great place to start. They are not super cheap but you could get new Pacesetter LT headers & Y-pipe for $500. Better still you could check ebay and the for sale sections of LT1 forums for a used set of headers. This opens up around 25 rwhp so it's a big bang for the buck mod.
Now you need to bypass the muffler. The cheapest way is just install a cutout. That way you can be quiet when you need to but when it's time to race or intimidate you can just open up the cutout releasing the ponies and the decibals.
After exhaust you should consider a torque converter. It's the single best mod for A4 F-bodies. You won't gain HP per say but the car will become alot faster off the line. Most LT1 guys like the 2800 rpm converters for stock motors. Just make sure you buy a $50 Tranny cooler. Cheap insurance that helps protect the life of the transmission you just rebuilt.
Gears are also a good investment. 3.73's do wonders for our cars performance. But you will need to get the speedometer recalibrated and gains are minimal if you got the torque converter. I would do one or the other. If you get a converter then skip the gears. If you don't get a converter then get the gears.
Then get yourself some drag radials. All that extra HP and torque is useless if you can't put any of it to the ground.
You could also look at things like RR, Nitrous, cam & heads but those are getting beyond the cheap and simple mods.
A good place to buy parts from is here:
http://www.texas-speed.com/9397FBODY.asp
You can call them too any time and they are always happy to answer your questions and lead you on the right path.
Good luck with your car.
You have an uphill battle that's for sure. Tight budget and modding do not usually mix. But lets start with what your car needs first.
Exhaust. You're being choked by the factory manifold and muffler. There is alot of HP to be found by allowing the car to breath.
LT headers and ORY (off road Y pipe) are a great place to start. They are not super cheap but you could get new Pacesetter LT headers & Y-pipe for $500. Better still you could check ebay and the for sale sections of LT1 forums for a used set of headers. This opens up around 25 rwhp so it's a big bang for the buck mod.
Now you need to bypass the muffler. The cheapest way is just install a cutout. That way you can be quiet when you need to but when it's time to race or intimidate you can just open up the cutout releasing the ponies and the decibals.
After exhaust you should consider a torque converter. It's the single best mod for A4 F-bodies. You won't gain HP per say but the car will become alot faster off the line. Most LT1 guys like the 2800 rpm converters for stock motors. Just make sure you buy a $50 Tranny cooler. Cheap insurance that helps protect the life of the transmission you just rebuilt.
Gears are also a good investment. 3.73's do wonders for our cars performance. But you will need to get the speedometer recalibrated and gains are minimal if you got the torque converter. I would do one or the other. If you get a converter then skip the gears. If you don't get a converter then get the gears.
Then get yourself some drag radials. All that extra HP and torque is useless if you can't put any of it to the ground.
You could also look at things like RR, Nitrous, cam & heads but those are getting beyond the cheap and simple mods.
A good place to buy parts from is here:
http://www.texas-speed.com/9397FBODY.asp
You can call them too any time and they are always happy to answer your questions and lead you on the right path.
Good luck with your car.
FormulaForce
12-09-2005, 08:07 AM
I have a 95 Formula, and recommend the following mods as you can afford them:
Underdrive (power) pulley: These lower your parasitic power loss from driving the belt accessories. A BBK kit is about $75.00. Mine is a March brand. Do it your self in about an hour. Try not to get the 2-pulley kit which also has a pulley for the alternator. You don't need it and it can spin off and ruin your alternator. Also do not buy a harmonic balancer puller, you don't need one. But you will need a new size belt.
Throttle Body Airfoil: TPS makes these and so does Holley, but the Holley one tends to slide around. These improve your airflow into the throttle body by almost 40 CFM. Do it yourself in 15 minutes. About $65.00
Cat-back exhaust: Dynomax, Flowmaster, Edelbrock, take your pick. You need one for the 94's single catalytic converter. Do it yourself in about 3 hours or less. About $350 with shipping. Dont forget to buy new tips!
Rear gear swap: Your stock gear is probably a 3.23 ratio at most (find out before you buy a new gear), and is a 7.5" GM 10-bolt. Don't go more than a 3.73 ratio for an automatic. DO NOT do this mod yourself. Get a good mechanic that does this stuff for a living. The gears have to be shimmed correctly or you will have bad whining and/or gear failure. About $200.00 for parts only.
Programmer: Hypertech (what i have) and others, maybe diablosport, make programmers that can retune your engine to make more power. Reprogramming is also needed if you change the rear gear ratio, because your speedometer will be off. You can also change your Rev limiter (governor) to whatever you want, automatic shift points, tire size, etc. The drawback is that if you use their engine programming feature, you must burn premium gas, which i recommend anyway in a 10:1 compression LT-1. About $200-$300 each, might find a used one on e-bay. A retarded monkey could run one, and it takes about 15 minutes to program your car.
Performance MAF Sensor: Granatelli (GMS) makes these. Improves airflow. Do it yourself in 5 minutes. About $350.00 with shipping.
Catalytic: If you live in an emmisions-free state like me, you can have a "discussion" with the catalytic convertor contents. Try to get it all out, just leaving the shell. I hear a broomstick and hammer makes a good start.
Other things will be more money. You can check out all these things at
www.jegs.com. They have fair prices and good service, Summit Racing probably has them all too. Each of these mods may only add 10-15 hp at most, but put them all together and it really adds up. Like you, I had a base LT-1 (275 hp) with only the cold-air pickup. I did the hypertech programming, power pulley, exhaust, and airfoil in one day, and it was like a frigging rocket in comparison. I did have the 4.10 gear as well.
With all these mods, I figure I'm running about 330 base hp now. Will have it dyno'd sometime.
"Speed is just a question of money, how fast do you want to go?"
Good luck
Underdrive (power) pulley: These lower your parasitic power loss from driving the belt accessories. A BBK kit is about $75.00. Mine is a March brand. Do it your self in about an hour. Try not to get the 2-pulley kit which also has a pulley for the alternator. You don't need it and it can spin off and ruin your alternator. Also do not buy a harmonic balancer puller, you don't need one. But you will need a new size belt.
Throttle Body Airfoil: TPS makes these and so does Holley, but the Holley one tends to slide around. These improve your airflow into the throttle body by almost 40 CFM. Do it yourself in 15 minutes. About $65.00
Cat-back exhaust: Dynomax, Flowmaster, Edelbrock, take your pick. You need one for the 94's single catalytic converter. Do it yourself in about 3 hours or less. About $350 with shipping. Dont forget to buy new tips!
Rear gear swap: Your stock gear is probably a 3.23 ratio at most (find out before you buy a new gear), and is a 7.5" GM 10-bolt. Don't go more than a 3.73 ratio for an automatic. DO NOT do this mod yourself. Get a good mechanic that does this stuff for a living. The gears have to be shimmed correctly or you will have bad whining and/or gear failure. About $200.00 for parts only.
Programmer: Hypertech (what i have) and others, maybe diablosport, make programmers that can retune your engine to make more power. Reprogramming is also needed if you change the rear gear ratio, because your speedometer will be off. You can also change your Rev limiter (governor) to whatever you want, automatic shift points, tire size, etc. The drawback is that if you use their engine programming feature, you must burn premium gas, which i recommend anyway in a 10:1 compression LT-1. About $200-$300 each, might find a used one on e-bay. A retarded monkey could run one, and it takes about 15 minutes to program your car.
Performance MAF Sensor: Granatelli (GMS) makes these. Improves airflow. Do it yourself in 5 minutes. About $350.00 with shipping.
Catalytic: If you live in an emmisions-free state like me, you can have a "discussion" with the catalytic convertor contents. Try to get it all out, just leaving the shell. I hear a broomstick and hammer makes a good start.
Other things will be more money. You can check out all these things at
www.jegs.com. They have fair prices and good service, Summit Racing probably has them all too. Each of these mods may only add 10-15 hp at most, but put them all together and it really adds up. Like you, I had a base LT-1 (275 hp) with only the cold-air pickup. I did the hypertech programming, power pulley, exhaust, and airfoil in one day, and it was like a frigging rocket in comparison. I did have the 4.10 gear as well.
With all these mods, I figure I'm running about 330 base hp now. Will have it dyno'd sometime.
"Speed is just a question of money, how fast do you want to go?"
Good luck
tuske427
12-09-2005, 11:19 AM
I'd suggest you first make sure your car is running optimally currently, and that your driving skills are good. You mentioned you're 16. No offense, but you're likely a beginner driver. nothing beats practicing your driving skills so you can get the most out of what you have.
That being said, make sure you've got good quality working plugs, wires, clean air filter, fuel filter, etc. All the performance parts mentioned won't be worth much if your car isn't running right.
Ther'es more to going fast than just higher hp. your car needs to get traction/ use the power it has. and if your car is lighter, it'll go faster with the same power. "power to weight ratio" is very important.
some free mods to make you faster are:
Practice your driving. practice your launches. make sure you're not sitting there spinning your tires. spinning isn't moving, it's losing the race. Make sure you've got proper tire pressure, etc. even the front tires. if they're low in air, they're creating extra friction- slowing you down.
you can relocate the air temp sensor on the intake elbow forward to read colder air temp. this will advance your timing more. make sure your'e running premium gas if you do this. you don't want to cause your engine to start detonating.
lighten your car. take out the extra crap laying around you don't need. If you don't use the AC or it doens't work- rip it out! it's dead weight...
these ones will require spending money...
Think of your engine as an air pump. you need to get the air in and get the air out as quickly as possible. cold air intake is good. make sure it's not restrictive. Just because it's a "cold air" intake, if it can't flow its a waste. you need a good exhaust too. look for used parts as previously mentioned. let some other fool take the hit on the depreciation. as long as the exhaust isn't coming from the north east, it should be fine (not rusted out)
hypertech power programmer is good (or comprable brand) for a better ignition/ fuel map. the reason why this is better than some of the piggy back style "Chips" is that you can do a lot more than just plug it in. you can reprogram the speedometer if you change gears or tire diameter. you can change the speed limiter, you can change the shift points for the auto trans, etc.. so much better/ better money spent.
under drive pulley is good too. you're reducing the parasitic losses of power on your engine. (If you run a big stereo system then I don't suggest this. it slows down your alternator speed and electricity generated and can cause problems with battery drainage for things liek amps, etc) also, you could change the belt and bypass the ac or power steering if you really want to get the most power for your engine. serpentine belt swaps are easy. have 2 belts one for weekday driving, one for friday nights...
the torque converter and gear swaps will help too. fortunately, 3:73 were factory available for the automatic cars. maybe check your local junkyards, or have somone swap in a set for you as 95 Formula mentioned. get a differential cover with the supports for the bearing caps. (lingenfelter, or T/A, or several others sell these) the 7.625" gears in the 4th gen cars are weak. it doesn't take much power beyond stock to break these rear ends. you cna also swap in an LS1 aluminum drive shaft. This won't be a night and day differnce, but every bit helps . they're getting reasonably priced on ebay these days....
switch to a set of drag race style wheels. lighter wheels reduces unsprung weight. thinner wheels in front also reduces weight and friction. you can pick up a couple of mph in the quarter mile by switching rims and tires. If you use drag radials, make sure you reinforce the rear axle as mentioned ablove.
get some tubular control arms. these arep pretty cheap on ebay,. especially if you finds a used set. the factory stamped metal arms are weak and allow flexing/ twisting which hurts traction.
relocate your battery to the trunk. you'll have better weight transfer and with more weight behind the rear wheels, you'll get a little more traction.
I hope this is helpful.
-BV
That being said, make sure you've got good quality working plugs, wires, clean air filter, fuel filter, etc. All the performance parts mentioned won't be worth much if your car isn't running right.
Ther'es more to going fast than just higher hp. your car needs to get traction/ use the power it has. and if your car is lighter, it'll go faster with the same power. "power to weight ratio" is very important.
some free mods to make you faster are:
Practice your driving. practice your launches. make sure you're not sitting there spinning your tires. spinning isn't moving, it's losing the race. Make sure you've got proper tire pressure, etc. even the front tires. if they're low in air, they're creating extra friction- slowing you down.
you can relocate the air temp sensor on the intake elbow forward to read colder air temp. this will advance your timing more. make sure your'e running premium gas if you do this. you don't want to cause your engine to start detonating.
lighten your car. take out the extra crap laying around you don't need. If you don't use the AC or it doens't work- rip it out! it's dead weight...
these ones will require spending money...
Think of your engine as an air pump. you need to get the air in and get the air out as quickly as possible. cold air intake is good. make sure it's not restrictive. Just because it's a "cold air" intake, if it can't flow its a waste. you need a good exhaust too. look for used parts as previously mentioned. let some other fool take the hit on the depreciation. as long as the exhaust isn't coming from the north east, it should be fine (not rusted out)
hypertech power programmer is good (or comprable brand) for a better ignition/ fuel map. the reason why this is better than some of the piggy back style "Chips" is that you can do a lot more than just plug it in. you can reprogram the speedometer if you change gears or tire diameter. you can change the speed limiter, you can change the shift points for the auto trans, etc.. so much better/ better money spent.
under drive pulley is good too. you're reducing the parasitic losses of power on your engine. (If you run a big stereo system then I don't suggest this. it slows down your alternator speed and electricity generated and can cause problems with battery drainage for things liek amps, etc) also, you could change the belt and bypass the ac or power steering if you really want to get the most power for your engine. serpentine belt swaps are easy. have 2 belts one for weekday driving, one for friday nights...
the torque converter and gear swaps will help too. fortunately, 3:73 were factory available for the automatic cars. maybe check your local junkyards, or have somone swap in a set for you as 95 Formula mentioned. get a differential cover with the supports for the bearing caps. (lingenfelter, or T/A, or several others sell these) the 7.625" gears in the 4th gen cars are weak. it doesn't take much power beyond stock to break these rear ends. you cna also swap in an LS1 aluminum drive shaft. This won't be a night and day differnce, but every bit helps . they're getting reasonably priced on ebay these days....
switch to a set of drag race style wheels. lighter wheels reduces unsprung weight. thinner wheels in front also reduces weight and friction. you can pick up a couple of mph in the quarter mile by switching rims and tires. If you use drag radials, make sure you reinforce the rear axle as mentioned ablove.
get some tubular control arms. these arep pretty cheap on ebay,. especially if you finds a used set. the factory stamped metal arms are weak and allow flexing/ twisting which hurts traction.
relocate your battery to the trunk. you'll have better weight transfer and with more weight behind the rear wheels, you'll get a little more traction.
I hope this is helpful.
-BV
94LT1formulaV8
12-09-2005, 11:15 PM
wow guys thanx alot. when spring comes around im going to have some fun. It snows up here so i cant drive it now. does anyone know if there is a problem with the trannys on the 94 formulas? i was wondering if there was any truble shooting because i havet rebuilt it yet (winter job). Anyone have some advice on what to do with the tranny and whats cheaper plz coment.
ikeyballz
12-10-2005, 03:30 AM
get a race-ready 700R4 auto from ebay if you can..they're going for pretty cheap if you have an auto..
by the way, how did that celica GT beat you? your LT1 should have way more power/torque/acceleration than the celica. unless that celicas been crazily boosted it should have no chance against your LT1.
and dont worry anyways, for the $$ u'll get a lot more power. IF your engines in good condition, check up on a NOS kit. its the cheapest way to go fast..of course its sort of dangerous...but..hell. speed is dangerous :)
by the way, how did that celica GT beat you? your LT1 should have way more power/torque/acceleration than the celica. unless that celicas been crazily boosted it should have no chance against your LT1.
and dont worry anyways, for the $$ u'll get a lot more power. IF your engines in good condition, check up on a NOS kit. its the cheapest way to go fast..of course its sort of dangerous...but..hell. speed is dangerous :)
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