TOP 5 HP GAIN MODS (poll)

[jerry_smith]

ok folks,
what do ya'll think are the best 5 (out of 10) mods to do for HP/tq gains which give you the best bang for your buck.
Exclude swapping engines, and changing cams, etc. we're talking pretty basic bolt on or PCM mods here.

-jerry

[jeverett]

No doubt about it, the Nelson gives the most "bang for the buck" in that whole group.

[bowtieguy]

Originally Posted by jeverett

No doubt about it, the Nelson gives the most "bang for the buck" in that whole group.

JEVERETT....tell me more about your nelson tune....i would like to do the same. did you have to do anything else to your truck? mine is still stock so i dont know if a nelson tune will really do anything for me since everything else is still pretty much stock other than the free mods i have seen here. also what is the price range on a nelson tune? i appreciate any info you can help me out with.

[jeverett]

What you do is contact Allen Nelson @ Nelson Performance (owner and operator) and tell him what you're looking for. What he does, is takes a PCM, and burns a custom tune into it for your truck's specific needs. I opted for the 93 octane tune b/c of the huge power increase, but say you want better mileage, he can burn you an 87 octane tune also. All of his tunes increase gas mileage by at least 2mpg if not more. Some have seen way greater. Mine went up about 2.5 to 3mpg. he can also alter the PCM for top-speed limit, shift points and firmness, all sorta things, just about anything you can imagine. The price is $385 for 99-02 and a little more for 03-05. The best thing to do is check out the website and then give him a call and he can answer WAAAY more questions than I can.
OHH yeah, he also offers free updates for life, minus the shipping. So say later you change your mind and want something different, just call him and he sends u a new tune. You just pay shipping.

Installation is easy also. Just remove your PCM (under the hood on the drivers side behind a little black plasic shield) and replace with his tuned PCM. Return your old PCM to him for core charge. That easy!! took me about 20 minutes.

[Nigel215]

im really lookin forward to gettin one of these as soon as i get some cash.

[jeverett]

I'll tell ya man. It's been worth every frickin cent I put on it. My truck was steady holding like 105 going to that fire last night. All I had to do is give it alittle more "go pedal" and it'd keep climbin, no sweat.

[Slowprocess]

Well, lets look at this list a little. I've had experience with every one of these.

As far as the top dog on that list, the Nelson tune is the best bang for the buck. Allen did a great job on my tune, which wasn't an easy one due to all the cam/headwork/boltons/tranny work he was dealing with.

Electric fans- They're a great addition, but I wouldn't spend the money for the flex-a-lites, permacools,etc. Just look for a set of LS1-LTI fans out of a wrecked firebird,camaro,corvette. They fit in perfectly, they are a dual fan setup, and you can easily find them under $100. Allen Nelson sells a wiring kit that allows the fans to run off of your pcm and looks completely factory. Gains are great compared to when the truck is running the clutch fan and they cool the truck great.

Underdrive pullies- This is a mod I would recommend as the last bolton. They are very pricy, and only give you about .1-.2 in the quarter mile. THe stock crank/harmonic balancer pulley is a pain in the a$$ to get off, and you won't really tell a seat of the pants difference. They also have a slightly negative effect on the charging system. Not alot, but it is there. Find a set used. Maybe 5-10hp increase maximum.

Intake- Great first mod to start out with. All of them are pretty much the same, as long as you stay with the old dependables(airaid,k&n,UPD) Definately a must for anyone looking for easy horsepower, and worth the money

Exhaust- Makes the truck sound great, as well as increasing horsepower. Shorty headers aren't going to give you much over the stock manifolds, but they do bolt right up. Long tubes/mid-lengths are a great addition and give you alot more horsepower for the money. Mufflers-Flowmasters sound great and are better than the stock mufflers, but don't give the numbers a turbo or straight through designed muffler give, like a borla,magnaflow, dynamax. Cutouts- only really needed for the "loud sound" factor. They will cut the backpressure tremedeously, and decrease low end torque when opened.

Shift kit- produces no horsepower, but will extend the life of these crappy stock trannies, and makes the truck feel tons better between gears. To get the full effect, you'll need to remove the torque management.

Handheld tunes- I posted in another post somewhere about them.

EGR shave/removal- Hey, the shave is free, so why not. Power increase won't be that noticeable, but it does help. If you remove the EGR setup(I have), you'll have to have the EGR setup removed in the tuning or you'll throw a SES light.

Aftermarket MAF- Don't spend your money. Nice expensive paperweight. I sent mine back after I was slower in the quarter mile after installing it.

Removing the MAF screen- This will confuse the computer and mess around with the air/fuel mixture. Some people will get a slight increase in power due to the mixture, and some have had adverse effects. These GM computers can be weird as hell sometimes.

This is all from my personal experiences, and trust me, I've done them all. Some may feel differently, but this is how everything has worked for me.

[rustcal]

Ok, i was thinking about doing a cold air for a while now but there are quit a few out there. which one is the best? most people I've talked to say K&N but that is all they have heard about. Any input would be great.

[Slowprocess]

Originally Posted by rustcal

Ok, i was thinking about doing a cold air for a while now but there are quit a few out there. which one is the best? most people I've talked to say K&N but that is all they have heard about. Any input would be great.

I would rate the K&N up there at the top. I love my Airaid intake as well, so I think you would get the same gains with either one.

[joe minute]

I know that on the 2003-2004 dodge hemi pu's, changing the air intake pipe to custom mandrel pipe(using stock air box and filter) and changing the exhaust from cat back to 3" with dynomax ultra flow made a big difference.

On the dyno it was 39 hp increase, for under $800.00 installed retail.

It also sounded awesome.

[Slowprocess]

Originally Posted by joe minute

I know that on the 2003-2004 dodge hemi pu's, changing the air intake pipe to custom mandrel pipe(using stock air box and filter) and changing the exhaust from cat back to 3" with dynomax ultra flow made a big difference.

On the dyno it was 39 hp increase, for under $800.00 installed retail.

It also sounded awesome.

Hemis take well to mods, but for that money, I'd go with a 3000 stall, a stock ls6 cam, and a little tuning and knock off a little more than a second on the 1/4.

Too bad the hemis have no good tuning options, other than the Superchips, or huge aftermarket. They have real potential, but the lack of good tuning and aftermarket performance parts is really killing their chances of making great numbers.

[Jake795]

The problem with this poll is that not everyone has all of those mods. SO most people just put down the mods that they do have and that kinda throws off the curve. Anyone with all of those mods on their vehicle have some input on this?

[Slowprocess]

Originally Posted by Jake795

The problem with this poll is that not everyone has all of those mods. SO most people just put down the mods that they do have and that kinda throws off the curve. Anyone with all of those mods on their vehicle have some input on this?

I've had or currently have all the mods listed in the poll. I've been all over the world with modding, from simple bolt ons to tapping into the engine itself.

[chevytrucks92]

Originally Posted by Slowprocess

I would rate the K&N up there at the top. I love my Airaid intake as well, so I think you would get the same gains with either one.

Agreed. I would recommend the AIRAID simply becuase you can use a Poweraid TB spacer AND the Airaid intake. If you go K&N, you can't use a TB spacer. atleast that is true for 88-95 TBI engines.

I have both of the above on my truck, and I think it helps. They seem to compliment each other nicely.

Slowprocess: How much hp/tq would a set of Edelbrock shorty headers give a truck do you think? They advertise like 15 hp I think, and don't really cost TOO much ($299 for my truck-92 K1500 350 TBI).

I would rather go with the short headers simply becuase they bolt right up. I'm not interested in drag racing my truck (do that in the car), I just have the other basic bolt-ons (intake/spacer/exhaust) and figured a set of headers surely couldn't hurt, might give a 10 or so HP and 1 or 2 more mpgs.

[Slowprocess]

Originally Posted by chevytrucks92

Agreed. I would recommend the AIRAID simply becuase you can use a Poweraid TB spacer AND the Airaid intake. If you go K&N, you can't use a TB spacer. atleast that is true for 88-95 TBI engines.

I have both of the above on my truck, and I think it helps. They seem to compliment each other nicely.

Slowprocess: How much hp/tq would a set of Edelbrock shorty headers give a truck do you think? They advertise like 15 hp I think, and don't really cost TOO much ($299 for my truck-92 K1500 350 TBI).

I would rather go with the short headers simply becuase they bolt right up. I'm not interested in drag racing my truck (do that in the car), I just have the other basic bolt-ons (intake/spacer/exhaust) and figured a set of headers surely couldn't hurt, might give a 10 or so HP and 1 or 2 more mpgs.

I think it would be a safe bet that you could get 10hp with the shorties. The shorties on your engine work alot better than on the 99+ engines. You'll gain most of it down low/middle range. The stock manifolds on these newer engines are very comparable to the shorties on these trucks, and that's the main reason I try to sway anyone from getting them. In your case, I think it would be a nice/affordable investment to go with the shorties.