I need some opinions....

Ok I was talking to one of my friends who owns his own body shop and we were talking about my car and makeing it faster ... I mentioned to him that I wanted to put a turbo in it ... he looked at me and said it would be much easier and cheaper to just buy a new engine ... So hear is what I need an opinion on would it be cheaper to just put a v8 in my car and do all the work myself or to put a turbo ????? Thank you for your insite .....

if your doing all the work yourself, i'd say get a new engine, it would be cheaper depending on what you put in, as for easier, i don't think installing a v8 in place of... a v6? would be easier then slapping on a turbo.

More info on your car please.

The truth is i would not waste my money on doing anything to a v6...and considering that if u get a new engine you need wiring, transmission, new computer, and a bunch of stuff i believe your best bet is to save up and sell your car and get a V8.
Ofcourse it completely up to you, but if i had the funding(it sounds like you do considering you want to buy a turbo and thats a few thousand dollars) i would go with a motor swap.
Dont forget all the other things besides the actual block that you would need to buy, and if it is your daily driver you going to need another car or a bike...:lol:

and you still have to do internal work on the v6 to handel the turbo, depending how much psi you run, and if you do it, i would HIGLY recomend metal head gaskets, otherwise you will bolw them left and right.

More info on your car please.



My car is a 2001 3800 series 2 and its completely stock .... if you need more please tell but as for now thats all I know to tell you...

Either way is going to be quite expensive.

Honestly...cheapest route would probably be to sell your current car and find a V8 car.

Either way is going to be quite expensive.

Honestly...cheapest route would probably be to sell your current car and find a V8 car.


Well i got my car about a year ago ... I wanted a T/A but the insurance was to high sooo i settled for this .... sooo i still dont know what my v8 insurace would be tahts why i was thinking just drop a v8 and in my car ....

So rather than spend the money on the insurance, you want to spend it on a motor swap? I think you would still be better off just spending the difference for the V8 from the get go. The difference betweena V6 bird and a V8 can't be more than the motor swap/turbo project.

Yeah that is true .... Im going to deff look into the T/A's then ....

If you have the money and are wanting to put it into your car, then I'd say that your best bet would be finding a totaled 98-02 Trans Am and swap everything over to your car. That way you'll have absolutely everything you're going to need. That's what I've seen most guys with V6's do when they're wanting to upgrade to a V8. Check out Autotrader.com. I see some totaled Trans Am's on there every now and then.

Also, forgot to mention the fact that your insurance will still show up as you driving a V6. So if your insurance is relatively cheap compared to what it would be if you drove a V8 then whole swap would eventually pay for itself.

get a v8 man.. it doesnt worth to do those jobs on a v6. also insurance will not be so expensive. l got a v-8 and l pay 100 bucks full coverage!

Also, forgot to mention the fact that your insurance will still show up as you driving a V6. So if your insurance is relatively cheap compared to what it would be if you drove a V8 then whole swap would eventually pay for itself.
While this is true...

IF something happens to the car (accident, gets hit, etc...) and the adjuster comes out and sees the V8 under the hood...they COULD deny your claims.

Did you see Horsepower TV when they took out the engine from a Z28? They had to drop the front suspension, steering, wheels. EVERYTHING FROM THE FRONT END AND THE ENGINGE TOGETHER!! SCREW THAT!!

Like the guys said it would be cheaper and easier to just buy a V8 car in the long run.

The thing about your insurance, if you take out the V6 and put in a V8 and you do not tell them, then your car is still insured as a V6 car. Sounds great untill the car is wrecked or stolen and THEN YOU TELL THEM you put in a V8. They will say you should've told them before and they will only pay you as a V6 car NOT a V8 car. And they may make you pay the difference of what you should've been paying.

Alot of people ask the same thing about Mustangs. If they have a 87-93 with a 4 cyl. or newer with a V6 they ask if they could swap them out. Basically it's the same answer. You're going to be swapping out more than just the engine. You're looking at the trans., rearend, suspension, computer (unless you use a carb.) and possably the brakes as well. I'm tired of just talking about this....just think if I actually did all that work!

SAVE YOURSELF A MAJOR HEADACHE, JUST BUY THE T/A.

Hey Mr. Luos!!!

Where did you find the picture of "YOUR SPEED 167mph" at. Thanks.

Did you see Horsepower TV when they took out the engine from a Z28? They had to drop the front suspension, steering, wheels. EVERYTHING FROM THE FRONT END AND THE ENGINGE TOGETHER!! SCREW THAT!!
How do you think I did it?? :wink:

Hey Mr. Luos!!!

Where did you find the picture of "YOUR SPEED 167mph" at. Thanks.

l hope Luos Will not get mad, cuz l am answering to this question..

make a yahoo search, ''speed limit'' under images, you will see speed limits photos.;)

Erdal

No problem Erdal.
I missed the question actually.
I don't remember where I found it...on the internet somewhere. :lol:

http://www.arbybean.com/ar/images/speedo.jpg

While this is true...

IF something happens to the car (accident, gets hit, etc...) and the adjuster comes out and sees the V8 under the hood...they COULD deny your claims.

Dang, never thought of that.

Ok the only problem that i have with selling my car is that its my first and i know it may sound stupid ... but i love the damn thing to death and i would hate to see it go even for a trans am .... sure i have a slower engine and stuff but i think that its fine .... i think i want to keep my car a v6 and be proud of it ... i think im just going to turbo it ... does anybody know of a place that sells good turbo kits??? Also I know i have to get knew stuff if i want to turbo but can some tell me were to start of for getting my engine ready for the turbo ... I have heard things like ... spark plugs ... some new internal stuff ... if you can will you please help me out with this???


P.S. Im sorry if i have wasted anyones time or pissed anyone off ... I thank you all for your opinions and insite it means alot thank you - jay

i know you are in love with your car, every one was with there first car. But you have to get rid of it some time. There would be to much work with a turbo v6 and WAY to much money. And if you get a v8 like a ls1, you can do some bolt on's and beat a turbo v6. So i know you like your car, but it will save you in the long run to sell it.

You have a Firebird.

If you were to get a T/A...it is just like the Firebird, but with more options and MUCH more power.

I know the bird is like the T/A ... and trust me i know the T/A has a lot more power ... But ill look into them and start the search hopefully ill be able to get one some time

I know the bird is like the T/A ... and trust me i know the T/A has a lot more power ... But ill look into them and start the search hopefully ill be able to get one some time


l am higly recomend you to get a t/a. u can trade your bird with a t/a. u would pay a few thousands bucks more to get it but it would be same price as turbo kit.
I SUGGEST YOU, RIGHT AWAY, GO AND FIND A T/A AND JUST TEST DRIVE IT. you will see it is excatly like your bird but more aggressive sound, and much much more power and you will love it even more than u love your current bird. ALSO TO DRIVE A T/A WOULD GIVE U MORE RESPECT THAN TO DRIVE A TURBO FIREBIRD. TRUST ME.

those people who answered your question above and at the first page have good enough automotive knowledge and u can trust them!

DO NOT THINK FROM YOUR HEART. THINK FROM YOUR BRAIN, THEN U WONT MAKE MISTAKE!

ERDAL

Ok the only problem that i have with selling my car is that its my first and i know it may sound stupid ... but i love the damn thing to death and i would hate to see it go even for a trans am .... sure i have a slower engine and stuff but i think that its fine .... i think i want to keep my car a v6 and be proud of it ... i think im just going to turbo it ... does anybody know of a place that sells good turbo kits??? Also I know i have to get knew stuff if i want to turbo but can some tell me were to start of for getting my engine ready for the turbo ... I have heard things like ... spark plugs ... some new internal stuff ... if you can will you please help me out with this???


P.S. Im sorry if i have wasted anyones time or pissed anyone off ... I thank you all for your opinions and insite it means alot thank you - jay


I'm guessing you're around 17-18? You'll learn that cars are alot like women. Someday you'll have to dump that bitch because you'll meet one that "out performs the other"=better in bed. Or one that the paint is better=bigger boobs. Or maybe your old car will breakdown on you in the middle of nowhere=YOU'LL CATCH THE BITCH CHEATING ON YOU WITH YOUR FRIEND AND SHE'LL RIP YOUR HEART OUT AND STOMP ON IT, AFTER YOU GAVE HER ALL THE LOVE AND TRUST YOU HAD AND YOU TREAT HER LIKE A QUEEN, BUT SHE TREATS YOU LIKE A DAMN DOG AND SAYS SHE NEEDS HER SPACE!!!!!! Whew......I feel better now. Just remember, there are plenty of them out there, you can always find another.....cars and women.

No, you didn't waste our time......But I think I just may have....ohwell.

so giddyup50, it looks like you just dumped a girl?lol

ya... little hostile there dude....

Ok the only problem that i have with selling my car is that its my first and i know it may sound stupid ... but i love the damn thing to death and i would hate to see it go even for a trans am .... sure i have a slower engine and stuff but i think that its fine .... i think i want to keep my car a v6 and be proud of it ... i think im just going to turbo it ... does anybody know of a place that sells good turbo kits??? Also I know i have to get knew stuff if i want to turbo but can some tell me were to start of for getting my engine ready for the turbo ... I have heard things like ... spark plugs ... some new internal stuff ... if you can will you please help me out with this???


P.S. Im sorry if i have wasted anyones time or pissed anyone off ... I thank you all for your opinions and insite it means alot thank you - jay

I get where you're coming from too man. I've been there and still am actually. I honestly think it'll be fun and more of a challenge to work on my 3.4. I'm not trying to be the fastest guy out there with 600 HP. I'm just simply curious as to what exactly I can get out of this lil ol engine. I've been researching my engine sine I first bought it back in August of 2004 (that's about a year and a half now). I've learned so much information about my engine, and how simple trips to the junkyard can get me an estimated 30-40 HP on the spot (depending on your current mods). It's just a nice project to venture into in my opinion. This too is my first car, and it's my pride and joy. I don't care if it's a V6, and I wouldn't care if it was a V8 either. I think it's just a nice car to work on and to familiarize myself with engines and how to work on them.

But I personally am not going the route of a turbo, I'm sticking with n/a until I feel that I have done all that I can to my engine that's possible. Then, if I'm still interested in working on my car, I might just move to a turbo setup. But as for now, I do believe it's a nice car/engine to work on and to learn the ropes as to what it takes to get more power from an engine. To help get you started on learning some more about engines and how they work, check out this link:
http://science.howstuffworks.com/engine.htm

That website explains in detail pretty much everything you need to know about engines. That's where I first started learning up about engines and how they work when I first got into cars, and it helped out tons. Hopefully it'll help you out some.

hey blind, how much hp you pushing now?

Not sure really. I've been broke for a while now since I moved out of parents house and actually have bills :banghead:. So I haven't been able to put much into my car. But so far I've got the SLP cold air intake, Pacesetter headers, !cat, and Borla cat-back. It's a helluva lot faster than it was stock, that's for sure. I'm actually about to be moving back in with my parents and I'm going to be picking up a 2nd job so I'm gonna be pouring pretty much every dime into my bird. So eventually I'll get around to taking her to a dyno. The first thing I'm going to be focusing on is doing a routine maintnence on it like changing out the fuel filter, fuel pump, and just getting it running tip top. Then I'm going to be upgrading its appearance to look like the 93-97 Trans Am's. I love the look of those, but wan't to keep my car. I know many people are against V6's immatating the look of T/A's... But they'll get over it.

Not sure really. I've been broke for a while now since I moved out of parents house and actually have bills :banghead:. So I haven't been able to put much into my car. But so far I've got the SLP cold air intake, Pacesetter headers, !cat, and Borla cat-back. It's a helluva lot faster than it was stock, that's for sure. I'm actually about to be moving back in with my parents and I'm going to be picking up a 2nd job so I'm gonna be pouring pretty much every dime into my bird. So eventually I'll get around to taking her to a dyno. The first thing I'm going to be focusing on is doing a routine maintnence on it like changing out the fuel filter, fuel pump, and just getting it running tip top. Then I'm going to be upgrading its appearance to look like the 93-97 Trans Am's. I love the look of those, but wan't to keep my car. I know many people are against V6's immatating the look of T/A's... But they'll get over it.


No, it's not that V8 guys are against making a V6 car look like T/A's,Z's, or GT. If it improves the looks, go for it! We're not even against making the V6 faster. Most of us (V8 guys) just can't see spending the money on the 6 because it would cost more to upgrade than the V8. That's because the aftermarket for V6's is not as good as it is for the V8 cars. Although the aftermarket is getting better for the V6. The way I look at it is, take whatever you have and make it faster. Even if it's a Honda or Toyota. Just make it faster!

I THINK THE THING WE ALL CAN AGREE WITH IS IF YOU HAVE A HONDA OR TOYOTA....DO NOT, DO NOT USE A SATELITE DISH FOR A SPOILER (NOT TOO EFFECTIVE ON A FWD CAR) AND DO NOT USE A COFFEE CAN FOR A MUFFLER!!!!

Oh yeah, about my little rant about cars and women. I was just trying to get a laugh. It never happened to me and I've been married for 7.5 years.

Sorry I havent posted in a little guys .... Yes I forget who said it but I am 18 ... turning 19 in April ... YES!!!!!!!!!!! but I to do want to keep my car as a v6 cause I really want to learn about engines and upgrades and all that stuff ... Because later down the line I would like to build a resto ... soo I just figured my car would be the best place to start on learning about them .... and also can you guys give me a good place to start with my car on how to get it faster ... I know the exhaust is a great place but what else???

Air filter, mass air, throttle body, exhaust, good tune-up, pulleys, rearend gear. The list goes on and on. Get a car magazine. Preferably 5.0 & Super Fords or Muscle Mustangs & Fast Fords but, I think you would probably prefer Car Craft or Pontiac Performance magazines. Even though you have a V6 the same stuff applies as the V8 cars.

Not to be an ass or anything...
But unless you plan on dumping a TON of money into the V6, don't bother modding it. Kinda just pissing money down the drain if you plan on stepping up eventually.

Not to be an ass or anything...
But unless you plan on dumping a TON of money into the V6, don't bother modding it. Kinda just pissing money down the drain if you plan on stepping up eventually.


To each their own. However, I do agree with Luos. You can do alot with 6's now and if you do plan on going to a V8 car you could just sell your hopped up V6 car right? Sure you could but ask yourself this question. How many people would be willing to buy a V6 car like that? Not many. Most people know a V8 can handle more power but, not many are too sure about hot rodding V6 cars. Sure, car guys and the people in here probably wouldn't have too much problem but, the parents of some teenager or some woman who just like the looks of a firebird would probably pass on that car. Basically, you would limit yourself to a certain group of people who'd buy or even look at a car like that.

Just our opinions but, you asked, we answered. Good luck.