Is the Pit Bull™ Computer Chip Ok to use I heard it can mess things up?

[Gomer4ever2005]

I just got a 98 Grand Prix GTP I wanted to put a bigger pully on it what is recommended? 3.4 or smaller Is smaller Better And hows the Pit Bull™ Computer Chip? What superchip is recommended? Are they easy to but in?

[BIG-L]

Originally Posted by Gomer4ever2005

I just got a 98 Grand Prix GTP I wanted to put a bigger pully on it what is recommended? 3.4 or smaller Is smaller Better And hows the Pit Bull™ Computer Chip? What superchip is recommended? Are they easy to but in?

Im sure you mean a smaller pulley,since our car's stock came with a 3.8.Best for a car that is near stock is a 3.4,you will only hurt the motor going any smaller,untill you have the correct mod's to handle a smaller pulley.

There arent chip's for 97/2003 GP's.You have to buy a reprogramed PCM.There are three company's that make them for our car's.Here are some site's you can check out for parts.

www.grandprixstore.com
www.3800performance.com
www.intense-racing.com
www.zzperformance.com

~Larry~

[Gomer4ever2005]

Thanks 3.4 it is, what are you running under that red beast of a GTP. Oh yeah one more thing what kind of mods are recommended before going to a smaller pully

[BIG-L]

Originally Posted by Gomer4ever2005

Thanks 3.4 it is, what are you running under that red beast of a GTP. Oh yeah one more thing what kind of mods are recommended before going to a smaller pully

Ive got a 3.2 with 1.9 rockers,TOG headers,GPS PCM,MSP cai and a few other mod's

Smaller as in a 3.4 or less ???

[Gomer4ever2005]

Yeah smaller then a 3.4 and do you recommend any upgreades before going to a 3.4

[BIG-L]

With a 3.4 you should atleast add a CAI/FWI 180/160 T-stat and U-bend delete.To really wake up the added mods then go with a reprogramed PCM.

Anything smaller like a 3.2/3.0 you should have the above mod's,including a scanner,1.9/1.8 rocker's/cam header's/down pipe or PEM's,high flow cat,colder plugs an IC/alky kit and the list goes on.


~Larry~

[Gomer4ever2005]

whats a t-stat and where can i get one

[Gomer4ever2005]

nevermind i know what a t-stats is but what kind of t-stat do you recommend

[BIG-L]

You can get a 180 from most auto parts store's.I like to use a Stant SuperStat.

Stant SuperStat® premium thermostats use a patented v-notch, non-linear design valve to stabilize engine temperatures and allow the engine to warm up faster. This feature reduces overcooling when the thermostat opens, and overheating when the thermostat quickly closes with the rush of cold coolant, thus reducing thermostat cycling. The advantages of a quicker warmup are prolonged engine life and improved fuel economy and emissions. The heavy gauge stainless steel construction and spring offer longer life and maximum performance.

[BIG-L]

Here is another way to go about modding your GTP.

How to Begin Mods to Your Grand Prix


Questions to ask are
Can you do complex installs yourself?
How much do you want to spend?
Will you continue to upgrade your car in the future?
Do you have a factory warranty?

For every person the SC pulley swap should be the first thing considered. It offers the largest HP/dollar value of any mod. You will need a special tool to do the install which can be bought or rented. Install time is about 1 hour. If this is the only mod you plan on doing then the 3.5” pulley should be used. It looks close to stock, the stock belt can still be used and most dealers won't notice this change. The 3.5” pulley swap will give you ~20 additional HP.
If you plan on doing other modifications as well then the 3.4” pulley is a better choice. It requires a smaller belt or an oversized tensioner pulley. The 3.4 will give ~25 additional HP. Supporting mods include colder Tstat, larger throttle body, colder spark plugs, cold air intake, TB spacer and any form of exhaust modifications.

Available octane plays a part as well. If you live in a state with only 91 octane available you will need to do additional mods to run a 3.4” pulley without KR. You might want to consider the 3.5. If you live in Indiana or parts of the country with 94 or 95 octane available, it will be very easy to run the smaller pulley w/o KR. Keep in mind that a larger pulley with no KR will make more HP than a smaller with less timing (more KR).

If you plan on continuing to mod your 3800 in the future you should buy a modular pulley system. The assembly is lighter than a press on but more importantly, it will make future pulley swaps very easy without needing to use the puller tool again. Then as you mod your car, you can buy smaller pulleys. This will allow you to run one size pulley for the street and one for the track or when using race gas.

After or along with the pulley you should run a colder Thermostat and colder spark plugs. The 160 is the best choice but doesn't work very well in winter operation. You can switch back to stock for winter use or buy the 180 and use it year round.

For a colder spark plug we recommend the NGK TR6 or TR6ix. These plugs will help to lower KR. New plugs will also increase the performance and gas mileage of a car with used plugs. Many people run TR55's but we have found no ill effects of running TR6's and they work better for getting rid of KR.

If you have a 97 or 98 then a CAI is a very good choice as your next mod. If you have a 99 or newer your air-box is a little better and you can postpone doing a cold air intake. The Wizaired box will give excellent gains and help reduce the KR that you will most likely be getting from running the smaller pulley.

Exhaust should be considered at this point. The U-bend should be your first part of the exhaust to upgrade followed by the resonator, then down-pipe. After that your manifolds are the most restrictive, then your piping to the Y section and finally your pipes to the stock mufflers. The factory mufflers are not restrictive and should be changed based on looks/weight/sound before all else. Once you're making over 300WHP then we can talk about the performance aspect of mufflers. The U-bend and/or resonator should cost $50-100 to be replaced by a local exhaust shop. You'll want to pick up an O2 simulator if eliminating your rear O2 sensor. And yes, this stuff is all emissions legal as you are not messing with the operation of the cat. Exhaust work is an excellent way to get rid of KR when running smaller pulleys.

Easy mods from here include a water pump under-drive pulley, and a throttle body spacer. The Spacer will help get rid of KR, the WP UD pulley will free up a few top end HP. Both are inexpensive ways to continue the pursuit of HP.

The DHP PCM is an excellent mod a this point. It will help lower KR, and make driving the car a much more pleasurable experience. It increases HP, changes shift points as well as fueling, makes the car shift harder under Perf shift mode, takes away your top speed limiter, raises your rev limiter and has a few other tweaks. It will lower your gas mileage slightly and increase the chance of tranny failure (due to firmer shifts) but at your HP level now you shouldn't have to worry about the transmission yet.

At some point above you are going to want to consider Poly Motor Mounts and a shift kit. The shift kit in combination with the PCM can break hard parts in the transmission so that is something to be aware of especially if you have heavier rims/tires/brake rotors over stock.

You are now done with the easy stuff that most people do. From here you need to decide how far you're going to take your car. This will help you make the decision between high ratio rockers and an after-market camshaft. If you plan on being faster than mid 13's or make more than 280 crank HP you're going to need to do one of 3 mods. Rockers, intercooler, or Cam. Rockers add ~25HP, increase gas mileage, do not change reliability of the car, cannot be seen by the dealer, are relatively easy to install yourself and will support low 13's without an intercooler. They help the engine flow better, lowering KR and allowing a drop in pulley size by about .1”.

Combined with an intercooler many users have taken a 3800 with stock camshaft, rockers and an intercooler deep into the 12's with close to 300WHP. Bang for the buck rockers are an awesome mod.

[BIG-L]

Instruction's for replacing the T-stat Read Here


~Larry~

[twstice]

Sorry to be off subject here, but how much would all those mods you (BIG-L) listed cost, at a very rough estimate? lol

[Gomer4ever2005]

Thanks for all the advice it was a great help now all i need is about $3000.00 and ill be good to go. Whooping the shit out of my buddys mustang.lol cant wait