86irocterror

wow nice swap....here i thought i was the only one here in the reading pa area who liked the 3rd gens...lol. looking to do an lsx swap after i buy a new bike next year!!!

kubus_stroinski

Well my car broke down Sunday night. I was driving through Michigan and my volt gage was being stupid. Then eventually it stopped charging and died on me in the middle of nowhere. I got it towed and repaired in Marshall Michigan so now it works again. But what a shitty deal.

Anyways, it goes for new cam tomorrow.

cam-

Odd.... so has mine. Its really behaving strangely this week. It runs and drives fine and still charges but the voltage will suddenly DROP and bounce back up in a split second. If it happens at night my lights all dim quickly and then back to norm. I havent had much time to diagnose but I hope its my alt ( although it was brand new when I did the swap ) its an aftermarket off shore cheapo.Its happening more and more frequently though.

How did yours go?

P.S. your so gonna dig that cam man

kubus_stroinski

I usually keep an eye on my gauges every once in a while when Im driving. My speedo isnt hooked up so thats not why I look down. Speed is displayed on the GPS.

Anyways, I looked down and saw that the gauge was at like 10 volts and I found that pretty odd. But I kept looking at it and after like 30 seconds or so the gauge went back to normal charged level. So I figured I was safe and wouldnt have to worry and could make it back to Chicago and swap an alternator at home.

I kept an eye on it though and it would continue happening more frequently. It would drop to like 12 volts and then keep going down as the battery was draining and then eventually pop back up again for a few minutes and be fine.

Eventually, it stopped popping back up again and my gauges stopped working etc so I pulled off the interstate and called AAA to tow me.



The towed me to Marshall MI to a certified AAA shop which was super good to me. I had to stay overnight at the Comfort Inn accross the street. They ordered the new alternator for me from Grand Rapids and put it in. While I was waiting, they gave me their shop car (a Chrysler Pacifica) so I could bum around town a bit and not be bored.

What a correct shop. Ive never received that sort of hospitality anywhere else.

So yeah, thats the story.

The cam will be super awesome. I cant wait.

kubus_stroinski

The Camaro is at the shop getting the cam done. I should be getting her back tomorrow evening. Im looking forward to it so much.

compuwiz1937

iTrader: (17)

You're not doing it yourself?

My alternator caused a similar situation with my car, I'm not sure if the voltage gauge was acting up or not. I thought the battery was going bad because it was almost 5 years old. I was just driving and I took a turn and my car stalled and wouldn't start back up because the battery was damn near dead (it could hardly run the lights).

kubus_stroinski

A local performance shop (which is really reputable) had a hell of a deal on a new cam package with springs, install and tuning so I couldnt pass it up. Plus in Chicago I dont have the time/space/tools to do this sort of work on the car.

ghettocruiser

iTrader: (4)

Hey guys... A word of wisdom...if you can call anything rattling around in my head wisdom...

If you are using the LS1 set up, and the alternator uses that one little wire, you might have issues with that plug. My volt meter was doing the exact same thing. Next couple of days, acted strange, until one day, I noticed it wasnt charging. I replaced the alt, all seemed well.

Couple days after that, same issue. So I wiggled the wire in that plug, and it started charging again. Im guessing when I replaced the alt, it disturbed the wire enough to make contact again.

What I learned was, that wire is VERY fragile. If there are just one or two strands busted, there are only a few strands left making connection. I took the plug apart, resoldered wire in there, and about a week or so later, it broke again.

Fed up, I went to GM, and ordered a new pig tail for the alt. It comes with the plug, and wires coming from each of the pins. I removed all the pins except for the one I needed, and soldered it as far up the original wire as possible. The reason I removed the pins instead of cutting, is now I have spares.

But...the wires that come with the plug are much heavier in gauge than the original harness. So its been good since and I suspect it will last for awhile.

Just my experience with the sudden voltage seizure blues.

J.

EDIT:... Did you mention what cam you are going with kubis?? I may have missed it.

kubus_stroinski

Sorry Justin. I didnt see your edit earlier.

Cam is 228/232 .595/.605 112+1 LSA

Anways, I called the shop and asked them for an update. The owner told me that he is finishing up the install now. He needs to get my spark plugs back in, valve covers on and onto the dyno. He says he could roll it out tonight but he's not sure if he will have it tuned properly if he rushes. I appreciate that attitude. I will have the car tomorrow evening for sure. So looking forward to this!

kubus_stroinski

She's on the dyno right now.

cam-

COME ON 400!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *crosses fingers for ya* but I'm realistically guessing 370

kubus_stroinski

Well its a Mustang Dyno so its going to be a lower reading anyway. 370 wheel horse on a Mustang Dyno would be pretty sweet.

kubus_stroinski

Uh oh. I just spoke to the tuner... He's saying its not reading as high as he was hoping it would... But I dont actually know numbers. I guess I'll have to wait an see a bit later.

kubus_stroinski

Some pics from the evening







And exhaust clips

Idle through muffler and then slow rev to 3000 and then quick rev

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVngfkl8Aog

Same thing but through the cutout

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbbQIN_FwZU

ghettocruiser

iTrader: (4)

Wow man... That thing sounds great! Sounds meaner than mine!!! Much better than the last time I heard it.

How'd the numbers turn out??

J.

kubus_stroinski

340 at the wheels on a Mustang Dyno. The dude showed me all of the graphs and junk and said my manifolds and ypipe are hurting my numbers but I should be at 400 with longtubes. So that will be my next mod lol

VAN454

Awesome car mate, the more I look, the more I want an LSx

cam-

340 at the wheels is not bad at all and more than enough to run 12's with ease. Get your 60' down and you'll cake walk into mid-low 12's

kubus_stroinski

Thanks Mike

Im hoping thats possible. Sort of depressed that the numbers arent a bit better but I guess it should have been expected with stock manifolds

ghettocruiser

iTrader: (4)

Numbers are numbers....How does she FEEL? Thats whats important. Ive seen some low dyno number cars romp on some higher number cars.

340 isnt terrible. Like Cam said, maybe tweak the suspension alittle bit, some decent rear tires and you'll be able to hook and make better use of that 340 hp, than some guys can make use of 600...

Plus...it sounds bad now! Looks great, sounds great...drive the crap out of her, and keep modding until you are where you want to be.

J.

cam-

Yeah I understand I missed my goal number by about 35hp and at first I was bummed until I drove it yahoo!! The track numbers beat my power level expectations compared to my dyno results and then I started reading all these posts about ignore dyno #'s over at tech etc. I saw one guy over there cam only at 345 rwhp blasting off mid 11's and I've seen many guys over there bragging about 420 rwhp and then running mid 12's so who knows. LT's will pick up your power levels big time though now that your cammed the manifolds are definitely holding you back but that'll give you something new to shoot for. I'm still undecided on whether my next build will be more cubes or boost... probably more cubes I just love that N/A stuff

V8Rumble

iTrader: (2)

Yeah, the "logs" are definitely holding you back, I'd say that once you get the long-tubes, there's a very good chance you'll be somewhere around 410... Rather than a hp number, I'm hoping to be able to run somewhere in the 12.6 to 12.99 range with my new engine. Considering the 5800 to (sometimes) 7000+ foot DA at my home track, I think that that would roughly equate to 11s at sea level...
(Ahhh, who am I kidding? I'm hoping for around [the sea-level equivalent of] 440 hp with the long-tubes, etc.)

BTW, your car sounds DARN good, thanks for including the versions with & without the cutout open - I got a DMH e-cutout last year, but sold my original engine before I got it installed. Now I have a pretty good idea of the difference to expect... Much appreciated.

razor

Yep, if you have the option get longtubes and some 4.10's.

Once the car is tuned and the exhaust flow is less restrictive you will notice the cam will be peaky with stock gears.

I added 4.10's and it changes the manners of the car entirely. My first two gears shred the M/T Sportsman SR's even rolling slowly into WOT. Car is much more responsive daily driving. I have a full bolt on/cam ls1 and thus far the 4.10s were the best bang for the buck.

kubus_stroinski

I have 4.10s and they were an expensive mod

FlyDoc

what size of tires and wheels, back spacing, and spacers are you using?
thanks

kubus_stroinski

Jesus. I should write a sticky because I get about 10 PMs a week regarding this.

18 inch wheels. 8.5 and 10.5 widths respectively. 40 series tires. 2 inch adapters at the front. Nothing on the rear because I have a fourth gen width rear end.

cam-

LOL hey i resemble that remark :P

kubus_stroinski

Well its the truth. Much more expensive than 4.10s in a 10 bolt

But I still feel bad cause they're your 4.10s. And they make me happy

cam-

I dont miss the 4.10's but I sure do wish I had the TrueTrac. Speaking of track looks like I'm heading to TMP on Saturday

kubus_stroinski

TrueTrac is superb.

Have fun trying to break your car