New guy / some questions

[Denied]

Hey there fellow V8 fans.. I'm new to this forum, and new to the world of V8's!

I currently drive a 94 Nissan 180SX, but am looking to step up into the world of 5+ litres :)

I apologise if this is the wrong place for my questions, but I'm looking to make a bit of a plan for a car I wanna start putting together at the end of this year. I don't yet own a Commodore, but I'm hoping around the December mark to make my purchase and get the ball rolling.

As I said, I currently drive a 180SX, so I'm very new to the V8 side of things, so apologise if my questions don't suit tastes on here, or seem outright noobish.

I guess I've been lured by the sound, the style and the feel of a modern Commodore V8 (drove a mates VZ SSV ute a few weeks back and fell in love..) Currently my (mildly modded) 180sx goes alright, it will take most (stock) SS' from the lights easily enough, so I wanna work out how much extra on top of the car purchase I'll need to spend to get the thing moving a bit quicker and put these tuners in their place (all in the confines of the speed limits, of course! :)). My intial priority will be on the external styling of the car, and then looking at a few mild engine upgrades to try and push to about 300 rwkw.

1. VY II SS, VZ Series 1 SS, or MY06 VZ 6.0 SS? - How much difference is there in performance between a series 2 VY SS, and the 6 litre MY06 VZ? There is a significant price difference between the two, but going off most statistical websites, find the gain is only about 15 kw (but about 45nm of torque) - is it worth spending the extra? I also wonder what the specific style differences are. Personally, I like the VY II SS front bar / lights moreso than the VZ, is it possible to replace the VZ SS bar with that from a VY SS?

2. I want the car all white, lowered, with black dished rims.. preferably these - http://www.ozzytyres.com.au/Content_Common/pr-Ruff-Wheels_r280black.seo - in a 19 x 9.5. Has anyone seen these on an SS, or have any idea if they will even fit? And what are peoples opinions on black / cf / vented bonnets? I've had a bit of a look around but can't seem to find too much in the way of these.. can anyone recommend a good site / supplier for bits like this? Also looking for custom made bodykits, if they exist.. I don't like the clubsport front one bit.. and am yet to see anything else out there.

3. Headlight/taillight covers - these will probably turn most people off the whole idea, but I'm wondering if dark black headlight and/or taillight covers are available / able to be fabricated to clip over existing lights on a VY/VZ? Has anyone seen them or know if they exist, or a place that could custom make them? (or normal ones that could be tinted black) Apologies if this doesn't suit your tastes, I'm just looking at options and ideas at the moment.

4. De-spoilering - how hard is it? I can imagine its just a case of unscrewing/removing from underneath and bogging up the holes on the top, has anyone had problems or noticed anything negative towards doing this before?

5. Engine / performance mods - What sort of money would you need to spend on an engine to push to the 300rwkw mark? Only looking for a very rough estimate, preferably without going in the supercharger / turbo direction. I'm doing a bit of research to try and figure out options myself, but would love a quick estimate if anyone has a similar setup. Also, how do stock gearboxes/diffs handle power upgrades in an LS1/LS2? When does it hit the threshhold that you need to start putting money into these too?

6. Dash - is the stereo unit a double din?

7. Noise - exhaust options, what are they like? I'd like the car to sound really growly, I've heard a lot out there that just sound MEAN - not stupid 'harley davidson crew rollin' down ya driveway' type loud, but throaty and aggressive, so that people can really tell it's a V8 when you're putting your foot down..

Sorry for the essay like post - I've got plenty more questions, but I'll leave it at that for now.. thanks for taking the time to read this far :)

[toey]

1. go for the 6.0l vz if you can afford it as it will have more potential to make power. as for fitting a vy bar to a vz it will fit but you will need the bonnet and head lights(vy has the tear drop parker lights cut into the bar) to suit or it will look wrong.

2. white dropped and black dished wheels is the go. as for these particular rims in 19x9.5, i doubt they will fit when you fit rubber to suit that size rim, go for the 19x8.5 with 245/35/19 tyres and all should be sweet, but you will probly need to roll the gaurds. dont no how a cf or black bonnet would look but for vented bonnet try savage fibreglass http://www.savage-fibreglass.com/products.htm and for a different look body kit try www.sve.net.au and look for the ssx kit but that is to suit a vy for memory.

3. dont no about this, maybe get some clear covers and misting black spray paint over them so the look black but indicators and headlights still shine threw or get some window tint put on them.

4. either find a replacement boot lid with no spoiler at a wreckers or remove the boot wing from yours and fill the holes with rubber grommits or get them patched up at a panel shop.

5. going asperated will require extractors, cats and cat back, that will set you back around $3k fitted for a decent system. otrcai $500. cam upgrade with springs and pushrods fitted and tuned around $3k or $1500 for parts and fluids fitting yourself and tuned for anywhere between $500-1000. for a 5.7l to make 300rwkw it has to be a large cam and possibly heads or the 6.0l should make it easy with the same cam and be more plesent to drive. with this sort of power you will need a clutch and that will be around $2.5k fitted. or a stall converter if auto but no idea on a price for them. to make the most of all these mods diff gears would be recommended and should cost $1200 fitted with new bearings. at this power level you will need a larger internal fuel pump and bigger injectors, this should come in under $1k. so that comes to ovwe $10k for a reliable 300rwkw aspirated.

6. yes

7. tuned lenght 4 into 1 extractors with twin metal cats and a twin 3" cat back will do the trick with the brands you use is personal choice, find a car you like the sound of and ask them what they have used.

essay response over.

[SSV8TE]

Gday mate and firstly welcome to the forum.
There is a search tab on top of the page here so type in some basic words ie exhaust and you will get results which will guide you to heaps of advice.
Sounds like you have a plan and a good way to go about it is to plan ahead:goodjob:
Like i said have a look through the 1000's of threads on engine and car mods and you will find exactly what you are after.
Cheers and best of luck,
Andy.

[bigdogdazza]

Gday and welcome to the forum. Goodluck on your planned purchase of an 8. The wheels you referenced to will fit a commodore as I was thinking about the same set in a 20. Decided to steer away from the chrome lip but as they cant be repaired if they get gutter rash. Goodluck with it all.

[Denied]

Thanks for the answers so far guys, very helpful indeed.

Next question:

What's the difference between the LS1 in a VY II SS, as compared to the LS1 285 in the VY II Clubsport?

Is there a physical difference, or is it just tuned differently?

If so, is it easy to get the tune done to push you to the same figure? How much roughly are you looking to get this done?

Thanks.

[cashie]

The engines are generally pretty much the same, the HSV has long extractors, slightly better intake, a tune to better utilise the better engine breathing (can still be improved) and a shorter diff ratio.

[zorro]

whats your budget? Theres some cheap X/Y/Z series HSVs going around if you look hard enough.

[Denied]

Hey mate.. budget is looking to be around the 25k mark at the moment (this includes the purchase price for the car and the funds to mod it slightly). Haven't finalised it, because I haven't finished deciding on what I want yet.

Im thinking the VY II SS will be enough, and hopefully I can push the power difference from the clubsport with a couple of minor mods and a mafless tune.

I don't think I can really justify spending the extra few thousand on a clubsport if the differences are mainly cosmetic - I could save that money to put into rims or exhaust/extractors/tune.

[Ryzz]

I don't think I can really justify spending the extra few thousand on a clubsport if the differences are mainly cosmetic - I could save that money to put into rims or exhaust/extractors/tune.if you do your research you will know the hsv path is much more than cosmetic. The come with a more highly tuned motor, brakes that leave a ss for dead, much better suspension setup, and from the vz onwards a better motor LS2/3 vs L98.

[Denied]

if you do your research you will know the hsv path is much more than cosmetic. The come with a more highly tuned motor, brakes that leave a ss for dead, much better suspension setup, and from the vz onwards a better motor LS2/3 vs L98.

Ah thanks for clearing that up mate.. still doing a lot of reading around at the moment - from what I gathered there wasn't much to it, but it sounds like there is.

[255-LS1]

if you do your research you will know the hsv path is much more than cosmetic. The come with a more highly tuned motor, brakes that leave a ss for dead, much better suspension setup, and from the vz onwards a better motor LS2/3 vs L98.

Bit rich there mate, i think most would agree L98 tops LS2 but yes LS3 is a beast of a donk. And yes i agree HSV is worth it IMO, you just get a better package from the get go.

Cheers