Head and Cam or Superchrager?

[255-LS1]

Gday,

Looking at my next mod for the ute. Currently has full exhaust OTR and mafless tune. 240ish at the wheels. Clutch will be upgraded soon.

Tossing up between head and cam package and supercharger.

Looking for opinions on what ppl think the pros and cons of each are and what would be the best (economical) solution. What is the drivabilty like with head and cam? Will i get board of it and want more power? Car is a daily when im home (prob 10-15000 kay a year). H/C can be had for 5-6k drive in out, where as blower is upwards of 10k. The only advantage of the blower is that i can remove it if i sell the car and refit if it suits the application i.e ls1 ls2.

Cheers

[hotbox]

Seeing as u live in melbourne and drive a manual my choice would be boost, head and cam would be nice but fuel bill will push u into buying another car.

[slyvyute]

My two cents worth, go a Harrop blower if you got the coin to do it, properly!!! Went for a spin in a HSV Tourer with the Harrop 2300 blower, wow. If I could I certainly would.

I currently have a VZ Clubby, has 4into1 1 3/4 pacies, full 3in exh with 3in cats, system is xforce hich i had fitted 2 years ago, which by the way sounds loud when your up it but, no drone and quite if your being gently with the pedal. OTR mafless tune and it went ok, made 270 on what I beleive to be a very happy dyno...

Just picked it up last night after a cam package and back to a MAF tune, VCM suite airbox , new clutch, braided lines etc and a Billet shifter and all I can say is yeah baby :-) Totally different car to drive, and made good power too on a mainline dyno. Sound tuff as on idle, yet once rolling not really any louder until im up it. Not an overly big cam, but is great basically off idle through to redline, made great torque and good linear power curve.

Heres the kicker, filled it up this morning, drove into city from geelong, mix of hwy and city, got up it a few times and at present the fuel usage is 10.9l per 100. Better economy than I had before the cam.

ALthough not a sponser massive thanks and respect to Dale from DPM Motorsport. No rubbish, friendly service, and knows what he is on about. Hes in a new workshop in Tullamarine so if your considering playing with your car he is defo worth consideration.

Cheers

[255-LS1]

Thanks for the feedback guys, im calling into autotechnique on friday who have told me that they have a harrop blown car there so ill have a look at that and maybe a ride around the block haha.

Question, now that you've done cam only, do you rekon your gonna get over it and want more?

[hotbox]

Another option to consider is an L98+cam, will make more power than ls1 with heads and cam but little less than a blower?

how many kms has your ute done?

[255-LS1]

Sitting on about 97 thou atm, not sure though about the internals though (slight tick every now and then, dont know if its just wrong oil, sticky lifter or piston slap) its getting serviced this friday, oil change to edge 10-60 and checked over so play it by ear. No obvious signs of dying though, goes hard, no major oil use. I figure though with blower, if the donk dies an LS1 isn't that much to replace so yer. ah decisions.

[hotbox]

how much boost would a htv2300 make on a 346ci engine?

[255-LS1]

how much boost would a htv2300 make on a 346ci engine?

haha too much id say mate. 112 is aparantly suited to stock LS1's, 122 with a bit more huff.

[ebbett21]

Hve u thought bout a drive in drive out 383 or L98 LS3

[slyvyute]

Yep, bug has certainly bitten. And i thought 295rkw would be enough hahaha! For your info DPM has three Harrop charged cars there at the moment, 112, 122 and a 2300 so give em a buzz, worth a look and a chat.

[UTESRULE]

good thread this one im looking at putting heads and cam in a ve ssv ute when i finally get one or go all out and get one of the cars of capa performance that put the supercharger on it the packages they give u

[255-LS1]

Yep, bug has certainly bitten. And i thought 295rkw would be enough hahaha! For your info DPM has three Harrop charged cars there at the moment, 112, 122 and a 2300 so give em a buzz, worth a look and a chat.

Cheers mate ill keep that in mind. Basically its a daily streeter so im just chasing bang for buck but dont want it to be a pig and real thirsty, and want mind blowing acceleration haha, like the shit that holds you in your seat real bad lol.

[Car Lo]

Supercharger is the way. You will always want more power once you have it.
The best thing is the the supercharger will be more drivable in a daily drive..
And fuel economy will be better as well ( for the power )

[ls1dan]

Mate i Had a Supercharged VY SS Ute. I had a PWR blower. I first had the 112 then upgraded to the 122. Mine was a daily driven car. The blowers are great. Driving normally you can barely notice they are there but put your foot down you will think other wise.

In my opinion if you want to keep drivability you cant really go past what the blower can give you. I was running 400+rwkw and it was still mild enough to let the old lady drive it around, and she can barely drive a manual.

My two cents. hope that helps.

DAN

[255-LS1]

Mate i Had a Supercharged VY SS Ute. I had a PWR blower. I first had the 112 then upgraded to the 122. Mine was a daily driven car. The blowers are great. Driving normally you can barely notice they are there but put your foot down you will think other wise.

In my opinion if you want to keep drivability you cant really go past what the blower can give you. I was running 400+rwkw and it was still mild enough to let the old lady drive it around, and she can barely drive a manual.

My two cents. hope that helps.

DAN

Cheers Dan, thanks for your feedback mate. What made you upgrade to the 122? Would you suggest going that straight out for a 5.7L?

Thanks mate

[CALDIR]

haha too much id say mate. 112 is aparantly suited to stock LS1's, 122 with a bit more huff.

Hi

That would have been what Harrop may have said to a potential customer several years ago. Not anymore!

regards,

Richard
HRTSEN

[OUTAtheBloo]

A H/C package can be just as nice to drive, as long as you don't go silly on the size of the cam :) Once you get board of the H/C you can then fit the Blower to it, because sure as Sh!t you will always want more power (well untill the money runs out :lol: )

You know the right answer...

Dan

[255-LS1]

A H/C package can be just as nice to drive, as long as you don't go silly on the size of the cam :) Once you get board of the H/C you can then fit the Blower to it, because sure as Sh!t you will always want more power (well untill the money runs out :lol: )

You know the right answer...

Dan

haha thanks mate, yer im in two minds at the moment. Im just going to get the condition of my engine check first before commiting to anything.

And the right answer would be....... Not the wrong one lol

[CadeSSZ]

Hi Mate,
I'm in the same predicament as you, by the sounds of it. I originally was just going to cam my ute, but a lot of people always talk about how "un-drivable" it will become.
With a supercharger you will get more bang for your buck and it will be lovely to drive. :)

Go the super charger. :)


:goodjob:

[glavas]

boost off idle whats not to love haha =)


gunna get my ls1 blown shortly. got 50000km on it but runs like new.

only thing with a supercharger ive been told is gear box upgrades, brakes etc.

[OUTAtheBloo]

Hi Mate,
I'm in the same predicament as you, by the sounds of it. I originally was just going to cam my ute, but a lot of people always talk about how "un-drivable" it will become.
With a supercharger you will get more bang for your buck and it will be lovely to drive. :)

Go the super charger. :)


:goodjob:


If you go too big on the cam, it wont be so nice to drive anymore, that's when you need the heads done to smooth things up a bit. I personally think a 224/228 with heads would be a sweet street driven everydayer. I had a 224/228 in a cam only, very nice, good on juice. Heads would of made it perfect for me :)

Dan

(ps go H/C now, blower later)

[Oztrack Tuning]

It all comes down to preference, ive driven and tuned them all. Its all a matter of what you are after. I know of people who have ridden in Turbos, had SC LS engines and end up preferring stroker NA engines. At the strip its hard to beat a big front mount of being practical and fast. Both Turbos and Top Mount SC can blow the tyres off a car easily. The smooth gradual delivery of a front mount can be easier to setup to work.

On the street it comes down to what you want and what you can live with day to day, and also get away with. Push the limits too hard and you will waste a heap of cash and never be satisfied.

A cammed car setup with a combination that is known to work well is a good place to stop and enjoy. I have a Twin Turbo VE as a daily driver, i like how some SC feel and sound especially the HTV2300, but i cant get past how much value there is in a well setup car with smart cam and cheap heads and well chosen supporting mods.

[vuss383]

Twins get my vote hands down . Driven off boost they can be subtle ... You want massive mind blowing acceleration , it's there . If you get bored with the power levels ... wind up the boost !

Troy

[kaido17]

i have a vy ss ute which i got a H/C package done for 6 large and it is a totally different ride then before, awesome id recommend it it makes it heaps lumpier and the whole car shakes on idle, its like a two stroke dirtbike once you hit about 2500 rpm its like powerband and just takes off

[255-LS1]

but i cant get past how much value there is in a well setup car with smart cam and cheap heads and well chosen supporting mods.

i think you may have well hit a nail on the head there OZ, im getting cold feet atm spending upwards of 10k on a car at the moment so i think im going to have to step back and think about it for a while. Considering the cost involved, is it worth the upgrade to heads or is cam only plentyful?

Cheers again


i have a vy ss ute which i got a H/C package done for 6 large and it is a totally different ride then before, awesome id recommend it it makes it heaps lumpier and the whole car shakes on idle, its like a two stroke dirtbike once you hit about 2500 rpm its like powerband and just takes off

what size cam mate?

[Oztrack Tuning]

We have seen some incredible overall performance from 220 cam and hand ported LS1 heads. We are talking 300rwkw in a M6 , driveability as good as stock, strong/smooth at 1000rpm, tough sound. Instant grunt anywhere. Idling 650 -800rpm

On the other hand with a bit more money and a willingness to go a bit wilder some CNC Ported heads and a 230s cam will make the car awesome and still be nice down to 1500rpm. But economy is blown out maybe 3-4L/100km overall. Idling maybe 900rpm

Cheap good 224 228 112 and CNC LS1 Heads. Nice in between. We have seen 312rwkw from hand ported LS1 heads and that cam in a LS1.

If you want to do a SC of any kind later you can do it anyway and the cam will only help the equation. But most of all with at least a cam you can at least have the sound you want and for most people that is enjoyment for $ that you can have every time you drive.

[255-LS1]

Cheers OZ. I dont think i want to dip into 230s cam just cos of the fuel increase, i would enjoy it but its just too excessive for 500-600 kay a week.

224/228 112 sounds like where id like to head. As you say, a nice lopy idle and decent exhaust note will keep most happy for the coin invested. I think thats where i want to head. Not sure on doing heads though. In your opinion is it worth it?

Cheers


We have seen some incredible overall performance from 220 cam and hand ported LS1 heads. We are talking 300rwkw in a M6 , driveability as good as stock, strong/smooth at 1000rpm, tough sound. Instant grunt anywhere. Idling 650 -800rpm

On the other hand with a bit more money and a willingness to go a bit wilder some CNC Ported heads and a 230s cam will make the car awesome and still be nice down to 1500rpm. But economy is blown out maybe 3-4L/100km overall. Idling maybe 900rpm

Cheap good 224 228 112 and CNC LS1 Heads. Nice in between. We have seen 312rwkw from hand ported LS1 heads and that cam in a LS1.

If you want to do a SC of any kind later you can do it anyway and the cam will only help the equation. But most of all with at least a cam you can at least have the sound you want and for most people that is enjoyment for $ that you can have every time you drive.

[fimsta]

I have a VU SS50 5.7 litre 6 speed manual ute what cam would you recommend to put in it or would it be better to supercharge it

[Oztrack Tuning]

It all depends on what you are after, both can be great. Some people are better with cam, cam/heads , others better off with a SC.

As for heads, we have seen great enjoyment from 220 cams with heads with raised compression. This is a cheap way to play with similar performance up top to the bigger cams and not lose driveability or economy. A 220 cam and heads will beat almost anything cam only - at least when the car still has the stock manifold and TB.

A 383 stroker with smart heads to suit a 220 would be very effective. The same as we have seen L98s make 320rwkw cam only. The torque at 3000rpm is far stronger than the much bigger cams that people rave about racing with. However a 230s cam with a HTV2300 blower would destroy a 220 and heads package everywhere. But it does come back to $.

[macca33]

Camo - I have a 224/228 @112 cam with heads (Higgins CnC LS1 castings at present) and it is a very smooth and driver-friendly package. It can be babied around and when you want to have a crack, there is enough there. It isn't as strong as FI, but I'll still argue that people with 350+rwkw in a street car do not use it anyway, so for the most part, it is wasted.

Heads do make a difference and for the extra money spent, are well worth it, as they round out the package - improving torque/power and making the engine work more efficiently.

cheers

[255-LS1]

Camo - I have a 224/228 @112 cam with heads (Higgins CnC LS1 castings at present) and it is a very smooth and driver-friendly package. It can be babied around and when you want to have a crack, there is enough there. It isn't as strong as FI, but I'll still argue that people with 350+rwkw in a street car do not use it anyway, so for the most part, it is wasted.

Heads do make a difference and for the extra money spent, are well worth it, as they round out the package - improving torque/power and making the engine work more efficiently.

cheers

Thanks for the feedback Macca and Oz. Im going away for work tommorow so i will think about it over there and investigate further when i return. Good news is the lads a Autotachnique went over my car and said its in good nick with no issues so engine mods are good to go.

Cheers