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Mod help! Decisions decisions!

P4mnceblue82

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So I'm going down the rabbit hole of getting my car tuned.
It started with just getting Lund 93 Tune, Kooks Headers with green cats, and JLT CAI.

Then my tuner spoke with Mr. Lund Sr and his suggestions led to a much longer list for max power gain while maintaining reliability. It included:
-Kooks headers with green cats
-CAI
-2.65" pulley
-NGK 6510 plugs
-ID 1050x injectors
-gates HD belt
-ARS belt tensioner

The issue now is I'm going to be about 3k over my initial budget.

My tuner said after his talk with Lund he would suggest the pulley and injectors over the headers I was wanting to stay within my initial budget.

So now I'm thinking of dropping the headers. Technically I have the money for everything but my budget was set because I was planning on splurging on a set of forged wheels soon. Lol!

And please don't let this thread get derailed with warranty debate. Just looking for insight and thoughts from anyone who has been down the same rabbit hole with their cars.
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LethalPerformance

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Do what you can now and get the headers when you're ready. The gains you'll get from the other mods is definitely better than what the headers will provide. However the headers will definitely help down the road.

Feel free to give us a shout if there's anything we can help you with in the meantime.

Thanks!
 

331GT

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i dont have a gt500 so cannot comment on the power differences but just a general thought- i tend to get used to the power difference from modifications rather quickly and am soon left wanting more. adding new wheels for the aesthetic appeal is a bit longer lasting. if it were between wheels and adding a few hundred hp, like adding a whipple to my gt vs a set of wheels on my GT, id have a hard time turning down the power. for a gt500, i might lean more towards wheels.

again, just general thoughts and just my own $.02.
 

JoeSTi

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Headers are worth hardly anything on 93. Thats the most expensive mods for the least power until you really start leaning on it with e85 and ported blower. Your list is basically exactly the route i will go when I decide to void my warranty. You should also heavily consider a vmp/whipple intercooler brick since you are adding boost.
 

Evolvd

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What they all said. The headers donā€™t give you but 7-10 hp on a stock motor/blower setup from what Iā€™ve seen. The cost to benefit ratio isnā€™t worth it until it becomes a choke point at higher power levels.
 

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do you plan on going FI in the future? If so, maybe those injectors won't work with your setup. maybe the LTH's would be essential in that case to prevent an issue. look at your long term plans with the car and you'll find whats best for yourself. If you're going after power increases though, staying NA is expensive for little gain.
 

Evolvd

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do you plan on going FI in the future? If so, maybe those injectors won't work with your setup. maybe the LTH's would be essential in that case to prevent an issue. look at your long term plans with the car and you'll find whats best for yourself. If you're going after power increases though, staying NA is expensive for little gain.
You realize we are in the GT500 section right? He already has forced induction šŸ˜‰
 
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P4mnceblue82

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Do what you can now and get the headers when you're ready. The gains you'll get from the other mods is definitely better than what the headers will provide. However the headers will definitely help down the road.

Feel free to give us a shout if there's anything we can help you with in the meantime.

Thanks!
Thanks for the info. I think this is the route I'm going to go. My tuner, while not pushing or trying to upsale me, does agree the other mods are more beneficial but is concerned how the stock cats will handle the added HP, be a choke point, and just burn out sooner than later. So he is really advocating for the headers. Also feels it will help lower temps since they will flow better which is detrimental since these cars already run so hot. Plus it's just one trip to the dyno to tune.

Really has me torn. But I think I'm going to go without the headers for now..... then maybe grab them next year or two. But in all reality, though it will prob throw a cel, I don't need cats. They don't do emissions checks in WV for state inspection. So catless is an option I guess.

Have you guys done any GT500's with similar upgrades on stock headers and cats? Curious if you have tested the durability of factory cats. Thanks
 

LethalPerformance

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Thanks for the info. I think this is the route I'm going to go. My tuner, while not pushing or trying to upsale me, does agree the other mods are more beneficial but is concerned how the stock cats will handle the added HP, be a choke point, and just burn out sooner than later. So he is really advocating for the headers. Also feels it will help lower temps since they will flow better which is detrimental since these cars already run so hot. Plus it's just one trip to the dyno to tune.

Really has me torn. But I think I'm going to go without the headers for now..... then maybe grab them next year or two. But in all reality, though it will prob throw a cel, I don't need cats. They don't do emissions checks in WV for state inspection. So catless is an option I guess.

Have you guys done any GT500's with similar upgrades on stock headers and cats? Curious if you have tested the durability of factory cats. Thanks
We have customers that run the stock exhaust with the smaller pulley but in my opinion you're asking for trouble. Do people do it? Yes. Is it how I would do it on my car? No.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Thanks!
 
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P4mnceblue82

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We have customers that run the stock exhaust with the smaller pulley but in my opinion you're asking for trouble. Do people do it? Yes. Is it how I would do it on my car? No.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Thanks!
So are u saying change exhaust/do res delete or do headers if I do pulley etc.
 

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LethalPerformance

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So are u saying change exhaust/do res delete or do headers if I do pulley etc.
Me personally I would do headers over anything else. That's just me. The resonator delete doesn't really do anything other than sound.

If your budget doesn't allow for headers at this time you can still run the stock exhaust. However I would recommend going with the free flowing exhaust when you have the ability to.
 
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P4mnceblue82

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Me personally I would do headers over anything else. That's just me. The resonator delete doesn't really do anything other than sound.

If your budget doesn't allow for headers at this time you can still run the stock exhaust. However I would recommend going with the free flowing exhaust when you have the ability to.
Ok... so in other words if I stick with stock exhaust I should do headers.... if I stick with stock headers I should get a cat back for better flow.
 

LethalPerformance

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Ok... so in other words if I stick with stock exhaust I should do headers.... if I stick with stock headers I should get a cat back for better flow.
If you change anything I would do the headers. The catback or resonator delete won't solve anything regarding heat from the higher boost levels the pulley provides.
 

JoeSTi

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We have customers that run the stock exhaust with the smaller pulley but in my opinion you're asking for trouble. Do people do it? Yes. Is it how I would do it on my car? No.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Thanks!
Curious why you are asking for trouble? If you did a 2.75 pulley and a vmp intercooler brick temps would be still good wouldn't they? I wouldnt think 2 lbs of boost over stock would melt the stock cats or cause enough heat issue as long as you upgrade the intercooler brick. Unless you guys have done some testing with a set up like this and it had bad results? Im just curious because thisis the route i was going to go (pulley, intake, injectors, intercooler brick, 93 tune)
 
 




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