Best cam for 1LE

[Synner]

Originally Posted by CrystalRedTintcoat

If you're looking for track improvement we know HP isn't the end all be all. Just look at what Chevy did with the Z/28 by improving handling vs HP compared to other cars in its class. And look at momentum cars. They can put down good times without the HP.

Now, for me , I love the 1LE gears but feel some pull is missing especially in 3rd. I want a cam that will let me keep up with higher HP cars between the turns.

I know people say here that custom cams are the way to go but I'm still hell bent at considering the Chevy Performance Dynamic Duo (see performance parts on Chevy.com) and, frankly though everyone pans it saying, "it's crap try Connor Custom Cams", but nobody ever shares objective evidence as to what's wrong about it or why Tom, Dick or Harry's cams are Better.

And, frankly, my last car was custom tuned by a custom tuning shop 30 miles away and let me tell you how much a pain in the butt it was when something went wrong. I could ONLY go to ONE shop to get my car worked on. And when it needed to be towed I had to pay extra to have it towed to the custom shop. Worse the custom shop often had a two week wait before you could get an appointment, even for repairs.

I'm leaning towards having Abel Chevrolet in NorCal put in the Dynamic Duo which have been tested by Chevy performance engineering.

I've said a number of times the heads have poor port velocity due to their overly large sizes for what they're designed for. Much of the power in heads come from milling them to bump the compression which you won't be doing. The cam specs are anemic, even for a road race car. And a tighter LSA would improve midrange by shifting the power down. There's nothing wrong with the parts per se, but they're not optimal for anything and are just factory parts. Its not like it was designed for the LS3, it was made for the LS7 which has drastically different head flow, valve sizes, and piston sizes. It also has a different rocker arm ratio so you're not getting nearly the flow you would in the application it was meant for. If no one is telling you straight why there aren't better options then you're talking to the wrong people.

I don't know why only 1 shop could touch a modified car aside from changing tuning to avoid paying another VIN credit. Otherwise any shop worth their salt can work on any modified car without issue. But if dealer service is your priority then have at it.

[1977and2010]

Originally Posted by GONIF

FYI I have posted in the BOLT ON ,and I posted here because like all the other 1LE owners I bought the 1LE because it is NOT just an SS . It's the overall balance and handeling ,that's different. What I want is a well balanced road racer with 100 more RWHP I can drive on the street as a DD . Without compromising the the way it drives . In essence a long and short track car with just enough power to do the job of entertaining me on a daily basis while being safe and comfortable . In other words more power with smooth throttle response ,and no bucking in traffic. I would have preferred a ZO6 or a Z28 ,but did not want to spend a fortune . IMHO all the 1LE needs is better brakes and 100 more RWHP .

I can guarantee you you will not add 100 rwhp and not affect drive ability. Not gonna happen. Drive ability can be ok but definitely not stock like. I went from 373 rwhp to 486 with all the normal stuff H/C/I headers etc and it ran great right up until the point I broke a valve spring and later dropped a valve. Then another day poked a nice hole thru the side of my block. One thing I've learned from this car and the power upgrades I've done is like someone already said power is not the end all be all. If you want to be faster no amount of power can replace track time. After saying that let me get back to breaking in my new 416.

[X25]

Originally Posted by 1977and2010

I can guarantee you you will not add 100 rwhp and not affect drive ability. Not gonna happen. Drive ability can be ok but definitely not stock like. I went from 373 rwhp to 486 with all the normal stuff H/C/I headers etc and it ran great right up until the point I broke a valve spring and later dropped a valve. Then another day poked a nice hole thru the side of my block. One thing I've learned from this car and the power upgrades I've done is like someone already said power is not the end all be all. If you want to be faster no amount of power can replace track time. After saying that let me get back to breaking in my new 416.

Your story is exactly why I'm refraining from a cam upgrade. Perhaps we could just stick to GM hot cam. It provides about 40 HP with not the best street manners, but at least it appears to be safer than what I see is available.

[Spoolin]

Just on a personal note since I've gone through about a half dozen engines on prior cars and trucks. If you want reliability, stay away from upgrading the internals of an engine unless your prepared to change all the internals.
If your gonna swap cams, than do springs, rockers, pushrods, lifters, valves, heads, timing chain, pistons, rods, etc... Each stock part is more or less matched to each other where theoretically not one item is necessary a weak link in the system.
But say you add a high lift cam, your stock springs will become stressed, if you change the springs along with the cam than your gonna stresst the rockers, you change the rockers you should change the lifters and push rods, etc...
One upgrade will effect everthing else, sometimes to a greater degree than tolerable thereby affecting reliability.

Hope that makes sense, again just my opinon.

[NinoSS]

I went with a small cam and glad I did, I did so for same reasons as the OP. My car was 365 on JRE's dyno and am now at 442 with the mods in my sig (perhaps a 2-3 more with my full corsa cat back). My car can be driven exactly as if it were stock but with noticeably more power. I will likely do the heads as well to maximize my small build, this should get me to 470ish, still with perfect street manners. There is likely a perfect small grind that will net more power and still give you good drivability, just take your time and do as much research as you can.

GL...

[davidcroft]

The BEST cam is the one you decide on getting. I have the best cam and so does everyone who responded in this thread

[CrystalRedTintcoat]

Originally Posted by Synner

I've said a number of times the heads have poor port velocity due to their overly large sizes for what they're designed for. Much of the power in heads come from milling them to bump the compression which you won't be doing. The cam specs are anemic, even for a road race car. And a tighter LSA would improve midrange by shifting the power down. There's nothing wrong with the parts per se, but they're not optimal for anything and are just factory parts. Its not like it was designed for the LS3, it was made for the LS7 which has drastically different head flow, valve sizes, and piston sizes. It also has a different rocker arm ratio so you're not getting nearly the flow you would in the application it was meant for. If no one is telling you straight why there aren't better options then you're talking to the wrong people.

I don't know why only 1 shop could touch a modified car aside from changing tuning to avoid paying another VIN credit. Otherwise any shop worth their salt can work on any modified car without issue. But if dealer service is your priority then have at it.

Synner: the custom shop wrote their own ECM software and fabricated their own parts on their own CNC machines in house. So when the idle pulsated and wouldn't stay at 800 RPMs fixing that required looking at all their mods and tuning their program.

So the cam in the dynamic duo is just a stock ls7 cam? How'd you figure that out?

[Synner]

It's in their sales literature.

[ST1LE]

Originally Posted by mlee

An SS runs AutoX too. I too agree this warrants discussion based on how you want to drive your car no matter what model it is. LS3 is an LS3 and there are lots of cam profiles out there for it.

I think maybe you are missing the point, or I am missing yours. The 1LE is second only to the Z28 in being purpose built for the track......it is safe to assume the best cam for a 1LE is a cam that enhances its track performance and that explains why we are having this discussion in the 1LE sub-section.

Of course, the best cam for any car is the one the owner chooses, but you get my point.

[mlee]

Originally Posted by ST1LE

I think maybe you are missing the point, or I am missing yours. The 1LE is second only to the Z28 in being purpose built for the track......it is safe to assume the best cam for a 1LE is a cam that enhances its track performance and that explains why we are having this discussion in the 1LE sub-section.

Of course, the best cam for any car is the one the owner chooses, but you get my point.

I never said anything about why this discussion is happening in the 1LE forum. Everyone seems to read that into my comments. This is a great topic for the section. I was just hoping someone would come up with a reason why a cam selection would be different than a regular SS who's owner tracks his car just the same, but didn't get the 1LE package. I haven't heard anyone yet... David Croft seems to have the best answer so far.

[OK2DRUL]

I made a thread with the same goal in mind in the V8 bolt-ons section last week looking for similar responses and everyone says "call the shop you want to do the install and talk to them". I know the best cam for me will be the one that goes in my car, but would still like more input than the Nightfury fan boys that pop in to every cam discussion saying its the best cam ever. Building an LS3 for drag racing and one that's going to be reliable for track sessions is entirely different. Avoiding grenading an engine as 1977 did is the goal for me, but still picking up good power to run with the better cars at the track. I have the suspension, wheel and tire upgrades, and brakes completed, so now I want to add the power and stay NA to compete.

[GONIF]

Looks like I'll have CPR tune it with just the bolton's ,and if that isn't enough power I'll just learn to live with it or do a 417 forged motor next year after I see what happens with my tax return . I'm thinking I can make a 417 forged motor with a decent cam that would have great low, midrange and up to 6200 rpm power that is built proof .

[Shaun_1le]

Hey so if i wanted to install the same vengeance racing cam do i have to do any other mods or can i just do the cam?

[51LE50]

Originally Posted by CrystalRedTintcoat

Now, for me , I love the 1LE gears but feel some pull is missing especially in 3rd. I want a cam that will let me keep up with higher HP cars between the turns.

I know people say here that custom cams are the way to go but I'm still hell bent at considering the Chevy Performance Dynamic Duo (see performance parts on Chevy.com)

I'm happy with it, and my next mod will be LT headers w/cats. But it is much stronger, idles fine, burbles a bit at idle and pulls very strong.

Would I do it again? Yes, as I wanted it to be drivable. There are a lot of great choices and options, but YMMV.

My experience is the closer you get to track performance the less you will like it on the street. The American Iron or Camaro Mustang Challenge looks like a fun series and that would 'scratch that itch.'

Your request for more power in 3rd leads right back to the gearing comments/ torque curve / cam selection thread, eh?