2013 zl1 beginner

[2SS2010SILVER]

Well I am in the market for a 2013 ZL1. I am want to know what are the best starter mods? I had a 2010 SS that i lost due do deer and I knew what worked well on it but this will be my first power adder vehicle. I was thinking intake and long tubes and a tune. What other mods are good? A little later i was going to do a BTR cam. Just looking for some opinions from some of you that have owned one. Thanks in advance!!

[JB'sZL1]

Before you get too far, a sc reservoir, catch can and Hex. I think safety mods are a must.

I am in the process of upping the fuel system and adding E85.

[Can'tHave2MuchHP]

There's a few general things to be aware of...

1) Fuel (Running out of it)
2) Heat
3) Pressure/Too much boost

Fueling will be your first limitation, and unfortunately it comes in early. Any pulley that is 11% overdrive or over, will require a fuel injector upgrade. Any pulley that's 18% or over will need a Boost-A-Pump (BAP). Once you go really far you'll need an actual fuel system/pump.

Heat will come up quick at or after 18% pulley. Not a big issue on the street but over drive percentages over 28% can quickly become unmanageable, and begin to turn into drag strip queens.

Pressure comes up as a problem after a point on the stock cam. Some tuners advise sticking with 18% or less on stock cam, while many run 28% successfully on stock cam. I'm not sure where the sweet spot is, but don't forget about the other 2 limitations above that MUST be factored in.

There are many that have come before me and you and others here. They're the people that have figured out these engines up one side and down the other and put in the work. There are some very straight forward kits out there. I would HIGHLY recommend looking at Ted Jannetty's 75 RWHP and 125 RWHP kits. Those are the best two bolt on levels of mods. Whether you buy and tune with him or not, the outline of parts in his kits are top notch.

Hope this helps, let us know if you have any other questions.

And by the way, I think an Intake + Headers + Tune is a bit of a waste, might as well add injectors and a pulley for another $1000-$1500 IMO. Or you can go milder on the pulley and run stock injectors with a 5% or 10% pulley.

[mlee]

Originally Posted by 2SS2010SILVER

Well I am in the market for a 2013 ZL1. I am want to know what are the best starter mods? I had a 2010 SS that i lost due do deer and I knew what worked well on it but this will be my first power adder vehicle. I was thinking intake and long tubes and a tune. What other mods are good? A little later i was going to do a BTR cam. Just looking for some opinions from some of you that have owned one. Thanks in advance!!

Headers and CAI is the perfect start. After that you will need injectors to support fuel demands. Upper and lower pulleys and heat exchangeer... then then cam.

[2SS2010SILVER]

I was planning on a catch can since with my SS I seen the need for one on it and i assume that its the same on all LS motors.



Now on the sc reservoir and heat ex is there any good companies with kits that yall would recomend?

[102605"]Can'tHave2MuchHP Thanks for the info that does help when i plan on goin higher in the hp. I do plan on doin the whole fuel system and goin e85/flex in the future and i will probably swap the pulleys then.

[JB'sZL1]

Not All cc's are not the same: go good or go none.

CC: EE2
HEX: AFCO (w/ fans if you do a lot of standing/slow driving) or similar
SC Res: D3

I have all of the above and am impressed with the build quality and fitment.

[mlee]

Originally Posted by 2SS2010SILVER

I was planning on a catch can since with my SS I seen the need for one on it and i assume that its the same on all LS motors.



Now on the sc reservoir and heat ex is there any good companies with kits that yall would recomend?

Ron Davis is a great Heat Ex

D3 now called Pro Speed has the tank you need.

Catch can... Meh... not until you have a higher HP build

[SecondZ28]

My first order of business with my new ZL1 was to tackle the isolator coupler, before it became and issue. Since the snout comes off, I went ahead with a 2.5” pulley, which also adds injectors & tune. These simple mods have me sitting at 585whp.

[ZL1_David]

Just got my SW 2013 ZL1 and the factory warranty is up in less than two months. THis is the kind of thread I was looking for. I’ve driven Evos and WRXs most of my life so I’m in a whole different world. So far I love it. Only issue is I’m a newb to modifying these things.

[silversleeper]

Originally Posted by ZL1_David

Just got my SW 2013 ZL1 and the factory warranty is up in less than two months. THis is the kind of thread I was looking for. I’ve driven Evos and WRXs most of my life so I’m in a whole different world. So far I love it. Only issue is I’m a newb to modifying these things.

There are good gains to be had in the ZL1. It doesn't have to sacrifice reliability.
I'll list some popular mods. The single most bang for the buck mod would be a 10% overdrive lower pulley. No tune required no supporting mods needed. Second to that would be a CAI but if you have both a tune is better.


Here is a group of upgrades off the top of my head in terms of hp for the $. For the biggest gains all the mods need to be done

A.
Lower pulley. Upper might be easier but has more belt slippage if that's ok with you.
CAI rotofab is popular
Cam the factory cam is relatively small. Hp would mostly be noticed at the top end RPM where 75+hp would be gained.


B.
Headers. It lowers boost about 1psi but flows better so it is a net gain but not as much gain / dollar as group A. More beneficial if you have high Hp goal.
Ported supercharger , "Jokerz" has different price levels of porting
E85 flex fuel conversion "DSX kit" requires tune injectors and pump upgrade. Good gains but gets expensive if you don't plan to upgrade injectors and pump for other mods too.

C.
Ported throttle body or larger one "BoWhite"
Supercharger heat exchanger "Ron Davis"
Ported Heads
Supercharger interchiller, runs off AC
Intake mod like "big gulp" scoop to funnel more air to CAI
Cat delete, Cat back. Cats can melt with any mods especially. NPP exhaust won't gain much with a different muffler at common HP goals



D.
Supporting mods required after about 1 mod from group A

1. Tune
2. Injector Dynamics 1050x or larger depending on HP end goals
3. Fuel pump increase "JMS boost a pump" "DSX aux kit" or a dual pump
4. Intercooler reservoir to ease refill
5. NGK plugs
6. venting engine, improved catch can or other on higher boosted engines

I would only trust a tuner very familiar with ZL1s. A bad tune will destroy your engine. A good tuner also does some trans retune and you feel it shift better.
Some things are mix 'n match. For example you might have the supercharger off to replace the spring coupler to solid coupler and have Jokerz port it while it's already off. The big gulp intake mod appeals to you and fits your budget....the headers are part of the 125hp kit...

If I forgot some worthy mod a helpful forum member can remind us.


Edit: Figure out your end goal of HP before you start anything so you don't have to take off stuff you paid to do and do it twice. Half the things won't be useful if you decide you want 1200hp twin turbos later.