GPI SS1 CAM SUPPORTING MODS

[PhantomBlack]

So I'm thinking about going with a SS1 cam from GPI. It's a daily driven street car so I don't want to go with a big cam. Obviously it's getting the AFM delete and I'm adding headers.

But the question I have is if you could pick between say a 3200 Circle D stall or Eaton Trutrac diff/3.91 gear swap. Which would you do with the SS1 cam if that's all your budget would allow?

I'm having a hard time thinking which would be a better bang for your buck...

[sixty9fordkiller]

if your car were manual, the answer is easy: 3.91 and trutrac

i would ask Rhino79 or give GPI a call and ask them. They'd give you the best answer

[Rob Russell]

I have this cam with a 3600 triple disc and stock rear end. Still breaks the wheels and it’s a whole lot of fun to drive


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Redgt03]

Originally Posted by PhantomBlack

So I'm thinking about going with a SS1 cam from GPI. It's a daily driven street car so I don't want to go with a big cam. Obviously it's getting the AFM delete and I'm adding headers.

But the question I have is if you could pick between say a 3200 Circle D stall or Eaton Trutrac diff/3.91 gear swap. Which would you do with the SS1 cam if that's all your budget would allow?

I'm having a hard time thinking which would be a better bang for your buck...

Do the circle d with the cam for sure - then do gears later down the road.

[RedTexasSS]

Don't let the "SS1" name fool you, this is not necessarily a small cam. My camaro is a daily driver. I started with headers and a tune and got the mod bug for more power but still wanted to daily drive the car anywhere. GPI has a great reputation so I contacted them for recommendations on a cam. I wanted to daily drive it and did not want to spend the money for a converter. Aaron recommended the SS1 to meet my goals at that time. I purchased everything form them. I have HP tuners and Ryan remote tuned it for me. With stock gears and no converter, it sounded great, made lots of power and it had great street manners. After a time, I felt the need for more power. I decided I wanted to supercharge it. Again, I contacted the guys at GPI. Aaron told me we could make the SS1 work with the Magnuson Heartbeat. I purchased the supercharger from them and again Ryan remote tuned it. The car is a beast and it's daily driven on fair weather days. I agree with sixtyfordkiller, contact GPI, they won't steer you wrong. Keep in mind you'll need to be willing to perform the maintenance necessary for big cams, changing valve springs etc.

[Roader]

Bigger than 3200 stall and 3.91s later

[acammer]

Definitely a stall before gears if you gotta choose one. A lot of guys also make the mistake of not going as big as they wish they would have with the stall - I would let the guys at GPI give you some direction on what would work best for your now, and in the future if you do go 3.91s (which you really should!). The other thing you can consider while doing budget upgrades is the ported rod-mod intake from GPI. Worth 10-15rwhp in a cammed car, that's a good pickup for a very reasonable price. If you're already getting your install and tuning done anyways it's essentially no extra work.

[PhantomBlack]

Thanks for all the replies guys. So I gave GPI a call yesterday about adding a stall or gears to their SS1 cam and they said a stall isn't necessary with this cam and gears would make a slight improvement, but really the bigger cams benefit from it more.

I scheduled an appointment to drop off the car early June to get the cam swap done. The Camaro is climbing high in mileage currently at 80,xxx so I figured I'd get some maintenance stuff done while the car is apart and also address a few weak links:

- new L99 oil pump
- Katech C5R timing chain
- new LS3/LS7 rocker arms with trunnion upgrade
- new lifters (not sure which ones to go with yet)

What do you guys think should I add anything else? I'm not sure who I talked to exactly on the phone when I called. I'm going to call again and ask them what lifters they recommend (they have a few options with the cam package on their site), how they feel about the 160 degree thermostat (I read good and bad on this forum), and I'll bring up the stall and gearing question again.

[acammer]

You live in the south, 160* for sure. I'd buy a ported rod-mod before I ever spent money on a C5R timing set. LS3/LS7 lifters should be plenty fine for an SS1, relatively cost effective. They aren't wrong, an SS2, if you're willing to do a stall, would be much more awesome. Depends on your usage. Good thing about GPI is they won't steer you wrong, and you won't beat their service!

[PhantomBlack]

Originally Posted by acammer

You live in the south, 160* for sure. I'd buy a ported rod-mod before I ever spent money on a C5R timing set. LS3/LS7 lifters should be plenty fine for an SS1, relatively cost effective. They aren't wrong, an SS2, if you're willing to do a stall, would be much more awesome. Depends on your usage. Good thing about GPI is they won't steer you wrong, and you won't beat their service!

Thanks acammer! Maybe I'll just get the chevy performance "heavy duty" chain for 45 bucks. Just trying to keep the car reliable as much as I can. I do want the ported rod mod and new heads, but we'll see.

[sixty9fordkiller]

Originally Posted by PhantomBlack

Thanks for all the replies guys. So I gave GPI a call yesterday about adding a stall or gears to their SS1 cam and they said a stall isn't necessary with this cam and gears would make a slight improvement, but really the bigger cams benefit from it more.

I scheduled an appointment to drop off the car early June to get the cam swap done. The Camaro is climbing high in mileage currently at 80,xxx so I figured I'd get some maintenance stuff done while the car is apart and also address a few weak links:

- new L99 oil pump
- Katech C5R timing chain
- new LS3/LS7 rocker arms with trunnion upgrade
- new lifters (not sure which ones to go with yet)

What do you guys think should I add anything else? I'm not sure who I talked to exactly on the phone when I called. I'm going to call again and ask them what lifters they recommend (they have a few options with the cam package on their site), how they feel about the 160 degree thermostat (I read good and bad on this forum), and I'll bring up the stall and gearing question again.

pushrods and also get a good aftermarket damper. chevrolet performance lifter trays part# 12595365.

for your lifters, either:

chevrolet performance part# 12499225 or if you have the $$$ go with johnsons ST2126LSR or ST2116LSR

[GRNFLSH]

I'm running a GPI SS1 VVT cam and agree with the others, go with the converter first but you need 3800-4000, 3200 is too low for where this cam makes power. The RPM difference won't change street feel but it will make a huge difference when you romp on it. This cam builds power north of 3800 RPM which was really evident for me when I ran the stock converter for a year then upgraded to a Circle D 3800. At the track with the stock converter flashed around 1900 RPM, launching like it did when stock, but as it climbed above 3600 RPM it was like the afterburner kicked in. With the 3800 stall it flashes at the start of the power band (not before) so now I'm in the afterburner from the hit....which then becomes a traction problem :-o.

Over the winter I picked up drag radials to help with traction, and also have a 3.91 w/TruTrac diff ready to install next week. I'm really expecting solid improvement across the board, esp. 60' time.

[InFiD3ViL]

Originally Posted by PhantomBlack

Thanks for all the replies guys. So I gave GPI a call yesterday about adding a stall or gears to their SS1 cam and they said a stall isn't necessary with this cam and gears would make a slight improvement, but really the bigger cams benefit from it more.

I scheduled an appointment to drop off the car early June to get the cam swap done. The Camaro is climbing high in mileage currently at 80,xxx so I figured I'd get some maintenance stuff done while the car is apart and also address a few weak links:

- new L99 oil pump
- Katech C5R timing chain
- new LS3/LS7 rocker arms with trunnion upgrade
- new lifters (not sure which ones to go with yet)

What do you guys think should I add anything else? I'm not sure who I talked to exactly on the phone when I called. I'm going to call again and ask them what lifters they recommend (they have a few options with the cam package on their site), how they feel about the 160 degree thermostat (I read good and bad on this forum), and I'll bring up the stall and gearing question again.

I have had nothing but good luck with my 160* thermostat. I had DynoSteve change my fan profile, so they come on low speed at like 192* and ramp up from there.

I rarely get above 200* anymore and am usually between 172 -192* coolant temp. Before the 160* stat, I would hit 212 at lights in the summer. It made a huge difference in my idle and cruising temps, which means less KR. With my 160* stat, I never go full retard!

[PhantomBlack]

Originally Posted by sixty9fordkiller

pushrods and also get a good aftermarket damper. chevrolet performance lifter trays part# 12595365.

for your lifters, either:

chevrolet performance part# 12499225 or if you have the $$$ go with johnsons ST2126LSR or ST2116LSR

Yes pushrods are definitely on the list. I was looking at the Chevrolet performance lifters. Anyone who's running those have any issues?

Originally Posted by GRNFLSH

I'm running a GPI SS1 VVT cam and agree with the others, go with the converter first but you need 3800-4000, 3200 is too low for where this cam makes power. The RPM difference won't change street feel but it will make a huge difference when you romp on it. This cam builds power north of 3800 RPM which was really evident for me when I ran the stock converter for a year then upgraded to a Circle D 3800. At the track with the stock converter flashed around 1900 RPM, launching like it did when stock, but as it climbed above 3600 RPM it was like the afterburner kicked in. With the 3800 stall it flashes at the start of the power band (not before) so now I'm in the afterburner from the hit....which then becomes a traction problem :-o.

Over the winter I picked up drag radials to help with traction, and also have a 3.91 w/TruTrac diff ready to install next week. I'm really expecting solid improvement across the board, esp. 60' time.

Thank you for explaining the experience you had. Converter sounds like the way to go! I'd like to hear your feedback once the gears and trutrac is in. A lot of the mods in your signature are the ones I've been thinking about for my own.

Originally Posted by InFiD3ViL

I have had nothing but good luck with my 160* thermostat. I had DynoSteve change my fan profile, so they come on low speed at like 192* and ramp up from there.

I rarely get above 200* anymore and am usually between 172 -192* coolant temp. Before the 160* stat, I would hit 212 at lights in the summer. It made a huge difference in my idle and cruising temps, which means less KR. With my 160* stat, I never go full retard!

I'll add this to my parts list as well, thank you!