Need a lil help on 04' GTO upgrades

**Rez Goat** · 09-13-2009, 07:00 PM

I was reading through some posts on power adders and it got me wondering.
I would like to achieve about 80 to 100 hp and about the same for torque. I read that a cam and heads would probably get me there but the $ on tuning the cam scares me a little.
I just want to smoke a 99' cobra mustang at work. This guy has put a lot of $ into his ride and has been trying to test me since I got my Goat last week. A little intimindated at what I see under his hood, don't really know what a ford is suppose to look like but all the aftermarket wiring and MSD stuff have me making excuses.
For the winter I'm saving for air intake, headers and exhaust, MSD coils and also have to have a good stereo and speakers.
Just feel like I'm rambling, but how much torque will the factory 6 speed tranny hold up to and about how much do you think it would cost to get my tranny beefed up to handle at least 400 HP. I know the torque #'s will probably be higher.
Thanks for your insight.

**derbs** · 09-13-2009, 07:04 PM

ask him whats all done to his car and we'll go from there

**basballny2** · 09-13-2009, 07:05 PM

80 to 100 hp WITH ur headers and intake for the winter? headers intake and exhaust is 50-60 RWHP easily with a tune......a cam alone can get you to 80-100 (another 30)

**Rez Goat** · 09-13-2009, 07:37 PM

I'll ask him tomorrow at work, but did you ever see the size of those heads on the cobra, geez I could swear that engine was a big block. BTW, what type of lubricants do you suggest, if it matters.
Thanks again.

Thanks for the insight about the cam. As for the headers, should I get shorty or long tube headers and what brand fits nicely with out any hassle.

**derbs** · 09-13-2009, 07:43 PM

yeah they look fing big its cuz they are a 32 valve dohc. If Im thinking right

**mark21742** · 09-13-2009, 08:51 PM

1st save some of your money and don't buy the MSD coils, our stock coils are more than enough to handle a lot more than stock engine out put.
how much do you want to spend on headers? cheap side is pacestters (what I'm running) and expensive side is Kooks stainless.
the pacsetters cost about $450 shipped to my door.
go with longtubes, you won't see much gains with shorties.
I run Mobil 1 5w-30 in mine...main thing is use a top teir quality oil and keep up with maintainence.
your tranny should gold up just fine

that Mustang started out around a 100 hp lower than your car, so he is the one that should be nervous

**The Silver Goat** · 09-14-2009, 01:07 AM

What ever you decide on for improving the intake side of the motor - cam, etc,. You'll need to think about long tubes and exhaust otherwise she'll feel constipated. the more air and gas you squeeze in the more you have clear...

**04cosmos** · 09-14-2009, 06:43 AM

Actually a 99 cobra has right around 320 hp at the engine, so it's only 30 hp different then the ls1 gto. The problem is the cobra weighs around 300 lbs lighter then the GTO and they run around a 5.4 second 0-60 and 13.9 second 1/4 mile. So it runs very similar to the GTO, and if the cobra is modded then he's gonna have to mod too. Then it'll be a total drivers race. Just be glad it's not a termie.

**PatrizioD** · 09-14-2009, 08:06 AM

Spray it and get cutouts, he'll crap himself. Nothing says back-off like opening cutouts to get your car sounding like a gurgling boat engine then purging a couple jets through the front end like snorting nostrils

Its pretty cheap, too, at least compared with similar power gains from other mods IMO.

Just an idea, Im sure other on here will eventually chime in with better ones. Thats the beauty of this site....

**ne0fiend** · 09-14-2009, 05:00 PM

If it were me and my money, I would start modest with upgrades that facilitate progress, do a block of 3 or 4 swaps at a time...
Like intake, tune, ignition, and so on down that line.
Or Tune, Exhaust (headers too), Cam/Valve train, and so on.

When you do decide to start swapping, keep in mind your long term goal. Your long term goal will be your finish line, so deviating from the plan will only set you back, in both time and money.

My advise:
Cheap: Exhaust, Cam, Tune - 90 to 110 RWHP gain. Do it yourself: Medium.

Costly: Tune, Intake, Ignition - 70 to 90 RWHP gain. Do it yourself: Easy/medium.

What's money?: Turbo/Super Charger, Ignition, Intake, Tune. 175 to 230 RWHP gain. Do it yourself: Hard.
My 2 cents

GL and HF bro.

**Yellow GTO** · 09-14-2009, 05:15 PM

I would save up and do the heads cam headers exhaust.But when you add the horse power you need to hook that mother up.Drag bags will be needed then you can dust that cobra!!!

**Rez Goat** · 09-15-2009, 09:06 AM

Has anybody had any experience in porting their factory heads, instead of aftermarket heads. If so, what are the hp/ft.lbs. making now? Is a good idea for a budget guy like me. Probably a silly question, anything ported is probably good. Thanks anyways.

**mark21742** · 09-15-2009, 11:33 AM

Originally Posted by Rez Goat

Has anybody had any experience in porting their factory heads, instead of aftermarket heads. If so, what are the hp/ft.lbs. making now? Is a good idea for a budget guy like me. Probably a silly question, anything ported is probably good. Thanks anyways.

i ported my stock heads (241's) at the same time I did my cam. I can't tell you how much of a difference the heads made, but the combo together did make a big difference.....if you do your stock heads get them milled at the same time to bump your compression up alittle.

also if your doing the porting your self watch out for the hump in the exhaust port...it has a water jacket that dips around the exhaust valve spring seat. I have pictures of a head slice if you want me to post it

**Rez Goat** · 09-15-2009, 08:55 PM

No thanks, I'll leave the porting to the pros. What type of cam are you running?

**mark21742** · 09-15-2009, 09:40 PM

Originally Posted by Rez Goat

No thanks, I'll leave the porting to the pros. What type of cam are you running?

right now I'm running a 220/224 .580/.590 112lsa. it has a nice chop at idle and good gain acrossed the board but I want to go bigger.
you might want to look at a 228