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6.0 mods?

T

topless jackass

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Ok, so i've been out of the hotrod game for a few years now and I've fallen behind on things. I drive a 2003 gmc sierra with a 6.0l gasser, and I want to know what I can do to it to get more power. I'm mostly driving around town, but i do tow a 5th wheel in the Wyoming mountains. I haven't seen much for headers out there, and for some reason the 2003 seems to be a bastard child when it comes to other parts. Can I change cams? Do corvette parts bolt on? And then what about ecm parameters? I'm not looking for 500 horse, just maybe 50 more. Any help, thoughts or ideas would be great.
 
If you are looking for just 50hp, a free flowing exhaust and air intake would get you there or close. Also getting the ECM tuned would wake it up.
 
got an 01 6.0 and cut the cats out, put in a sensor to correct for not having the cats, then put a free flowing muffler (glass pack) on. its loud and sounds good, but can get annoying towing heavy loads. i did notice a little more power, i think a cold air intake would help quite a bit too.
 
mill5471 said:
got an 01 6.0 and cut the cats out, put in a sensor to correct for not having the cats, then put a free flowing muffler (glass pack) on. its loud and sounds good, but can get annoying towing heavy loads. i did notice a little more power, i think a cold air intake would help quite a bit too.
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That is really not an option in states that biannual smog checks. That is if Topless Jackass (What a great username:haha:) live in such a state.
 
topless jackass said:
Ok, so i've been out of the hotrod game for a few years now and I've fallen behind on things. I drive a 2003 gmc sierra with a 6.0l gasser, and I want to know what I can do to it to get more power. I'm mostly driving around town, but i do tow a 5th wheel in the Wyoming mountains. I haven't seen much for headers out there, and for some reason the 2003 seems to be a bastard child when it comes to other parts. Can I change cams?yes you can change cams, manufacturers offer just about any configuration for a cam you could dream of, everything from mild to wild Do corvette parts bolt on? yes and no, it depends, you can install a corvette cam such as the 02-04 z06 cam and get a nice boost in hp with a tune, could net you upwards of 50-70hp when said and doneAnd then what about ecm parameters?definitely dont want to mess with tuning it yourself unless you are an expert when it comes to these engines, there are so many different file folders and parameters that are adjustable, that it would be easy to get overwhelmed. If you were to take it to a shop that is an ls1 specialist, they could pb tune it and dyno it for you for $250-$500. I'm not looking for 500 horse, just maybe 50 more. Any help, thoughts or ideas would be great.
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Go over to www.ls1tech.com, I am pretty sure its still free to join, they have a wealth of knowledge over there about every mod in the book, and on top of that, have 100s of vendors from all over the US.

Personally, here are a few mods I would suggest that will net you about 100hp pretty conservatively

1) Pick up and install a good low mileage used 2002-2004 corvette z06 cam

2) get some good springs for your heads to help with the cam

3) get some good high flowing headers and a free flowing exhaust for your truck, with a tune, a good complete exhaust system can net 75hp. Check out ebay for some used headers if the new ones are a bit much for your budget, I know thats what I would do.

4) if and when you have your engine tuned by a good reputable shop, have them disable the torque management program. You wont gain any power from this alone, but will definitely feel it in seat of the pants performance. It will allow you to hold a gear longer to stay in the upper range of the power band while driving. From the tune on a stock motor alone, you can pick up anywhere from 20 to 40 hp.
 
my son has a 2003 Silverado SS and we put a set of headers , cold air intake , computer tune and a corvette servo in the transmission don't have any exact figures , but just these mods helped it out quite a bit !

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So if I swap cams and install headers do I have to have my computer retuned? I live in BFE wyoming and there aren't any custom shops around here. Can the dealership do this?
 
I have an 03 6.0 1500hd. I put on a K&N FIPK kit and a a superchips flash and noticed no differance in any aspect:rolleyes: The only real plus is not having to buy new filters. Saving up for an exhaust maybe that will wake it up some more.
 
I'd go for a good torque cam instead of the corvette cam....

Hp is good but for moving a truck, tq is more important.
 
alf4444 said:
I have an 03 6.0 1500hd. I put on a K&N FIPK kit and a a superchips flash and noticed no differance in any aspect:rolleyes: The only real plus is not having to buy new filters. Saving up for an exhaust maybe that will wake it up some more.
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take your truck to a reputable ls1 savy shop, and I am sure they can pull 20hp out of your stock motor.


on subject, some shops might do mail order, but I would shy away from that because you wont pick up as much power if they cant put your truck car whatever on the dyno to see how your engine performs. Sure they can give you a blanket tune that will generally cover everything and give you good power, but it wont reach its potential without an inshop dyno session.
 
You can install headers and cam and it will run better than stock, but you would definitely not be getting the full power potential of of those mods until the computer is recalibrated. The OEM setup can adjust the fuel and ignition parameters a certain amount but usually not enough for it be optimal.

Several companies offer mail order tunes (blackbear performance is one) that seems to have a pretty good reputation. Some even offer a "data log" tune, in which they give you the equipment to collect data on the actual truck while you drive it, send the data back, and they provide a tune based on that data.

Like said above, every truck is slightly different so a mail order tune won't give you optimum performance. The data log tune is better (only a few offer this service) and is somewhat better, but a dyno tune is the best. However the price goes up which each option also.
 
yeah , my son went the data log tune route on his SS and it worked out pretty good , i will have to find out who did it for him if you would like.
 
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