Ported heads and intake

[dcvickers]

I'm looking into what I'm going to do to my car (gen 3) over the winter and I've been thinking about porting my heads and having the intake port matched. Has anyone done this without upgrading the stock cam? If so, what were the gains (and dyno sheet if you have it)? I had a cam in my previous car and I just wasn't fond of it so I don't want to go that route.

 

[plumcrazy]

what would the reason be to NOT do the cam ? most of the work is done, you dont have to get too radical to have big gains by swapping cams. call greg good for some info

 

[dcvickers]

I'm not really a fan of the sound or what a cam does to the drivability which means I'd have to go with a pretty mild cam. What would be the point of spending all of the extra money and doing the extra work for an extra 10hp? Unless there's a sleeper cam out there that can net more then I just don't think it's worth it. Please, though, correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Nine Ball]

I see it the other way around. Why spend any money and time on the head work, without the proper cam to support the new head flow? I'd recommend Greg Good for the heads, and he can also spec out a mild cam with improved lift. If you don't want the big loping sound, then just keep the lobe separation high.

 

[dcvickers]

I see it the other way around. Why spend any money and time on the head work, without the proper cam to support the new head flow? I'd recommend Greg Good for the heads, and he can also spec out a mild cam with improved lift. If you don't want the big loping sound, then just keep the lobe separation high.

That's why I was asking . Vettes don't really benefit with just a head upgrade, but it seemed like a quite a few people here (and on other Viper forums) just go for the heads/intake only upgrade. I've already sent Greg a PM. A wider LSA could possibly work since I'm not looking for peak numbers, but a large lower and mid-range increase.

How difficult is it to do a cam swap on a Viper? I did 2 on my Vette and while they took a good chunk of time, they weren't overly complicated. I don't know if that's the case with the Viper.

 

[Nine Ball]

Viper cam swap is very similar to the Corvette. Maybe even better, since there is a lot of room in front of the engine. You'll have to remove the oil pan to get the front engine cover off, because the silly oil pick-up tube is attached to the front engine cover, and can't be removed without taking the pan off. Luckily, there is no k-member to get in the way. Honestly, it would be easier to just pull the entire engine out to do the heads and cam install. I know I save time by doing that, and it is easier to work with it out of the car. I can pull a transmission off by myself (using a lift, trans jack, etc...) in just over an hour.

As for cam specs, if you want good mid-range and throttle response, a lower LSA does that. But, that also increases lope.

You'll likely want to do a 3.33 or 3.55 gear swap at the same time, as these cars are already slow to get off the line with the 3.07 and you'll end up burning up more clutch at red lights with the cam.

 

[dcvickers]

Viper cam swap is very similar to the Corvette. Maybe even better, since there is a lot of room in front of the engine. You'll have to remove the oil pan to get the front engine cover off, because the silly oil pick-up tube is attached to the front engine cover, and can't be removed without taking the pan off. Luckily, there is no k-member to get in the way. Honestly, it would be easier to just pull the entire engine out to do the heads and cam install. I know I save time by doing that, and it is easier to work with it out of the car. I can pull a transmission off by myself (using a lift, trans jack, etc...) in just over an hour.

As for cam specs, if you want good mid-range and throttle response, a lower LSA does that. But, that also increases lope.

You'll likely want to do a 3.33 or 3.55 gear swap at the same time, as these cars are already slow to get off the line with the 3.07 and you'll end up burning up more clutch at red lights with the cam.

I had my wide vs narrow LSA stuff mixed up. If I go with a wider LSA will I lose low end response vs sticking with the stock cam? If I end up doing a cam then I guess it'll be a good time to upgrade the oil pan!

 

[Nader]

Do some research on my build. I put down 613 to the wheels with better drivability than stock. Yes that is a serious statement and is 100% true. Dan at Viperspecialty is the most knowledgable viper builder out there.