lsm

New here on the forum from SE Texas and need some opinions/advice.
I have a 2007 Chevy Classic 1/2 ton crew cab with a 4.8 and 3.23 gears. It is totally stock and every bit the dog you would expect it to be. I bought it new and it now has 138,000 miles.

In a perfect world, I would get a second vehicle and go all out, but I don't have the budget for that. So, I initially thought about just doing the typical bolt on mods like a programmer and dual exhaust, maybe even a cam. Additionally, I thought changing the gear to a 3.73 or 4.10 would probably help more than anything. However, I'm not sure a few simple bolt ons will get me where I want to be with the 4.8, so I thought about just doing a motor swap with a 6.0 with similar mods.

Then I began looking at just boosting my 4.8, but not sure about my tech skills and not really wanting to risk having my daily driving out of commission. I think the overall expense would be a little much too because of all the extra required upgrades.

I don't expect to have a bad *** machine running 9's or 10's, I just want a huge change from what I have now and not really sure what the best/cheapest/safest route is to get there. Anyway, I guess I'm just asking for opinions and suggestions to help me explore all angles and make a final decision about which way to go.
Thanks

marineusmc4

welcome to the forum. and there are guys with 4.8s running 8s and 9s so you can def get power from the 4.8. whats your budget? is there a max number that you want to spend? are you wanting to do everything at once or pace it out? what are you goals?.....daily driver with some extra pep or daily driver with some steel *****? easiest and cheapest mods to get are your cold air intake, long tube headers and free flowing exhaust, a tbss/nnbs intake, and a cam swap. only thing you might have to swap will be your fuel injectors if they end up getting maxxed out. you can do all that for a couple grand. but you could also get a turbo kit for a couple grand. check out the stickys. there is a mods list in the gm engine performance section with the most common proven mods for our trucks. its a sticky so its right up top.

marineusmc4

Bolt-ons for NBS 99-06 GM fullsize - PerformanceTrucks.net Forums

lsm

Thanks for the quick reply Marine. Over time, my budget can be unlimited - a few hundred here and there. I don't have a substantial amount of money ready to go, so it would be a piece meal approach. It will be a daily driver, hopefully with some steel ***** and not just a little extra pep. I really don't want to get into the turbo route though, due to my skill level.

What's the concensus on tuners? What are your thoughts on the gear swap?

I'll check out the stickies.

marineusmc4

pretty much everyone will tell you to stay away from the handheld tuners like diablo and such. just search for a well known tuner local to you that knows what they hell they are doing. and get a street tune. dyno tuning is just gonna get you max horsepower and torque numbers, which prolly wont be in your normal useable powerband. and there is A LOT of good info on here. as far as the gear swap going either one of what u mention will get you off the line better. just remember the higher you go the more its gonna scream on the highway. i like 3.73 personally.

lsm

Many thanks

ZO6Ted

Gears and converter will by far be your best option for the 4.8 but nothing beats cubic inches and a 6.0 has way better heads as well. I wouldn't waste money on internal mods or even bolt ons for a 4.8. Forced induction, different story.

lsm

What would be your approach for a 6.0 swap?

For what it's worth, I think either my converter is going bad or it is the TCC switch. So, a converter upgrade might be needed anyway.

ZO6Ted

Trans upgrade for sure, definitely a cam (and headers) if no FI. The 6.0 is a badass engine with just a small/moderate cam.

Merctech2

2wd easy. Get the 4l80 with 6.0 and swap in. Do a mild cam with a verter = 😀