How many is too many for a cam install? Looking at doing a BTR Stage 2 cam in my 99 RCSB with a 5.3 but I am apprehensive with the 242K miles that it has. I just bought the truck a few weeks ago so the history, for the most part is unknown. Truck runs awesome, no knocks, ticks, or even any lifter noise upon start up. It doesn't smoke when you start it up or on heavy acceleration. All of these signs tell me the 5.3 is still pretty healthy, but how healthy could it be with that many miles? This is something that I do not feel comfortable doing myself so I will have to pay a local speed shop to do the install. With the parts and labor it won't be a cheap mod so I want to be sure that I do it on a platform that is worth spending the money on. What do you all think? Would you risk it with this many miles? Hate to spend $2k+/- and lose the motor 3 months down the road.

FWIW, the cam will be in addition to a few mods that I am having done next week. These mods include, Speed Engineering long tubes with full 3' exhaust with a Flowmaster Super 40, Volant CAI, etc.

Thanks in advance for any help and or advice!

 

Wouldn't bother me none to cam swap it. If nothing appears to be damaged when it's pulled apart, shouldn't be any issues when it's put back together with another camshaft.


Just a FYI, it's going to be loud as **** with that exhaust setup. Buy some ear plugs lol. No cats with a flowmaster is going to be rasp and drone city.

 

Not what I wanted to hear with the exhaust. I don’t want rasp or drone! What would you recommend?

 

You can always buy a single 3in high flow cat, it will act as a resonator or buy a 3in ultra quiet resonator from someone like Vibrant.

No cats with a straight through exhaust will always rasp/drone without some sort of resonator. And chambered mufflers can make it worse than a flow through style that is more common with magnaflow mufflers.

 

The Flowmaster hasn't been installed yet. Perhaps I return it and get a Magnaflow? Any particular Magnaflow you would recommend?

 

With that many miles you may also want to replace several gaskets that will be disturbed when the old cam is removed. Without knowing the history it's hard to say if any of them have been done yet. That many miles and it's likely had a water pump, But the timing chain cover, crank seal, valve covers may not have been done.

Hopefully you will be dealing with a reputable shop doing the install.

 

Definitely a reputable shop. Likely the most popular LS speed shop in the Charlotte area. He’s not cheap, but I want it done right. $1150 including dyno tune.

 

Bigger the muffler the quieter it should be.
Where is the exhaust going to exit?
And on a scale 1-10. 1=stock and 10 =no mufflers, how load you hoping for?

 

Planning to have it exit behind passenger rear tire unless I would be better served having it exit elsewhere? It’s a custom job so it could be made to exit most anywhere I suppose. As far as how loud, I would say a 5 maybe? Don’t want a stock sound but no clapping garbage. The deeper at idle, the better!

 

I'd recommend doing it similar to the newer truck exhaust, where you have the muffler and just past the axle a resonator.

I've used vibrant performance resonators and love them. I'd use part number 1794. You can cut 1½" off each side to make it a 9" to save space too. If it was me, I'd run 3½" after the resonator for that last bend just to make it look a little meaner.

I have also fallen in Love with the Jones Turbine and would recommend to anyone. They have JT3030 or a JT3030XL that I've used twice now because it has a built in resonator also.

You can see my long tube install and a few videos on this, https://www.performancetrucks.net/fo...xhaust-554901/
I'm not running a cam but don't get any drone at any speed, its loud enough and love the way it sounds especially when getting on it but quiet enough on road trips my son falls asleep.