Budget 5.3 Head Upgrade?
#1
Budget 5.3 Head Upgrade?
Long story short, the rear-most exhaust manifold bolt broke off in the driver's side cylinder head, resulting in a nasty exhaust leak. I need to pull the head to remove the broken piece, but figure I could just upgrade the heads instead.
What are some CHEAP options for upgrading my '01 5.3L heads. Preferably under $500 for the heads and intake(if needed). Needs to look relatively stock since I'm in CA, so probably no LS1 or LS6 intake. Milling the heads?
Thanks!
What are some CHEAP options for upgrading my '01 5.3L heads. Preferably under $500 for the heads and intake(if needed). Needs to look relatively stock since I'm in CA, so probably no LS1 or LS6 intake. Milling the heads?
Thanks!
#5
TECH Fanatic
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I'm running 243's (799's are the same heads, different casting number) ... Bigger intake valves, same size exhaust valves. Milled .030 with a .040 thick gasket, bumped my compression from 9.5 to 9.9. The cometic gaskets, heads, and machine work may run you over your $500 limit though. Depending on what you can get the heads for.
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#8
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Get a spare a set of stock 4.8/5.3L heads. A Bowl blend and a basic rebuild will keep it under $500. it will also net you some nice gains and you can swap them out at your conveince to minimize the down time.
Under testing the 2.00 intake valves showed signs of shrouding on the stock 4.8/5.3L bore on a flow bench. Some guys say no big deal others claim a slight loss on the low end. I don't have enough data to prove or disprove it either way.
Richard @ WCCH uses I believe a 1.94 valve on the intake on his stage 1.5 heads for the 4.8/5.3L. That and a basic bowl blend averages 40 CFM from around .300 lift on up. From just off the seat to .300 opening of the valve, the flow numbers barely change but after that you see a steady average of 40 CFM gain...
Under testing the 2.00 intake valves showed signs of shrouding on the stock 4.8/5.3L bore on a flow bench. Some guys say no big deal others claim a slight loss on the low end. I don't have enough data to prove or disprove it either way.
Richard @ WCCH uses I believe a 1.94 valve on the intake on his stage 1.5 heads for the 4.8/5.3L. That and a basic bowl blend averages 40 CFM from around .300 lift on up. From just off the seat to .300 opening of the valve, the flow numbers barely change but after that you see a steady average of 40 CFM gain...
#9
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Get a spare a set of stock 4.8/5.3L heads. A Bowl blend and a basic rebuild will keep it under $500. it will also net you some nice gains and you can swap them out at your conveince to minimize the down time.
Under testing the 2.00 intake valves showed signs of shrouding on the stock 4.8/5.3L bore on a flow bench. Some guys say no big deal others claim a slight loss on the low end. I don't have enough data to prove or disprove it either way.
Richard @ WCCH uses I believe a 1.94 valve on the intake on his stage 1.5 heads for the 4.8/5.3L. That and a basic bowl blend averages 40 CFM from around .300 lift on up. From just off the seat to .300 opening of the valve, the flow numbers barely change but after that you see a steady average of 40 CFM gain...
Under testing the 2.00 intake valves showed signs of shrouding on the stock 4.8/5.3L bore on a flow bench. Some guys say no big deal others claim a slight loss on the low end. I don't have enough data to prove or disprove it either way.
Richard @ WCCH uses I believe a 1.94 valve on the intake on his stage 1.5 heads for the 4.8/5.3L. That and a basic bowl blend averages 40 CFM from around .300 lift on up. From just off the seat to .300 opening of the valve, the flow numbers barely change but after that you see a steady average of 40 CFM gain...