AWD Silverado SS LQ9 upgrades for $5000
 

So my SS is currently being restored, will be in the paint booth next week. Truck will look brand new, transmission has been rebuilt and beefed up (stock torque converter though) and interior has been all redone. So I have about $5000 (Canadian) left to do some performance upgrades. I was thinking headers/exhaust, L92 heads, an intake (any suggestions?) and maybe an XR275HR cam along with a custom tune. This isn't a race truck but I want to make sure I can put a Hemi, Denali, or Eco douche in their place. Would I be better to go a magnacharger instead? The truck is my daily and needs to be well mannered on the road if the wife needs to drive it. Am hoping to get it running high 13s low 14s in the 1/4 as a gauge for what my performance expectations are. It's gotta be reliable but also comfortable to use. It's working days are over with the exception of a small utility trailer from time to time.


So...

Supercharger or go all motor?

I am planning on doing a post of the whole restoration once it comes out of the paint booth, have been taking lots of pics. Very excited to have it looking new again!


Also, has anyone here installed a Ravelco system on their trucks? Apparently it makes it essentially unstealable without a tow truck? Any input would be appreciated

Cheers!

Heyo! Pretty exciting stuff, I love the SS Silverados. I have a 2005 Silverado SS AWD that I've stuck a fair bit of money into making it gogo, and at this point I can say that it does. I don't have any dyno numbers and haven't had it to the track yet, but I'm not afraid to go head to head with any pickup in my (small) town. My setup is this: LQ9, Comp Cams XR275HR camshaft, Comp Cams 918 beehive springs, titanium retainers, Comp Cams 7955 chromoly pushrods, Holley fuel rails, factory injectors, Holley Mid-rise single plane intake manifold, Holley intake elbow, factory TB and K&N CAI tube, Texas Speed 1-7/8" long tube headers, no cats, no rear O2s, factory exhaust tubing with X pipe and dual Dynomax Race Bullets dumped before axle, and Justin at Black Bear Performance keeps it tuned. The exhaust is super throaty and has a very powerful tone, but cackles around 2200-2600 RPMs, sounds like a NASCAR at WOT though. Also running MSD 8.5mm Super Conductor plug wires and NGK TR55IX plugs.

I see you're thinking about the XR275HR camshaft so I thought I'd chime in since I've been using that one, it is a fairly mild grind but has a noticeable lope at idle, and super street worthy after tuning. The way mine is setup with the cam and intake, both start talking around 2500 RPMs and when they talk to each other, everything clicks. The headers made a massive difference down low, and when the cam turns on, you feel it pulling harder and harder until it shifts. The transmission is factory at this moment, but tomorrow I'm installing a billet servo and later a shift kit, it shifts pretty hard under part throttle right now though. Also, factory torque converter.

Anyway, I'm very happy with my setup and the pickup gets moving in a hurry, I'm excited to take it to the strip next summer and see how it does. If you have any questions I'm happy to answer them, I'm not an expert on everything but I'll try!

Here's a pic of the setup:

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.per...d9d382aab4.jpg

Thanks for the info man, I really do appreciate it. The truck is going to the body shop now, box and front fenders are rusted out so it's getting new pieces all painted in the greatest colour on a Silverado. I'll be bugging you in a few weeks when I get that truck back. Thank you for your time helping me, sounds like a mean combo

cheers!

I'd slap a blower right on the stock motor, gobs of extra power with no hassle.

No problem, Diamond, always happy to lend some insight.

As far as the blower goes, while a blower would be freakin awesome, I love that whine, and would certainly increase power substantially, in the same breath you're talking about adding ~120hp/tq (according to the magnuson website) instantly. I would imagine adding that kind of power to a stock drivetrain is gonna have negative repercussions, in the form of broken parts. With that being said, you could beef up the transmission and rearend as well, but after buying the SC you've spent a substantial amount of money already. I'm certainly no expert on drivetrains, or forced induction for that matter, but even if you didn't HAVE to upgrade the drivetrain right away, it's better to be safe than sorry, in my opinion.

Anyway, that's my thought.

Maggie all day...

Well fortunately the transmission has just been rebuilt and should withstand around 600hp. This truck I bought when I was 20 and loved it. Went on my first date with my wife in this truck, it brought my daughter home from the hospital, I just loved it. But family grew, finances got tight and I had to trade it for new crew cab sierra. I didn't want to trade it, I didn't want to lose it but did what I thought was the right thing for my family.
Fast forward 3 years and I found my old truck on Kijiji. I bought it and have been repairing, rebuilding and restoring my first silverado for a year now. After the body job she'll be ready to roll. I used to have a sticker on the back saying "Yeah, it'll beat a Hemi" but trucks have gotten a lot faster in 15 years. The sticker is gone but I still want it to be true lol.

It looks like I may have to go all motor, the magnachargwe for that truck is no longer available on magnusons site

blower will definitely be more "well mannered" and streetable while reaching your goal compared to going all motor in my opinion.

Check out the Torqstorm superchargers, they're priced lower as they are a non-intercooled kit. Read up a bit on intercooled vs. non (in street use) before writing them off, for sure. You could always add an intercooler later if you wished. What I find interesting is they're made in the USA and offer a limited lifetime warranty.

I'm seriously considering one for my 2006 Intimidator SS. I know I'll probably end up breaking the transmission but I know a really good local builder, or could possibly just do a 4L80E swap. Mine being a 2006 already has the 9.5" 14 bolt rear so at least I don't have to worry about ripping up a 10 bolt.

Richard

With a $5k budget, I would hands down go for a supercharger.