I'm with capp!

I agree that keeping it N/A and relatively "simple" does have it's advantages, but so does the relative ease of getting even MORE power out of a blown motor.

A buddy of mine with an '04 Cobra is getting more than 500 rwhp with just bolt-ons ("cold air" intake, different pulley, exhaust from STOCK manifolds back, aftermarket intercooler tank, and tune). The bang for the buck he spent on mods is absolutely nuts.

I would expect that the extra weight from a blower and intercooler would be WELL over 100lbs though. A LOT of extra weight would be a bit of a disadvantage to the supercharger.......but, IF it was ONLY 100lbs extra....in my book, that is MORE than a fair trade. That much extra potential performance for "only" 100lbs would seem to me the way to go.

I could really go either way on this.

 

I'll take a Supercharged version; easier mods, more efficient, lower more street friendly rpm range, boat loads of torque across a wide rpm band...

Todays blowers are lighter, more efficient, simple and really easy to mod.

Just my opinion....the Vette can scrape the rpm ceiling for that exotic sound...

 

Well, explain it to me.

 

Z28 = lighter, I'll even take 450HP if they can keep the weight down
ZL1 = can be the power hungry supercharged pig.

 

1. The 5.0L Z/28 engine lasted only 3-years. Once GM was allowed to use a larger motor for TransAm homologation, they moved to the 5.7L (the biggest sbc of its time) and stayed there for as long as Z/28s were in production.

2. The original 5.0L Z/28s made 500+hp in race trim. That was 40 years ago.

3. The Z/28 was never an accessible muscle car. In fact many will argue it was never a muscle car to begin with.

The Z/28 needs the baddest *** sbc in GM's arsenal (N/C or S/C doesn't mean a hilll of beans). Otherwise it wouldn't be a Z/28.

 

I don't get this thread......

It's kinda like "did you walk to school or carry your lunch?" question.

 

I rode to school in my dad's Camaro Carrying my lunch

 

I don't get why you don't get it.

Anyhoo, I used to walk home for lunch.

 

Adding 100 lbs in weight to the car pales in comparison to the 150 hp I can add for a fraction of the price of a comparable N/A buildup. Besides I can take the weight out in other areas if I wanted to. I'd rather leave the corner carving for a stripper, mid to low level V8 model. Alot of power isn't really important for the twisties. For the rest of the gearheads and the 99% of internet bench racers the drag strip is where it matters. You're just not going to be the king of the hill with a N/A motor as long as the competition offers FI. When the average joe has to spend $2500 for a head, cam, and supprting mods package compared to the roughly $1000 or so for a pulley, tune, and supporting mods its going to be an easy choice on which car to buy. You can't build a high powered, efficient N/A motor without sacrificing alot of money.

 

We've just moved on to beating the dead horse with a rake instead of a shovel .

 

I can understand an SS coming with a boat anchor between the front wheels. But do you really think it makes any business sense in any car's line up for the best corner carver / road racer to be a mid to low level model?

I'll say it again... I'd really like to see two "top" models. One an SS car like you're describing and one a Z28 car like Charlie and the rest of us have described. Everybody has "their" model. Everybody is happy. The car sells in big numbers.

I have absolutely ZERO interest in a SC car with an extra 100 flipping pounds on the nose. I don't care if it makes eleventy billion hp and can tear time / space with it's quarter mile trap speed. I want a good looking, decently balanced, powerful car of a reasonable weight that can pull g's in all three directions.

 

It's kind of funny how people think that a FI car will handle like crap just because of the measly extra 100 lbs. Truth is that 99.9999999% of all people will never actually see the limits of their cars handling potential. Take a spirited ride in an 03/04 Cobra and you'll see that it handles just fine. The next Camaro should be a couple of rungs(sp?) above that car on the suspension ladder. If you are one of the few who will actually go and push the car to its limits then a mid level V8 is going to be right up your alley. Why be worried about the weight of a S/C and its handling characteristics if you're going to buy a car with leather, NAV, multi-way power seats, etc. anyway?

 

O. M. G.


So you are saying that virtually no one will buy a car like this and actually explore it's handling limits? Bullsh!t.

But you're also saying these same people will give up balance in order to more easily mod they're already 500 factory hp?


100 lbs over the front wheels is alot my friend. Did you ever drive a big block Camaro or Corvette and compare it's handling to a smallblock version? If you can't feel the difference, then you simply aren't interested. But I'll tell you, the big block versions (with another 100 or so lbs over the front wheels), feel like UPS trucks compared to the smallblock versions.

Like Chewy says, I really don't care if a blown motor can be tuned for enough horsepower to rip the time space continuum, it's really kind of meaningless to me if the car loses it's balance. And honestly, I don't think I've ever even driven a 500 hp car, let alone feel that's not enough. I can't imagine having 500 hp in a beautifully balanced package and saying, I'd give that balance up so I can more easily mod another 100-150 horses for it.

 

1) 100 lbs on the nose of a car is not measly. You must be one of the 99.9999999% if you think that way.

2) You may feel the 03/04 Cobra handles just fine. Guess what? It may be "fine" but it's not great. Nobody runs the 03/04 Cobra seriously in SCCA SOLO F-Stock yet there are huge numbers of other V8 Mustangs there. Wanna guess why nobody runs the Cobra? It doesn't handle as well with the extra weight on the nose.

Keep in mind that the truly fast players, the Stock class National champs, all pretty much buy new cars every few years. They all skipped over the SC car and went to the NA cars. Why? It's not money. The new car to have now in F Stock is the nearly $40K Shelby Mustang GT. Why not the GT500?

3) I am worried about the weight and handling of an SC car because I am hoping for a "proper" Z28 that does not have the weight or handling of an SC car. As I have said, a heavy SC mill is fine for the SS and it's mission statement. However, you have not explained why it would be a solid business decision for the corner carver / road racer to be a mid level model only.

4) I have absolutely no intention of ordering leather, a nav system or power seats.

 

It's kind of funny how you think 100 lbs placed over the front wheels wouldn't have a negative effect on the handling of a car, in particular, one that's already going to be a little on the (potentially) "chunky" side! Is it a big deal? Maybe not to some, or maybe even not to most, but to SOME of us, every pound IS a big deal! And YES, there are people out there who WILL explore the limits of the car on a race track, not just the street! (many, many people have already done so with their 4th and 3rd-gens, myself included ).

As far as worrying about weight but then buying the leather, nav, etc.,?? Ummm, I think the same camp who don't want 100 lbs over the front wheels also don't care for those things, if we're looking for the best handling possible .