Cheap VP Mods

[WazzaVN]

Hey guys

I just installed a new 3.7 LSD and kinda want to do a few more cheap mods to my car. I was thinking just the basics like K&N filter econo chip and maybe some extractors. My new diff has made my fuel economy a little worse (which i assumed it would) and was thinking that these things might help to counter it a bit. I was also considering a shift kit and some new leads and plugs. Does anyone know of any good leads and plugs to get and weather thay actually make much of a difference? and what are some other easy cheap mods i can do, Without going crazy and spending heaps of money on my V6?

[F l a k]

I recommend a MACE cold air intake, 70mm throttle body, 82 degree thermostat and roller rockers. Send Steve a PM, he's super helpful and all their gear is great value for money, and you can install it all yourself.

As for plugs, I like the Bosch Super Plus plugs, they are fairly cheap and there's really no benefit in getting anything better. Top Gun, MSD (overpriced) or Eagle make decent leads. Measure the resistance in your current ones first to see if they actually need changing. Leave the shift kit and get a Corvette Servo. They are cheap as and again something you can do yourself that will probably make you happy enough to not need a shift kit.

Just make sure all the gaskets and the injectors are in good condition, and run it on BP Premium 95 (not Ultimate 98), then when you feel like you've done all the mods you want, message eBay user NiceFrog for a tune, but be prepared to wait a few months.

[ice_cold17]

do a full service,all the filters etc,fuel lines are also a good way to go as new lines will make a hell of a difference in economy as well as the filter,pull apart your throttle body and buy some throttle body cleaner,believe me if it hasnt been done in ages you will notice one hell of a difference in response and economy,i use bosch plugs and i bought some bosch performance leads to go with it,it made a small noticeable differance in the way the car performed and economy,also when u buy plugs make sure you set the gap right,extractors will provide better flow and power but you wont notice much differance if any in economy,it is a buick V6 after all lol. if you havent already done it,get an exhaust system done,its cheaper than extractors and makes a big difference all round,get the guy to check your cat as well as it might be backed up and that is robbing you of performance and economy.

[stuntmanmike]

My tips to get more oomph out of your VP v6 Auto with your 3.7:1 on a tight budget are:
1. Duct the lower air filter box with a snorkel (ie no metal cutting required) or 5" pipe (ie metal cutting required)
2. VN S1 memcal (maybe an ATFYxxxx or similar). These memcals really liven up the V6!
3. I personally wouldn't bother with extractors or a 70mm TB unless you want to live on 6000rpm most of the time. A 2-1/4" exhaust works really well with the CAI mods IMO.
4. Clean out the boot and remove as much sound deadener as possible. Leave the spare and junk at home.
5. Use good quality engine oil (eg Penrite)
6. Gap the spark plugs correctly
7. Get a set of sticky compound tyres for improved grip
8. Keep the weight in the cabin to a minimum (eg sunvisors do not equal kWs and leave the loose change in the piggy bank)
9. Remove parts from the engine bay that add weight. It's only a few kilos of redundant stuff and can make a difference if you are wanting to improve performance using every trick possible.
10. Drill speed holes where it counts!
11. Remove the bell mouth and trim it carefully so that the top is short and the bottom has the original length like a tongue. I don't know if this is really worth any kWs and the torque curve could become wider. Maybe...

It all depends on how much you want to achieve without cracking the engine open or bolting in a forced induction setup. It's a different matter if you want to keep your car legal for everyday driving (eg CAI mod + 2-1/4" exhaust + VN S1 memcal = legal).
Have fun and best of luck.

[vamplestat]

how much of a gain are you looking to get? as iam going to be doing this soon to my vp calais v6, iam going through mace for all my parts, not gonna bother with a cam thou, but 3 simple items should give you abit of a boost all depending on your budget, the mace memcal is a good start, between 8-12 kw boost without going over board on the fuel, 70mm port n polished throttle body which will increase airflow by 14% which can add 5rwk which is good, also a set of high ratio roller rockers, stock ones being 1.6.1 and the high ratio are 1.9.1 and can have gains of about 13-16kw maybe more depending on mods that you have already taken... and all that added with a good exhaust and extractors, you should have alot more power then a stock engine, as for the belmouth forget removing that as all it does it make the engine idle like sh*t and lean the 2 rear cylinders so do the maths, from a 127kw engine up to about 163kw give or take.... not a bad start and it leaves room for bigger cams and head work in the future depending on what direction you wanna go

[WazzaVN]

Thanks guys I've read all your suggestions and have a few questions. There are so many memcals out there which is the best one to get? Some of them of them look like they're not going to be good for economy, like the stage 4s. And what's with all the different leads should I be getting 8.o or bigger? I think I will definitely get the mace intake, awesome that it's a pod filter with a box around it. Thermostat seems cheap so ill get that for sure. Might have to save up a bit for the tb and rockers though. I probably won't get a sports exhaust though, no offence to anyone but I don't like loud v6s.

[vamplestat]

not all sports exhausts are loud, all depends on what the muffler offset is and if its got a rear muffler as well. extractors are worth it as well. as for leads i use eagle 9mm i think on my v6 and its great, ideal and more better then the standard leads in my opinion, how ever you don't really see much gains from them in any sense just allows for higher spark outputs with less interference and ideal for larger Hp gains later down the track... now as for the memcals not all are made to drink fuel. a stage 4 chip is pretty much burnout spec, for ideal cruising i would suggest if your gonna use eBay at least a stage 2 chip. although you pretty much get what you pay for.... me personally i would suggest the memcal mace offer, its tuned to increase overall outputs of the engine as well as giving better economy, but that can vary as it all depends on how you drive in the end and what condition your motor is in.

[matty94]

Green VT injectors are a good one also improve fuel economy when driving normal.

[vamplestat]

with the vt injectors because of the different flow rates it will run like sh*t for awhile until the computer learns... from what i understand your better off getting the injectors off a certain magna as they are the same injectors used in the group A engines and are ideal evan for supercharged engines.

[matty94]

My vn ran like shit for about 30 seconds then ran perfect and has ever since.