my car is pretty much stock except for the exhaust so i want to try and get a little more power out of it but i dont want to have to spend a bunch of money to get more power. the only thing ive really found is the accel super coil from the fiero store http://www.fierostore.com/P...px?s=51063&d=271&p=1 but i don't know if that would even make a noticeable difference. so what have other people done to get more power out of the 2.8?
Honestly for some true power increase, there is quite a bit of money involved. Thats why most people just upgrade to a different motor. You end up spending close....or over....what a higher horsepower motor would cost.
For a 100% stock motor: Truleo exhaust headers Truleo intake Throttle body bored out A turbo setup Catalytic converter delete High flow exhaust setup
Even with the list above which is a few thousand dollars, you will only gain close to 100 horsepower which will destroy something with the stock block. If you tweak the turbo for more boost then the stock block will blow apart on you. They just designed that motor really poor. If you just want a better driving car with a smoother acceleration that will give you a slight hp increase and will still allow you to pass your smog inspections then change the coil, newer plugs, wires, cap, rotor, cold air intake just to help the motor breathe better....they don't do anything for power increase, and a high-flow exhaust will help.
[This message has been edited by IMSA GT (edited 05-15-2011).]
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10:34 AM
$Rich$ Member
Posts: 14575 From: Sioux Falls SD Registered: Dec 2002
It's still active because I point people in that direction ALL the time. Great writeup and it really works well. People don't realize that the engine cradle is technically separate from the car so those grounding straps are critical and the stock ones ALWAYS corrode away.
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10:44 AM
Fiero88GT Member
Posts: 488 From: Quakertown PA Registered: Jun 2010
i never even knew you could port the exhaust. how much hp would i gain from the trueleo intake and would that still fit under a stock decklid? my exhaust has stock exhaust manifolds stock y pipe an off road downpipe with no cat and the rest is the ocelot exhaust from the fiero store. ive also done spark plugs and wires but it only has an i think ac delco cap and rotor. the only thing done to the intake is a k&n air filter. $rich$ where can i get a ground strap do they sell them at places like autozone or sears?
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10:50 AM
fieroguru Member
Posts: 12519 From: Champaign, IL Registered: Aug 2003
Trying to get a lot of HP out of the 2.8 is an exercise in futility, but there are some low cost bolt on mods that will give you a moderate improvement.
Porting the exhaust manifolds (not a huge fan of the y-pipe mod) Matching the upper/middle/top intake manifold transitions Dawgs throttle body neck enlargement modification if you can weld aluminum Eliminate the catalytic converter or replace it with a new higher flowing cat Under drive pulleys - if you can still find them 1.6 rockers Eliminate the air/water seperator/silencer Rodney's mod to the air filter canister (enlarged inlet opening) Tuned for the above modifications
All the above can be done without engine removal and might get you 30 to 40 hp.
[This message has been edited by fieroguru (edited 05-15-2011).]
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10:54 AM
IMSA GT Member
Posts: 10680 From: California Registered: Aug 2007
......the only thing done to the intake is a k&n air filter.
Is it the short intake where it is still in the engine compartment of actually in the fender? Also, the ground straps are at any auto supply. Just go to the battery aisle and look for the right size replacement cable.
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11:01 AM
$Rich$ Member
Posts: 14575 From: Sioux Falls SD Registered: Dec 2002
Is it the short intake where it is still in the engine compartment of actually in the fender? Also, the ground straps are at any auto supply. Just go to the battery aisle and look for the right size replacement cable.
its the stock intake the only thing new is the filter so the filter is still in the engine bay but the air is still coming from the side scoop. next time im at an auto store ill deffinently look for a battery cable and the end pieces.
I know this is not the answer your looking for, but just maintain the stock motor and save $$ for a swap. Take it from someone who did just about everything possible to the 2.8 aside from turboing it. Best your gonna get from a 2.8 (stoked to 3.1) w/ heavy mods is going to be under 200 chp (around 175+/- whp). This is going to cost you over $3 grand to do it right...
For well under $3k you can start at 240hp from a low-mile 3800sc...
A 3800 is probably the chepest way to get any real performance upgrade from a stock V6.
All the bolt-ons for a 2.8 are going to get you maybe 1 hp here or 5 hp there, and their prices will add up fast. There's no easy bolt-on to get 20-30 hp on a 2.8. Closest thing would be Trueleo intake, and you're already at $600 for that.
my car is pretty much stock except for the exhaust so i want to try and get a little more power out of it but i dont want to have to spend a bunch of money to get more power. the only thing ive really found is the accel super coil from the fiero store http://www.fierostore.com/P...px?s=51063&d=271&p=1 but i don't know if that would even make a noticeable difference. so what have other people done to get more power out of the 2.8?
Your high output coil just makes sure you get fire on the cylinder. It doesn't increase hp by itself.
If you go to http://60degreev6.com there is lots of help out there, but not much free.
The underdrive pulley and crank scraper are good but there is a cost.
Porting the exhaust and Y is a must, but the cost is directly related to the work you can do yourself. You need burrs, a Dremel, and you need to be able to weld. You also run the extreme risk of bolts breaking of in the head. This is almost universal. You need to soak them for at least a week with EZ out or something similar. I use the FREEZE type penetrating oil. You need access to get at the front bolts and it is a bear.
The reward for porting the exhaust is probably 6-8 hp if you do the whole job. If you can afford the Trueleo exhaust, you'll get more.
Porting the intake and port matching are important. Porting the head properly and adding 1.6 rockers is also important.
However, increasing power is never cheap.
Good luck on it
Arn
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09:19 AM
Francis T Member
Posts: 6620 From: spotsylvania va. usa Registered: Oct 2003
To get the most for your $$ -with the least vehical down time-, you need to address the engine's biggest power limiter 'the stock intake manifold.' it just wont flow much above 4.5K rpm. The above holds true even moreso with respect to the 3,4 You have two options here; our intake -trueleo- or a 4bbl carb setup, either will free up a lot of power, especially useable RPMs. Hotter cams, 1.6 rocker, better ignition systems, bigger TBs are just not worth doing if you don't change the intake.
The 2nd primary power limiter on these engines are headers/Y pipes. Here you have basiclly 3 options, port the stock units, Sprint headers, or ours.
BTW: while not the perfect match, the stock cam and chip will work fine with a new intake and/or headers.
If you have an engine with good compression, but lots of miles on it; I would put a new set of rod and main bearings in it if you go with a better intake and/or headers. New bearings are relatively cheep and not that hard to do. all of the above can be done without pulling the engine which can be a big plus for some people. Good luck.
All great ideas if you want to keep the stock engine i personally like the above route over an engine swap but in reality there is much more hp to gain just by swapping to a 3.8. than what these mods offer but again i am more prone to keep my 2.8.
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05:52 AM
Gwain Member
Posts: 460 From: Titusville, Florida, USA Registered: Dec 2004
You didn't say how many miles you had on your engine, but here are a few things I did to pep up my 85GT (in addition to what's already been suggested):
Try some 1:6 rockers, think of it as a poor man's cam upgrade While you're in there, replace your valve seals (the engine will burn out all that accumulated carbon) Get a professional injector cleaning and testing (do at the same time as the above)
When I finished these things, at about 200 miles the engine just "smoothed" out and seemed to get a second wind! I think it was a combination of sealing up the oil leaks and letting the engine burn off that accumulated carbon, and the 1.6 rockers. The car's slated for a 3.4 heart transplant, so like you, I was looking for inexpensive boosts till the new engine was ready.
Great writeup and it really works well. People don't realize that the engine cradle is technically separate from the car so those grounding straps are critical and the stock ones ALWAYS corrode away.
