Hey all
Just wondering what are and where to find them, some performance upgrades to do to a Series II 3800 NA. I'm not talking about SC's or Turbos, just some of the basic performance upgrades and also where to find them. Just wanting some input, thanks.

Go to ZZ Performance site and look over all their goodies, a nice cam or roller rockers along with some other mods can make a real big difference in power. Dan

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http://www.photosled.com/showgallery.php/cat/631

a cam for the NA would be a great start. try ZZ Performance
D.

quote Originally posted by Fierotregg: Hey all Just wondering what are and where to find them, some performance upgrades to do to a Series II 3800 NA. I'm not talking about SC's or Turbos, just some of the basic performance upgrades and also where to find them. Just wanting some input, thanks.

Like others said ZZP is the place to go...Cam, springs, HV3 insert,upgrage TB, ect.....some things u can do on ur own is P/P lower/Upper intake.....

You have a disease that we all have. Never ending power hunger syndrome. Problem is, it never ends. You upgraded your 2.8 to a 3.8 and said wow - that is awesome. Now you want a cam etc for another 20 hp . That will be cool for a while. Then you will find a 3800 SC to swap in and that will be fun for a while. Then you will put a cam in that. Then Dark Hoirzon will badger you enough to convince you to go with a turbo.

Problem is I do not think there is a cure. I do however think the best bang for the buck is a 3800 SC. The increase in torque over the 3800 is NA and it will put you in the HIGH 12's.

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87 Formula Clone, 3800SC, 3.4 Pulley, 4T65E-HD, HP Tuners, AEM Wideband, 12.98 at 103.4 1/4 mile, Regal GS Gauge Cluster, S-10 Brake Booster Upgrade.

Hey Mstangs
I'm really leaning toward the milder upgrades like the HV3, upgraded TB and the intake P&P. Any idea what kind of gains? Thanks.

For a NA motor modding i would say get a bigger TB CAM valve springs, bigger injectors, if you can port the heads, then you would be ready down the road for a turbo set up when that urge to go faster creeps up on you !!

quote Originally posted by Fierotregg: Hey all Just wondering what are and where to find them, some performance upgrades to do to a Series II 3800 NA. I'm not talking about SC's or Turbos, just some of the basic performance upgrades and also where to find them. Just wanting some input, thanks.

Why not SC or Turbo? That is where you really want to be? Skip the middle ground and get what you really want. NA for fuel economy and forced induction for performance.

quote Originally posted by Fierotregg: Hey Mstangs I'm really leaning toward the milder upgrades like the HV3, upgraded TB and the intake P&P. Any idea what kind of gains? Thanks.

I really cant say what the gains would be with the MODs listed. Unless you go cam I would not worry with the larger TB. Go over to CGP and do some reading in the L32/26 section to see what others have used...

quote Originally posted by nosrac: Why not SC or Turbo? That is where you really want to be? Skip the middle ground and get what you really want. NA for fuel economy and forced induction for performance.

See, I told you they would try to have you jump to the turbo.

I'm building my 3800 N/A right now, it does have a Series 3 aluminum intake and L67 throttle body, so that should give a little bit of increased performance, but more importantly look nicer and not melt.

Yes I'm building it for fuel economy right now, but I have designed the mounts and exhaust system for future upgrades, possibly a Turbo. However I AM curious what else I could do to increase performance without killing MPG, and I do not want to get a cam for this motor. Would rockers do anything? I'm not sure about the HV3 insert because it kills low end torque doesn't it?

[This message has been edited by mattwa (edited 01-15-2012).]

Turbo would not hurt your MPG... I have seen them actually help (driving style obviously will hurt though).

A HV3 does not "kill" low end torque by any means.. its small percentages at best here... I probably wouldnt worry about one if I was you though.

quote Originally posted by darkhorizon: Turbo would not hurt your MPG... I have seen them actually help (driving style obviously will hurt though). A HV3 does not "kill" low end torque by any means.. its small percentages at best here... I probably wouldnt worry about one if I was you though.

I didn't really say a Turbo would kill MPG, I meant installing a CAM would. But still, a turbo will possibly be a later addition. Rather not put boost on N/A internals anyway.

quote Originally posted by DimeMachine: See, I told you they would try to have you jump to the turbo.

Does they = 3800SC owner? I asked a question because I want to know what the op REALLY is after.
There is a reason why ppl put a turbo on a 3800 when looking for performance. Since he is asking about performance options they why not turbo as it is a viable option.
He has a reason as that was the purpose of my question.

Why not a turbo? To each their own but being this is a discussion forum I would like to know why? What's wrong with that?

quote Originally posted by nosrac: Does they = 3800SC owner? I asked a question because I want to know what the op REALLY is after. There is a reason why ppl put a turbo on a 3800 when looking for performance. Since he is asking about performance options they why not turbo as it is a viable option. He has a reason as that was the purpose of my question. Why not a turbo? To each their own but being this is a discussion forum I would like to know why? What's wrong with that?

Because the OP said he wasn't talking about Superchargers or Turbos in his first post, I'm guessing.

quote Originally posted by mattwa: Because the OP said he wasn't talking about Superchargers or Turbos in his first post, I'm guessing.

Yeah, but he didn't say why.

I'm in the process of putting in an L26 (3800na Series III) in my Fiero and wanted to do some mods.

Here is the mods list I came up with and some rough $$$ numbers:
- 180 T-Stat $10
- 2.5" Exhaust $200
- Cold Air intake $50
- ZZP 304 powerlog - $200
- ZZP ER Ratio Rockers $300
- Northstar TB + adapter plate $150
- LS1 MAF $50
- HV3 Insert - $200
- Water Pump Underdrive Pulley $70
- Tune $175

All parts are readily available from ZZP. Total is over $1400. In the end what you get is around 250tq/250hp. Hence why I'm going with a top end swap. It' will cost me around $800 and will give me 290tq/260hp to start with and plenty of room to mod. It's a no brainer.

[This message has been edited by fieroall (edited 01-15-2012).]

quote Originally posted by fieroall: I'm in the process of putting in an L26 (3800na Series III) in my Fiero and wanted to do some mods. Here is the mods list I came up with and some rough $$$ numbers: - 180 T-Stat $10 - 2.5" Exhaust $200 - Cold Air intake $50 - ZZP 304 powerlog - $200 - ZZP ER Ratio Rockers $300 - Northstar TB + adapter plate $150 - LS1 MAF $50 - HV3 Insert - $200 - Water Pump Underdrive Pulley $70 - Tune $175 All parts are readily available from ZZP. Total is over $1400. In the end what you get is around 250tq/250hp. Hence why I'm going with a top end swap. It' will cost me around $800 and will give me 290tq/260hp to start with and plenty of room to mod. It's a no brainer.

I agree, you just need watch boost and AFR more carefully with N/A internals. It's better with the series 3, I don't think I would top swap a series 2 N/A like I have. Doesn't really matter as I would have to change the clutch if I did so anyway.

I would also like to get seveal of those goodies, but it's not really worth it running N/A. I personally wouldn't get an under-drive water pump pulley though, the Fiero needs that with it's long system. That powerlog would be nice though.

[This message has been edited by mattwa (edited 01-15-2012).]

quote Originally posted by nosrac: Does they = 3800SC owner? I asked a question because I want to know what the op REALLY is after. There is a reason why ppl put a turbo on a 3800 when looking for performance. Since he is asking about performance options they why not turbo as it is a viable option. He has a reason as that was the purpose of my question. Why not a turbo? To each their own but being this is a discussion forum I would like to know why? What's wrong with that?

Nothing is wrong with that - please refer back to my earlier post - I was just warning him about the disease we all have (myself included) which is the never ending quest for more power.

quote Originally posted by fieroall: I'm in the process of putting in an L26 (3800na Series III) in my Fiero and wanted to do some mods. Here is the mods list I came up with and some rough $$$ numbers: - 2.5" Exhaust $200 - Cold Air intake $50 - ZZP Cam $300 - Stock L-67 TB - HV3 Insert - $200 - Tune $175 All parts are readily available from ZZP. Total is over $1400. In the end what you get is around 250tq/250hp. Hence why I'm going with a top end swap. It' will cost me around $800 and will give me 290tq/260hp to start with and plenty of room to mod. It's a no brainer.

I modded ur list some to my thoughts..

Hey all
I am really impressed by all the ideas on upgrades there are, and thank you all for the input on this. Really the reason I'm not wanting to go with the full performance option, is that I'm just wanting reasonably strong, dependable, good gas mileage car. If I was going to go all out for performance it would be a turbo car (just my preference), but there is always going to be a faster car and I can't afford to keep trying to be the fastest. I know a 3800 Fiero with a couple simple cheap mods can hold its own if need be.
If I ever feel the need for that much speed I'll just get on my 2010 Triumph 675. My 3800 only has 52000 miles on it, so it will be a solid dependable preformer, please keep the mod info coming.