Passed time to rebuild. Any suggestions would be appreciated

[RayHardesty187]

Definantly is gettin a cam I like the sound of the LS HOT CAM. Maybe some 1.6 rockers Beehive valve springs. It has the hypertech programmer and k an n cold air kit low temp thermostat Dual flowmaster 2.5 inch 2 chamber exhaust. I wanna do headers but when tryin to find them I'm only seeing the ones that fit to a 97. Mine is a 98 I thought they was all the same during that era. I put the limited slip in the back end that I picked from the Junk yard I also found the k an n there as well lol. I'd like to put around a 25-2800 stall jus for the heck of it. It's mainly jus somethin that keeps me busy and outta trouble. Instead of the Bars usually u can find me under the hood or under the truck tinkering. Not cause its broke its cause that's what I enjoy doin. I'll keep yall posted. Any ideas on what works really well as far as upgrades let me kno cause I'm jus gonna wing it. Thanks

 

[df2x4]

Personally I would ditch the Hypertech programmer in favor of a real tune, ditch the K&N intake for the factory one, and go back to a stock 195 degree thermostat.

The Hypertech may be OK for now, but it's definitely not going to do you any good if you do any major modifications like swapping cams. You'll need a custom tune if you want things like that to make a real difference. The Hypertech just has a few mild tunes to switch between that will work for 99.9% of near-stock trucks on the road. A custom tune will make a huge difference compared to the Hypertech even on a stock truck.

I removed a K&N FIPK from my red truck because the open box design made my intake air temps much higher when compared to the factory intake. If you really want something aftermarket that flows a little better than stock, sell the K&N and buy a Volant. Their intakes use a sealed box design just like the factory setup that draws cool air from the factory hole in the fender.

The thermostat seems to be more of a personal preference thing, but I've been advised by Black Bear Performance (the people who tuned my red '97, highly recommend them) and my mechanic that these trucks don't really benefit from anything cooler than the stock 195 degree thermostats.

As a side note, Black Bear Performance offers free alterations to your tune for as long as you own the vehicle. So if you want to get the truck tuned now and then swap cams later, they'll change the tune for free. You just pay shipping on the PCM. IMO this is the best low effort mod you can possibly do, it'll make a huge difference in how the truck runs and drives.

 

[RayHardesty187]

So what is the cost of getting it done at Black Bear? So it makes that much of a difference on a stock motor? I'm intrigued , how long is the wait for black bear to get it tuned 2 weeks a month? Thanks for the input

 

[df2x4]

So what is the cost of getting it done at Black Bear? So it makes that much of a difference on a stock motor? I'm intrigued , how long is the wait for black bear to get it tuned 2 weeks a month? Thanks for the input

$360, and that includes a spare PCM so the truck won't have any down time. You just fill out the forms with the mods you've done to the truck, how you want it to behave, what octane fuel you want to run, etc. and they ship you the tuned PCM. Then you just disconnect your battery and swap them out. Turnaround time for Black Bear is usually a week or two, they've edited my tune many times now.

It's a huge difference from stock. My red truck has the 4.3L V6 with a bunch of bolt on parts and a full 3" exhaust, but nothing else I've done to it made more of a difference than the tune. I think it's just about the best thing you can do for a little extra power in these trucks.

One thing to note though, since you have the 4L60E DO NOT have them remove any torque management from the tune. The 4L60Es really need all the factory torque management if you want them to survive. Personally I would advise against having them change the shift firmness, too. I can give you the full story on my trail of 4L60E destruction if you want more details, but speaking from experience just leave the transmission stuff in the tune alone. You're much better off installing a shift kit like the TransGo HD2 and leaving the transmission tune alone if you want firmer shifts from a 4L60E.

 

[RayHardesty187]

Well I finally saved up enough I played for my tune to black bear I sure hope it's worth it

 

[XJPhoenix]

Well I finally saved up enough I played for my tune to black bear I sure hope it's worth it

Please, let us know what you think! Did you get the replacement computer sent to you, or did you send your computer to him first?

 

[RayHardesty187]

Please, let us know what you think! Did you get the replacement computer sent to you, or did you send your computer to him first?

I had an extra one from another truck I sent. It sucks its labor day weekend and I dont have any patience. I'm really wanting to see what all the fuss is about. I will keep yall posted.

 

[97SWBCHEVY]

I had an extra one from another truck I sent. It sucks its labor day weekend and I dont have any patience. I'm really wanting to see what all the fuss is about. I will keep yall posted.

Well???

 

[Fishinfreak96]

if you search 'Eric the car guy' on youtube. He took a 5.7 apart piece by piece and had it bored over for 383. He walks you through his build. Good info in there if you are interested in doing that. Google has a lot of good information. What ever you decide to do, it probably has been done already. So, less headache by reinventing the wheel. Have fun!