2seater

Just my $0.02 but I think the sound of the stock exhaust without the cat is a nice blend of low tone and quiet cruising. The stock muffler is not that restrictive. The large volume is actually a help and a lot of energy is already disipated before it reaches the muffler. You really want to open up the rear manifold too. You will notice the exhaust tone will deepen some after this is done. I have done three of these now and I found a holesaw, of about 2 1/16" or 2 1/8" (can't remember exactly) is a perfect fit and the tailpipe stub acts as a guide without need of the pilot drill. Used at very slow speed, with a lot of cooling oil, will clean it out completely, including the extra length of the O2 sensor bung which is not required inside the pipe. You can get useful performance gains, by opening up the intake and exhaust, maybe 10% total. It isn't a lot and it is primarily full throttle improvement, but even with the stock cam and internals, reducing friction loss, both in and out of the engine, will be noticeable. The stock system is perfectly fine for part throttle and day to day performance. Look at it this way, the stock system comes out to about 20-21 lbs per hp.(even econo cars can probably equal that). Even with 10% more hp. we are still at 18-19 lbs/hp, and that is with the car as light as it can be. For serious performance, you probably need to be in the 10-12 lbs/hp. range. The big advantage some of the lightweights like Honda's have, is it only takes a small hp. change to have a noticeable effect.

They are the Euro-Beam. I've had similar ones in the past, Carrello's and Cibie's. The flat beam is very driver friendly as the light is very tightly controlled, and flares up to the right side to help with the shoulder of the road and signs, but it doesn't have the bright flare of light to the left side so common on a lot of cars.

I've had the Hellas for several years and like them. The nice flat cutoff works okay in fog too. The only problem I've ever have with them, and other flat cutoff beams too, is cars tend to pull out in front from ahead on your left. I figure the stray light is really limited to the left side and drivers who aren't attentive miss it.

I calculated about a 17 hp gain, with a cold air intake and cone filter, opened up the rear exhaust manifold restriction, no catalytic converter, Fastchips prom and 160 deg. thermostat. It doesn't sound like much, but is about a 10% gain. The one caveat is it cost about 1.5-2 mpg and most mods like this help the top end primarily. You really need more cam and to squeeze the mixture harder to pickup noticeable hp through the entire speed range. Raising the compression ratio to 9.1:1, porting the heads and a larger throttle body picked up another 10-13 hp. Stock cam and 2.25" exhaust (except for the missing cat.) Try reading the MAF airflow while driving through a couple of full throttle runs to get an idea of air flow as it is now. If you can improve air flow through the engine, you will be able to actually see it. The atmospheric conditions need to be similar to get comparable results. The same goes for running against a G-Tech, plus road conditions must be the same too. Not an exact science without access to a dyno.

The 3800 is an evolution of the 3.8 Buick that goes way back and it came out in 1988, after the demise of the GN. The internal design of the engine was changed to include a roller cam, different head design and a balance shaft. In between, there were 3.8's in FWD applications (in parallel with RWD of older design), that incorporated some of the later 3800 features, such as crank driven oil pump and different cam sensor.

Is this it? Sorry about the quality but I had to resize the file.

I called a friend of mine that has an old "hot air" turbo engine in the corner of the shop. He says it is the turbo V6 emblem. I'll ask if it may be available.

If you mean the exhaust manifolds, I do not know if the later vin "L" will fit the vin "C". There was some discussion a while ago about this, and the consensus was the "L" rear manifold may be a better design but not sure about actual interchange. While not a cure, the rear vin "C" manifold can be improved by grinding out the restriction inside the rear outlet. I have looked at the later intake manifold, and Padgett is likely correct. It may bolt up, but several accessories are in different locations making the change difficult. Opening up the intake was meant to suggest a cold air intake with a cone filter for greater filter area.I believe Superchips makes a chip for our cars as well. My Fastchip is stored away as it is way too aggressive with the turbocharger, the stock chip is in place right now. Some parts are hard to find but there are a couple of good vendors on this forum that will likely be able to help you.

Yes, they are available. I have a Fastchips brand. Is it worth the money? That depends on what you are looking for. Bear in mind you will probably want to run a little cooler thermostat, and a 180 is a good compromise. You will be required to run premium fuel. It will pickup performance in full throttle 0-60 and 1/4 mile runs, a small amount. Average daily driving at part throttle is pretty much transparent, in other words, not much change. Custom programmed PROM's will allow some other possible benefits not directly related to straight line performance, the cooling fan program can be changed to turn them on sooner, top speed and rev limiter can be removed (dubious benefit)and one really useful thing, the torque converter lockup command can be changed to keep it out of lockup except in high gear. I have a manual lockup delay not related to the PROM, and it will help the throttle response in the 35-50 mph speed range a noticeable amount. Like anything, a chip by itself is not a panacea. You can pick up some useful performance by opening up the air intake system and opening the rear exhaust manifold restriction. It may only amount to a few horsepower, but useful nonetheless. Just my $0.02

The vapor line has a small engine fuel filter installed to allow air flow without pulling in dirt. The original mounting ring for the canister was screwed to the flat base of the cone filter to provide an additional mounting security for the filter which hangs straight down. The electric valve on the top of the original canister just snaps off the top and it was left connected to the harness and wire tied below the relay box (no check engine light). In my case, since the engine is replumbed for the turbo and other things the vacuum line to the engine was simply eliminated, but it would need to be plugged if left in place.

Greg has a good memory and I love the look of that engine bay. Oddly enough, when I relocated my filter to where the charcoal cannister used to be, I assumed I would pickup a fuel smell since the cannister is now gone, but I have not noticed any. The sensor you are looking for (MAT) is located at the lower rear of the filter box. It really should be relocated to the inlet air path for proper MAF calculations.

86, Don't take offense, everyone has opinions, for good or ill. Tires seem to be a subject that seems to inspire a somewhat passionate response. Run whatever suits your purpose and budget. One thing that is sometimes overlooked is a speed rating usually means the tire construction gets somewhat stiffer as the speed rating increases, particularly the sidewall. It's really part of the design of the suspension and handling. I run 55 series "Z' rated tires, (Firestone), which is no doubt overkill, but they suit my driving style. Something maybe a little softer will suit someone else. It's a matter of personal taste IMHO.

Interesting test, thanks for the info.Tempest. The AC Delco looks good except for the restiction. Now if they made a small size conical filter to replace the K&N I use, I would probably buy it. If restriction is high, we just need to get the area increased to lower the restriction, which a conical style generally does. Anyone have an AC Deco filter catalog to see some sizes and spec's?

Not to bang on Goodyear, but how many iterations of their rain tires came and went before they finally followed everyone else and used the same style tread pattern as most modern rain tires? I think the latest generation should be a winner. The first one, I can't remember the name, looked like two motorcycle tires bonded together. What were they thinking? Placing the the main water channel in the center of the tread was absolutely crazy. It may have worked marginally when new, but after worn some, how was the water supposed to get out? Not to start a rant on this subject, but Goodyear has unfortunately been way behind on an affordable good rain, and high performance, tire. I hope they have a winner here, they need one.

There would be no way for the Tornado to work in our intake system, the flow straightening screen ahead of the MAF sensor will cancel any possible swirling effect, and it will only add restriction. I have a nephew that swears it helped the fuel mileage on his 3.8 powered Mustang, but their MAF is located at the air cleaner. Regarding a K&N or it's clones (even Fram jumped on board), the air flow capability is a fact and can be demonstrated, but if the engine doesn't need it, there will be no tangible improvement. Flow restriction really shows up as rpm and throttle opening are increased, but if the standard paper filter is large enough to start with there is no need for it. Padgett points out the fact that our filter element is marginal at maximum air flow numbers, and even a low restriction element is still close to the minimum needed @ maximum power. At lower flows and "normal" driving, the benefits are minimal. If oil is migrating from the filter element, it has probably been over serviced. The MAF sensor may be vulnerable to this, and it may be possible to degrade it's performance, but the amount of waste oil vapor both in the intake system, through the PCV system, and in the exhaust should not bother the O2 sensor. Air flow through the PCV system actually reverses at low vacuum in the intake system where the valve essentially closes and the vapors flow to the low pressure area in the inlet pipe.

Nic, I have a vacuum/boost gauge in the car, so I know what the engine is doing in the intake side. Normally not installed in most cars. As for top speed again, who knows? Mine is turning about 2500 rpm @ 90 or about 36 mph/1000 rpm, so in theory 180 mph would be possible, without any drag, but that increases exponetially (Padgett help ).

I really don't know, and it has a speed limiter in any case, but I know mine is still showing 4"-5" of manifold vacuum @ 100 mph. I don't know what that means in real terms, although I suspect it would have a little more than the limiter will allow, but not a lot.

I think it's pretty common, mine had it too until I removed the steel bar located under the front edge. I cleaned up the steel bar, painted it black and relocated the steel bar to the top side of the plastic. Padgett mentions something I saw too, the manifold is the aluminum version of the snakes manifold, which I did find on a couple of '90 model year Oldsmobiles.

Hey Padgett, that's where mine is exactly. It's in my little picture in the signature. It looks a little different now, but the basic layout is the same as shown (I should update the pic). I made my own manifolds and there is insufficient room to run the rear manifold up to the turbine and then a pipe back down whence it came to connect to the stock exhaust. My rear manifold actually is pointed to the passengers side and it loops across the front of the engine and connects to the front manifold which feeds the turbine, kinda like the stock system in reverse. It's also designed so the turbo assembly can be removed as a unit and the stock crossover pipe will drop right back into place, without changing any other piping. The whole works is ceramic coated inside and out. I know you have been trying to convince me to relocate the MAF and throttle but the compressor blows through both of them which are still in the stock location. With almost no volume between the compressor and intake, they is almost no lag. I will likely relocate the MAF to the inlet side of the compressor for three reasons, cooler air which can be read by the MAT sensor for proper modification of the MAF signal, the bore diameter of the MAF is an almost dead ringer to the inlet ID of the compressor and I need room between the compressor outlet and the throttle for an experimental water-air intercooler. Relocating the throttle would be a real pain as all the cables would have to be changed or some sort of linkage made and I am still not crazy about the idea. I have an old carbed turbo setup, and it was a suck through design, but I do not like having the compressor subject to high vacuum due to possible problems with pulling oil past the seals in the compressor. Besides, it is too much fun to get the compressor to spin up a little, let the throttle snap shut and the car lets out a big sigh. It does turn heads. My self cleaning air filter, which is located where the charcoal cannister used to be.

This will be the 12th winter storage for mine, and the only thing I do not recommend, from all of the good suggestions listed, is starting the car occasionaly. Unless it can be brought up to full temperature, I believe it does more harm than good. Condensation and contaminents will be put right back into the oil that was changed before storage, especially during a cold start and prolonged idling. You are better off leaving the car remain cold rather than warming and cooling it repeatedly. Three other suggestions, roll the car back and forth several times by hand to provide a slight clearance between the brake pads and rotors (do not apply the parking brake), prop or remove the wiper blades to help prevent them from taking a set and third, it is a good time to apply leather conditioner to the seats and steering wheel, so it has a long time to soak in. Lots of other small suggestions, wash and wax, drive it a short distance after you have completely filled the tank and added fuel stabilizer, so the car is put away hot and dry. Remove the battery or disconnect and occassionally charge or maintain over the winter. Apply silicone or conditioner to the rubber seals around the doors and trunk, normal maintenence items such as lubricating locks and hinges, which get overlooked while being driven. Good stuff to do while you have dedicated time to making it ready for bed One last item, try not to store it in the same area as a vehicle that is daily driven in the winter. The salt and other aggressive de-icers used in some areas will find it's way to the stored vehicle.

I found a little information from a friend with a GN. I told him about this STS turbo installation, and while it does have some drawbacks (what doesn't?), he said he just saw a test on an STS installation in a Camaro, maybe the one they refer to in their ad's, and they said it worked very well. I need to find more detail. Interestingly, the same magazine had a Chevy with (8) small turbos, one on every exhaust port, which also works very well, but can you imagine the plumbing? Many ways to skin the same cat, so to speak. They are only designed to produce (5) psi of boost, which seems to be about what the stock control and fuel systems can tolerate without extensive modification, although an adjustable fuel pressure regulator and a good fuel pump, like from a S/C GM car would be good insurance. All things being equal, five psi of boost should produce about 30% more power, which includes a few percent for additional backpressure and losses. That works out to the fifty hp. you are looking for, and would certainly be very noticeable. I didn't look at the price. I still believe the long intake tract would be one of the downsides, but I will see what an actual test says about that.

It sounds like you have your mind made up? I read through the website information, and there is no doubt it would work, as long as the turbo is designed to work with the lower heat and flow values. As a matter of fact, the turbo you already have may work. If I remember right, it was off of a 2.3 liter Merkur or something like that. It probably has a small area ratio (AR) turbine housing, maybe a .62 or .48, which made it spool really quickly located up by the engine, but may be too small to allow full exhaust flow at higher speeds. There are downsides to this system, oiling is one of them and the need for a scavenge pump to return the oil to the engine. I strongly disagree with the idea that volume of exhaust is the only criteria to drive the turbo. Heat creates the volume and velocity, both are required to get it up to speed quickly. I know they downsized the turbine inlet to help compensate for this. I would also be a little concerned about the water content of the exhaust after the cat. It may not be a problem when everything is up to full temperature, but a lot of water is created and at least part of the time liquid is present in the system, and the turbine wheel may not like being sprayed with a liquid and may erode over time. I do agree the length of pipe from the compressor to the engine is not a huge concern. If you think about it, the pipe contains only a small volume, maybe a few cubic feet, and the air flow produced is hundreds of cfm so the lag may not be terrible, and may actually be somewhat advantageous to make the transaxle live longer. I am not so sure about how it will behave in normal cruising where air flow and exhaust flow is low. It will take some time for the air flow to get moving when the throttle is opened quickly and that long column of air will have to get moving and it does have inertia. I suspect transient throttle response will be slower when you are just making small changes in throttle application? It is an interesting idea and may very well work as advertized, but I have to think this better idea would be incorporated by a major car maker if it worked so well?

I don't think you did it wrong. It worked, didn't it? It just needs refinement (something I am still strugglig with). It definitely needed more fuel with larger injectors (the glowing pipes), maybe an adjustable pressure regulator to give some tuneabilty of the fuel. The exhaust plumbing likely needs some refinement too. I turned my boost down and can get about 5 psi of "safe" boost without large knock problems. The key to higher boost will be more exotic, like an intercooler and probably computer tuning as well. e-mail me direct at my new address if you would like to discuss it further.

I concur with the conjecture about the harmonic balancer being the noise at low speed. You can feel the front of it pretty easily and the rubber on the face of it should be completely smooth. If you feel cracks or chunks missing it is time to replace it. It is unfortunately not uncommon and tends to make noise only at lower speed and when stressed like turning the steering while stationary. The head gasket is as straightforward as any engine, plus the short V6 head makes it a little lighter than a V8. This engine uses torque-to-yield bolts and they should be replaced when doing the change. One other item I would recommend is to get the GM factory head gaskets. Fel-Pro makes fine gaskets for everything else, but the head gaskets have too large a bore for the cylinder and you will lose compression ratio. You can buy a Fel-Pro intake set and the factory headgaskets, and the new bolts are available as a set from any good parts jobber. Just drain the coolant, but expect to get a little down the cylinders when the heads are pulled. Dry them as best you can and change oil as soon as you can after the head is reinstalled and the engine checked for leaks.

Don B. is right to check the actual sensor for buildup. I have seen this before and it will give all sorts of weird operation. The sensor is easy to remove. It is held in by three stainless steel screws, and it faces up and forward at about a 45 degree angle. The screws are non-magnetic so be careful when removing them, or retrieval can be a chore. I just swish mine in plain old rubbing alcohol, or an electrical parts cleaner can be used. If there is contamination on the sensor, pull the air cleaner hose and check the MAF screen for dirt or blockage too.