Thoughts on my potential build?

[Ls1z28-00]

I will try to not make this too long winded but I wanted to get my Terminator brethrens advice. So I bought my 03 a while back from a dealership that knew dick about the mods that were done to her. I have been discovering as I go along what is done as well as what I want to do with it. It's been 13 years since I've owned a Cobra so I know alot has probably changed in that time span. I'm wanting to make 650-700rwhp on 93 pump gas. The blower I'm wanting to go with is the TVS gen 3R(gotta have some blower whine). I will list my current mods that I know are on the car.
-Stock upper pulley, 8# lower?(15# of boost)
-Accufab TB
-8.8" solid rear with 4.56 gears(which gear is recommended for 700rwhp?)
-Welded Sub Frame Connectors
-Koni Shocks/Springs
-T-56 with steel flywheel and McLeod twin disk (800hp rating)
-Bassani mid length headers and catted X pipe, SLP loudmouth CB
-Fluidyne heat exchanger
Everything else is either stock or needs to be replaced, what are your suggestions for further supporting mods with the TVS gen 3R in mind?
-MAF sensor?
-CAI(the one on it is busted up)
-Fuel injectors?
-Boost a pump sufficient?
-Has Innovative wide band that only reads Lambda!?
-Most importantly what's the best way to get this thing tuned(I live in middle TN)
Bless your heart if you've made it this far and I welcome any suggestions you fine gentlemen might have in regards to how I should tackle this pig! Thanks!

 

[BlckBox04]

I suggest upgrading the whole fuel system for that kind of power

 

[03' White Snake]

Full return fuel system, 80lb or ID1050X injectors, BA3000 maf. LFP or Fluidyne HE. Change the Idlers to aftermarket if not done already. Step down from the 8 lb lower to a 2 or 4 and swap blower pulley. You want to pulley it for 18-19 lbs (20 lbs max) of boost on 93. 600-630 is reasonable and attainable. You will mot make 650-700 on 93 alone. You will need either Torco, or E85 to do so.

That is way too much gear for that power, I’d step down to 3:55 or 3:73 max. Your 1st-3rd gear will be useless with anything over 600 hp with your current gears.

 

[PC03GT]

Don't be cheap, buy a fuel system

 

[SVTdreamin04]

As others have stated, invest in a fuel system.


Sent from my iPhone using svtperformance.com

 

[gtmustang00]

Lots of stress on that crank snout with a 8" lower pulley. I do like the stock pulley guard look though.

 

[2003RedfireVert]

Fuel system. BA3000. I am making 670w with E85 and 80lb injectors. My tuner wasn’t worried at all.

See what you tuner likes for injectors, MAF, etc and go with those.

What’s your rear suspension setup?

 

[01yellercobra]

You're not going to make 700 on 93 octane. We don't have the displacement for it. As mentioned get a full fuel system. The BAP won't cut it.

That lower pulley must look like a frisbee. Personally I'd drop down to a stock or 4lb and go from there.

 

[DCguy]

Personally i'd pull the heads while you're in there and have them freshened. Get new exhaust valve seats as they are an issue, new seals, valve guides, valve job, fresh lifters/lash adjusters if needed etc. Get a fresh set of head gaskets in there along with head studs and motor should be good to go. If you have the extra $$ a fresh set of primary/secondary timing chains would be good and make sure your two primary tensioners are iron and not the plastic versions.

Also check to make sure there is a "head cooling mod" installed. Connects the back of the cylinder heads together to allow coolant to flow through instead of hitting a "dead end" on the driver's side head.

Before pulling it apart it would be a good time to check compression. If that's healthy you know you have a good foundation to build on. If not, you have a bit of a project on your hands.

Would change all fluids next and inspect the oil as well. May be good to send the engine oil out for analysis.....that should give you a decent idea on what condition your rod/main bearings are in.

Fresh plugs and new set of FRPP GT500 coil packs are good insurance.

I'd get the car freshened up, checkout out, and put some miles on it before making a big investment on a big blower, fuel system, etc etc.

But I agree with the others that the two biggest standouts in your list are the 4:56 gears and the 8# lower pulley. You need a 3:55-3:73 for those power levels and the 8# lower is uneeded....with a big blower that is going to put a lot of stress on the crank snout...4# is the most common and some run 6#. Get a tape measure on it and make sure.

 

[Ls1z28-00]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I definitely agree with you all on the gears and lower pulley. The car is useless now with the 4.56s, I can't imagine someone thinking it was a good idea with a roots blown car, I was thinking 3.55s as well. As for the pulley I haven't measured the lower but measured the upper pulley and it was stock so I'm thinking it has to be 8# considering it makes 15# of boost with a set of headers? The headers leak badly on the passenger side, so im taking it to a shop to fix that, figured I should look at replacing the motor mounts while the K member is down. As far as the fuel system, I highly suspect this car at some point had an aftermarket blower that was taken off before trade in, therefore it may have upgraded pumps, it doesn't have a BAP, anyway to tell what pumps it has without dropping the tank(data logging duty cycles maybe?) At any rate im not going to skimp on what is required fuel wise. As far as the RWHP I'm fine with 600-630, 650+ just seemed to be what other people were reporting, 600 is honestly all you need on the street imo, but I'll always take more

 

[01yellercobra]

The guys hitting 650+ are on E85 or race gas. If there's E85 around you I would build a fuel system that can handle it. You'll want to at least try it at some point.

When I first built my set up I planned to be on 91 most of the time with occasional nights with the boys on E85. Now I'm usually on E85 and save the 91 for the 300 mile drives.

 

[Ls1z28-00]

Fuel system. BA3000. I am making 670w with E85 and 80lb injectors. My tuner wasn’t worried at all.

See what you tuner likes for injectors, MAF, etc and go with those.

What’s your rear suspension setup?

It has welded sub frame connectors, Full Koni springs/shocks 2" drop, rear sway bar appears aftermarket as do the upper/lower control arms.
Do you have any recommendations for a tuner? I'm I'm middle TN. What air intake do you recommend? I noticed my JLT has a hole big enough to stick my peter through in the bottom of it!

 

[Ls1z28-00]

The guys hitting 650+ are on E85 or race gas. If there's E85 around you I would build a fuel system that can handle it. You'll want to at least try it at some point.

When I first built my set up I planned to be on 91 most of the time with occasional nights with the boys on E85. Now I'm usually on E85 and save the 91 for the 300 mile drives.

I gotcha, I'm not sure where the closest E85 pump is but it's not a bad idea to overbuild the fuel system to support it incase I change my mind down the road.

 

[Ls1z28-00]

Full return fuel system, 80lb or ID1050X injectors, BA3000 maf. LFP or Fluidyne HE. Change the Idlers to aftermarket if not done already. Step down from the 8 lb lower to a 2 or 4 and swap blower pulley. You want to pulley it for 18-19 lbs (20 lbs max) of boost on 93. 600-630 is reasonable and attainable. You will mot make 650-700 on 93 alone. You will need either Torco, or E85 to do so.

That is way too much gear for that power, I’d step down to 3:55 or 3:73 max. Your 1st-3rd gear will be useless with anything over 600 hp with your current gears.

Thanks for the reply and info. I just checked and it has a fluidyne HE. I think I remember the lower being a Metco? If so I think those are the quick change type? If so I'll go to a 2 pound lower since I'm guessing the TVS doesn't suffer from as much belt slip as the eaton. I'm with you on the gears, 3.55 with a 28" tire is what I was thinking.

 

[2003RedfireVert]

It has welded sub frame connectors, Full Koni springs/shocks 2" drop, rear sway bar appears aftermarket as do the upper/lower control arms.
Do you have any recommendations for a tuner? I'm I'm middle TN. What air intake do you recommend? I noticed my JLT has a hole big enough to stick my peter through in the bottom of it!

I use my local tuner, he is about 2 hour south of STL. If you want his info let me know. Remote tuner will work too.

I use a JLT Ram Air, works great.

I'm currently planning solid axle build this winter if plans go well. I'll have Coil Overs, Team Z or BMR control arms, yada yada...it needs to handle 800w well enough...we will see if I go through with it.

 

[Ls1z28-00]

I use my local tuner, he is about 2 hour south of STL. If you want his info let me know. Remote tuner will work too.

I use a JLT Ram Air, works great.

I'm currently planning solid axle build this winter if plans go well. I'll have Coil Overs, Team Z or BMR control arms, yada yada...it needs to handle 800w well enough...we will see if I go through with it.

I'm thinking I will be fine with a remote tuner. The car has a Innovate wide band in it so I'm assuming if I get a handheld tuner I can give the tuner the data he needs. I've got to do more research on the topic though as it's changed alot since I dealt with it. I will look into that intake, thanks. I miss how my old 03 rode/handled with the IRS but I know you can't beat the SA for strength.

 

[PC03GT]

Keep in mind also the supply chain is garbage, there's no telling the wait on some parts. I gathered everything all together before I even thought about a build date

 

[Ls1z28-00]

Keep in mind also the supply chain is garbage, there's no telling the wait on some parts. I gathered everything all together before I even thought about a build date

That seems to be the norm these days unfortunately. I haven't looked yet but what parts have supply chain issues? It is what it is, thanks for the heads up though

 

[PC03GT]

That seems to be the norm these days unfortunately. I haven't looked yet but what parts have supply chain issues? It is what it is, thanks for the heads up though

Really there's no telling, I did wait like 6 months for metco pulleys

 

[hatchke]

Where in middle TN are you? I'm based out of Nashville and I drove up to Ken Blankenship to get tuned in KY. He's a little bit outside of Louisville and can't recommend him enough tbh.

Got a startup tune from him that I was able to putt up to KY on and was tuned on 93 and E85 the same day. Made 629/601 on 93 and 690/645 on E85 w/ my older gen 2.9 Whipple.

When I get my rear issues sorted out (think it's an axle bearing) I'll pulley down a little more and go back up for a tune again. Good dude, extremely reasonable rates and really knowledgable.

I also have to suggest the same as others and really investing in the fuel system. I think it's totally worth doing once and setting it up how you need it. I used the lethal performance kit that was all preassembled and worked pretty nicely. The only mistake I made was going just a LITTLE too small on my injectors. The 80lbs just aren't quite big enough for what I wanted to do.