02 ZO6 cam

sting5841 · January 11, 2004

I have a 02 ZO6 cam and I noticed there are a few of you

that have this in your truck my question is what lenght push

rods are you runing? I have a 5.3L and I dont know

also what kind of gain did you see from this?

greentahoe · January 12, 2004

I thought about doing this myself, but from what Ive heard you lose alot of low end torque and HP. Those cams are high rpm power producers. Just didnt seem like a good idea to me since trucks need more low end torque to get things moving and usually peak in hp much lower than sports cars. If you go through with it I'd love to hear your impressions!!

99Silver6.0 · January 12, 2004

That ZO6 cam is a high revvin mofo! You will want a converter due to the loss in bottom end. Stock rods are 7.4" in the 5.3. Get some hardened rods and 02 ZO6 springs if you do the cam swap. Get a good tune too, to further benefit from the cam change. Althought it will run on stock tuning. I think a Comp 212/218 .522/.529 114 cam would be better suited in the 5.3. The High LSA of the ZO6 cam keeps the power high in the RPM band. Not a great thing for a heavy truck.

sting5841 · January 12, 2004

well guys I have a 3000 stall torque converter and I

would like to take each gear higher to give me more

rpm's to play with and I do have the ZO6 springs also

I'm just not sure the lenght of the push rods?

I also bought a predator programmer to install

greentahoe · January 12, 2004

I had looked at a Predator as well. Unless you got a great deal (I couldve gotten one for no money out of pocket, using Giftcertificates that I get each month) I would go for a Wester's tune. Ive heard amazing things about his tunes. Thats what Im going for. Besides Predator is going for 350+ and can only be used on one vehicle forever, Westers does programming upgrades whenever you want all you have to do is ship it to him. He also gives you a credit if you trade in your vehicle toward a new PCM for your new vehicle! I think for our app it is 495! Sounds like a deal to me. Goodluck with everything.

99Silver6.0 · January 12, 2004

I'm just not sure the lenght of the push rods?

Get some Comp 7.4" Hardened rods! Dont use the stockers.

SportSide 5.3 · January 12, 2004

well guys I have a 3000 stall torque converter and I
would like to take each gear higher to give me more

rpm's to play with and I do have the ZO6 springs also

I'm just not sure the lenght of the push rods?

I also bought a predator programmer to install

well if you have a 3000 stall, that Z06 cam should be alright. i've heard 36hp gains from the vette cam and -5tq loss which isn't to bad for the price of the cam. Yeah, i'd send the predator back if you can and get a westers or nelson tune. I'm not gonna say which one is better b/c everyone starts gettin all hyped up about the subject. Anyways, that cam should work fine.

tell us your results after the install

99Silver6.0 · January 13, 2004

I'm not gonna say which one is better b/c everyone starts gettin all hyped up about the subject. Anyways, that cam should work fine.

Any custom tune is better than the handhelds. PERIOD!!

With that 3000 stall that cam will rock. Just be nice to your tires! Some billet servos and a shift kit may be in order too!

Import Hater · January 13, 2004

I've dynoed my Z06 back to back with my dad's new '03 coupe with the LS1. What's shocking is that his car has a good 20hp and 20 ft lbs more in the lower half of the powerband. The upper half is another story of course.

I could swear that the LS6 has the exact same cam as the 6.0HO truck engine, but it makes me kinda wonder about that since the powerband of the Z06 doesn't exactly suggest something that'd be good for a truck. I'm sure alot of that high RPM hit of the LS6 is the heads, spark, and fuel curves...but it really makes me wonder about that cam.

Rob

greentahoe · January 14, 2004

I'd like to do a cam swap as well. Since I have a 2600 stall should I stick with a ZO6 cam or go with the comp cam mentioned earlier?? What do hardened pushrods run? Whats a guess on installation costs for the whole thing?? Thanks alot

99Silver6.0 · January 15, 2004

Im not sure what the install would run you. Pushrods are pretty cheap. Comps moly 7.4 rods are like $119.00 which is what I got. Thunder Racing sells some heat-treated moly rods, not sure who they are made by, but they run $109.00. Most people go for the LS6 (ZO6) cam due to its price. But in my opinion, more is to be had with a split duration cam such as the Comp 212/218. They make 2 different versions of that cam. The low lift 212/218 .522/.529 114lsa and the high lift 212/218 .558/.563. 115lsa. The 114lsa of the first cam I mentioned will give it a slight lope versus the 115 of the high lift cam. Another note on going with high lift, it moves your power up in the RPM range a bit. So does going with a high LSA. Like the 117.5 of the 02 LS6 cam. Stock 5.3 is 115.5 I think. Comp also makes a grind which is 206/212 .515/.522 112lsa. Low end should be really good! Best part of all, it will have a nice lope at idle! Cam application depends on what oyu want out of the truck/car. What you do with that truck/car is important to. Because if you go with the wrong cam, driveability will suck.