Are cams and gears worth it?

Ron said:

I've also wondered about the diablo and pre loaded tunes.



The DOB is interesting. I've thought about doing a DOB or Brenspeed's Throwback Paxton. But I'm becoming cheap in my older age.... And I can't see myself trying to piece together a DOB kit over time.



I just figured gears, set of cams and a tune would be fun for around $1500.

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They do have the DOB stage 3 which is the whole thing ready to go. Still cheaper than any other kit.

Ron said:

I just figured gears, set of cams and a tune would be fun for around $1500.

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Honestly, without headers, the cams are going to do nothing from stock. BTW, my Lito tune was done with data logging and that made a noticeable difference in driveability.

I might put together a DOB kit eventually. I've noticed GT500 blowers have gone up in price in the last couple years...shoulda bought one back when you could pick one up for $200-300, now you're lucky to find one for less than $600.

I still have less than half the cost of a complete DOB kit in all my bolt-ons anyway.

Dude, in reality, cams are one of the last modifications you should do. Cams are what are going to fine tune your motor and your power band to where you are going to want it. You want to use cams to bring everything together, intake, exhaust, gears etc. Every car is going to have different needs based on driver preference and car set up. And that set up is going to change every time you bolt something on. Don't buy cams for the sound. The lopey idle is actually just a shitty idle from a mechanical standpoint. And if you ever want to run boost, then your gonna want to swap them out anyways. My point is wait on cams.

Gears should be done, definitely.

^^The same logic could be applied to gears then. Stock 3.31-3.55 gears can work well with a PD blower setup while you may wish to get a 3.73-4.10 for a centri/NA setup.

There isn't much you can do to these cars with bolt-ons to make significant power from a cost:benefit standpoint. These engines are already making more than 1bhp per cube so I would imagine the restrictions are in the cylinder heads, and the parts that attach to the heads.

With that said I have seen supercharged setups making 500+whp with hot rod cams. They are not ideal for boost but for a mild setup I can't see them becoming a weak link.

Iirc the restriction is the heads/valve shrouding
Upgrade to a boss big block with larger bore unshrouds the valves and gives more hp

07 Boss said:

Dude, in reality, cams are one of the last modifications you should do. Cams are what are going to fine tune your motor and your power band to where you are going to want it. You want to use cams to bring everything together, intake, exhaust, gears etc. Every car is going to have different needs based on driver preference and car set up. And that set up is going to change every time you bolt something on. Don't buy cams for the sound. The lopey idle is actually just a shitty idle from a mechanical standpoint. And if you ever want to run boost, then your gonna want to swap them out anyways. My point is wait on cams.

Gears should be done, definitely.

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Well said. It's a supporting mod to bring the full setup together.

46addict said:

^^The same logic could be applied to gears then. Stock 3.31-3.55 gears can work well with a PD blower setup while you may wish to get a 3.73-4.10 for a centri/NA setup.

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That's not necessarily true and I never believe in making a blanket statement like that. It is all going to depend on what you want out of her. I mean it all depends on driving style and what you are doing with the car. I have 4.10's and a whipple blower. I kinda wish I went with 4.30's because I still have more to give at the end of the 1/4 mile, probably about 600-700 rpm's.

I started with 4.10's with a 5 speed, NA, mail order tune and a cold air kit. Was fun for a while, never loved the 4.10's on the street. Did DOB kit, 4.10's became useless on the street IMO so I stepped down to 3.73's which I think is a good gear for 450 HP level. Stepping it up again and going down to 3.55 to let the tq. work for me.

07 Boss said:

That's not necessarily true and I never believe in making a blanket statement like that. It is all going to depend on what you want out of her. I mean it all depends on driving style and what you are doing with the car. I have 4.10's and a whipple blower. I kinda wish I went with 4.30's because I still have more to give at the end of the 1/4 mile, probably about 600-700 rpm's.

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Yeah I realize tire size, trap speed, and max RPM play a factor. And all of this is irrelevant if OP does not drag race.

Well I went backwards. Because after my cai, cams were the first thing I installed. Lol
Followed by headers, supercharger, forged internals. Oh well still love em

It really depends what you want out of the car.
If you just want a fun street car, go with the Ford Racing Hot Rods and 4.10's. They will both increase the fun factor. Go with that and a remote tune from Lito and enjoy.

They may not be "ideal" for a power adder but with boost, power comes easily and a lot of these power adder cars are making more power than the chassis and driver can harness so unless you are dead set on winning a specific class, you really don't need to get caught up in having the "ideal" combination.

The Hot Rod cams hold their value pretty well too and are an easy flip in the classifieds if you do want to go a different direction.

4.10 Gears are always worth it!

Wes06 said:

Well I went backwards. Because after my cai, cams were the first thing I installed. Lol
Followed by headers, supercharger, forged internals. Oh well still love em

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If anything you got more from the headers than you would have without the cams.

Good information from all. Lots to think on.. I really appreciate all the replies!

And if after all this your head isn't spinning, please, ask more questions....LOL

Best of luck with whatever route you go. Drive it like ya stole it!

I've got my car booked in for hot rod cams and 3:90 gear install next month. Can't wait.

Mustang dog said:

I've got my car booked in for hot rod cams and 3:90 gear install next month. Can't wait.

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your going to love them as much as you knew MGW shifter

Mustang dog said:

I've got my car booked in for hot rod cams and 3:90 gear install next month. Can't wait.

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nice choice! i have heard those cams in person and they sound great.

I just got my car back from the Longmont shop. Replaced my stock 3.27 with 4.10. Completely different car. Blast to drive.