Cam and Head install cost

zobisch · 02-24-2018, 01:24 AM

So I'm starting the search for someone to do heads and can on my 2017 SS in the Austin area. A couple of quotes have been around 3k and one didn't even have a dyno for the tuning.

Looking for recommendations and cost expectations.

And honestly wondering if I'd be better off throwing on a Procharger and calling it a day instead??

Thanks

MP3BOOSTED · 02-24-2018, 02:01 AM

It’s going to be pricey for these new camaros, have to do a lot more then the old LS3s, my tuner charged $1600, ended up doing the work myself though, if you can just bag and tag everything, take your time your all good, their is a write up on here that can walk you step through step on the build. But put it this way, put $3,000 for labor costs, still have to factor the cam and head package costs as well, I believe I paid $2600 for my heads and cam package. So in general that’s about a price for a procharger but at that point you still have to factor in labor costs / tuning for that.

With a cam you still have to factor in other parts like refilling A/C, radiator coolant, oils, see if the shops cover that in labor costs. Also have to get a tune, and yes some tuners do what’s called “street tuning” no need for the dyno, again a dyno is just a way to provide you a sheet with numbers on it, at the end of the day what matters is if your car picks up that power and plants it down. My tuner street tunes and was by far the cheapest out there in doing the installs, but they are in the San Antonio area and to be quite honest I wouldn’t be surprised if they raised the price due to seeing what other shops cost.

MP3BOOSTED · 02-24-2018, 02:05 AM

My opinion, if you can do the build yourself I’d do it, the feel to work on your car on your own is by far the best feeling out their. But to avoid the headache and hassle that labor costs/fee is 10x worth it.

But if you need a helping hand I’m always a call away and don’t mind meeting up if need be. But like I said it’s a time consuming task. Make sure you have the tools you need. Type “ cam install” in search and you’ll see an excellent write up.

laynlo15 · 02-24-2018, 06:25 AM

I'd say you'll be in the 7k range once you do headers, exhaust, dyno tune, ported intake, etc. You could almost do a Supercharger for that and have great daily driver.

bullet3z · 02-24-2018, 02:47 PM

Vengeance Racing has a price list on their website. It lists everything in stages. This will give you a idea as to what you can expect to pay and gain in power.

https://www.vengeanceracing.net/pack...gencamaro.html

Heads, cam and a tune are not cheap.

KingLT1 · 02-24-2018, 10:31 PM

The cost is up there in the price range of forced induction. That is why supercharging is the more popular option on this platform. Edelbrock and Magnuson both have stage 1 TVS2300 packages that are 50 state legal, make 550-560whp, and come with a 3yr 36000 mile powertrain warranty. Also much easier to install then a cam on this engine.

ozzzy_wazzy · 02-25-2018, 07:35 AM

Folks seem to push FI on these cars because of the pain in the butt time to swap heads and cam, but it seems some engines are hit and miss with the pistons not liking boost either.

KingLT1 · 02-25-2018, 08:02 AM

No the issue is guys running the fuel system on edge and pressure drops on a long pull causing lean condition... then the pistons pop. There is a variance in fuel system capabilities on these cars. Some stock HPFP's can tolerate more then others. Keep the power under 600 on 93 with a proper tune and it will be fine. The LT1 pistons are no weaker then the LS stuff. Just the tuning approach and fuel system is a entire different ball game.

ozzzy_wazzy · 02-26-2018, 07:08 AM

You're correct, King. Guess I should have said that if a lean event occurs, some of the engines have been able to stay together better than others.

KingLT1 · 02-26-2018, 08:56 AM

Yup..be cautious on who you let tune these engines with boost if pushing past the standard 550whp stage 1 packages that include a canned tune.

On a side note I am not pushing FI either. Was just saying that you can get into a 550whp stage 1 forced induction setup for 4500-7k depending on what you go with. A 550whp NA setup going to run 7k starting from stock. So I believe that is why you see guys going with Procharger especially. Car still drives like stock and can be returned to stock easily for resale.

Trying to sell a modded car can be a tough sale and often times lowers the value unless it was built from a big name shop with proper documentation.

Redlinez · 02-26-2018, 11:14 AM

Nobody can really tell you you had a supercharger and returned back to stock either. I've only owned cam and cam/heads Fbody's, but all this FI talk has me thinking. The one with the least amount of heat soak and easiest on the bottom end would be what I'm interested in.

zobisch · 03-04-2018, 04:24 PM

So is the TVS2300 preferred over the Centrifugals? I have a hard time getting traction down with 305's so I'm less concerned with low end torque and more with the top end hp.

What about install? Is the Magnusson as easy to install as it looks??

02-24-2018, 01:24 AM	#1
zobisch Drives: Summit White 2SS, AUTO, Kalahari Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: Austin Posts: 14	Cam and Head install cost So I'm starting the search for someone to do heads and can on my 2017 SS in the Austin area. A couple of quotes have been around 3k and one didn't even have a dyno for the tuning. Looking for recommendations and cost expectations. And honestly wondering if I'd be better off throwing on a Procharger and calling it a day instead?? Thanks

02-24-2018, 02:01 AM	#2
MP3BOOSTED Drives: 2017 Camaro SS 1LE (F1A-94 FBO H/C) Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: San Antonio Texas Posts: 843	It’s going to be pricey for these new camaros, have to do a lot more then the old LS3s, my tuner charged $1600, ended up doing the work myself though, if you can just bag and tag everything, take your time your all good, their is a write up on here that can walk you step through step on the build. But put it this way, put $3,000 for labor costs, still have to factor the cam and head package costs as well, I believe I paid $2600 for my heads and cam package. So in general that’s about a price for a procharger but at that point you still have to factor in labor costs / tuning for that. With a cam you still have to factor in other parts like refilling A/C, radiator coolant, oils, see if the shops cover that in labor costs. Also have to get a tune, and yes some tuners do what’s called “street tuning” no need for the dyno, again a dyno is just a way to provide you a sheet with numbers on it, at the end of the day what matters is if your car picks up that power and plants it down. My tuner street tunes and was by far the cheapest out there in doing the installs, but they are in the San Antonio area and to be quite honest I wouldn’t be surprised if they raised the price due to seeing what other shops cost. __________________ Performance Mods: F1A-94, DSX Flex Fuel Kit, MSD Spark Plug Wires, KOOK 2" off road headers, MBRP Race catback exhaust, Pray Performance Custom Boost Cam, Rocker Arm Trunion Upgrade Kit, 7.850" Hardened Chromemoly Length Pushrods and Johnson Racing 2110R Lifters, TSP CNC'd Heads, Ported MSD intake manifold, 103mm Katech Throttle body, Forged Pistons/Rods, RPM Meth kit, DSX Aux Fuel system, AEM Failsafe and banks gauge, LT4 HPFP, LT4 injectors, BMR motor mounts, Hurst Short Throw, Manley SS exhaust valves Videos of my car? Check here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNi...Qy1OL4NVGlPogw

02-24-2018, 02:05 AM	#3
MP3BOOSTED Drives: 2017 Camaro SS 1LE (F1A-94 FBO H/C) Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: San Antonio Texas Posts: 843	My opinion, if you can do the build yourself I’d do it, the feel to work on your car on your own is by far the best feeling out their. But to avoid the headache and hassle that labor costs/fee is 10x worth it. But if you need a helping hand I’m always a call away and don’t mind meeting up if need be. But like I said it’s a time consuming task. Make sure you have the tools you need. Type “ cam install” in search and you’ll see an excellent write up. __________________ Performance Mods: F1A-94, DSX Flex Fuel Kit, MSD Spark Plug Wires, KOOK 2" off road headers, MBRP Race catback exhaust, Pray Performance Custom Boost Cam, Rocker Arm Trunion Upgrade Kit, 7.850" Hardened Chromemoly Length Pushrods and Johnson Racing 2110R Lifters, TSP CNC'd Heads, Ported MSD intake manifold, 103mm Katech Throttle body, Forged Pistons/Rods, RPM Meth kit, DSX Aux Fuel system, AEM Failsafe and banks gauge, LT4 HPFP, LT4 injectors, BMR motor mounts, Hurst Short Throw, Manley SS exhaust valves Videos of my car? Check here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNi...Qy1OL4NVGlPogw

02-24-2018, 06:25 AM	#4
laynlo15 Drives: 2022 Lt1 A10 Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: clark, mo Posts: 8,860	I'd say you'll be in the 7k range once you do headers, exhaust, dyno tune, ported intake, etc. You could almost do a Supercharger for that and have great daily driver. __________________ 2022 Lt1 6.2 A10, Maggie 2300, THPSI Port Inj/10 rib, Rotofab, E, Nickey, SCOL, Griptech, RC Bandits, Hoosiers/MT 9.80@142.96 1.44 60ft, 6.34@112 707/669 RWHP/TRQ. 16SS Maggie 2650 9.41@147 1.35 60ft, 5.99@119. 16 C7 A8 10.90@128 Bolt on stuff

02-24-2018, 10:31 PM	#6
KingLT1 Drives: 2016 1SS NFG A8 Join Date: Aug 2017 Location: 46804 Posts: 6,786	The cost is up there in the price range of forced induction. That is why supercharging is the more popular option on this platform. Edelbrock and Magnuson both have stage 1 TVS2300 packages that are 50 state legal, make 550-560whp, and come with a 3yr 36000 mile powertrain warranty. Also much easier to install then a cam on this engine. __________________ 2016 NFG 1SS A8 Options-2SS Leather/NPP Perf. mods-Whipple 2.9/Fuel System/Flex Fuel/103mm TB/Rotofab Big Gulp/Cat Deletes/Corsa NPP Per. times- 10.5 @ 137 w/ 1.8 60ft Full weight on 20's 1200DA

02-24-2018, 02:47 PM	#5
bullet3z Drives: 2018 1SS 1LE Join Date: Aug 2017 Location: Pa Posts: 100	Vengeance Racing has a price list on their website. It lists everything in stages. This will give you a idea as to what you can expect to pay and gain in power. https://www.vengeanceracing.net/pack...gencamaro.html Heads, cam and a tune are not cheap.

02-25-2018, 07:35 AM	#7
ozzzy_wazzy Drives: 2016 2SS Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: El Paso, TX Posts: 5	Folks seem to push FI on these cars because of the pain in the butt time to swap heads and cam, but it seems some engines are hit and miss with the pistons not liking boost either.

02-25-2018, 08:02 AM	#8
KingLT1 Drives: 2016 1SS NFG A8 Join Date: Aug 2017 Location: 46804 Posts: 6,786	No the issue is guys running the fuel system on edge and pressure drops on a long pull causing lean condition... then the pistons pop. There is a variance in fuel system capabilities on these cars. Some stock HPFP's can tolerate more then others. Keep the power under 600 on 93 with a proper tune and it will be fine. The LT1 pistons are no weaker then the LS stuff. Just the tuning approach and fuel system is a entire different ball game. __________________ 2016 NFG 1SS A8 Options-2SS Leather/NPP Perf. mods-Whipple 2.9/Fuel System/Flex Fuel/103mm TB/Rotofab Big Gulp/Cat Deletes/Corsa NPP Per. times- 10.5 @ 137 w/ 1.8 60ft Full weight on 20's 1200DA

02-26-2018, 07:08 AM	#9
ozzzy_wazzy Drives: 2016 2SS Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: El Paso, TX Posts: 5	You're correct, King. Guess I should have said that if a lean event occurs, some of the engines have been able to stay together better than others.

02-26-2018, 08:56 AM	#10
KingLT1 Drives: 2016 1SS NFG A8 Join Date: Aug 2017 Location: 46804 Posts: 6,786	Yup..be cautious on who you let tune these engines with boost if pushing past the standard 550whp stage 1 packages that include a canned tune. On a side note I am not pushing FI either. Was just saying that you can get into a 550whp stage 1 forced induction setup for 4500-7k depending on what you go with. A 550whp NA setup going to run 7k starting from stock. So I believe that is why you see guys going with Procharger especially. Car still drives like stock and can be returned to stock easily for resale. Trying to sell a modded car can be a tough sale and often times lowers the value unless it was built from a big name shop with proper documentation. __________________ 2016 NFG 1SS A8 Options-2SS Leather/NPP Perf. mods-Whipple 2.9/Fuel System/Flex Fuel/103mm TB/Rotofab Big Gulp/Cat Deletes/Corsa NPP Per. times- 10.5 @ 137 w/ 1.8 60ft Full weight on 20's 1200DA

02-26-2018, 11:14 AM	#11
Redlinez Shifts under load Drives: 2020 Camaro 1SS 1LE rally green Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: Fuquay-Varina, NC Posts: 1,295	Nobody can really tell you you had a supercharger and returned back to stock either. I've only owned cam and cam/heads Fbody's, but all this FI talk has me thinking. The one with the least amount of heat soak and easiest on the bottom end would be what I'm interested in. __________________ 24 Audi S3 prem plus, sport package HPDE - southeast - JTI- solo, PCA- blue. 22 Suzuki GSX-S 1000GT blue

03-04-2018, 04:24 PM	#12
zobisch Drives: Summit White 2SS, AUTO, Kalahari Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: Austin Posts: 14	So is the TVS2300 preferred over the Centrifugals? I have a hard time getting traction down with 305's so I'm less concerned with low end torque and more with the top end hp. What about install? Is the Magnusson as easy to install as it looks??

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