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Trick Flow's LS Camaro Runs 11s for Around 14K. You Can Build One, Too

Go quick and do it cheap is a time-honored rodder's mantra… and Trick Flow Specialties 1998 Camaro Z28 proves the concept is still valid. You can drive it to the track, run 11 second ETs all day, and get 25 miles per gallon on the way home with the A/C on nuclear and the power seat set to Detroit Lean. No blower, no nitrous, nothin' but motor. Total cost for the Stage One version: a smidgen under $14,000, including the purchase price of the car.

"This is a very realistic build for the average guy," said Al Noe, Product Manager of Trick Flow, told us. "LS1 Camaros are affordable, and the majority of the parts are either on our shelf or straight out of the Summit Racing catalog. The Camaro is quick, but it's not some stripped down, barely streetable car that lives only at the track."   

The Car

Trick Flow shelled out $6,000 for a rust-free, 140,000-mile Z from Texas with an LS1, a 4L60E automatic, and a 3.73-geared 10-bolt. Our quickie browse of Autotrader.com yielded several nice 1998 to 2000 Camaros for under $7,000 (some with less than 100K on the odometer), so Trick Flow got a pretty good deal, especially since the car is a hardtop and not a creaky, floppy T-top model.

Stage One: The Top End

The buildup centers on Trick Flow's GenX™ Top-End Engine Kit. It has all the stuff to convert a stock LS1 short block into a dyno-proven 515 hp beastie, less the recommended LS6-style intake manifold. Naturally, Trick Flow aluminum heads are at the core of this kit. The fully CNC-ported GenX 215 heads have 215cc intake runners, 80cc exhaust runners, 64cc combustion chambers with 2.040/1.575 in. valves, and 1.300 in. dual valve springs rated to .600 in. of valve lift.

The GenX 215s also have a shallower 13.5 degree valve angle (factory is 15 degrees) and spark plugs located closer to the center of the chambers. These changes unshroud the valves to significantly increase mid-lift airflow. At 0.400 in. of valve lift, the GenX 215s flow 269 cfm on the intake side, about 25% more than the factory LS1 intake runners at 215 cfm. The airflow chart shows the flowbench test results.

The following parts round out the GenX Top-End Engine Kit:

• Track Max roller camshaft (228/230 degrees duration @ 0.050, 0.585 in. lift with 1.7 ratio

  rockers, 112 degree lobe separation)

• Harland Sharp 1.7 ratio roller rocker arms

• Trick Flow chromemoly pushrods

• GM Performance Parts head bolts, intake and exhaust gaskets, and balancer bolt

Air, Fuel, Exhaust

The intake manifold is the familiar FAST LS1/LS6 polymer piece. Fuel is supplied by 30 lb./hr. Trick Flow TFX injectors. Air comes in via a Trick Flow TFX 85mm throttle body. The exhaust system consists of 1 3/4 in. primary Dynatech SuperMAXX long tube header and midpipe system and a Stainless Works 3 in. cat-back system.

Other Stuff

To keep the Camaro from falling on its face off the line, Trick Flow sourced a 3,600 rpm stall Super StreetFighter converter from TCI. With more stall comes more heat, so a B&M Hi-Tek Supercooler transmission cooler was added keep the 4L60E's fluid from boiling over. The battery was banished to the trunk to help weight transfer.

The idle, fuel, and spark parameters in factory ECU were modified via laptop with EFILive tuning software. The transmission shift points were also raised to 6,300 rpm to take advantage of the extra top-end horsepower.

Trick Flow took the Camaro to Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park (Norwalk, Ohio) to see what the upgrades were worth in the quarter. A stock ‘98 LS automatic F-body is capable of mid-13 second ETs. With around 205 extra hp available (510 vs. stock 305) and Al Noe at the wheel, the Z ran a best of 11.84 @ 114 mph—not too shabby for a car on the stock suspension and all-season radials.

Stage Two: The Quest for More

The track testing also revealed the effect 140,000 miles can have on suspension bits. Several boxes' worth of parts from BMR Fabrication (K-member, torque arm, lower control arms, adjustable panhard bar, subframe connectors) and QA1 (front and rear coil springs and shocks) took care of the slop.

Despite the best efforts of the Hi-Tek cooler, the 4L60E was showing signs of imminent heat-induced demise. It was replaced with a TCI Super StreetFighter trans. And in anticipation of the extra stick from the new set of Mickey Thompson ET Radials, the factory 10-bolt rear axle was replaced with a Moser 12-bolt with 4.11s and a Detroit Tru-Trac. These upgrades improved the Camaro's times to a best of 11.60 @ 116 mph.

Stage Three: Forged Short Block

Unfortunately, the better grip and harder shifts took their toll on the short block when the top of #7 cylinder's cast hypereutectic piston decided to implode. This is a common problem on LS1s due to issues with coolant flow (#7 is last on the list, so it gets the hot water) and a tendency to run lean (leading to detonation). Trick Flow's Ron Grezanik turned lemons into lemonade by upgrading the short block with a set of Wiseco forged pistons and Wiseco/K1 Technologies 4340 billet steel connecting rods.

The refreshed short block proved its worth by lowering the Camaro's ET by two-tenths of a second (11.40 at 118 mph). Al Noe thinks there's more to be wrung out of the car. "At a good track in perfect air, the Camaro could go 11.20s or even a little quicker," he noted.

What's Next

The Camaro will continue to serve as a Trick Flow test mule for cylinder heads and other LS go-go parts. With a 10.3:1 compression forged short block, some power adder fun is definitely not out of the question—nor is joining the cast of this year's Hot Rod Power Tour™ if Mr. Noe can fit it into his very busy schedule. In the meantime, he would be more than happy to let you use this story as template for your own 11-second, budget-friendly Camaro.

About the Author

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