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‘11 A6 Wagon…Stage 2.5 Update

7804 Views 41 Replies 11 Participants Last post by  Vwlove56
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Project: 2011 V Wagon, purchased 2020 with 21,485 miles

Car Vehicle Grille Motor vehicle Automotive lighting


Stage 1 Mods, performed by owner, costs ~$5,200.00
- TSP 2” Headers with 3” green cats & X pipe to stock 2.5” mufflers
Airaid with green filter
FIC 850 (94 lbs/hour at OE 58 psi fp)
Griptec 2.55 upper pulley and Lingenfelter solid isolator
Fluidyne HX
NGK TR7 IX plugs with MSD wires and DCI spark plug heat shield
Dyno Tune in Kirkland Washington by Troy at Carburetor Connection

93 Octane Pump Gas, 542 whp / 532 tq

Stage 2 Mods, performed by owner, costs ~$1,600.00
Pierburg 150 intercooler pump
Replaced stock pipe Intercooler lines with 12AN to ORB braided hose
DSX Under hood HX reservoir
Motion Raceworks Steam crossover kit
Aeroforce Interceptor OBD2 gauge to monitor IAT 2 and AFR

No Dyno but IAT2’s are well below 20 degrees above IAT1

Motor vehicle Automotive tire Bumper Electrical wiring Gas



Stage 2.5 Mods, performed by owner, costs ~$8,200.00
Griptec 2.45 Upper/ATI Damper with DMS 8.8 lower
DMS Billet Lid
ProMeth ZL1 Methanol Kit with solenoid and 3rd nozzle (pre and post boost)
Radium Engineering Billet Fuel Rails
6AN Fuel lines for easy, future E85 integration if needed
4AN braided methanol lines
AEM 30-3300 Internal MAP Controller
AEM X Series Wideband with OBD2 Integration
New Gates HD AC Belt
New Gates HD Green water pump/accessories drive
New Gates HD Green supercharger belt

Dyno Tune 1/27/2022

Pump gas tune, 560 whp / 624 tq - pulley change only and cooling mods, up 15 whp and a lot in torque!

Meth tune, next week


Bugs being sorted out then return next week. Pump too small- ran a little lean up high. Got the 75L pump, initially thinking single nozzle pre boost, but need the 190L for the 4 nozzle post boost. Sensor wiring making controller blink and led not working.

Dyno showed great torque gains and you could definitely see where the cam stops at around 5800.

No pics of chart till I get the meth sorted.



Hood Motor vehicle Automotive design Automotive exterior Personal luxury car



Stage 3 coming soon!

Lingenfelter 10.1:1 CNC LSA Heads. Flow I 358 at .650”, E 234 CFM at .650” (or equivalent)
Cam, TBD. Been looking at Steve Morris Racing Stage 2 Asymmetric lobe
Cam supporting mods by Steve Morris Racing
Dyno TBD

Stage 3.5
Synergy or Kong blower porting
Katec or NW 103 TB

Curious what gains are for porting at this level, that is why it is scheduled last. Will be looking at percentage of gain which should scale across the board.
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You can do a lot better than LPE porting.


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From my limited research it seems LPE was one of the first to achieve these flow numbers and seems to be the model by which all others are trying to emulate. Karch who do you recommend? Not at all looking for max effort 850-900 range; reliability is the name of the game here.
I’m not sure what research you’ve done, but they are not experts in head porting.

They are a GM vehicle performance shop. They make a good product but they don’t focus on any particular aspect, it’s more like packaging.

I don’t like their cams, and their porting services are ok. They do improve performance but there are better out there, there are less expensive out there, and there are better and less expensive as well.

You are paying for their name and their reputation, but the latter is a fair amount created by magazines and advertising.

While I am partial to WCCH, there are other very good cylinder head shops.

I personally would focus on getting heads from a shop that is an expert in LS heads. You don’t need to worry about LSA vs LS3 specifically, as once you remove the intake wing they flow very close to the same, though LSA castings are stronger.


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I’m not sure what research you’ve done, but they are not experts in head porting.

They are a GM vehicle performance shop. They make a good product but they don’t focus on any particular aspect, it’s more like packaging.

I don’t like their cams, and their porting services are ok. They do improve performance but there are better out there, there are less expensive out there, and there are better and less expensive as well.

You are paying for their name and their reputation, but the latter is a fair amount created by magazines and advertising.

While I am partial to WCCH, there are other very good cylinder head shops.

I personally would focus on getting heads from a shop that is an expert in LS heads. You don’t need to worry about LSA vs LS3 specifically, as once you remove the intake wing they flow very close to the same, though LSA castings are stronger.


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I’ve looked at LPE, TSP, FED, AFR and now WCCH. All seem to be well within my budget, it’s now just a matter of factoring in who will provide the best product for longevity. I’ll move on from LPE based on your comments; I tend to agree and wanted some confirmation from others who maybe had some experience.

FED installs bigger than stock intake and exhaust valves to achieve their higher flow number; will stay away from that due to parts availability…

That said, narrowing down to AFR or WCCH. Both have ridiculous flow numbers which wasn’t what I was initially after, but couldn’t hurt, right? WCCH offers nice chamber work which should help pre-ignition and detonation. Inconel exhaust valves for the small bump in compression are a must, IMO. Thoughts on hollow stem SS vs Titanium, other than costs?

Question: Why powdered metal guides and not silicone bronze? Does anyone offer a valve guide upgrade and what should I be looking for in terms of material?
AFR was very late to the game in LS3 heads, are you looking to buy heads or have yours ported?

What is your intended usage?


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AFR was very late to the game in LS3 heads, are you looking to buy heads or have yours ported?

What is your intended usage?


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I have a good set of cores I purchased from a member not too long ago, so have mine worked over. The cores came with unknown dual springs and Ti retainers and were milled to up compression. I plan to cc them with my brunette so I know the current chamber volume.

I, like you drive this car very little, so just want a fun “fair weather” street car that will occasionally see some drag racing, but really to scare the shit out of my passenger! Longevity is another key factor.
Also talk to Brett at landspeed porting. This guy does top tier work.
Not sure what happened as your post got jumbled into the quote.

Your build sounds similar to mine, but for the methanol.

If you aren’t hitting nitrous nor doing a lot of road racing nor mile racing, you don’t need Inconel exhaust valves.

Assuming your guides are good, I think porting, maybe 2.18” intakes, surface, and check the current springs. New springs and reuse the Ti retainers isn’t very expensive.

If you talk to WCCH, it would be their stage 2.5 LSA package. You can mention me and they will know.

There are a lot of guys running this combo. One customer is running 9.6x in his sedan with these heads and full weight (other than 15” rear drags and the changes to the rear brakes).


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Not sure what happened as your post got jumbled into the quote.

Your build sounds similar to mine, but for the methanol.

If you aren’t hitting nitrous nor doing a lot of road racing nor mile racing, you don’t need Inconel exhaust valves.

Assuming your guides are good, I think porting, maybe 2.18” intakes, surface, and check the current springs. New springs and reuse the Ti retainers isn’t very expensive.

If you talk to WCCH, it would be their stage 2.5 LSA package. You can mention me and they will know.

There are a lot of guys running this combo. One customer is running 9.6x in his sedan with these heads and full weight (other than 15” rear drags and the changes to the rear brakes).


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Thanks for the recommendation..I’ll give them a call. Will step up to the 9.6 when cam is in.
Thanks for the recommendation..I’ll give them a call. Will step up to the 9.6 when cam is in.
You mean doing the 9.6 while putting in the cam?

BTW I can't say I've seen this name before, "Steve Morris Racing Stage 2 Asymmetric lobe
Cam supporting mods by Steve Morris Racing".
Change the pulley ring after cam. No sense in spooling up the blower that high with stock cam.

Steve Morris is an outlaw boost only engine builder doing regular 3000 whp cars but will occasionally help out folks like us (-1000). He also sells all the lifters, oil pumps, gaskets, etc to do the cam swap. Check him out on you tube. He has a basic cam theory vide under “Steve tech”.


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Just like you don’t call a surgeon to treat a cold, everyone has their area of expertise.

I would suggest staying with an expert in the particular area you are playing in.

Would you hire Michelangelo to paint the ceiling on your 2000 sq ft ranch house?


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Just like you don’t call a surgeon to treat a cold, everyone has their area of expertise.

I would suggest staying with an expert in the particular area you are playing in.

Would you hire Michelangelo to paint the ceiling on your 2000 sq ft ranch house?


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I would if it had vaulted ceilings. 😀
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I be like...

"Michelangelo, her tits need to be bigger. T-I-T-S! I ain't paying you to draw little penises and shit all over my ceiling, I want to see some epic Italian TITTIES in angelic form the way God intended them to look, before Eve fucked everything up with that mother fucking apple. Capisce, Mike? Can I call yo- good. Mike. Buddy. Bro.... Big, succulent breasticles - Not penises! This ain't Michael Jackson's house!!! I want boobies!" Got it? Entiende, mother fucker?


Good.


Titties. On the ceiling. Now get to fucking work you lazy ***."




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Just like you don’t call a surgeon to treat a cold, everyone has their area of expertise.

I would suggest staying with an expert in the particular area you are playing in.

Would you hire Michelangelo to paint the ceiling on your 2000 sq ft ranch house?


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Michelangelo is dead. Steve is alive! Cool guy, I agree with his theory and has agreed to work with me. And really involved in drag week which kinda peeks my interest for something I may do soon.

‘’Anyone can make horsepower. But can they make it live?” - Steve Morris
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All good, I do wish you well with your build. It seems fairly straightforward and much of what you seek has been proven out and is reliable as long as the tune is good…that’s the biggest factor.


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"It's all in the tune." Anonymous, I think...
Maybe I am wrong, but I read Karch's mention of 9.6 as an ET not as a lower pulley size.

What do I know anyway....
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Maybe I am wrong, but I read Karch's mention of 9.6 as an ET not as a lower pulley size.

What do I know anyway....



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