Ive got the time off between jobs i think i might go at the top swap on my own just to get more experience working on my car. Im confident i can do it correctly and i do have the time to do it, and lack the money to have it done so it narrows my options.

What im asking, is assuming i will be replacing the motor down the road and will worry about a cam later, what size rocker ratio can i run in combo with a vsx cam? I know head work will be needed, but what headwork do i need to do and what size ratio will i be able to run?

I figure i will do the rockers now, and cam the new motor. I have a friend that makes the rockers for a 3800 supplier and he can get me a good mod'd rocker setup cheap and work on my heads, and im trying to get some numbers on the sizes needed. Hes gonna do my rockers, polish everything and mill where it needs to be done, and essentially get me totally port and polished and rockerd for 500 bucks.

Thanks

You can not run rockers with a cam because it will create too much lift. Its either one or the other. The stock rocker ratio is 1.6 and the highest ratio that you can run without tearing into the heads is 1.84 or the modded 1.9 ratio rockers. It has been tested with 1.7 roller rockers, but the results were not worth the price of the rockers.

You do not need headwork in order to do a top swap. As far as a cam goes, most poeple change the valve springs, locks, retainers, and timing set. If you have the means and knowledge to port the heads, that wouldn't be a bad idea.

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'02 Galaxy Silver GTX Coupe. SLP Headers, SLP cat-back exhaust, SLP 1.8 RR, ZZP 3.4/3.25" MPS, SLP hood, SLP CAI, Overkill PCM, 180 t-stat, SSIC, S1 TB, AL 104's, F/R STB's, F-body calipers.

I was advised that a 1.7 was good on top of NIC. You can do the combo, and the change to the roller rockers is a pretty good benefit, especially if you start spinning the engine upwards of 7000rpm.

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One Big Ass Mistake America

to my understanding i thought you could run both cam and rockers if you did the proper head work to clearence it. I think brent runs a xp setup with a set of 1.7's on some stage ? heads done at zzp.


My logic is do rockers now, then cam later when i get a fresh motor in her and that way the car wont be down as im working on the doner motor, and then beat the piss out of the stock block, then blow it up and swap out the short block with one i built up. I am pretty sure you can cam and rocker though with head work. I guess im wondering about the head work involved and the ratio i can use cause ive seen it done

Well you never said what ratio rockers that you wanted to go with... It is highly doubtful that you could use 1.8 or higher ratio rockers with a cam. Think of how much lift that would be. Like I said before, 1.7 roller rockers have been tested on a cammed car, but the gains were not worth the cost of them.

Which one is the vsx cam that you speak of? I know VS, XP, XPZ, NIC, S1X-S4X cams, but never heard of a vsx cam.

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'02 Galaxy Silver GTX Coupe. SLP Headers, SLP cat-back exhaust, SLP 1.8 RR, ZZP 3.4/3.25" MPS, SLP hood, SLP CAI, Overkill PCM, 180 t-stat, SSIC, S1 TB, AL 104's, F/R STB's, F-body calipers.

yeah i was wondering what kind of ratio, i think a 1.7 like ran on some nic's would run well.

A vsx is a vs with an extra 4 degrees on the exhaust side, it was the predessor to the xp iirc. Very few made cause when the xp came out it is balls to the wall, whereas the vsx has the low end of the vs and a little better high end, ive heard nothing bad about it and its got drivability and a little more power

Where do you get it from?

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One Big Ass Mistake America

its zzp, but they quit making them a few years ago. i live down the street 5 minutes and talked to matt and he said they could get me one ground to specs.

I see. Thats' nice.

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One Big Ass Mistake America