1995 Suburban...Need input on reasonable engine mods

[Chev2tehCore]

Hello,
First post here. I joined because I just bought my wife a 2001 suburban so now I get to ditch the mini-van and take the 1995 suburban my wife has been driving for several years.

For some background, I have owned a number of chevy trucks in my time and I have done a couple of engine replacements along with the repairs. I know my way around 1970-80's full sized trucks and I can replace stuff on the new ones too.

The place where I have the most trouble is "Check Engine" light stuff. I have a shop manual and I use a bypass wire to make the engine light flash and then replace whatever it complains about. I have been burned on it saying that the idle air controller was bad when it was actually the gasket between the throttle body and the manifold. I had to take it to a shop to figure that one out.

The 2001 has a lot more power than the 1995 and gets better mileage too. Is there a way to close the power/mileage gap while spending less than $1,000.00 on chips and other mods and without replacing the engine? I have settled on $1,000.00 as my budget.

As of now all it has is magna flow cat and muffler and a K&N filter. If a chip will give me decent gains which one should I use? I have seen Jet six pack, Superchip, and Hypertech. Which one is best?

[Chev2tehCore]

Come on people. 14 of you have read this post and no one has an opinion?

I had one person who owns a diesel suggest bully dog. Any other opinions?
Thanks!

[TrailLeadr]

Hi. You probably shouldn't lend much to the idea of how many people viewed the posts. As you know guests cannot post, but their views show on the ticker.

$1000.00 spent wisely can definitely help you hit your goal, but don't expect too much, or you'll be disappointed.
The first thing I would keep in mind in regard to chips is that your rig is OBDI, which really keeps your option list short there. The plus side, is that those chips typically cost less than the "hypertech programmer" for instance. The down side, is that you can't really expect too much from it, as the ODBI system can't offer much in customization so power gains, and mpgs will be slight. OBDII didn't come out until 1996, and many of the programmers you suggested only work on OBDII, however those companies do make alternatives for OBDI.

There are a couple reputable guys on the web that I know of who do custom ECM programing, if you explain that you are looking for more hp while preserving or increasing mpg, they should be able to tell you what you can expect. This guy is pretty good.

It would be helpful to know where you stand with this 95 burb.
What engine is in it? How many miles? If you have the 454, then you'll likely spend more than $1000.00 and you won't see much improvement (IMO) It's just not a fuel sipping engine no matter how you do it.

A rear end gear change will help boost your mpg, but may cost you some oomph. You'll still have the same hp, but you won't feel it as much. So if you currently have a 4.10 rear, you could pickup a 3.73 or 3.42 rear. Check out Randy's Ring and pinion. He may not have the best prices but his site will help you figure out what options will work with your setup.

tuneups, and maintenance, are always great ways to pickup some lost hp, and mpg.

You can lose some of the parasitic devices on your engine. For instance you can get underdriven pullies, or replace your existing water pump, with an electric pump, or electric drive.

Roller rockers are an extremely easy way to free up some hp.

A cam that's more suited to your needs will also wake up a sleepy factory engine, but depending on the mileage, a cam swap could turn into a pulled, and rebuilt engine. Too high mileage, and you might find the cam bearings may need to be replaced. In which case you need to pull the engine.

Since you didn't specify what engine you have, the links above are just suggestions, I wasn't able to pull up "accurate for your vehicle parts"

Hope this helps

[Chev2tehCore]

Thanks for your reply. I should have metioned the engine, which is a 5.7L. It is a K1500 with a 3.73 axle ratio.

What is OBDI?

I understand that making this motor put out the kind of power that a 2001 5.3L puts out is not possible and that doing it while increasing the mileage is not realistic. I should have written "Narrow the Gap" instead of "Close the Gap".

I am just trying to get what I can from it without doing an engine replacement. I ordered a Superchip, a cold air intake, and an Accel Performance Module. I have spent about $400.00 so far and I am not sure there is anything else I can do as it does have a lot of miles on it. I also like that I will be able to plug my laptop in to read trouble codes and whatnot.

I think I will bank the other $600.00 for the time when I am either replacing the engine or buying a 2001 or newer Suburban. The 2001 that I bought for my wife has many improvements over the 1995 (like braking, handling, power, and fuel economy). In the next 2-3 years at the most I will be upgrading. I don't like car payments so I have to save the cash to buy one outright.

[TrailLeadr]

What is OBDI?

OBDI;OBDII

OBDI is the first stage in a standardized diagnostics system, that auto makers adopted. In 1996 automakers went to OBDII which offered more control over drivetrain control, and operations.

[phoebeisis]

Chevy to the core, I read it,and was tempted to post, but I really couldn't add anything you would want to hear.

OBD I II I think it means On Board Diagnostics -it was finally forced on the automakers,so that "readers' could be standardized.Before this every manufacturer used some different type plug to read and download repair info-fuel use info-RPM-DISTANCE-WATER TEMP-VOLTAGE ETC. This allowed them to force you to use a factory authorized dealership(read $$$) to get repairs.
With the OBD I II anyone with a $69 code reader can begin to diagnose problems.It is a HUGE step forward for DIR guys. The plugs are usually under the dash on the driver's side.It has about 12-18 tiny male prongs(never actually counted them). Plug them in and you can GET INSTANTANEOUS mpg-gallons per hour, voltage,water temp,RPMS,TIMING ADVANCE,SPEED,YOU NAME IT.
I'm old-56-and in the past used lots of bolt ons.On older vehicles-60's-early 70's-bolt ons-carbs,CAI,HEADERS etc would actually work because the factories really didn't spend as much time getting peak power,and the stock items(cast iron manifolds-exhaust and intake) were sooo heavy that you would be faster even if you didn't make any more power. Now-since the late 80's-90s with the EFI,and even the TBIwhich were/are computer controlled-the factory stuff is very good.
You might-might-get a tiny bit more peak power with a CAI-but the factories aren't stupid-they know where the coolest air is,and they know that it isn't always where you think it is-you have to actually measure to find it-they have-aftermarket companies haven't done it as extensively.My guess-is that they usually don't make you faster even if you read a bit more peak power on a dyno. The exhaust systems-might be a bit-tiny bit-of honest power and weight loss there, if you don't mind a lot more noise.
I just haven't ever been convinced-with numbers-that the cheap,simple bolt ons work.
Now there is one bolt on that does-N20-and it is in your price range.Unfortunately it works so well, you have to be careful that it doesn't do in your motor,trans,driveshaft etc.

Your best bet is to save up,and get a factory warrantied GM crate motor that is emission compliant!! For about $2500 to $3000 you can get a drop in GM motor with 290-300 or so HP.I'm guessing your motor was rated about 235 hp or so.
Now getting a 2000 or later 5.3 is an even better move-you can get a drop in GM performance one with about 335 hp(stock about 285 I think) that will run on 87 octane-for maybe $4000.If you buy a high mile 5.3 you might want to get a new motor anyway. This is a real bargain for a new(not rebuilt-new-and not so BS aftermarket motor that is too much motor for components).
The GM motors are bolt in-same ECM etc.
Inexpensive parts is a huge GM plus.I have had loads of Japanese cas,trucks.Good vehicles, but parts are expensive,and aftermarket parts don't work.If one of them trashes a motor out of warranty-forget about it-not worth rebuilding-waaaay to expensive to buy a factory motor(cost maybe $12000 for a Titan, or Tundra OEM motor).
Luck,
Charlie

[unplugged]

Does your burb have dual exhaust? If not, an upgrade to a dual cat system would offer a noticeable boost. Of course it depends on local emission regs.

[Chev2tehCore]

Does your burb have dual exhaust? If not, an upgrade to a dual cat system would offer a noticeable boost. Of course it depends on local emission regs.

I have a single what looks like about 3 inch pipe with a Magnaflow Cat and Muffler. I noticed a small difference but nothing major. If I use two cats and two mufflers how much of a difference would that make?

[Chev2tehCore]

You might-might-get a tiny bit more peak power with a CAI-but the factories aren't stupid-they know where the coolest air is,and they know that it isn't always where you think it is-you have to actually measure to find it-they have-aftermarket companies haven't done it as extensively.My guess-is that they usually don't make you faster even if you read a bit more peak power on a dyno. The exhaust systems-might be a bit-tiny bit-of honest power and weight loss there, if you don't mind a lot more noise.
I just haven't ever been convinced-with numbers-that the cheap,simple bolt ons work.

Thanks for your detailed reply Charlie,
I wasn't able to find anything from any maker of chips or performance modules saying "X more horsepower". I might have wasted my money on those but I wanted to try it anyway. The K&N CAI tells me I will get "10 more horsepower at 4307 RPM" or something close to that. If I can gain 20-30 HP with roughly the same mileage for 400 bucks I won't feel like I got ripped off. Since I don't have a dyno I will only have my own perceptions to go by.
It will always pale to the 2001 I am sure. I still like it though. Now all it has to do is get me to work and rescue my wife and kids if they ever get stranded. In a couple of years I will get a newer one.

Thanks to everyone for your input.

[MotorheadRQ]

You might be a little too far down the road, but I have heard the smartest investment on the 350 TBI motor is the 96 and later vortec heads. I think the sell for less than $700 brand new. You will need a new special intake as well, but you should be done for less than $1k.

Robert