So I'm going to be turning 16 pretty soon and am going to be getting (for sure) a '96 Monte Carlo Z34. It's got the 3.4L V6 - obvoiusly. I've been lookin' around on the internet for some easy, effective, and relatively inexpensive things to get some more HP out of it right away. I've been seeing things like 10-15 HP gains from these chips on eBay for like 25 bucks and I don't know if I can really trust those, can I? So any suggestions on what to buy and what works would be great because I can't wait to get out there and drive this car! I'm not some bozo ricer looking to slam it and put chromes and add a fart can, either. I'm an avid car enthusiast and have knowledge of what everything is and how it works - mostly. Thanks! [8D]

 

well buddy your in luck! I am one of the few on this board with a 96Z. I love it! I have tons of info about mods on my cardomain site. http://www.cardomain.com/ride/473859

first off, those ebay chips are junk. they are nothing but a resistor for like $.10 in a $.25 box. the idea behind them is to trick the computer into thinking the incoming air is cooler then it actually is. if coldenough, it will throw more fuel to warm up the car. the problem is these cars arent stupid. over a day or two the car's other sensors that tell the computer that this sensor is now malfuncioning.... and then the computer stops using it! now your car is running even worse!

its expensive, but they make a programer that lets your reprogram your computer. its about $400 i have one and love it. i havent used it for increasing power, but is a great diagnostic tool, and if your planing on doing multipule mods, it is a must. i have used it to recalibrate for diff tires, thermostat, injectors, top speed gov..... i will be retuning the car in a month or two when i have $$$ for dyno runs. its a great tool

but to start, i would say a Cold Air Intake (Fender well intake) or Exhaust. my www is pretty extensive now and will give you a lot of info for that year car... if you have further questions Email me. these are great cars... not the easyest to work on, but very satifying!

 

Thanks man...I was talkin' to a friend about those eBay chips and he said the same thing you did (basically). I'm definitely not looking to spend 400 dollars just yet. Right now I don't have a job (will get one when I turn 16, though) and then maybe I'll go with some more serious mods but I will only have this car for two years and then I will be getting a new (to me) car of my choice when I graduate high school. So yeah, I was thinking maybe a CAI, perhaps an exhaust (though the stock note is really addicting at 3,000+ RPMs) and maybe some performance plugs/wires or something. I don't know if I'd go as far as getting new wheels and tires since that would be expensive for me.

I'll be turning 16 officially on August 18th so I still have a while yet (and trust me, I'm counting the days!), but I just wanna get some solid ideas down on paper for what I could do right away. So maybe a couple simple mods that I could do to improve both performance and fuel economy would be awesome, and I'll keep in mind that air intake and I'm definitely looking at the things on your list at cardomain. Nice ride!

Thanks for the tips and I'll keep you up to date on it...especially when I finally get it.