hey, i just recently bought a 2004 monte carlo SS supercharged i want to change the pulley to the 3.4" for ome more power but i've heard so many different things of what i should do before i change this. i've heard that i have to get a cat back exhaust (which i have no idea is) boost the fuel injectors, and a transmission cooler. can anyone please help me out here and clear all this up for me so i can have a sick fast car.

 

You may want to look into replacing the whole exhaust rather than just the catback. Get rid of the ubend and all the other restritions of the factory exhaust. I'd go completely catless, but thats just me. Tranny coolers are a cheap and easy install, I think I paid $60 for one for my 95 Maxima. Bigger injectors are always a good idea when you up the boost to keep that fuel flowing. A nice tune to finish it all out and you should have some considerable gains. GL on your quest for mo powah!!

 

ya i was looki ng at those coolers and i was surprised on how cheap they actualy are, i think it'll be only 75$ for my car to have one. but i was wondering what that whole cat back even is, im kinda new to this whole tuning stuff but im really starting to take a strong interest to it, and how much would i be looking at spending on an exhaust system? which way would you go if u were planning on oing this?

 

A catback is the part of your exhaust from the catalytic converter, back to the exhaust tip. If you think of it like a straw it would be like only widening it from the bendy part to the top. If you blow through it, it is only slightly easier. Now if you were to just toss that straw and pick up a McDonalds straw you could blow through it much easier. If you think of your motor as a simple airpump, you'll soon realize how getting air in and out as quick as possible makes more power. Depending on how much you have to spend, I'd look into headers and an entire new exhaust with a larger diameter. I'm speaking in general car terms hear, as I'm not too familiar with Monte specific designs and brands. You should look at what some of then vendors hear are offering, or find someone with an 04SS with the similar power to your goals and try to emulate that.

 

Don't even think about a 3.4" for awhile, you've got a lot of mods to do before you can even think of running one knock free. Your first step should be to find someone local with a scan tool (or buy your own). Scan your car for knock (KR) and see how much you have. You want 0 all the time, but minor blips under 1-2* are OK.

Second, the mods you need to look into: (search about them if you don't know what the abbreviations stand for)
-FWI/CAI
-180* tsat
-Autolite 104 copper plugs (will be too cold until you do the pulley)
-3" downpipe
-PLOG or PEMs (or headers in place of these and DP, but overkill for a 3.4")

that should get you close, but every car is different. I would probably also add some 1.9:1 rockers just to be sure (many cars need them to run knock free on a 3.4"), and unless you have it custom tuned, then it'll probably bea requirement.

Its the exhaust tubing starting from after your catalytic converter to the back of the car (starts about under your shifter). IMO, its not totally necessary. A 3" downpipe is much more helpful, as are a PLOG or PEMs, the stock catback isn't terribly restrictive. It would help, but for the money (you're looking at probably $500-1000), you could get more KR reduction with rockers or something else cheaper.

Whoever told you you need injectors with a 3.4 is wrong, you're not going to be anywhere near maxing out your injectors- I'd be suprised if you hit 90% duty cycle even. Don't bother until you get down to a 3.0/3.1" pulley.

Honestly, he's not upping the boost that much, and he'll still be well within the realm of stock injectors- we have quite a bit of headroom stock. All that would happen if he got new injectors would be thepcm would just pull pulse width (assuming the carhas the proper values entered into the pcm)to get it back to the same a/f ratio he has now. The only real benefit would be significantly lowering the duty cycle on the injectors- but there are many people running near static on stock injectors without any problems whatsoever. I just think this money could be better spent elsewhere.

Don't waste your time with this either- its more money spent that doesn't help you go faster (it'll actually slow you down from more weight). Your stock transmission is fine for minor bolt ons. Unless you live in an extremely hilly area or plan to tow, then forget it. Its more chance for leaks, and isn't really necessary.

What is your 1/4 mile ET goal (or mph)? That would help us a lot to tell you exactly what you'll need.

The reason I mention it is if you're looking at running 12s or something- then instead of rockers and ported manifolds, you should be going for a cam and headers. The setup above with a 3.4" pulley should be good for a low 14 second 1/4 mile, high 13s with good tires on a good track and a good driver.