FAQ: Series I Performance Mods?

I don't know of any 700 hp crate FWD 3800, unless you are looking at the RWD Turbo 3.8 of the late 80's. Even still, I don't know about 700 HP from any of those packages without it being a custom build.

If you want to build a Series II 3800 up right, ZZP, Intense, maybe PRJ, those people can build something for you. That said, a Series II swap is not such an easy thing in the first place.

Unfortunately the '95 SC is a Series 1 3800, and not many performance parts are available.

hmm.. i see, well thanks a lot

1998 Riv wrote:

IMHO, 300-350 HP in a street 3800 Riv is all you have any real use for.

so you mean the best time for a riv is around 6s for 100km? I wanna know if anyone has done it under 5s, coz u cant really beat anyone with that... even usual 2.8 BMW 5series do better... i was just looking for some info... i dont really have any plans in my head

Line up next to any 2.8L 5 Series BMW and you will probably beat them or at least tie. It's an old, heavy I-6 engine in a big, heavy car. Same as you. They aren't that fast. Don't assume you would lose. Quite a few BMW drivers have been surprised by Rivieras, trust me.

The biggest problem with obtaining a good 0-100 km/h in a FWD car is that weight transfer will always be working against you. When you hit the throttle, the car's mass shifts to the rear, lifting the front off the ground. Obviously when this happens, combining the fact our engines make a lot of torque, the car reaches its traction limits before an equally powered RWD or AWD car.

With that in mind, our cars have a fantastic 1st gear that lets us use our torque very well - IF we can keep traction at the wheels. Being able to shift into 2nd at close to 85 km/h definately has its advantage. Having an automatic transmission also is a plus for drag racing. Upgrading the tires helps, too. Most of all, it's about the driver's ability to launch the car. 700 HP ain't gonna help you if you can't hook up.

Getting to 100 km/h is nice, but it isn't everything. If you think you can't really beat anyone without having a sub 5 second 0-100 km/h, try doing some actual drag racing against "quick" cars. You'll be surprised to discover many cars with great 0-100 specs can't actually go that fast with your average driver on your average road. No, you won't destroy a Corvette or Ferrari, but you might hang next to a Mustang GT or 350Z with "only 300HP" worth of mods. A friend of mine raced his '90s Viper at the track with a best of 13.4 secs in the 1/4. My modded Riviera can do a 13.9 pretty consistently. Think about how much skill a driver must have to shift perfectly AND keep traction with 400-500 HP under the hood. Not that easy. Us on the other hand, once we overcome the traction issue, it's pretty easy to keep the throttle down and let the PCM do the shifting. This is just reality - automatic transmissions are great for drag racing unless you are against a manual with an extremely good driver (most people aren't... I'm not). This is why professional dragsters use automatics.

So what can you do? It's not really a good idea to just put more weight over the front end, or take weight out of the back. This will throw the car out of balance. And you can only make the front tires so wide. Best thing, imo, is to just accept the fact that our cars are going to get a mid-low 5 sec 0-100 at best, and then concentrate on what happens above 100 km/h. This means build your power up top - transfer torque from down low up into the higher RPMs. For us, that's between 4-6kRPM. Now you can start to use that extra power, ultra fast shifts, and our lowish drag coefficient to your advantage - when you're already moving. Why waste all that low-end torque doing a burn out searching for a 4 sec 0-100? Sorry, it isn't going to happen.

While it's rumored that 3800 cars don't have much to offer "up top", this can be easily changed. We already have lots of torque to launch with. Open up the valve lifts with a cam or rockers, add exhaust and intake parts, increase the boost, and add tuning. Now you have something that breaths power. Maybe it won't hit 100 km/h like a RWD sports car, but it will make up for that with mid-band and top-end power.

Say you build a 400 HP FWD Riviera (very possible) and decide to race an AWD Subaru WRX STi. These cars will just launch like mad out of the hole. They will beat you to 100 km/hr easily, but above that their heavy AWD drivetrain, manual shifting, turbo lag, and aerodynamics will all start to work against them. Once you've established traction, you may catch up and pass them by 150 km/h. There is nothing quite like the feeling of overcoming a car that launched better than you. Summary: use your car's strengths to your advantage.

i dont have too many power mods, certainly not close to 300-350whp and i can pull 0-60mph in under 6 seconds.

0-60mph in under 5 seconds(corvette territory) would not be too hard for a series 2 motor with some mid-high level mods.

0-100km/h is equivalent to 0-62mph.

if your riv takes 9 seconds to get to 60 then you may have some engine problems...

Mr.Riviera wrote:

i dont have too many power mods, certainly not close to 300-350whp and i can pull 0-60mph in under 6 seconds.

0-60mph in under 5 seconds(corvette territory) would not be too hard for a series 2 motor with some mid-high level mods.

0-100km/h is equivalent to 0-62mph.

if your riv takes 9 seconds to get to 60 then you may have some engine problems...

i believe 0-100kmh = 0-62mph

98riviera98 wrote:

Mr.Riviera wrote:

i dont have too many power mods, certainly not close to 300-350whp and i can pull 0-60mph in under 6 seconds.

0-60mph in under 5 seconds(corvette territory) would not be too hard for a series 2 motor with some mid-high level mods.

0-100km/h is equivalent to 0-62mph.

if your riv takes 9 seconds to get to 60 then you may have some engine problems...

i believe 0-100kmh = 0-62mph

were you just reiterating??

He was letting us know that the "=" sign means "equivalent".

with all the problems ive had...id be WAY excited if my engine lasted more than 100k. doesnt look promising. u should check out my thread of Scotty Riv Problem thread lol its LONG hhahaha

Aftermarket mod parts are built to last! Your engine can last longer with more modification. Scotty, you just haven't modded enough!

AA wrote:

Aftermarket mod parts are built to last! Your engine can last longer with more modification. Scotty, you just haven't modded enough!

Time to blindly drop pulley sizes! Trust the Buick gods...

i dont trust the Bugods that much! lol id blow it up!

i wasnt able to mod cuz of my warranty...once there is aftermarket mod..VOID...which im glad i never did...used it for the tranny 2 months ago. saved 2200

the mods are just a little out of my price range.
rockers
headers(only one brand)
p N p - dont have a second car to have the time...and i dont even understand it.
SC pulley drop is cost effective....but i cant scan for KR. so too scared.
Exhaust - all seem pretty expensive
i still need my SC coupler replaced and is soooo hard to do on a 95 and dont know anyone who could help me without payin a ton.
i dont understand chips so im scared to mess with those.

Hey 95's i dont think there is a post like this. and hoprefully Karma and Ibx can add to the list.

Intake Tubing 3.5"

http://intense-racing.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=IR&Product_Code=AIR-xx0&Category_Code=3800_Induction

Pulleys
http://www.zzperformance.com/grand_prix/products1.php?id=321&catid=111


Yella Terra 1.80:1 Series 1 3800 Roller Rocker Arms
http://intense-racing.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=IR&Product_Code=3800-YTRR-6659&Category_Code=HCV

Actron 9145 Super Scanner
http://www.actron.com/product_detail.php?pid=16150


Info On How To Install An Intercooler
http://pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=4034

I cannot move posts "up". They are in order of date/time posted. But I will delete the quoted line.

Hey guys Thank god I stumbled upon this website...
I just bought my first riv a couple months ago, its 1995 Series 1 motor. I have a couple friends with Grand prix's (GTP) which is just Series 2 motor.. They have an easier time finding performance parts for those cars and somehow i haven't had any luck. My basic goal is to beef it up a little bit, i don't want to go extreme but i'm looking to hit 250hp or more if it is possible I love the riv i have its 225 hp roughly i believe but it needs to go faster!! lol

The first thing i did was removed my air box I threw on a K&N cone filter which makes the supercharger wine like a bitch... which is awesome but other than that i haven't done anything. I have heard rumours about Series 1 supercharger pulley's being availible just not very common?

I am open to sugestions, lemme know what you have done with your 95 RIV !!

Welcome! There are a few things you can do to the Series 1, look in the Series 1 tech area first. I believe you can get 1.9 rockers and a smaller pulley for the SC, that will gain you quite a few hp... beyond that I'm not sure what people have come up with.

Your other option is to do a Series II swap, you would need the donor Riv's wiring harness and PCM to go along with it... It has been done before, but you'd better be comfortable with electrical before attempting that.

Thanks! I actually posted too soon... i looked around this forum a little more and found a lot of information here that answered a lot of my inquiries. I think i'm going to definitely get a smaller pulley and purchase a 180degree thermo-stat to start.

This is a great site by the way, very informative and nice people im 23 and i plan on having this car for a while so maybe you will see me post more often:)

thats great but as a newbie you have to buy everyone on this forum a new set of high performance summer tires for next year!...fyi

If only i was that rich lol. Next summer im planning some 18's and a nice set

Pat_Czuba wrote:

Thanks! I actually posted too soon... i looked around this forum a little more and found a lot of information here that answered a lot of my inquiries. I think i'm going to definitely get a smaller pulley and purchase a 180degree thermo-stat to start.

This is a great site by the way, very informative and nice people im 23 and i plan on having this car for a while so maybe you will see me post more often:)

Before you drop a pulley size it may be beneficial to look into opening up your exhaust a bit. Although there arent many performance exhaust parts for the Series I motors, you could try to get some less restricitve mufflers on it or delete the cat if your state doesn't check up on those sort of things. It wont do any good dropping a pulley size if youre not ready for it and just have more knock instead

Yeah i hear ya buddy, my mechanic friend was saying the same thing, 'porting the manifold' i think he said... allowing for more air flow right? I don't think i want to do that right away its a big job i will probably do it when i actually do a proper performance exhaust.

I'm also told to find an exploded view of the S.C is that possible?

i think L67 meant a high flow exhaust. but if u want to port your manifold and heads. thats not as big a deal as u might think. if u ever have the opportunity to replace your head gaskets, then that would be a good time. why do u need an exploded view of the sc?

Well porting the manifolds will most certainly help, especially if they're of the same design as the Series II motor. But since they dont necessarily offer plogs or downpipes for these cars, it should be easier to attack a more universal area like the mufflers and cat.

robotennis61 wrote:

i think L67 meant a high flow exhaust. but if u want to port your manifold and heads. thats not as big a deal as u might think. if u ever have the opportunity to replace your head gaskets, then that would be a good time. why do u need an exploded view of the sc?

He wants an exploded view so he can take it apart and/or rebuild it. I'm not exactly sure on his intention I rememmber 2 months ago when i bought the car i brought it to him and when he was checking everything over he noticed some play, like you could wobble the supercharger back and forth a tiny bit and he told me he didn't think it was safe if i'm going to drive the shit out of my car at high speeds (which i'm bound to do)...it may be something really easy to fix he's just not sure exactly so he wants to see the parts in an exploded view thats all

go to search and look up supercharger couplers. u can do this yourself,might as well. the riv will need maintenance sooner or later. best to get familiar with her.........