LT4 LT4 Hot Cam Kit ('90 L98)....Opinions? Quality?

[bradvette]

These kits can be had for a cheap price, $479. Who has this kit on a later L98 (88-91), how do you feel about the quality of the Crane Gold 1.6RR's, the LT4 springs, performance feel & characteristics on an L98, etc. Intake & exhaust mods would be a given (will do those)

For street use only, is this too much cam, or not enough on the L98? It kicks in later in the RPM range, installing it with 4 degrees might cure the low end "loss", are there any cons to doing this?

 

[Mad-Mic]

not sure about the LT4 hotcam cause i don't know the specs BUT you can overcome the low end loss by bumping up your timing some. i got mine to 12* advanced and i have absolutely no low end loss now! she used to bog off the line if i didn't launch perfectly but now she launches hard and just pulls upto 5000 rpm easily on a stock TPI setup.

list the specs of the LT4 cam please

 

[vettered91]

As far as I know the hot cam is a kit for the LT1 engine and it comes with springs and 1.6 roller rockers (all made from crane for GM)

I'm not sure if you can use it in the L98 with out too much mods.
If Vader is around he can tell us much more about it.

The LT4 Hot Cam Kit is been in sight for my next LT1 mod in the past 4 months now!

 

[miken]

Hot Cam Specs:
Intake = 218
Exhaust = 228
Lobe seperation = 112

 

[Mad-Mic]

whats the lift?

i heard this cam is not that much better than stock. i would do some research and find out what others are using and what kind of numbers they are getting. others say it's an awesome setup. but looking at your specs you listed it's not really all that "Hot"

BTW L98 and LT1 cams/lifters/rockers are interchangable.

 

[vettered91]

I just thought it could need some mods because the one in the L98 moves the regular up rear distributor and the LT1 moves the optispark with a pin at the front of the engine.

 

[Scooter76]

The lift on the "hot cam" is .525 with 1.6 rockers. It comes with the dowel pin set for Lt1 & LT4 engines with the pin driven opti spark. You need to shorten it to specs for a Gen1 smallblock. I believe it is about .3 inches. Just measure the one on your origional cam. It is supposed to be a very good street cam. If you have an auto you may need a bit higher stall converter, probobly around 2-2500. The only bad thing is on a L98 it may be alittle too much because the stock Tuned port supposedly does'nt flow well above 5000 or so rpm. The hot cam makes power to about 62-6300. One of the best cams for a L98 might be the TPIS ZZ9.
212/226 .483/.520 (1.5 rockers) 112 lsa. They are expensive though. The LT4 springs are a little marginal, they get the job done but there are better ones to use. The Gold race rockers are excellent good quality here.

 

[rrubel]

I'm going with the Accel/Lingenfelter 74219 - 219/219, .525/.525 lift w/1.5's or .560/.560 w/1.6's, 112 LSA. Supposed to have a good idle and power band between 2500-5500 RPM, but still reasonable to about 6k. Needs intake work, though - TPI doesn't cut it.

This is an L-98 cam (roller lifter) so no mods are necessary for an 87 or later Vette.

[RICHR]

 

[Mad-Mic]

i'm going with the TPiS ZZ409 cam. here is the stats which is similar to Rich's LPE 219 cam.

ZZ-409 Hyd Roller:
Adv. duration 287/287, duration @.050 226/226, Lift .520/.520. 112 LSA

 

[bradvette]

Thanks for the replies guys. I've asked this same question over at corvetteforum.com, and am probably driving everyone nuts. My problem is I keep using cost as king, and the LT4 cam kit is very attractive in terms of price. I'm trying to juggle the pros & cons of this kit versus buying separate components, for example Comp ProMagnum 1.6rr's + assocaited hardware + a more optimized cam for the L98 (like ZZ9, as was mentioned).

I have a modified '90 stock intake that was fully ported in the plenum (the base wasn't worked all that much though) PLUS it has AS&M LTR's. To compliment this, I'll be adding LT headers & catless front Y pipe + hi-flow main cat, and I already have a nice Magnaflow catback installed.

So.....I'm trying to find the balance between cost - the pros & cons of going with the LT4 cam kit vs. buying a slight more optimized cam/RR's setup (which would cost about twice as much).

Yes, if I went with this Hotcam kit, I would be sure to have the mechanic install the cam 4 degrees advanced, which will automatically bump up timing from 6 to 10 degrees BTDC. I'll get a custom burned chip in addition.

Another thing I need to clarify is that this is for street use only (my daily driver).....so counting tenths of a second here or there isn't important, but I do want to get what I can (or nearly anyway) out of whatever makes the most sense. No need for ultra-high rocker strength, springs, etc.....this kit SHOULD be great as it is.

Please keep your thoughts and experiences coming! Its much appreciated

 

[rrubel]

Let me point out that if you DON'T get the right springs, you're wasting your money. The more aggressive cam will rev higher, giving more power, and without the springs you'll get either valve float or spring bind (if the lift is too much for your springs at ANY speed) - both of which are bad. Good springs can be had cheap from a racing supply shop. For that matter, so can a cam. I think we (all of us Vette people) have been spending too much money buying by name. I've been looking through racing supply catalogs and finding near-identical parts to what I bought from Lingenfelter (indirectly) for a fraction of the cost. Double-wound springs - $89/set instead of $159. Titanium seats - $129/set instead of $200. Any of a large number of cams for under $100. Heads for $800/PAIR that flow almost as well as Trick Flows right out of the box.

My catalog is at work right now, but visit Competition Products (I keep pushing them because I'm familiar with them) at www.competitionproducts.com and browse their online store.

There's also eBay, where I got a set of Crane-made GM Performance 1.6 RR's for $150...

[RICHR]

 

[Ethan]

LT4 HOT ON l98

I have this setup on 91 Vette with 2400 B&M stall this thing pulls like a SOB it will pull strong over 6000 rpm. I have big mouth intake Arizona Speed & Marine Big tube runners with ported plenum and 52 mm throttle body. Bought from Scoggins Dickey Chevrolet just ask them to set pin height they will set up for you at no extra charge. All clearances work out if you use the kit. I think a cheap power adder for a near stock engine.

 

[bradvette]

Thanks for the last round of posts. Excellent points. I didn't know about the dowel pin, that it had to be reduced for the L98 application. That makes sense. I'll be sure to have that done at no charge, so that my mechanic won't spend the time to do it.

I'll have a very similar setup as you Ethan, the only difference being that mine's a 6 speed ZF w/3.33 factory gears. This should be enough.

I've been hearing more and more from some L98 guys who put this whole kit in, and how the performance was over the top. I'm really looking forward to this.

The LT4 springs that come with it should be ok, right? As is the Crane 1.6 full RR's, which are self-aligning.

Thanks to the previous person who posted the link to the race catalog. I'll look into that as well.....if i can get a comparable cam, springs, shims, locks, and roller rockers (like CC ProMagnums) at a cost fairly close to $479 like I can get for the HotCam kit, then I'll certainly do that, but if not I sure do like the price/value/performance this kit gives.

If anyone else has personal experience with this kit in an L98, please chime in!

 

[Ethan]

Lt4 Hot

My uncle is s mechanic he helped me change the springs and put new umbrela valve seals in we checked for coil bind and had plenty of clearance with the kit. The only thing I did not mention was I had to order custom length push rods as with the extra lift and 1.6 rockers the roller tip was hitting on the edge of the valve stem insted of dead center. This is mentioned as a posibility in the kit. I also changed the screw in studs to ARP while I had it apart . I did run into clearance problems with the adjusting nuts with the kit they were hitting in the top of the rockers so had to buy new adjusting nuts but this could have been due to the ARP studs also. The new push rods were like $150 but the are thick wall and hardened . If you decide to do this ask anyone that has changed their cam with motor in the car it is a B---- ! It would be easier to pull the engine in my opinion. If you need part # for pushrods give me a shout I think I still have it. This cam is kinda lopey for a auto car even with the 2400 stall I have so should be great with a standard.

 

[bradvette]

Ethan, those extra parts you had to get is the first I've heard. Custom pushrods? As far as clearance under the valve covers, the only thing I've hears was the need to remove the oil drip tabs, and maybe girnd down the bolt towers a bit. What happened with your application that made it different from others?

As for the umbrella seals, thats an excellent idea and will be following suit. Mine have 65k miles on them, so its not a bad idea to do this.

 

[rrubel]

Regarding the seals, go back to Competition Products and look at what they've got available. They have four levels of seals, ranging from GM's stock ones to racing ones. I picked something in the middle that was hardly more than GM's but was much better. Hopefully won't ever have to change them again.
[RICHR]