[joshridge]

i had a cam spec'd out for me and i told them my goals for the car, like im gonna be n/a for a pretty good while and it was my dd and he spec'd 2 n/a dd cams at-
-210/218 .55lift 112lsa
-218/224 and im guessing at the same lift and lobe seperation, since he didnt specify. he said the second one would prolly be a little rough on a daily driver though, and i also want to be able to hear the cam, ya know what i mean? and if the second cam would just effect my gas mileage i wouldnt really care but if it was actually rough on my motor, then i would care. lol would there be much difference in sound and power between the two? and much difference on the wear on the motor?

[Codeman]

good question, I am curious also, since those are both of the specs for cams that i am looking at. Mine is also a dd but i dont care about mpgs. so same question

[joshridge]

...who are you getting your cam from? same guy as me?

[Codeman]

idk yet. I have been looking at a ton of different sites, and those two specs were what i was looking at.

[joshridge]

hmm must be good sizes then. lol

[joshridge]

we need answers and we need em now!

[slvr2000stang]

what year is your car and what are your current mods and your near future mod plans?

[joshridge]

umm i have a 2002 and i plan on getting 3.73 gears, udp, dual exhaust setup and like a sct xcal III tuner in the near future, and all i have is a cai, but at the same time i get the cam im getting the whole h/c/i package.

[Codeman]

do you ever plan on doing nitrous, turbo, or supercharger? I have heard that nitrous, supercharger, and regular n/a cams, are all similar specs, and turbo cams, are different.

[joshridge]

eventually but im just looking for n/a power right now. id more than likely go supercharger though just because theyre easier to find.

[stangcharger]

my first cam in the 3.8L n/a application was a 208/212 and can't remember the lift or LSA. So that first cam is a pretty good one for a 3.8L N/A DD. I think we are finding out more and more our near stock motors may favor a smaller duration cam with a higher lift.

[acmillr]

Originally Posted by stangcharger I think we are finding out more and more our near stock motors may favor a smaller duration cam with a higher lift.

That's an accurate statement. Higher lift values will increase air flow to some degree without suffering the negative side effects of intake/exhaust overlap resulting from extended duration and tighter lobe seperations. Although an NA motor will make more peak power with extended duration camshafts (to a certain point), you really have to look at rasing the base compression of a given motor to obtain the best results out of a large (long duration) camshaft. The reason for this is that peak TQ will be moved higher in the RPM band as duration is increased and that is not always best for low RPM daily driving. By raising compression, extending camshaft duration, and/or decreasing lobe seperation, you can get higher peak numbers further into the RPM band- which is great for racing applications. There is a ton more information that goes into all camshaft profiling, but maybe that helps you understand some of what is going on.

Having said that, both the cams in the OP seem to be plenty streetable to me depending on what transmission and rear gear is being employed. In the end, you just have to decide what you are willing to giveup in driveability to gain power. This is not a science and usually people go through several profiles before they decide what is really the best split of convenience and power.

[NUTCASE]

Originally Posted by Codeman do you ever plan on doing nitrous, turbo, or supercharger? I have heard that nitrous, supercharger, and regular n/a cams, are all similar specs, and turbo cams, are different.

No.





















I dunno exectly what goes into making a turbo cam but I am pretty surethe difference is in the LSA and degree of the exaust lobe for quicker spooling

SC cams will tend to have more intake duration so they can take in more of that pressurized air.

nitrouse cams will have alot of exaust duration and typically a wider LSA. the wider LSA helping to keep the combustion pressure generated by the NO2 in thier, and the bigger exaust duration to help get all that hot exaust out ASAP.

N/A cams usually tend to be just a bigger version of a stock cam.


THAT BEING SAID, it is ok to run a N/A cam on a SC, turbo, or NO2 motor as long as the N/A cam is not to extreme. just don't expect the optimal gains you would get with the correct cam.

typically NO2 cams on a N/A motor will give you a badass exaust sound and are ok to use, however once again you will not get the power gains you would with the correct cam.

DO NOT try to use a SC or turbo cam on a N/A motor. you will spend all that money, do all that work, and even if by chance you de get a few extra hp the motor will run like crap.

[acmillr]

Originally Posted by NUTCASE No. I dunno exectly what goes into making a turbo cam but I am pretty surethe difference is in the LSA and degree of the exaust lobe for quicker spooling SC cams will tend to have more intake duration so they can take in more of that pressurized air. nitrouse cams will have alot of exaust duration and typically a wider LSA. the wider LSA helping to keep the combustion pressure generated by the NO2 in thier, and the bigger exaust duration to help get all that hot exaust out ASAP. N/A cams usually tend to be just a bigger version of a stock cam. THAT BEING SAID, it is ok to run a N/A cam on a SC, turbo, or NO2 motor as long as the N/A cam is not to extreme. just don't expect the optimal gains you would get with the correct cam. typically NO2 cams on a N/A motor will give you a badass exaust sound and are ok to use, however once again you will not get the power gains you would with the correct cam. DO NOT try to use a SC or turbo cam on a N/A motor. you will spend all that money, do all that work, and even if by chance you de get a few extra hp the motor will run like crap.

This post has some limited accurate information, but is almost laughable in general.

[NUTCASE]

I was generalizing and not giving exact numbers. to sit here and try to do that with all the different cams out there would be rediculouse.

and the bottom part of that is based off of motors I have actually worked on and my experiences of taking a N'A cam and then boosting it. and seeing what happens when people take non boosted motors and put boost cams in them and ect.


if it is so laughable, state something that proves me wrong.

[acmillr]

Originally Posted by NUTCASE N/A cams usually tend to be just a bigger version of a stock cam. Really? The hilariousness of this is obvious even to amatuer engine builders. THAT BEING SAID, it is ok to run a N/A cam on a SC, turbo, or NO2 motor as long as the N/A cam is not to extreme. Not OK, you can very possibly burn a turbo engine up with intake/exhaust overlap. The incoming fuel can detonate when presurized exhaust gas is fed back into the cylinder during the brief overlap period. typically NO2 cams on a N/A motor will give you a badass exaust sound and are ok to use, however once again you will not get the power gains you would with the correct cam. Seriously? So, a cam with a loose lobe seperation is going to make your NA sound "badass"?.

.

[NUTCASE]

[N/A cams usually tend to be just a bigger version of a stock cam. Really? The hilariousness of this is obvious even to amatuer engine builders. like I said I was generalizing, especially with the differences there are when comparing NO2, SC, and turbo cams. yes they mess with the lift, LSA, and duration, but usually not like on a NO2 cam where not just the LSA but the degree that the peak lobe lift takes place is altered THAT BEING SAID, it is ok to run a N/A cam on a SC, turbo, or NO2 motor as long as the N/A cam is not to extreme. Not OK, you can very possibly burn a turbo engine up with intake/exhaust overlap. The incoming fuel can detonate when presurized exhaust gas is fed back into the cylinder during the brief overlap period. there have been many biulds where guys had a N/A setup with a N/A cam and then put a turbo or SC on thier, and thier engines did not blow typically NO2 cams on a N/A motor will give you a badass exaust sound and are ok to use, however once again you will not get the power gains you would with the correct cam. Seriously? So, a cam with a loose lobe seperation is going to make your NA sound "badass"?. have you ever looked up the specs on a NO2 cam? have you ever run one?

.....

[ZoomZoomMFer]

you my friend are arguing with the king of cam building. I would generally think that whatever he has to say about cams (mod motors in general) is correct. just my .02

[Codeman]

I did not know, but that is just what i heard people say that most na cams will work for nitrous or sc. I know obviously now that you will not get the most power, but they will work

[acmillr]

Originally Posted by NUTCASE have you ever looked up the specs on a NO2 cam? have you ever run one?.....

Question of the decade. You should stick to the visual mods section.