3.5 vs. 3.9

BoB/335 · 09-25-2007, 06:43 PM

Looking for some info on pros and cons of these engines and an opinion on which to get.

Richard · 09-27-2007, 12:06 AM

I always go for the engines with the bigger displacement, just my choice. Although you get extra horses, your gas mileage will suffer just a bit.

DV06LTZ · 12-04-2007, 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richard

I always go for the engines with the bigger displacement, just my choice. Although you get extra horses, your gas mileage will suffer just a bit.

True. I have a a 3.9 and it is a little gas sucker but has plenty of punch!
Added a Tornado and seems to help a little (forcing more air into the throttle body)...K&N air filter is next.

77Impala · 12-04-2007, 05:14 PM

To DV06LTZ I personaly am NOT a fan of K&N Filters. I had one on my 77 Impala and after about 20,000 miles I took it out and found holes about the size of a ballpoint pen tip. Those holes let dirt through the filter and into the engine. I have personaly heard of 2 other people with the same filter problem. For now I went back to the paper filter. I am looking at a different type of filter that catches more dirt yet lets the engine breathe easier also. Amsoil has a new EA Airflter that is supposed to out perform the Fram (paper filters) and K&N (wet gaus) filters.

http://www.amsoil.com/

Check out the section titled: The Absolute Facts About Air Filtration.

DV06LTZ · 12-05-2007, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cessnaimpala

To DV06LTZ I personaly am NOT a fan of K&N Filters. I had one on my 77 Impala and after about 20,000 miles I took it out and found holes about the size of a ballpoint pen tip. Those holes let dirt through the filter and into the engine. I have personaly heard of 2 other people with the same filter problem. For now I went back to the paper filter. I am looking at a different type of filter that catches more dirt yet lets the engine breathe easier also. Amsoil has a new EA Airflter that is supposed to out perform the Fram (paper filters) and K&N (wet gaus) filters.

http://www.amsoil.com/

Check out the section titled: The Absolute Facts About Air Filtration.

Thanks for the Heads up!

I will check out the site. Good info to know!!

Im50fast · 05-02-2008, 08:27 PM

My car has the 3.5 and it is plenty good. It does not leave you wanting more at all. My gas mileage is always around 24-26mpg over the course of a tank; and extremely easy to average over 30mpg on the highway.
But I must be honest. I want more. I wasnt allowed options when I got my car, just color of interior and exterior. I want a stroker kit or something...

White93ltz · 05-02-2008, 08:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DV06LTZ

True. I have a a 3.9 and it is a little gas sucker but has plenty of punch!
Added a Tornado and seems to help a little (forcing more air into the throttle body)...K&N air filter is next.

Just so you know, that Tornado is probably costing you horsepower.

At the very least, it is NOT gaining you anything.

Tornado, Electric SuperCharger, Oil Additives, Hotchip/Jetchip/stupid ebay chips, etc....

They are all sham products with no actual benefits.

occifer · 05-22-2008, 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by White93ltz

Just so you know, that Tornado is probably costing you horsepower.

At the very least, it is NOT gaining you anything.

Tornado, Electric SuperCharger, Oil Additives, Hotchip/Jetchip/stupid ebay chips, etc....

They are all sham products with no actual benefits.

My thoughts exactly!

As for the chips, you're wrong there. The cheaper chips (ebay) do give you extra horsepower, however I wouldn't exactly trust them as you don't know how accurate the alterations are. Messing with the cars A/F ratio can cause serious damage (cough....detonation....cough) if not tuned properly.

This is why Jet performance chips are the best bet for our cars. It's no different than any other piggyback chips used on other performance cars. Sure I'd prefere a handheld tuner, so I can tune to my own parameters. But when there's nothing else on the market, beggars can't be choosers!

The Jet performance chips are probably more of a "SAFE" tune as they don't exactly tune your car to it's maximum potential. It's more of a canned tune, for widespread use. It will give you some power, but not as much as you could get if you could dyno tune it. Lack of aftermarket support for these cars will make that extremely hard though!

Edit: BTW, maybe oil additives don't do anything, but putting all Royal Purple oil/tranny/gear oil in your car had been dyno proven on video to gain up to 15hp. It was on Horsepower channel, and can be found all over the internet. I can vouch for it as I've definitely gained consistant gains on the track with my Stang after switching to all RP.

04DetroitLS · 05-23-2008, 08:09 AM

just grab a PCM from one of the following
www.intense-racing.com
www.zzperformance.com
www.getoverkilled.ca

the "Ebay" chips are worthless IMO,
x2 on the tornado etc..

I run a K&N right now, (never had any issues w/ it ), but RActive & Amsoil are also good alternatives.

Dont pay $200+ for a K&N intake system, you can make one cheaper, and just as effective by hitting homedepot ;)

09-25-2007, 06:43 PM	#1 (permalink)
BoB/335 Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 4	3.5 vs. 3.9 Looking for some info on pros and cons of these engines and an opinion on which to get.

05-02-2008, 08:27 PM	#6 (permalink)
Im50fast Junior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Lakeland Florida Posts: 6 View My Garage	My car has the 3.5 and it is plenty good. It does not leave you wanting more at all. My gas mileage is always around 24-26mpg over the course of a tank; and extremely easy to average over 30mpg on the highway. But I must be honest. I want more. I wasnt allowed options when I got my car, just color of interior and exterior. I want a stroker kit or something... __________________ =JDB= 2006 Impala LT 3.5 liter

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09-27-2007, 12:06 AM	#2 (permalink)
Richard Administrator Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 499 View My Garage	I always go for the engines with the bigger displacement, just my choice. Although you get extra horses, your gas mileage will suffer just a bit.

12-04-2007, 05:14 PM	#4 (permalink)
77Impala Super Moderator Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Denison, TX Posts: 1,029 View My Garage	To DV06LTZ I personaly am NOT a fan of K&N Filters. I had one on my 77 Impala and after about 20,000 miles I took it out and found holes about the size of a ballpoint pen tip. Those holes let dirt through the filter and into the engine. I have personaly heard of 2 other people with the same filter problem. For now I went back to the paper filter. I am looking at a different type of filter that catches more dirt yet lets the engine breathe easier also. Amsoil has a new EA Airflter that is supposed to out perform the Fram (paper filters) and K&N (wet gaus) filters. http://www.amsoil.com/ Check out the section titled: The Absolute Facts About Air Filtration.

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