Darin Morgan LS7 Heads: Data/Results Inside!

[briancb1]

BACKGROUND:

I recently purchased my dream car - a C6 ZO6 Corvette. I chose this particular one as it had a variety of upgrades including a "Max Effort" 454ci street motor.
After purchasing the car and getting it on my local dyno I was slightly let down with its power, 566RWHP / 515RWTQ (SAE corrected). I was unsure where to start as it already had fully ported LS7 heads, a Mike Jones cam, long tube headers and exhaust... Whats left in this thing?

PLAN OF ACTION:

After seeing first hand some of his excellent work and results, I decided to consult Darin Morgan @ Reher Morrison Racing Engines. I had my heads pulled and purchased a FAST 102mm intake manifold and headed to Arlington to see what I could do. Even though my heads had been professionally ported by another company already, Darin had confidence he could further port my heads and FAST 102 manifold and allow me to get the power/performance that I wanted.

SUMMARY:

Darin delivered much more than I expected and I gained power everywhere! See pictures below

DATA/RESULTS:

Engine Before:
454" LS2 (Sleeved and Stroked)
11.5:1 Compression, uses 93 Octane Pump Gas
West Coast Racing Cylinder Heads (WCCH) Fully Ported LS7 Heads
Ported OE Throttle Body and Ported OE Intake Manifold
Halltech Air Filter Inlet
Mike Jones 253/259 Cam
American Racing 1.875" LT Headers w/ 3" X-Pipe

Engine Changes:
Darin Morgan Ported LS7 Heads (Pics Below)
Darin Morgan Ported FAST 102mm Intake
American Racing 2" LT Headers w/ 3" X-Pipe








NOTE:
1/3 = WCCH Porting
2/4 = Darin Morgan Porting


NOTE:
Blue = Before
Red = After DM Work

CONCLUSION:
I'm more than impressed with my results and would have been happier with less (but I'll take it). The car waaayyy too powerful for the street and this just pushed it over the top. The first two gears (up to 80mph) are useless with my street tires - but thats lots of fun.

Just wanted to share my results and say thanks to Darin for getting my engine where I wanted it to be.

-Brian

[Orr89rocz]

Nice power. It would have been nice to see the difference in just heads alone. That fast intake must have added alot of power by itself

[1989TransAm]

Nice power. It would have been nice to see the difference in just heads alone. That fast intake must have added alot of power by itself

That is what I was thinking while reading the post.

[coolchevy]

with those cubes and hp a stock LS7 intake becomes a bottle neck indeed. I would not be surprised to see gains in the neighborhood of 20-25hp just with the FAST by itself. If it got ported as welll and bigger TB maybe more like 30 to 35.

heads by head would have been interesting

[briancb1]

It would have been interesting to do just the heads. I've scene a few manifold only swap (from a ported factory to a FAST) and none have near the overall power band increase that I have obtained.


If the shop would work with me on the labor I could have them test it in pieces. Ill see what I can do.

[briancb1]

with those cubes and hp a stock LS7 intake becomes a bottle neck indeed. I would not be surprised to see gains in the neighborhood of 20-25hp just with the FAST by itself. If it got ported as welll and bigger TB maybe more like 30 to 35.

heads by head would have been interesting

The FAST was ported and matched and I have the matching 102mm TB.

[ramairws6]

I hate to burst your bubble buddy but that ported FAST gave you most if not all of those gains. Throw the stock LS7 intake back on if you want to be disappointed. Tell me how I know.....

[Carnut1]

Very cool, any info on port sizes, valve sizes and valve job? Thanks, Charlie

[makin chips]

Briancb1 doesn't post here anymore. Wonder why. Seems like he was just here a few months ago. But I guess he left in 2014. No posts after that and his account has been deactivated.

[makin chips]

I hate to burst your bubble buddy but that ported FAST gave you most if not all of those gains. Throw the stock LS7 intake back on if you want to be disappointed. Tell me how I know.....

How about you tell US how you know? A 454ci Ls2 with 11.5:1 compression picked up power and 150cfm and you think the hp increase came from the intake alone? Explain that.

You're saying it would've picked up all that power with a manifold only and no head work. I say bullshit.

[tt 383]

I hate to burst your bubble buddy but that ported FAST gave you most if not all of those gains. Throw the stock LS7 intake back on if you want to be disappointed. Tell me how I know.....

How about you tell US how you know? A 454ci Ls2 with 11.5:1 compression picked up power and 150cfm and you think the hp increase came from the intake alone? Explain that.

You're saying it would've picked up all that power with a manifold only and no head work. I say bullshit.

Got to agree here, the ls7 even ls3 intakes are pretty good and close to FAST up top in many instances especially when ported and equal TB is used. Most of the data I have seen suggest the FAST are better in mid-range mainly and will carry power better but aren't some magical 30hp gain at peak. The rectangle stuff just doesn't have the inherent restrictions the factory cathedral stuff did that would show peak gains.

[Orr89rocz]

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums/c6 ... sults.html

I have heard 10-20 with a fast depending on the combos. There are some dyno comparisons out there on vetteforums and ls1 tech

One in the link made 18 more whp

[GARY C]

Run on the modified 6.0L, the early truck intake produced 549 hp and 481 lb-ft of torque. There are a number of applications where the truck manifold just won’t fit, but judging by the results, there is a sacrifice to be paid for fitment.

Equipped with the LS1, the 6.0L produced the lowest power of the test, managing only 535 hp and 468 lb-ft of torque.

Things improved greatly with the LS6 intake, as the improved version of the original LS1 offered 557 hp and 483 lb-ft of torque, bettering not just the LS1 but the early truck as well (at least above 5700 rpm).

The late-model truck intake offered the best power curve of the bunch, offering both more power and torque than any of the other factory manifolds, with peaks of 563 hp and 597 lb-ft of torque. Naturally we saved the best for last, as the 102-mm FAST LSXR stepped up the power output to 591 hp and 505 lb-ft of torque. Now all you have to do is decide whether to go factory or spend a few extra bucks for the extra 42 hp offered by FAST.

A Few? I like how mag writers that get stuff for free also don't understand the meaning of words. https://www.powerperformancenews.com/te ... ls-intake/

[Zmechanic]

This thread is ooooold. But fine, I'll bite.

In my opinion, the fact the engine picked up everywhere from 2500 on likely means that combo liked the extra flow in both the heads and the intake. Just the intake may have helped, but likely not nearly as much as the combination of both.

Yeah, the fast intakes are pricey. For cathedral port stuff, the trailblazer SS manifolds are pretty darn good for the money, especially for someone wanting a nice broad power band.

[GARY C]

This thread is ooooold. But fine, I'll bite.

In my opinion, the fact the engine picked up everywhere from 2500 on likely means that combo liked the extra flow in both the heads and the intake. Just the intake may have helped, but likely not nearly as much as the combination of both.

Yeah, the fast intakes are pricey. For cathedral port stuff, the trailblazer SS manifolds are pretty darn good for the money, especially for someone wanting a nice broad power band.

Yes, my guess is the porter played a part as well.