OnPoint

I got my Z back a couple weeks ago from Katech. I thought I would give folks an Average Joe's reaction after finally being able to spend some real time in it (been raining a bit, and had to travel on business some in last couple weeks).

This Average Joe is 40 years old, married, kids etc. Have run the Z in the quarter and the Texas Mile (bone stock). Not an experienced track driver, and my driving skills are better than some, and less than many. Your basic Average Joe.

I've had my Z for what will be two years this May. I kept it stock except for Corsa axle-back cans. Decided I was ready to tweak it a bit. There are several good shops around the country. I chose Kateck because of their work for GM and positive customer feedback. Not dissing any of the other top-tier shops; I just picked the one that felt right for me.

After talking with Jason and telling them the car is mainly street driven, with the occasional but not every month blast down the quarter or Texas Mile, and knowing I plan to keep the rig forever if I can, we decided on the following:

1. Stage 1 Engine package (Torquer cam, springs, retainers, etc) and full tune and dyno to match it all up.
2. Engine dress-up.
3. Upgraded trans output shaft, replace stock diff with Quaife hi perf diff (same gear ratio), upgraded axle half-shafts.
4. Micropolished and cryogenically treated gear sets for added strenght.
5. Replaced the Corsa axle-back with a Magnaflow cat-back with X pipe.
6. New Hawk ceramic pads
7. Somehow also needed new rear tires too (fronts were fine - wonder how that happened )
8. Exedy twin disc clutch swapped in to replace stock unit.

I've now been able to spend some quality time with the Z in the last couple weeks since it underwent this "anger management training", and I can tell you the package works quite well. As an Average Joe with a street driven rig, I didn't want a cam that bucked, snorted and otherwise was a pain in traffic and every day driving. I'm happy to report that this cam is very driveable. Different than stock? Sure. But pretty easy to get used to and quite manageable in traffic etc. The car dyno'd just shy of 500 hp at the wheels on a Mustang dyno. However, I've always (well at least since growing up helping the 'ol man restore mid-60s Pontiacs, mainly 389 tri-power GTOs) thought you feel and use torque more than hp in the real world. The torque improvement on this package is very noticeable. It comes on early, strong and thick and is a very noticeable improvement in low end grunt over stock. All-in-all a nice upgrade to the Z's stock engine.

For those folks who are thinking about putting a cam in their car, but are worried they won't like it because of how it will drive, worry not with the Katech cam.

I swapped the pads only because I got tired of having to clean the wheels if I even just drove around the block. The Hawks appear to have cut 90% of the dusting the stocks did. And no noise/squeaks at all.

The trans/diff work is seamless. Shifts are smooth and distinct. And with these upgrades I figured the bump up in power would not cause me to lose sleep at night worrying about weak links in the drive line. It's pretty clear the weak link on this rig now is traction. And I'm fine with that.

The clutch is definitely different than stock. But like the cam, it doesn't take but a couple days spending some quality time in the car to get used to it. You basically just have to consider yourself as having a brand new car, with different clutch take up points, different preferences for rpms etc. After a couple days, I had managed to reprogram my brain on the clutch. It too is very easy to live with. It's just different from stock in feel. Basically you can be a little sloppy with the stock clutch without penalty. You need to "pay attention" a bit more with the Exedy, but as long you do, you'll be fine. Clutch effort is up slightly, but not much. There is some very slight chatter at idle in neutral if the ambient and car temps are just right. I can barely hear it most times, and some times can't detect it all.

The Magnaflows (plus the cam obviously) radically changed the sound the of car. The vids previously posted on this really don't carry the sound at all. It is a very strong, deep rumble. I made this change not because I didn't like the Corsa's. I just wanted something a little less European, and more American Muscle. The Magnaflows hit the mark. It's too bad the deep rumble doesn't come across on the sound clips. These are markedly louder than the Corsa system. I haven't heard BB bullets or Borla in person, my quess is the Magnaflows would not be as loud. But that's just wild speculation on my part. The only penalty to these is some hi-way drone in 6th at hi-way speed. Easy to shift around. Jason told me after the install that the Magnaflows had roughly equal decibels in 5th at 70 mph as the Corsa had in 6th at 70. And you'll definitely keep in 5th at that speed. Thus, the Magnaflows have basically rendered my 6th gear useless until about 80-82 mph. I'm ok with that as 5th works fine up to that range anyway.

Sorry for lenghty post - but thought others could use some Average Joe feedback on some of these products as well as Katech's package. If you're leaning toward putting a cam in your car, but are nervous about it being hard to live with - I can tell that such is not an issue with Katech's package. And boy can they make an engine look great. Nice bling.

Cheers,

Travis.

Short-Throw

I've driven Jason's car on the street and track. I knew it would be fast on track, I was more impressed how it's street manners were.


That was a great write-up. Not because you're endorsing Katech. I remember you asking online last November and performing your due diligence before you made a rash decision. You took your time evaluating your product instead of just posting....'look at my new cam that I haven't driven more than 3 miles!'

Are you coming to Katech's Track Attack......in 20 days?




Mike

1-2-b-67L89

with Mike! Nicely written report concerning your Katech experience without all the hoopla even though I know you are feeling it or I would for sure. Hope your coming to the Katech event as I would surely like to talk to you in more detail about your car and experience.
Again, nice write up and thanks for posting
Chick

OnPoint

Probably not going to be able to make it to Track Attack. I've told Jason I likely won't know until the last minute. I have a work commitment in Texas that I have to deal with. If that commitment goes away in time (and if there is any room left at the event), I'll see I can sweet talk Jason and co. into letting me sneak in. If not, then I'll have to take care of professional duties. Family first. Work second. Unfortunately, have a hall pass from the former, but not yet from the latter.

augydog

Enjoyed your write-up.

Katech will be my choice when my time is right.

augydog

Subsea

Very nice writeup. How did the process go regarding the upgrades you selected? They certainly have the credentials.

OnPoint

Subsea,

The process is straight-forward and easy. Katech proved very easy to work with. They've got some pre structured packages, and they also allow you to do stuff "a la carte" and pick individual items. I asked them to change the pads and rear tires for me while i had it in there shop and they didn't even flinch.

In addition, they had to get 3 different exhausts from Magnaflow sent to them, as the first two sets Magnaflow sent had bunged up tips. Katech basically refused them, returned them, and made Magnaflow send equip that was intact.

You should be critically honest with yourself on how you use your car, and then be honest with Jason when you talk to him. He'll give you an idea of how their packages differ, and I found him to be a straight shooter.

Painrace

Nice write up, Travis, and welcome to the Katech club. What I can tell you after about a year is it just gets better with time. I have over 12,000 miles on my Katech upgrades and I like them more each day. I hope you can make it to the Track Attack.

Jim

Katech_Zach

Thanks so much Travis for the great review. We like lengthy posts with lots of information. No apology is necessary. Hope you can make Track Attack.

Short-Throw

I understand completely. You're doing the right thing!


Let me sweeten the pot .....if you make it I will take you around the track in the Beast!


Mike

OnPoint

Oh Man. . . . You're a bad influence buddy. Mike, I would love to make it and take you up on the offer for a ride. I bet that bad boy can ROCK.

Travis.

Painrace

You get lap number 724!

Jim

Frenchican

Congrats! Time to change your avitar.

Painrace

I like yours!

Jim