My brother is considering either a (2001-2002)5.3 Tahoe or Denali as his new ride (found a sweet WS6, but don't think it'll do any good in the snow ).

Did anyone dyno their vehicles before and after a cam swap and or headers (either seperate or together)? Would like to know what mods to do to get the most out of either truck.

Denali owners: any problems? how do the stock stereo's hold up and sound (listen to rock/alternative mostly)?

thanks

Gerry

 

We have a 2001 Yukon Denali with ~86K miles now. Only a couple problems, most of them just issues that could be solved by regular maintenance. For example, the throttle body became severely clogged with carbon buildup and it was stalling all the time, but I cleaned it out and it's fine now. Tranny died ~45K miles; one of the tranny cooler lines burst and it drained, but that's probably just a freak accident. Got an extended tranny and powertrain warranty out of GM for it. Stock tires are just about at the wear line.

As for the stock radio, it doesn't sound bad at all, especially for what you're listening to. It has decent amount of bass, and I liked the in-dash 6-disc changer a lot. We upgraded to an aftermarket system around 35K miles, but it never sounded as good as stock because we didn't replace the speakers until later on. Bose speakers don't do well with aftermarket systems I've read.

It's an awesome car and we've been pretty happy with it. I can't think of anything else, but if you have any other questions I'd be happy to answer them.

 

Ive got a Tahoe and wouldnt trade it for anything. Thats not to say I wouldnt like to have a Denali. I got the Tahoe so that I would have more money for mods. That being said, if I could go back knowing what I know now, I would do a nice cam, 3000 stall, ASM's, nitrous, and a good tune. You could do all of that with what Ive spent on my supercharger alone and be alot faster and more fun to drive.
Guess I'll finish what Ive started and hope that I dont run into a truck that knew what I now know from the start.

 

86,000 miles on stock tires?! I would have changed them simply because I was tired of looking at them!

 

With a ASP Crank Pulley & electric fans I gained 16rwhp.

 

i think the cam and long tubes will yield a good amount. i think it depends on how much work you are wanting to go through. long tubes are easier to install than a cam.

 

Would be getting the FLP or dynotech headers (would rather pay for a y-pipe now rather then later).

LS1 fans for sure (A/C is alot colder), don't like underdrive pullies (hate it when the lights are dim at idle and then brighten when driving, crazy I know). nice dyno numbers 99silverado

The headers would be easier for sure but most people don't change their cams like 4 times 02 (do appreciate the R&D work you put in for the rest of us, you must have wingnuts on everything under the hood for easier removal??).

Thanks for all the replies so far, found a WS6 for $16000 (Canadian) that we're going to go look at tomorrow. winter beaters are tons of fun in the spring