I have a 2000 ext. cab silverado 2wd, bone stock with the 5.3L. One of the main reasons I got this truck was so i could mod it out, but as long as i live with my parents it has to stay stock. I plan on having about 11-12 grand by the time i get to college in 2 years, just to spend on mods. I have a pretty good idea of what i want to do, but since i have no experience with any of this stuff i wanna get some advice from those of you who do. My main goal is to be able to get straight line speed for the 1/4 mile, and to be able to get traction on the street.
Here is a rough list of what i want and what i predict it will cost to have it installed, since i probably wont be able to install most of it myself:

6.0L engine swap
4L80e transmission
headers and exhaust system
New Cam
4.10 gears
Nelson Tune
Maybe ported and polished heads
Tires and Stall

Im thinkin that would be around 12 grand, with the parts and installation? I'm not sure if that is the most cost efficient plan or not becaue my ultimate goal is to have about 400 rwhp, so would it be better to just get the 6.0L, 4l80e, and save up a litttle more to get a radix instead of all the little mods? Also, will I be able to get traction on the streets with 2WD, or should I just sell my truck, get an older, cheaper 2 door, 4wd truck and mod that out? I need any advice I can get, so I can start working towards my goal as soon as possible, thanx in advance.

 

get a 99 up 5.3 4wd and mod it out 4x4 gives great traction in racing

 

I've got about $3000 in my 6.0 liter including the price of the motor, valvetrain (cam, springs, pushrods, gaskets, etc.) and underdrive pulley. To have a motor installed around here is around $800-$1000. That would put you at $4000. Another $2000 for a good 4L80E and converter, $1500 for a killer exhaust and headers (tops), probrobally $500 for the rear, any your only at around $8,000. I would go with the 6.0L and trans part...and then throw a RADIX on top of it. That's in the $10K ballpark, and you'll be making MAD power with the durability of the 4L80E. You can always put a cat-back on it and headers later. Good luck with your project!

 

Thanx for the advice so far...I thought a Radix kit was right around $5,000? Please correct me if im wrong tho cuz that would be nice.

 

They are right around 5k for a radix. The question that you really need to ask yourself is how fast do you really want to go? If you are seriously going to be happy with 400 hp then you don't really even need to go with a 6.0 or an 80E because your stock motor, and a tranny with a good shift kit could handle that. Then you wouldn't have to spend nearly $12000. Also, a 4x4 is good for street if you want to race in 4x4 mode, but it is going to take more power to be as fast as a 2wd because you are going to weigh more. It is a trade-off.

 

Answer that question first! How fast do you really want to go! The trans upgrade will be good no matter what. A 5.3 or 6.0 Blown/Turbo/Nitrous will give some good results.

 

I must say that the 80-E conversion may have been stronger, but I feel it took some performance away from the truck.

 

Well right now 400rwhp is really my ultimate goal, I wanna run low 12-high 11's but I know that once i get there i'll want to go faster, so I wanna have a good base to build on. Plus my truck has over 65k miles on it and I can tell the transmission has definitly gotten weaker- it slips sometimes, and the shifting has definitly become much slower. I'd rather spend the cash and get the 4l80e now, rather than build up my 60 and having it blown in a few years, and then having to buy the 80. As far as the engine, its still running strong, but I doubt its gonna last forever, especially when i get to college and pushing 80k miles and trying to run a supercharger/nitrous. And im still undecided on the 4x4 vs 2x4 issue....I know I can hardly get traction now with my bone stock 5.3 (of course that is with worn, all terrain street tires, and only one wheel spinning)...but anyways I'm just trying to give you guys my standpoint, any advice you have I would really appreciate, Thanks.

 

Maybe I'm making this more complicated than it should be.....basically I want to get the most horsepower/speed out of my truck and have it run fairly reliably so no major componets fall apart (like engine or transmission). I want to spend the money, but what is the best way to do it, what would you guys do with 11-12 grand on a bone stock truck like mine to make it as fast as possible?

 

Leave that 5.3 in there and just throw a magnacharger on it. That with bigger injectors, headers, and a highflow exhaust would be sitting pretty around 400-450.