Engine Swaps Or Mods For 150 More Hp Cadillac Deville

[DevilleGuy7]

Hi, I'm a true noob and I happen to have a 2001 Cadillac Deville Base Model with a 4.6 Liter 275 hp Northstar V8 in it. Me being me, I love speed and that type of power that pulls you back with that raspy V8 engine sound racing through revs. I want to get atleast 150 more hp out of this engine or see if I can swap it for a 4.4 Liter 443 hp Northstar V8 from the Quick Xlr-V. Please give me advise to turn my quick Cadillac Deville into a Fast beast to be in the ranks of a fast mustang or something like that.

Edited July 12, 2016 by DevilleGuy7

[Bruce Nunnally]

Hi and .   I am glad you are enjoying your 2001 Deville.  There are some things such as intake, exhaust, header that can be additive.  The LC3 from the XLR-V or STS-V was a longitudinal mount versis the transverse FWD mount in the Deville so would be a very detailed project.  Nitrous oxide would be a quick power adder but has some cautions, and is not legal everywhere.  

I would start with measuring your current 0-60 and or quartermile time in the Deville accurately and repetitively.  That will give you a good baseline for determining what improvement you get from various mods.  I generally have found that a large improvement is in learning how to launch the Cadillac to minimize wheelspin helps.

[BodybyFisher]

We used to have one of the designer/engineers here from GM that frequented this forum who was on the original Northstar design team.

He used to say something that I liked "All of the low hanging fruit has been picked" in terms of improving the performance of the stock Northstar. 

When you think about it, your engine, the Vin 9 version, is 279 cu inches and it is putting out 275 horsepower.  The Concours, ETC and STS engine, the Vin Y version puts out 300 HP or more than 1 HP per cubic inch.  These engines are quite powerful already.   That said, it is very difficult to improve the power output in the stock Northstar. 

While you can open the exhaust system up with a CAT back system and freer flowing mufflers, the bottle neck is the header setup where the front bank flows under the engine joining with the rear bank, true dual exhaust can not be easily accomplished. So exhaust flow is hampered. 

The stock air filter box provides no restrictions through-out the entire rpm range up to the red line we have been told and trying to open up the intake can have the detrimental affects of pulling in hot air to overheating the PCM, because the existing intake system pulls air over the PCM to cool it, so I wouldn't go there.   Some intake "improvements" like the K&N filters including the cone, have been tested to permit more dirt to enter the intake with the perceived "improvement" being only an increase in intake noise and not performance.

What I would do is the following

I would keep the throttle body very clean, remove it and clean the plate and throat and polish the throat if you like

I would keep it tuned up good with fresh ignition wires and platinum ac delco plugs

I would use premium fuel and add a bottle of Techron into a full tank of gas at every oil change to keep the injectors clean.  If Sunoco still puts out 93 octane, use it. 

I would keep my tire pressure at the high end of the range to promote better rolling resistance.

I would keep my cooling system at 100 percent efficiency, to keep heat down, fix leaks, pressure leaks, if you smell coolant, your cooling system is leaking. Consider using Evans coolant, it boils at a higher temperature and reportedly moves heat out of the engine more efficiently.

You can use synthetic oil in your car, if you don't use it, use it, it handles heat better and supposedly creates less drag on the engine

The newer Dextron VI is a synthetic fluid, you can upgrade to that and improved the crispness of your shifting

Keep in mind that the transaxle has a limit for how much torque it can handle, my manual states a max engine torque of 305 lb ft and a max gearbox torque of 461 lb ft. 

If stock is not good enough, and you want to spend a LOT of money, we had a member here Mark who turbo charged his STS and netted 650 HP, and he ran straight headers under the car.  He did a ton of engine work, here is a video of his STS.  I think that Mark found that the transaxle was the ultimate weakest link in the long run. 

 

[DevilleGuy7]

Alright, I will consider all of that, but please tell me what is the most powerful engine I can swap in my Cadillac Deville with out too much engine work, decent gas milage and tell me what parts need to be upgraded to compensate for the more powerful engine.

[BodybyFisher]

The only engine you can swap in without a lot of work is the 300 HP Vin Y, Concours/ETC/STS engine, BUT, you will need to change the transmission because of the difference in final drive and also the PCM.   Other than that, without a HUGE amount of work, there is no other engine. And in reality, if you are looking for quickness of the line, the engine/tranny you have is a better choice.

Keep in mind that the TRANNY, PCM and ENGINE work as a unit. 

[DevilleGuy7]

Sorry man I know I'm pushing it here and I know that the Deville is not a race car, but what is the Max hp I can get out of my stock 4.6 liter all work and expenses included and what would I need to do to achieve that power. I want to prove that the Deville is not a gas guzzling boat and enjoy the power that it could potentially have. Ive actually seen a 2000 something Deville with a 527 big block Chevy V8 engine in it with a RWD Conversion and I'm sure there were many upgrades so the car it's self can cope with that great power. But that engine is 13,000 dollars, Has terrible gas milage and I don't want my caddy to be that loud. Plus the work and money it would take to do that conversion would be stupid when I could probably get another car for the same amount. I can't help but feel that adrenaline rush when I gas it full throttle hearing the Northstar full at work. With my love for power and speed I want to make this Caddilac Deville A Monster and not just some barely fast limousine of a car. If all else fails I will get a Crown Victoria and put a 302 cobra engine in it?

[Bruce Nunnally]

If you were going to trade cars, I would look for a 1996 Fleetwood Brougham, which had the LT1 V8, or the 2004-2007 CTS-V which had the LS6 or LS2 V8.

The classic hotrodding questions apply at the beginning of any project: How fast do you want to go, and how much money do you have to spend?

[BodybyFisher]

8 minutes ago, Bruce Nunnally said:

If you were going to trade cars, I would look for a 1996 Fleetwood Brougham, which had the LT1 V8, or the 2004-2007 CTS-V which had the LS6 or LS2 V8.

The classic hotrodding questions apply at the beginning of any project: How fast do you want to go, and how much money do you have to spend?

I was going to say the exact same thing.  There isnt much you can do to improve the Northstar platform

[DevilleGuy7]

I want at the very lest 400 hp out of my 01 Deville Base Model. I heard that the stock engine and it's power is not THAT bad but I want this car to be much stronger. I think with out the speed cap I can easily do 130 mph with good tires but I want to go like 150mph and I'm broke but I plan to do this in the near future when my money will be straight.

[Bruce Nunnally]

without the speed limiter and with appropriate tires your Deville will likely already exceed 150 mph. 

[Bruce Nunnally]

how not to add nitrous:

 

 

This does not mean that properly added say using a http://www.zex.com/zx/v8-efi-wet-nitrous-systemhtml/

should not work as expected.

[Logan]

You may be interested in the Tim Allen DTSi.....

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/tim-allen-design-cadillac-deville-dtsi-specialty-file

 

[Taray]

Hello I have a 2007 CADILLAC DTS LUXURY 4.6L V8 ENGINE AND IM TRYING TO GET MAX HP OUT OF IT. OR WHAT IS BEST ENGINE SWAP CAN DO WITH MY CAR. I LOVE CHARGERS AND CHALLENGERS IS IT POSSIBLE TO PUT A R/T OR SRT8 MOTOR IN THE DTS OR ITS TOO BIG AND TOO MUCH FOR THAT CAR. I ALSO KNO ILL HAVE TO SWITCH OUT THE PCM AS WELL AND MAYBE THE TRANSMISSION BUT TRYING TO FIGURE SOMETHING OUT OR WHAT ALL CAN I DO TO MAKE THE MOTOR I HAVE BETTER??? ANY MODS,CHIPS FUSES CAN ADD TO MAKE FASTER.