I have been doing some research on cam selection, and the conclusion I have drawn is it is a waste of time and money with stock heads and intake. It seems that is based because there is minimal power gains and in some cases power losses from going to a larger cam.

I have an 87 5.0 HO 5 speed LX Hatch. My current mods are (most are not installed, but will be this winter):

Mass air conversion - A9M computer stock MAF
BBK fender mount cold air intake
70mm throttle body and egr spacer
MAC underdrive pulleys
A/C delete
75-175hp wet nitrous (probably going to buy a dry kit and run 100-150)
BNM Racing window switch
Aftermarket shorty headers
BBK hi-flow cat h-pipe
Magnaflow catback exhaust

There is a decent chance I will be picking up a like new Edelbrock Performer intake today for $200.

My situation is I plan on doing heads and intake but it will most likely be next winter before I do (unless I find a real good deal). Right now I am focusing my time and money on the bodywork, interior and minor boltons.

I am considering doing a cam now because I love a lopey idle. From my research it looks like the E303 would probably be best for my application. I wouldn't be expecting any power gains, honestly I would be fine with a slight loss in horsepower/torque. If I do lose, will it be a few horsepower and small amount of torque, or could it be significant? Ideally I would like to use the same cam when I add heads and intake, but it wouldn't be a big deal if I couldn't.

The car will be a street car that is only taken out on nice days. It will also see a few passes at the drag strip per year.

If I go with the E303 is there anything else I would need besides valve springs? Is there any cams you would recommend over the E303?

Thanks

Originally Posted by 86notch Should I be looking for cams with similar specs to the E303? Or is there a particular area I should be looking to improve? I know I want something that will produce power from idle-5000rpms. but after that I don't know enough about it to select the right one. I am going to go to Summit Racing with my buddy that builds engines tomorrow (he is a Chevy guy though). Hopefully between the info I picked up here, his knowledge and any information from Summit, I can pick something decent.

Originally Posted by chris302 A cam with 220 to 226 duration at .050 and around .500 lift will work good with stock heads. The TFS stage 1 cam or anything similar would be my choice for an off the shelf cam.

Originally Posted by 86notch I found the cam you are talking about at Summit. The part number is TFS-51402000. It is $159. I will get that the TFS valve springs and the Summit cam change gasket kit. Is there anything else you would recommend ?