2008 Chevy Silverado Buildup - Outfitting Chevy's Latest

We admit it, when gas hit $5 a gallon, we placed a huge emphasis on mileage and tried our best to show you ways of making every drop last further and further. Unfortunately, adding parts to your truck doesn't always net you gains in mileage, especially if those parts add ponies to the puzzle. Loving the improved throttle response, or the sweet sound of eight cylinders rumbling can be intoxicating and with our foot always on the go-pedal, the fuel gauge seems to race to empty. What if we told you there was a company who recently passed a strict SEMA-organized fuel savings challenge and that those parts used in the test could also add as much as 50 hp at the flywheel? It's true. SLP Performance Parts won a SEMA fuel challenge with its PerformancePac combo and on engine dyno testing, the parts help bring the 5.3L V-8 to a whopping 350 hp.

Wanting to check out the PerformancePac firsthand, we ordered up part # 28206, for our '08 Chevy Silverado. The combo consisted of SLP's after-cat dual exhaust, Blackwing cold-air induction system, and DiabloSport II programmer. To add more performance to the truck's handling, we also ordered a SLP Sport Suspension Package that uses new drop coils and rear spring extenders to lower the Silverado two inches both front and rear. The drop will bring the center of gravity down and enhance the handling characteristics of the Silverado. Completing the Fantastic Four story, we selected a set of TIS style-06 22-inch chrome wheels with 305/40R22 Kumho tires. The wheel/tire size worked well with the mild drop and filled up the wheelwells quite nicely.