Chevrolet’s potent Lumina SS is legendary in performance car circles and this latest generation muscle car is almost all that a driver could want. But what if you are the type of enthusiast that wants something more?

Enter Steves Auto Clinic with their 26 years of experience in the performance enhancement business and their class leading and professional approach to extracting reliable horsepower.

Just as vehicle performance technology has moved on, so has exhaust technology. Paying as little as possible for an exhaust system translates into you more than likely getting a noisy system that is generically bent, and ultimately crimped closed, on a pipe bender and welded to universal mild steel silencers.

But this is certainly not the case with the completely handmade, stainless steel, mandrel bent, 76mm system that is available for the 6.0 litre Generation IV V8 powerplant on Lumina. This system is equal in terms of quality, look, fitment and power gain to any system, costing thousands of Euros or Dollars, on the shelf overseas today.

In standard form the Lumina SS produces 270 kW at 5 700 rpm and a peak torque of 530 Nm at 4 400 rpm, strong enough to get this full sized sedan to 100 km/h in a fraction over 6 seconds, 200 km/h in 23 seconds, and stop at a limited top speed of 237 km/h.

On goes the SAC exhaust and now not only does your Lumina sound the business, it also goes quite a bit better thanks to the extra 20 horsepower that is now on tap under your right foot. 100 km/h comes up in under 6 seconds in a tyre smoking blur, and 200 km/h is dispatched in not much over 21 seconds.

Thanks to a little R1 000 mod that can be done at the same time as the R12 000 bespoke exhaust system is fitted, the top speed limiter is removed and the Lumina now also romps to a top speed that is on the fast side of 260 km/h.

Of course, as is always the case at SAC, you have a few other options available to you. You can leave the standard limiter in place; you can enquire about a cheaper mild steel option or even a more generic non handmade performance exhaust for your SS.

Whatever your needs or your budget, SAC have an option for you to consider, so to find out more about this upgrade and the other popular options for the true enthusiast like gas flowing the heads, fitting bigger valves and fitting performance camshafts to really take your Lumina to the next level, visit www.steves.co.za .