OK, i am a college student who has had an TPI 86 IROC since i started driving.. i am looking at getting an economical 4-cylender for my 62 mile (round trip) to school mon-fri. doing this is going to allow me to make my iroc a "weekend-warrior"... i have read lots of books, and am getting enrolled in some automotive classes at my college, and would like to do the engine build myself. I want to go with either a 350 or 383... i am going to have to work with a "college" budget.. so which of the two engine choice would you recomend ??? what specs and parts would you recommend ? i want a FAST STREET car !!!!! somting that the Hondas in town can't touch.. it needs to be quick and handle well.......... so please give me some engine combos and HP numbers of what you have..... thanks alot

ryan

 

There's an old saying,"There's NO substitute for cubic inches"and it's true for the most part. A radical 350 could have the same output as a mild 383. There's obviously more money involved too.
383:
New 3.75" stroker crank=$175
neccessary matching pistons installed=$200-$250
new rings=$40
new bearings=$75
notching(clearancing) the block and rods=$100
compatable larger cam=$250
major ECU reprogramming=$200-$500

On the other hand it's easier to extract 400hp from a 350 than build a 383, not to mention cheaper.

 

if i were you i'd go cheap and get a well built short block, pick your heads and intake and your good to go.

alot of people like to go carb when money is concerned but the gas mileage and streetability can be comprimised.

what type of price range are you looking at? have you seriously looked into what it costs to do something your talking about.

if cost is an issue i wouldn't go 383+ you could do a very sweet 350 setup for around 5,000 with everything new. this also depends on the intake as well. but figure around 350 horse range.....anything higher in the numbers and you'll pay.

good luck with it, all that gas money you save with the 4cyl you should have some money coming in! becareful though, my gtp gets better milage than my familys old escort when it was new back in 88 and the gtp has more horsepower than my L98 350 did.

 

There was an article inhot rod a few months back, I think it was june or july that had a 430 horse 350 for like 2700 dollars, now that is alot of power for not that much money. I am in college too, and thats ALOT of money. Also for your suspension nothing is better than sub frames, and good lower control arms.
Good Luck

 

i believe they were using summit setups....could be wrong though?

you can definately go cheaper using some summit type products unlike gm performance parts or other big names. i always kind of looked at it like if i was going to spend a large amount of money like that i would save up until i could go with exactly what i wanted within reason and budget of course.

just keep asking around and learning.....it will all fall into place. don't look for an easy anwer or expect one person to tell you exactly how to do it. it doesn't work that way.

 

thanks guys for the imput