hi I have a 1980 camaro, it has a 4.11 posi rear, 12 bolt, 4 link suspension, its tubbed out 18.5 mickey thompsons. im not sure which motor is better for me. a 383 or a 454, the car is gunna be mostly street driven, but i will be racing it. will the 454 just fit in or do i have to fabricate to get it to fit. im aiming right now for about 500 hp , but eventually will upgrade, am i better off with the 454 over the 383? or will the 383 be more fun to drive. I was looking at the 454 HO gm crate motor.

 

Well, I've never had a car with a big block, but I know that they'll fit no problem in the 2nd-gen chassis. You gotta figure, the early 70's cars came with big blocks!!! There's nothing different about an '80 that would stop a big block from bolting in, so if that's the route you wanna take, go right ahead . AFAIK, they should have headers and such to bolt right up to a '70 - '81 w/BBC.

 

Second gen BBC are an easy swap since as mentioned above, they came with BBC in the early 70's so lots of parts such as headers are available from all header manufacturers. Even dropping in an Olds or Pontiac engine is easily possible.

Third gens are possible but takes a bit more work.

Fourth gens are possible but takes a lot of work.

 

so if I bought my dad's 78 with a 6 cyl in it that no longer runs, but body is good, I could drop a big block in it with out major mods or fabricating?

 

Yes, easy to put any GM engine in the 1st and 2nd generation F-body. I put a Pontiac 455 in my son's '79 Z28 and it had factory A/C. I would always recommend going with the biggest cubic inch engine you can fit into a street/strip car. Torque makes a car fun to drive on the street. Only down side is the mpg can get pretty spooky.

 

From what I have heard and been told..... You can drop a BBC right into my Z with even changing the engine mounts? Which I would believ since when I worked at NPD , the SBC mounts for alot of the years mounted alot of the BBC to certian cars. But like everyone else said it should be a very easy swap and if you do the engine right, you'll love it.

 

get the 454. a true 500hp motor isnt really a big deal with a BBC, but with a SBC it gets a little hairy if you wanna drive it on the street. i have a 454 in my 70. everything was the same on it. you wont have any trouble if you want headers or anthing else. hood clearance on the other hand will be a problem. you will more than likely have to get a 2+" cowl.

 

Yes, it fits but hood clearance with a big block and a 70-81 Camaro is an issue. Without an aftermarket hood like the cowl hood you cannot fit any decent intake manifold on there.

Jody

 

well, bonus news for me is since my dad's 78 Camaro doesn't run he's going to give it to me. my only problem is he is in michigan and I live in colorado right now, but I plan to move back in about a year or two when I finish up my degree. so which big block is better? the BBC 454 or the Pontiac 455? is one cube really any better, or should I just go with whatever I can find the better deal on?

 

Stick with the Chevy engine in the Camaro.

Jody

 

Pontiac 455 isnt a big block. Pontiac didnt make big blocks. They made small journal cranks and big journal cranks.

 

So you're telling me that even the 301 Pontiac engine is a small block? Ha! Internally, yes. Externally, no! Those things are friggin' boat anchors!!

Dude, stick with the BB / SB Chevy in your car. Hell, my Dad put a 350 CHEVY into our old '77 Formula!!

 

yeah stick with a 454..aftermarket parts a cheaper for chevy than pontiac. and capn pete i thought the diminsions on all ponchos were the same. externally

 

Actually yes, Pontiacs are basically all the same blocks.

Jody

 

NO, not what i said. Pontiac never made a small block or a big block THEY WERE ALL THE SAME BLOCK. The difference was bore and stroke, not the size of the block.