my pops just gave me his 67 camaro with a dinky *** 350 that i wanna take out. i was thinking about putting in a rebuilt L88 from a 69 vette or a rebuilt 454 LS7 from a '70 vette, but im not sure which one to go after. i've heard different stories from different ppl telling me different hp/tq numbers, so i wanted to come here to see if anyone knows the true specs on each engine. and also... which one would you want if you had a choice between the two? thanks guys

 

An original L-88 will cost big bucks. You could do better with a later 502 or similar engine. The LS-7 was never installed in a car from the factory but was available over the counter. Either way, they are big ticket items because of their rare nature.

 

I have a "LS7" in my Z. A 12.5:1 compression 454 with the LS7 heads on it. But I have a .714 lift roller cam which is a little more agressive than the stock LS7 cam
(560I/.600E lift .262 I/.273 E duration) This is the same as the ZL1 cam.

The L88 is a 427 with a slightly less agressive cam.
(540I/.560E lift .262I/.269E duration)

Running this much compression on a regular street driven car isn't what you want to be doing.

Double check your engines... the 69 "L88" is probably a more common regular 427. The 454 is probably a LS5 or LS6 (11.0:1 compression). As previously mentioned, the LS7 didn't make it into any (factory built) production cars.

The LS7 was rated at 465 hp. (ha ha) The L88 was 430hp.

 

ill probably end up just going with the L88 since i probably won't find an LS7. does anyone have any dyno info on L88's and what kind of power you can pull from them? i dont believe in factory rated hp/tq numbers... lol

 

You won't find an original L-88, either, and if you do, be prepared to spend *maximum* bucks for a legit L-88.

Why not just build a 427 to L-88 specs?

 

well, if im going to build a 427 i might as well fix it up to the c5-r specs, right? hehe i WISH lol, but yea, ill probably just end up getting a 427 and just putting the most i can put into it... what kind of power you think i can pull out of a 427 7.0 block?

 

I wouldn't waste your time with a 427, I would go 454 or bigger, you get more cubes and more stroke than a 427. Just my .02 cents.

 

Good luck building a 427 big block to C5-R specs.

A ZZ502 would spank the panties off of an L-88 or LS-7. Take published power ratings with a grain of salt. That was back in the day of rating engines with gross power ratings. Now days they do net power ratings, meaning they run them with all the accessories hooked up to them.

Also, those engines had high compression (11.5:1 and higher), HUGE cams, and poor drivability. My suggestion? Get a crate motor. It'll be cheaper in the long run. Warranties are nice too. You'll be able to run pump gas, they'll idle all day long without rattling out your teeth (or sucking gas, considering those old BB's idled at like 2000 rpm) and they won't foul plugs every 1000 miles. Yeah, you could get a core and build it to L-88 or LS-7 specs, but why would you do that? After all the machine work, forged parts, and hunting down rare parts, you'd spend as much or more than you would have for a ZZ-502. That's my .02

 

a c5r spec 427 is a SMALL BLOCK

 

i know it's a sb, but if you couldnt tell, i was being sarcastic about building it to the c5-r specs

ill probably end up looking at a zz502 in the future.... i've heard a lot of good things about these engines

 

Theres nothing wrong with small cube big blocks , I have a 72 402 +030 (408) and it was dynoed at 830 HP with N20 and 500HP naturaly asperated , and has pushed my 78 camaro Z28 to mid 11s at 119mph with limited traction so you dont really need alot of cubes ... and my block was almost given to me which saved me big $$$$ so I could afford to put good parts into the build and machineing its also really reliable and idles like a stocker so I can afford to actually DRIVE it, and with some chassis tuning I'll bet im in the 10s in no Time ...

 

tru good luck man... with 800 hp though, shouldnt you be close to 9's?

 

I probably WOULD be in the 9s if I tubbed it but im running allmost stock rear suspension (southside bars sfcs and 6pt cage and NO wheelwell mods) and a 10" tire so traction is a BIG issue , but there are lots of small tire cars out there that run good numbers Im just NOT willing to cut the car up to do it ... I like driving my car on the street and being able to go places without taking a small shop with me but thats just the way I like it ..