what is the difference between buying a turnkey and non-turnkey engine? Also, if I buy a whole 383 stroker (turnkey or not) how reliable are they? Does the extra volume make much difference than the 350? It is my daily driver.

 

Turnkey typically means "ready to go" in the sense that it's a complete motor, assembled. You drop it in the car, bolt in all the accessories, and you're ready to roll. Not-turnkey would be more like buying a box of parts, and assembling them yourself, or paying someone to do it.

Reliability-wise, it's an issue of the quality of the parts and quality of the assembly. My 383 has been running for 4 years, virtually all track time, and I haven't had an issue.

Dave

 

is it worth an extra 2 grand to get a turnkey engine. it comes with crane rrs and comp cam. this is the biggest difference. i want to get a new cam obviously so it is really about 1 grand more if you take the cam and rrs into account. what do you think?

 

A "turnkey" may or may not be a better value. Obviously, the cost of the components is a major factor. If the components are the same, then you are comparing the costs for the machine work and assembly. Here's it's important to compare apples to apples, and it can be difficult. The more expensive job may not be of any better quality, then again, if you shop for the lowest price you can be pretty sure you won't be getting the best quality.

My own preference is to deal with someone with a known, good reputation using my own block and whatever parts are reusable. I don't trust mega mail-order places not to hire the least expensive employees they can and just pump out the product at maximum profit. That's my bias. Let the shop buy the parts that are needed. Someone local is best when possible.

Rich Krause