alright so i posted a while ago and i was trying to get the camaro running again... well i waited and now im setting my sites on a stroker motor... i know about the 383, is there any other options to go to there? and im planning a forged bottom end(i want it to take some abuse) and i was looking for a rough guess on how much it would cost to build. i want the engine to be somewhere inbetween 450-500 hp, any ideas are welcome to, this car will be street/strip

 

Displacement is NOT where you find HP, airflow is and 100% of the air in and out moves through the heads which are controlled by the cam.
Displacement can influence the rpm at which the HP is made and the torque curve but heads and cam are what make the power.

Can pretty easily figure $3000+ for a good topend, valvetrain, and gaskets, a good rotating assembly is going to be $1800+, figure $1500 for machining and assembly, and these are low to mid range numbers you can spend more but probably wont get a good result if you spend much less. If the car is in need of basic boltons, CAI, exhaust, tranny, gears, stall, suspension, you can pretty quickly drop another $4000+ on that stuff.

Sticker shocked yet???

 

haha i have the bolt ons in my running total already, so its not so bad... yet haha

 

but on the lines of where horsepower is made, could i do say a 355 and make just as much? i understand the whole air being vital to engine performance thing, but do explain the displacement a little.

 

a good set of heads and matching cam will put 400+hp to the wheels on a stock bottom end. throw in some nitrous and just like that you got your 500.

 

bottom end has 126xxx on it... think its worth throwing 450 hp at it? n2o is illegal in nebraska >.< ... its about the only thing they care about lol

 

the more displacement you have means you have the ability to make more tq. "Typically" stroker motors don't rev as high as shorter stroke engines. There are a lot of options when it comes to strokers....383, 396, and even 408....the bigger the engine "typically" you need bigger heads, and therefore more money. I've been pricing my 408 build and so far I'm well into $10K plus, just in parts without the machine work to the block....and I'm nowhere near done. The nice thing about strokers is "typically" a "large cam" is not as big in the stroker....they absorb some of the driveability issues due to the larger displacement. Don't forget that HP is figured off how much tq. you make, so that's a bonus. Now what was said earlier about HP coming from the top end is 100% accurate. You could build a crazy 355 that will most likely survive your expectations. At that point it doesn't make sense to spend the extra coin on a stroker. Personally I like the idea of a 408, and if I get the crank offset ground for honda journals a 409, only since you don't hear about it nearly as often as the 383/396 combos. Either way the decision is totally up to you and how much you want to spend....You can do a 355 relatively cheap with a stock ported top end and make great street/strip power....but as I said I do everything over the top, so......

 

strokers are overrated, the 355 would be the way i would go, you can make almost the same power for about 1/3 of the cost. and as far as nitrous goes you could prolly get away with 100-125 shot, its illegal pretty much everywhere

 

For that horsepower level your desiring a stroker is a waste of money. Buy some good forged pistons, re-use the stock rods and crankshaft and get a set of good flowing heads, a cam that matches that setup and a nice set of bolt ons and a good tune up. You'll be making almost 500hp with just that alone. With the cusion of forged pistons you'd even be able to run 100-150hp of nitrous on top of all of that. It won't last forever though with stock rods/crank/2 bolt main caps though.

If you're making your max horsepower per cube (lets say 1 for example) then a 350 will make 350hp, a 383 will make 383hp. Is the additional cost of stroker clearance, new crank, new rods worth the 33 horsepower you're going to pick up?

 

typically a performance engine will make way more then 1hp/ci. Usually you're looking 1.3-1.5hp/ci at least

 

Have the stock crank cleaned and checked for cracks. If you are all good there have it polished. Get a decent set of forged rods and some .030 over flat top forged pistons. Have every thing balanced and you have a 355 bottom end will handle the 500 hp you are looking for.

But you will need good flowing heads, cam, valvetrain and other mods to get you there (trans, rear, susp etc.).

 

wow, thanks guys this is exactly what i wanted to know. i think ill try for a 355 and put a little more money into the parts so i can get good stuff, would the performabuilt stage 2 transmission handle 500hp? i know thats what it says it will do.. but i have my doubts about that sorta stuff.

 

I run a performabuilt 2 and it is awesome. I would not hesitate to get one. The cost is with shipping and no core needed since they start fresh. I would not worry about getting a new crank if that is what you were alluding to. Stock cranks can hold up to 600 hp, but it's your money and your call. If you have the cash do it, if not no need to worry.

 

I also run a Performabuilt level 2, and so far it has been rock solid.