I've come to the point with my car that I want to pull the motor (in the next year or two) and rebuild... Thinking 400 rwhp would be ideal, as I'm mostly a street guy, attending car shows, with NO track time. That being said, I would like to visit a 1/4 mile track in the future. But again, not looking to build an 11.0 second car or anything...

I'm looking to build a reliable LT1 with about 400 Horse/tourque... What would you recommend? I want to stay away from power-adders like Turbo's and Superchargers. Can I reach these numbers with cam/heads/tune? If so, would I have a reliable powerplant that I don't have to mess with every weekend before I go for a cruise?

I see a lot of guys on this site using LE for heads, and CC305 Cam, sounds like a solid setup, but I never hear of reliability... don't get me wrong, I love working on my car, but at the same time, I want to know that If I'm going to a show 100 miles away, I'll make it there and back with no issues!

 

Set of heads ported by a reputable porter and a CC306. Will do 400 in a well setup car and will be very streetable for what you are looking for.

 

It seems these days that most H/C setups can be made to reach your goals. Ported heads are a must and you can get those from LE, AI, TEA, etc. From there you can get a custom cam or go with an off the shelf grind, but as most people will say if you are going to spend the money why not get a custom cam to match your heads.

 

My setup with say a 306 cam would most likely be around the 400 range.

 

The power shouldn't be a problem as, already stated you go with a good ported head and such a cam like the GM847 or CC306, however trying to get that kind of torque out of stock displacement is a tall order. The following graph was a setup I ran for a few years using LPE LT4 heads/intake and the GM847 cam:

There was severe valve float past 6200rpm and I never expolored as to why since I was concentrating my efforts on my new build. The car ran 12.1's @ 115 mostly because it was not geared properly for the power band. If you are to get a combo similar to this you must get the proper gearing/stall for optimum driveability and performance.

Because there is not enough evidence to support a custom cam will offer any more power than a set of quality heads and a popular off the shelf grind.

 

Your setup above even though you had some issues put out just below 400 with an 847. My old setup put out a couple less HP and about 30 ft-lbs more with a small 220's cam. I don't know the specs of Speed_Demon's AI setup either, but I think his cam was a mid 220's and he was putting down quite a bit more than 400 IIRC. Joe O has several cams out there as well that run good numbers and are considered very small when compared to larger off the shelf grinds by Comp, GM, Lunati, etc. There may not be an overwhelming amount of evidence, but there is evidence out there.

 

Understood. I've seen a lot of dyno numbers to support the custom cam theory, but track times are a different story. Speed_Demon has yet to run his new setup because he's scared.

 

Yeah I can understand that. Sticky tires and a 10 bolt don't mix, lol.

 

Thanks guys, that puts me on the right track. Now, once this kind of power is applied, is the stock rear end going to handle it? I hear the T56 is good to 450 HP or so, so I should be good-to-go with the trans, but I'm concerned about the rear end (which is stock). Again, I won't be logging a lot of track time, just a street-car that spends most of it's time at car shows, or going to/from a cruise.

 

You will always have a lot of variation in what the term "streetable" means. A CC306 or GM847 is streetable to many. They are also cams that want to make their power in the 3500-6500 range. Achieving 400 TQ as stated previously is a tall order. I would go with a 380-400 cube shortblock with a set of 200cc CNC heads and a custom cam (220/230ish or less) designed for a solid 2000-6000 power band. To me streetable is something that does not need to spin to 6500 for peak HP and can be stomped on in 5th or 6th gear at 2000 and actually does something.

With all the supporting mods and everything working together well, 390-400 HP and 370-380 TQ should be possible. Also, the stock 10-bolt won't last if you plan on launching. It will probably hold up otherwise. Another consideration is smog testing. What I'm suggesting will pass emmissions testing where a CC306 or GM847 will not (CA that is).

 

Based off how you word things and the character of your post I would say you dont want a cam thats not going to give you issues. I think the best way for you to reach your goal would be going with better heads and a smaller le2 or le2 sized cam- like a gm847,cc306.

This way you will for sure make 400 at the tires and still have a car that will drive like stock. AI's 200cc head will do every bit as good as Llyod's le3 heads. If budget may be an issue you might have to be happy with 390rwhp.
You want the cam under 230 dur or less and a powerband from 2000-6000rpms like stated. This will keep driveability issues down, shifts @6200,6300 rpms and still plently of power everywhere.

You are going to need things like long tube headers, a 52,54 or 58mm tb, a ported intake manifold(or atleast opened up for a bigger tb), rear end gears, bigger fuel injectors(30 or 36lb) and other supporting mods.

Theres always that been someone saying this line around here. " Fast, Cheap, Reliable. You pick two." Beware building a 400rwhp f body isnt something cheaply done. Especailly if you are doing the work through a shop. So prepare 3-5k depending on many variables.

GIve Llyod or phil @AI a call, either will help you along with your goal.

 

Reliability at the HP level you're talking about is mainly a function of quality parts and competent installation. It's not a given, but it's also not rocket science.

 

^^^werd

No H/C setup is going to go off without a hitch, but if you use good parts, and pay attention to detail you can minimize your headaches when you get it started and begin breaking it in and fine tuning it.

 

I made 403 to the wheels with LE2 heads, LE2.2 cam, LE ported intake and all the supporting mods.

 

Nice, that's good stuff to hear guys. If I get into the $5K range, I'm in GREAT shape. I was thinking it might actually cost more, so that's perfect. Again, reliability is my primary concern, as I don't want to be wrenching more than I'm driving! My goal sounds very do-able.

Time to start saving...