Well guys I've been in the F-body scene for a few years now and have delt with everything but engine internals and I need some info. The reason I don't know much is because I've had 3.4's and 3.8's through school and why even bother when what i really want is an 8 right?!

I really want to understand compression ratios, cam lift and duration #'s, flow #'s..... just about any number related to internals. Sure I may sound like an idiot asking but keep in mind I've never taken mechanics classes and my old man doesn't build or talk about cars so I'm learning on my own as I go.

Any links, personal experience/info or anything else you have to throw my way would be great. I want to be able to decide for myself what performance route will work best for me.

Thanks guys

 

If I was you I would do a search on this board and just about any question you have will be answered.

 

If you aren't familiar with the basics of a 4-stroke internal combustion engine, you need to start with a very basic "how things work" website... I know there is at least one that has some nice, animated graphics that illustrate the internal working of the engine, and identifies a lot of the parts.

How Stuff Works

How Things Work

Once you understand the basics - and maybe you already do - you need a good "basic" book on extracting various levels of performance from a small-block Chevy V8. There are some basic differences in the details of the Gen 1 small-blocks (pre-LT1 engines) and the Gen 2 LT1/LT4 engine, but the basics with regard to extracting maximum performance are no different. A couple good references would be:

"How to Build Horsepower", David Vizard, S-S Designs, ISBN 0-931472-24-5, $18.95

"Small-block Chevy Performance", David Emanuel, HP Books, $17.95

You can get these at a discount, and I have found them in "surplus" book shops.

Other than that, what you are asking for is a detailed education in automotive technolgy, and many of us could type endless pages on the subject, but you will learn a lot more from doing some basic Internet "searches".

 

You might want to get a service type manual at some point too, like a Chiltons.

 

i realize there is a lot to learn and i've been around it enough to know the basics. those links do help and is what i was looking for when i started this topic. What throws me off is when i'm reading the duration, lobe, etc ratios because i just don't understand them. I understand that a bigger cam increases the amount of time the valves are open (more air/fuel = more power but lumpy idle) and i understand the difference between DOHC and our pushrod engines... i just need to understand the ratios.... I aced all my math tests except the ratio portion

Thanks

 

The How Stuff Works website is awesome, and you also might look into some back issues of Hot Rod. That's where I learned how engines work... of course I guess that was like 1991-1992 or so, so I doubt you'd want to scavenge back that far, haha... I'm sure you can find the info on the web. For most purposes, info about the Chevy smallblock is applicable to an LT1 with only a few minor changes. Nothing in the basic architecture changed.

For that matter, most pushrod V8's are very very similar in the way they're built. A smallblock Chrysler is strikingly similar to a Chevy smallblock.... so much it seems fishy

-Michael