http://cnj.craigslist.org/pts/549380379.html http://cnj.craigslist.org/pts/552217447.html http://cnj.craigslist.org/pts/552225090.html I'm generally asking if these are good prices, how much power I'd be looking at, and if its worth it to make the phone calls and take a look at the parts. I also don't know very much about the 406 motor. I had read that 400's eat the T-5's, but not much more. What would you guys suggest? (I'm not even sure if shopping off craigs list is a good idea. My best friend's father was a certified GM master mechanic or something, and says he'd come to make sure the parts are legit.)

It's not the cubic inches that'll eat the t-5 - it's the torque. So you could have a 400sb with the same torque and hp as the 305 and you'll do fine. The 350 will also eat the t-5 along with the 305. Depends on how it is built how how big your foot is. I went thru 3 t-5s in 6 months with a 350. I showed them no mercy at all. Went to a 700r4 next and never had another problem.

The 400s are notoriously hot running engines (I've had two) and with a stock bore and stock engine (cam, pistons,etc) I had to run a large 4 core radiator to keep it cool - it did a good job of it, tho. this was in a 78 chevy truck with plenty of flo thru the grill.

A bored 400 would run hotter. So if you are putting it in a Camaro, expect to get a good radiator, and don't skimp on it. You can keep them cool, just not with a small radiator.

Nothing wrong with shopping on Craig's list if it is local or you can see the product in person.

make sure the width of the rear is correct unless you just want the 3rd member. 9"s are cheap.

I don't know where this stuff comes from. Perhaps neglected cooling systems. Although I've only had one, it never overheated. Of course, the cooling system was maintained.

The 400 does take more cooling capacity than the smaller bore V-8s and I would not run one without having more cooling capacity to offset this. This point is not argueable. Physics?

Note that I said you can cool it, just have a good radiator. Put it behind a rad from a 305 and turn on the A/C in the middle of summer.

Note that you said they are "notoriously hot running" engines. As if there is something unusual about them in that respect. There isn't.

thanks for the info so far guys.

So, for arguements sake, (like i said, this is all new to me, humor me.) the V6 radiator is obviously not going to keep this beast cool, especially considering the fact that this will be a spring project, with hopes of road-worthiness between late spring/early summer. So I will be investing in a new radiator.

My buddy had a pretty beefy looking aluminum radiator he used for streetstock circle track racing. Should I be looking into something of that proportion?

Next round of questions:

1. Motor Mounts: Will standard 350 motor mounts work? Another friend says he has a set off a 350tpi camaro he had that he turned into a dragster.
2. Transmission: Is that turbo400 a wise choice for this kind of set-up?
3. Rear Gears: What would you guys suggest for a street car that'll have plenty of balls, but will still make for a decent everyday driver? (I've heard 4.10's are usually good.)
4. What kind of problems can I expect to run into putting her together with this tranny/motor?
5. Horsepower you'd guestimate with a decent aluminum intake and 650 holley 4bbl carb?

1. Yes, they work fine.

2. No. A built 700R4 is a wise choice because it will bolt in and save you money by reusing your crossmember, torque arm and driveshaft. That's a lot of money...

3. 3.42's for a daily driver with above 700R4 trans is nice. 3.73's are killer but use a lot more gas!

4. Expect a minimum of 400 hp if you do simple things. I ran high 12's without tons of mods in a 90 Firebird with a 400 small block.

5. Sell the 650 to someone else. You need a performer RPM type intake and a 750 carb, minimum. Also you need 1 3/4" headers...

This 400 overheating thing comes mainly from the heads. THE STOCK HEADS ARE ALL JUNK. I have had three, one from a 76 caprice, one from a 4x4 truck and one from a 4x4 Suburban. They ALL overheated. Upon disassembly, the truck had cracked heads (a crappy thin casting is common on 400s) and the other two had the steam holes AND the coolant passages caked with rust and crap. Bad maintenance is putting it mildly.

I ran my engine with a performer RPM cam profile with the above specs in the 12.80's for the quarter mile. It destroyed T5's... I ran iron L98 heads with the steam holes drilled in them and a stock Trans Am GTA radiator. I had no cooling problems whatsoever after the engine was freshly assembled with lots of used parts by me. You must excessively clean the inside of the block and heads and then keep the cooling system clean. I use nalcool (also known as NAPAKOOL) like we use in the Detroit Diesel engines I work on. The inside iron is kept clean and wonderful.

Good luck on your parts, have the GM guy look them over!

The 1990 V6 radiator was the same piece as the 1990 350 radiator.

I have not had that particular radiator with a 400 so I can't say. Do radiators have some kind of cooling efficiency rating to compare by? Would be quite easy to standardize a test.

I do seem to recall drilling holes for steam to get out and thereby letting water through. I never did that though.

My terminology "notoriously hot running" engines is simply meant to get people thinking about the cooling requirements and was not meant as something bad. Certainly my mistake to put it like that. I have seen a few people not experienced in the 400 try to get it to work with lesser cooliing systems as any other block. My only point is you have to prepare. I sold one to a fellow that was going to put a 2 core in the rear of an offroad buggy and try to cool it. I tried and tried to explain it was not going to happen. I think a 305 on the other hand would probably work. Just trying to help in advance.

My 2 cents on the th400 with 3.42, 3.73, and 4.11. Go to a four by four site (unless there is one here) and calculate speed vs. rpm. 3.42 is bearable with no overdrive but I wouldn't drive it on the interstate. My personal thoughts on 3.73 and up, I'd have to have overdrive. Look at your rpm range of your build also.

Ok, well, if you guys think a built 700R4 can take the beating and save me money, It sounds sound to me. They're alot easier to find/cheap.

Next questions:

1. Kris, define "built". What kind of work should I look at getting done to a 700R4 if I can grab one, and what kind of prices am I looking at to do it?

2. Obviously, I'll need new struts/springs/shocks, should be beefing up my brakes...But what spline count should I be looking for on axles?

3. The car has a 2.5 inch borla exhaust....how much of a difference is .5 of an inch if I want to go up to 3 inch exhaust?

4. Will the motor fit under the stock hood, or do I need a cowl hood? A friend of mine built an 87 IROC with an edelbrock performer high rise intake and a 650 holley carb on a 350 and he needed a 4" cowl hood to fit it, plus he had to cut out of the underside of the hood to fit the air filter.

5. I know the stock rear is a factory 10 bolt, and the same rear that ran with all the camaros of that year. Is it strong enough?

You guys really kick *** with all the info, I'm completely humbled by it. I know alotta people in this town build 3rd gen F-bodies and mustangs and think that if you mount any 350 to a car with a carbuerator its a beast automatically, or if you just drop 3" exhaust and a supercharger to it you'll kill everyone on the track. I know that just mounting a 400 to a car with the wrong parts can sometimes get you moving as fast as just rebuilding the 3.1 V6 motor it came with, lol.

I'd like to do things right the first time, and have something that if I want to, I can build even stronger at a later time.

1. Check out the Transmission/Drivetrain forum for information about beefing up a TH700R-4.

2. V8 springs are fine. Struts and shocks are the same V6 or V8. If you lose things like AC and power steering, and do other weight reduction things to the front end (aluminum heads being another item for weight savings), you can get by with V6 springs. 28 spline axles are the beefier parts.

3. The is a substantial difference between 2.5" and 3" exhaust. Do the cross-section area calculation (radius squared times pi), you'll see that.

4. The Performer is not a "high rise" manifold. The carb mount is about 1/2" higher than stock - not substantial. If you use a drop base air cleaner (which is what the stock V8 air cleaner is), it will fit under a stock, non-cowl hood. A 650 CFM carb is a bit small on a 400.

5. The 10-bolt rear is strong enough if you beef it up enough. There's a tech article linked from the thirdgen.org homepage about that.