ok well i have a 350 in my camaro right now, but i am wanting to build another engine on the side with much more horse power but with still good gas milage, ive herd of "how to make horsepower on a budget" by that guy but i was wondering what engine size i should go with.

Thanks

 

Well for your application you could get another 350. When I looked into rebuilding my 350 I saw that simlpy doing a little clearancing and getting a new crank would give me a 383 so that is the route I went. Be advised that you will need a small base circle cam or slight clearancing to the connecting rods to avoid cam interferance. A big block has always been the big power route, but it slao adds weight and would be hard to find parts to fit into your car. Hope this helps a little John

 

ya i wanted to go with the SBC i was thinking about this 350 4-bolt but it has the 2-peace rear main seal, but for 50 bucks what can i say. so i am probally going with that and turn it into a 383.

 

Unless you have a ton of cash to blow on a good crank, keep it a 350. a 383 uses a 400 crank and you have to turn it down. the prob is, a stock 400 the weakest part is the crank, you turn it down and weaken it more. If your turning less than 4000 RPM youll be ok otherwise open wallet

 

The comment about using the 400 crank and turning down is not true today. There's absolutely NO reason to use a stock 400 crank ( which actually is no weaker than any other SBC crankshaft ).

SCAT, and SEVERAL other vendors sell a replacement 383 crank. It's MADE to bolt right into a 350 block with no modifications, but it has a 3.750" stroke ( same as the 400 ) thus giving you a 383 ( if you bore the 350 block .030 over, which is the common overbore ).

Check out www.enginekits.com , as well as www.napparts.com , do a search for Dirt Track Thunder and Larry's Performance on www.google.com . All these places carry complete rebuild kits that let you turn that 350 into a 383 for a VERY reasonable price. I helped a friend of mine pick out the parts for a 383 he's building right now for his truck. As of now he has EVERYTHING to put the engine together, and his total investment is less than $2500.

A mild 383 with the right parts will get you an EASY 350-360HP , with 400 or more ft/lbs of torque. More torque at a lower RPM means you don't have to push the motor as hard to push the car along at a certain speed.


HTH

 

Like I said open your wallet, and yes it is a 400 crank no matter how you look at it. you said it yourself.

 

Sorry Eddy but it is NOT a 400 crank no matter how you look at it. It is made specifically to fit a 350. Having the same stroke does not make it the same crank. It comes with the journal sizes to fit a 350 and will not even work in a 400. The days of having to turn down a 400 crank are long passed. Also squeeks I think the 383 crank for your application is cheaper because you have the two piece rear main seal. -John

 

i'm building a 406ci motor. it should have arount 390-400 hp at the wheels(i hope). but i'm sure it will be a gas hog.

 

i wouldnt mind having a 383 or 406 engine with tpi...
or some sort of fuel injection

i have to wait and save some more money...
what ever engine i get built i want at least over 350 hp... and around 400 torque...