I am just looking at all the options before I begin a motor swap. I first thought about a BBC swap, but after some searches I am not so sure. I was wondering if a 383 would be good for a nice streetable car. The car will be driven on the HW quite a bit, and I was wondering a 383 is a good choice?

Thanks in advance!

 

UMM... Yeah

383 = Torque, which is what "street" driving is all about,

just remeber you DO NOT need that .525 lift cam

 

I haven't done a whole lot of freeway driving, mostly city, but I love mine and it's my sole transportation. My goal was to capitalize on the torque potetnial a 383 has. And I am loving how it came out. Like BumpaD said if you want a fun car to drive, go for loads of torque, and at a usable rpm (if your torque only really comes in at 5000rpm it won't be doing you much good). I would highly recommend a 383. Yeah a big block would rock but that would be a major pain to install and do any maintenance on. Your life would be much easier with a small block. When I did mine I didn't have time to hook up a 400 sb but might be a good idea, since a few more cubes won't hurt when shooting for torque.

Just my $.02

 

I agree completely. I love the 383. I drive mine to work, school, the track. I waste mustangs at every stop light. Just keep in mind what you will mostly be doing with the car in terms of driving medium when settling on the combonation of parts. All out, hight RPM performance may be fun at the strip, but it can get pretty old, pretty quick in a daily driver! I feel the 383 or 400, even a well thought out 350, can be very rewarding engines if everything is done correctly the FIRST time.

 

Hi, I was actually wondering the same thing. Someone told me that a 383 loves gas. I am looking to built a daily driver with POWER. I always hear about how the 383 rocks in power. But is it really practical? Does it get decent gas mileage? Also, u could build a 383 out of any 350 can't u?

 

Your gas mileage will probably suck because if you drive like me and you can't keep your foot out of it... well you get the idea. A lot of your mileage loss will be due to camshaft selection and the amount of power you want. If you are looking for big hp and go with a long duration cam and big ole fuel injectors, and tune your prom to take full advantage of the new parts, then yes your mileage will be low. I can easily pull down around 15-18 mpg in the city by just driving the car nice and easy. I think all your mileage issues are addressed in the tune of the car and driving habits.

A 383 is, roughly, a 350 block bored .030+ with a 400 crank, 3.75" stroke. You should look for a good core block, preferably 4-bolt mains, ideally an engine block that you KNOW has not been abused, ie: oil starved, overheated, etc.

My stroker was constructed with a 1980 block from an original vette that barely moved. The rest of the internals are from the aftermarket. You should be able to get a stroker motor put together from just about any usable core up to the 90s. THe LT1 uses, i think, some dedicated parts but there are plenty of stroker LT1s out there.

I hope I have been helpful and not just repeated basic stuff you already know.

 

What's the best setup for a 383? Would TPI be best? I saw them in Edelbrock for almost $1000! Would there be anything else that would be less expensive, but not cost too much power? Also, just an idea, but would a 383 with a 6-speed be better for gas mileage? So, if you go with like an '80's Vette cam, gas wouldn't be horrible?
Sorry, 87z28TN, to piggyback off your post, but if you're like me, you might be wondering some of the same things. Thanks.

 

The TPI motor builds great low and midrange torque, but is limited by the long narrow runners for upper rpm power. If you are mostly looking for a strong street motor, 383, or whatever, then a tpi would be a great thing. Great drivablity, with proper tune, and gobs of low end grunt. For gas mileage, 6spd would be ideal, even 700R4 is better than my TH350! 383s are the kings of the street!

 

I wouldn't go with an 80's vette cam, it's pretty mild. I would suggest a CompCams XE268 (for a fairly smooth idle) or an XE 274 for more performance, but lower gas mileage.

 

I appreciate all the information that is being presented. I have been running a couple of ideas around in my head. I too, have thought about TPI, but I was wondering if a carb could provide a nice street setup, with some nice torque and hp ratings?

 

So, how much would I be looking at with building a 383? I have a 700R4 now, but I want a stick. It's just more fun. Could I build a 700R4 to take the torque of a 383? Are TPI and carbs the only decent induction system for the 383? Mine would be a daily driver, so gas mileage is a factor. What all can you 383 guys take? Vettes? any close ones with Vipers maybe??

 

Personally I would go with a carb. You can get good mileage with a carb, it just has to be tuned right. For your setup you could go with a holley 750 DP for a manual tranny or VS for an auto. You can build the 700R4 to take the power, but it might get exspensive depending on how "built" it is. As for the manual tranny, you'd have to get a tranny that can take that kind of power since it would tear a T5 to peices. You could get a T56, Rockcrusher T10, Tremec TKO, etc. the list goes on, but I'm not an expert on trannys or anything so don't quote me. For the power, it depends how you build it. If for example you're running AFR heads, big cam, higher C.R. you can expect 500+ hp which is enough to run 11's. However that costs lots of money to do that, so I would say for lower end 383 you could push out about 400hp or so which would put you in the 12-13 depending on suspension. If I remember correctly, vipers run mid 12-s (correct me if I'm wrong) so you could waste them or lose by a little bit, it all depends how much money you want to dump into the engine. Sorry about the long post, but I hope it helps.

 

If you want to play with Vipers and Vettes, I suggest the following. A bullet proof 383, custom DFI, and a big a$$ blower!
Or maybe something more affordable like a 383 with a carb. and lots of cam, head, and compression. A little nitrous in the trunk is good insurance! Don't kill yourself though!! Remember the new Viper is gonna have a 500cid motor pulling 500hp and 500 ft-lbs. of torque with 10 cylinders. They do have an advantage.

 

So, a 383, with a carb, and a T56 would be reasonable? So, with the T56, gas mileage would be good. I assume a T56 could take the power, right. I mean these things were behind LS1's right? What kind of budget would I need to build, a reasonably quick 383? Thanks,

 

The T56 could probably take the power, but they're only rated to 450 ft-lbs tq., it just depends on how built your engine is and if you abuse it a lot. What is your idea of "reasonably quick"? That will help determine the budget.

 

I will guess that reasonably quick means low 12s. For this an inexpensive crank will do fine. Connecting rods and pistons should be not be taken lightly because they will determine a lot about the strength of your engine. Plenty of people I know and have built engines for are going 10s with "inexpensive" crankshafts, with top nothch rods and pistons. Did I mention some of these guys run nitrous. Cylinder heads are an expensive area but remember airflow and power go hand in hand. AirFlow Research and Canfield build excellent heads. World Products does to. THese are the only aftermarket heads I have experience with. There are others so don't feel limited. Stock chevy L98 heads can do well with porting, but depending on what you want it may be more expensive to have the stock heads machined and ported for your performance level. A Victor JR. intake manifold or something of a similar variation will be fine. A holley DPer or a demon carb is the way to go, 750 cfm should be plenty of carb for you. I had a 383 in my old Monte Carlo with a 750 demon carb and I went 11.83 @ 121 best run. And the carb was not tuned perfectly yet. I had to sell the car before I ever tuned the thing to it optimum. As for the budget you require, it is hard to say how much it will cost. Many things come in there. What parts do you have to start with? If you are building from the ground up then the price tag will be high, $3000+ I am guessing. My 1st 383, don't get scared, I spent $3000 alone on just the short block. Thats block, crank, rods, pistons, bearings, and machining/balancing. Now remember you can find parts online or at swap meets for considerable less money, just make sure you buy what you think you are and make sure nothing is damaged beyond repair. Hope this helps some!

 

Hey, sorry 87z28TN, to 'steal' your post, but I figured you might be wondering some of the same things. Anyway, to me: reasonably quick is 12's! And I can get a mid 70's 350 from a Monte Carlo. It's from my uncle, so I know it's not been abused. I'll be going to college in a year, so gas mileage is going to count. I think I'll go carb, with a T56 from '94 to '97 or so. I don't think I'll need more than 450- FT-lbs out of it. That's enough to satisfy me I think. Would the 350 out of the Monte have a non-computer controlled distributor? Just gathering up ideas. Also, on a side note. I can also get a shaker scoop from a '77 TA from my uncle too. Do you guys think it'd be cool to make it fit my TA?

 

in a word. yes. =D