Hey guys,

I got a 1988 Iroc with a 350 TPI and 700R-4 with about 70,000 miles on it. I am the second owner and bought it back in high school. I threw the timing chain on it about 5 years ago now and its been sitting in the heated shop under a car cover since. Ive decided its time to res erect the old girl and get it back on the road. Just looking for some thoughts. I was thinking about building a 383 stroker with a HSR, and looking for around 500-550HP. I want the car to be very street able. Ive got 2 buddies with 04 saleen mustangs that think they are to good.

First I was wondering how hard it would be to get those numbers without using forced induction? Also should i buy a new block for the build and keep the original engine intact?

Second i will also have to build a transmission, i was thinking of about a 4l60E?

Im still up in the air with what to do on the build and looking for some suggestions/comments.

thanks

 

Welcome aboard thirdgen.org.

Have you considered an LS1/4L60E? Heads/cam/exhaust/tune will have you at 500 HP with good street manners.

 

I briefly looked at an lS1 swap but the idea of building and engine and dropping it in and tuning seemed much more straight forward. Do not get me wrong i am not counting out a ls1 swap just haven't read much about it. I can build engines its the wiring that scares me hahah. so the idea of 383 HSR seemed like the better route but i could be wrong. Is it worth swapping in a LS1 as compared to building a L98 stroker?

 

In my opinion? Hands down.

 

500-550 hp NA 383 being streetable is difficult but not impossible. It'll just cost you a lot more money plus the driveline and suspension upgrades required to get that power to the ground. Cheaper to just buy a Saleen if you want to run like they do. A more realistic goal of 350-400 hp is easier to obtain with a NA 383.

 

A saleen would be the easy way out. Also I wouldn't be caught driving a ford haha. I want to be different. even with a supercharger on the 383... 500 should be possible and also streetable? would it not? i am just wanting to build a car that stands out. I don't want be like everyone else

 

Have you driven a 500+ HP SBC streetable car that doesn't have a power adder? It's not as easy as it sounds. 500+ streetable HP from a BBC is a lot easier.

Making that kind of power requires a complete driveline upgrade. Don't even bother with the 4L60E. You're either going to need a 4L80E or TH400 to survive on the street. Say goodbye to the puny 10 bolt. You're going to need an upgrade to a Dana 60, 12 bolt or 9" diff if you want it to survive. The stock suspension system works however you'll need to upgrade all of it to better aftermarket components to get the power to the ground.

Then there's things like subframe connectors, roll bar if you intend on going to the track since you'll probably be in at least the 11 second range, etc etc.

It's nice to say you have a xxx HP engine but if the rest of the car can't handle it, the power is useless.

 

I am Fully aware that with the HP numbers everything must be built to back it up. I have a Duramax that is the same. Also spent a fair bit of time at the track. I wasnt saying that i was going to build and engine and then just go fast. Ive built enough cars and been around ALOT to know that the other aspects of the car need to be addressed. I was just asking about opinions and suggestions on what kind of moter to put in!

 

Don't take offense, you'd be amazed how many new members come by with Hot Rod Magazine in hand talking about making big streetable HP #'s with no clue about drivetrain and suspension. We're just nice enough to want to save people from themselves. And, you did express a concern about wiring. . .

Personally, I haven't worked much with TPI-based systems. I do read a lot on this Board, and had a fellow 3rd gen friend (who moved out of state several years ago) who spend a couple of bucket loads of money on a ZZ4 TPI powerplant. Even so, my relatively unmodified LS1/T56 with so-far horrible 60' outruns his best by half a second and 4 mph. If it weren't for health issues, he would have gone LSx by now.

There are probably members who have gotten a HSR 383 to 500 HP. Not saying it can't be done. Just saying that you could probably do a 500 HP LSx/4L60E or 4L80E for not much (if any) more $'s, and have a more streetable and economical car in the end.

 

I'd follow atilla's 383 tpi build
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/engi...st-builds.html

He made almost 420 horses and like 450 ft lbs.

 

The big HP, small engine, builds in the magazines are still the worst but now it's also all the TV shows that show so called "budget builds". Some are better than others. The best I saw so far was a couple of years ago on Trucks. They were going to beef up a diesel with reprogramming, NOS and propane injection. Before the build, they said that the driveline has already been upgraded to handle the increased power. That alone really impressed me that they actually said that.